Quote Collection

“The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine the can design.” F. A. Hayek

"Correspondence with Frances Allen, an IBM fellow and Fortran pioneer, suggests that column-major order was originally adopted in order to accommodate idiosyncracies of the console debugger and instruction set of the IBM 704."  Programming Language Pragmatics By Michael Lee Scott

"Look at everything you might read as you might look at a lollipop. Hold it on a stick, see what flavor it has. Maybe it's not worth reading." Bishop Sheen

Ridiculous Connecticut aviation "regulations"

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies
Sec. 15-41-42b. Waiver
No person shall make an intentional parachute jump from an aircraft unless a waiver has been issued by the commissioner of transportation or the parachute jump is made onto a licensed parachute jump center except as follows:

Jumps made necessary because of an aircraft in-flight emergency. [Wheww...]

Military jumps under the control and direction of the United States Department of Defense or the Connecticut Military Department.

Applications for a waiver shall be made on appropriate forms supplied by the Department of Transportation and shall include a signed letter of permission from the property owner upon whose property is located the drop zone area. Application for a waiver shall be made at least fourteen days in advance of the proposed event. [Seriously, why should the nanny state need to regulate this? I'm the one staking my life of some nylon fabric and cord by jumping out of the airplane!]



Sec. 15-41-41. Photographic permit
For any photographic flight necessitating flying at an altitude less than that required by law or regulation, the pilot shall obtain a photographic permit from the department. A permit issued for this purpose does not waive any federal law or regulation [I don't understand this law. Does CT have minimum altitude laws stricter than the FARS? Otherwise, it's kind of pointless, huh?].

Sec. 15-41-18. Airport Establishment
Any municipality or other political subdivision, or officer or employee thereof, or any person, company or association of persons, acquiring property for the purpose of constituting or establishing an airport shall, in order to insure that the property and its use shall conform to minimum standards of safety and shall serve the public interest, make application to the department for approval setting forth the general purpose or purposes for which the property is to be acquired. The applicant shall state in clear and concise language the exact location of the proposed airport, making reference to known and established landmarks, the extent and ownership of the property, including metes and bounds, the size of the proposed landing area and airport environs, the nature of the terrain, whether the adjacent area is free from obstructions based on the glide ratio set forth hereinafter, and any other pertinent data which will enable the department to evaluate the proposal. In addition, the applicant shall furnish a detailed plan of the proposed facility, showing the possibilities for future expansion.

Discussion Flowchart

As seen on zenpundit.com

Critics of Free Markets

Tom Woods responds to a critic of the free market here.

Clovers

Submit and Obey

Moral Hazard

Hello, this is Jackje Rossetti from the City of Somerville with important information for residents and business owners who were affected by the July 10th flash flooding.

The Small Business Administration has notified residents of Middlesex County that they will make low-interest loans available to any homeowner, business owner or non-profit organization suffering significant loss of real estate or personal property. Homeowners and residents may apply for loans up to $200,000 for loss to real estate, and up to $40,000 for loss of personal property, while businesses and non-profit organizations may be eligible for up to $2 million in loans.

SBA Officials will set up a Disaster Loan Outreach Center in the gymnasium of Somerville High School, located at 81 Highland Ave., from Friday, July 30th through Thursday, August 5th, however the application period will remain open until September 27, 2010 for physical property damage, and April 27, 2011 for economic injury applications. The Center will be closed on Sunday, August 1st.

For hours of operation of the Center, the Customer Service phone number for the SBA, or additional information about loans, please visit the City’s website, www.somervillema.gov, or call 311.

Solution:
Subsidies distort what gets built and where it is built.

Important Personal Income Tax Information for Connecticut Employees

Verbatim email from a major CT employer (including one member of our family). My comments are in blue and emphasis in bold.

Effective Jan. 1, 2011 [but passed only a few weeks ago, which is why this email even exists], the State of Connecticut increased the personal income tax rates for certain earning brackets. Beginning Aug. 1, [the CT company] is required to withhold taxes due on your earnings at the new higher rates, as well as collect the back-taxes due on your earnings from Jan. 1 to July 31, 2011 [ex post facto!]. This additional withholding amount will be spread out evenly over the remaining pay periods for 2011 and will be reflected in your pay stubs.

The following provides more details about the income tax changes:

·         New and Increased Marginal Tax Rates
The number of tax brackets has increased from three to six. The new brackets are 3%, 5%, 5.5%, 6%, 6.5% and 6.7%.

·         Phase Out of Lowest Marginal Tax Rate
The 3% tax rate is phased out for taxpayers with Connecticut adjusted gross income:

Over $100,500 filing jointly

Over $56,500 filing single

Over $78,500 filing as head of household

Over $50,250 married filing separately

Income previously taxed at the 3% rate will now be taxed at the 5% rate.

This is only the income tax portion. Use tax and other taxes were increased as well. Taxes are now due on previously non-taxed activities. Read the sorry details at ct.gov.

Analysis:
Our state income tax went up ex post facto!

Analysis #2:
A special note from CT to travelers, vacationers, residents, students, taxi drivers, employers... well, anyone except union members:

"Go away".

Solution:
Are you ready for the great CT exodus?