This week, Ashley and I talked about:
Supporters of the Millionaires Tax of 2012 have put out a new video vilifying Kim Kardashian* for making too much money and not paying enough of it back in taxes. She made a cool $12 million in 2010, but only paid only 10.3% in California state taxes. That’s only one percent more than the average Californian.
So. Totally. Unfair.
“Don’t you think she could pay a little bit more?” The ad boldly asks in a chivalrous effort to stick it to the (wo)man and make a stand for the middle calss. The only problem is that the logic this ad uses isn’t based in reality. Kim Kardashian didn’t pay only a leetle bit more in taxes than the average Golden State resident, she paid a yacht-load more.
The average Californian paid $4,371. Kim K paid $1,236,000. She paid over 280 times what the commoners paid.
Now who’s not paying their fair share?
*Let me be clear, there are plenty of reasons to vilify this whiney prima donna, but the amount of money she makes isn’t one of them.
This week, Ashley and I talk about:
Plus we have a rant, a dirty joke from Eli, and and awesome Dude of the Week.
Happy listening!
I wrote some schtuff last week. It’s super important that you read it. Or at least click on the links, even if you never get around to reading it because a small person asked for an 87th sippy cup of juice, or your boss walked in and you’re supposed to, like, actually work and not mess around reading political commentary on the Internet. Because the people that hire me won’t know you didn’t read it, they’ll just see page views. Help a free-lancer out, people!
Apparently people are getting themselves killed by Mexican drug cartels using American firearms. The idea was to follow the guns to the big bad drug lords, but the operation has gotten completely out of hand. Skeery stuff.
In crazy San Francisco news, the city wants to make ex-cons a protected class of citizens. I’m reminded of that scene from Liar Liar when Jim Carey yells into the phone to one of his scummy clients wanting legal advice, “STOP BREAKING LAW, ASSHOLE!”
Should obese children be removed from their homes and placed in foster care? I say no times a thousand. I love the first comment on this one: “Do you really have to make EVERY article about politics?” Um, yes. That’s what I do for a living.
I can even turn Glee into a political issue! I’m totally talented like that.
I was also on The Roger Hedgecock Show to talk about the debt ceiling. It was my first time on a nationally syndicated AM radio show, and I loved it. If you loved it too, tell your favorite radio host you’d like them to have me on. Seriously, if you demand, they’ll supply. I hope.
Have a great week!
I wrote a few things last week. Maybe you’ll like them. I hope so. My self-worth is tied up in whether or not people like me. Ok, not really. But it still feels nice to be liked. 
I wrote about lack of skills in American workers. I added that to my long list of reasons why education needs reformation. Like, yesterday. School choice leads to competition and high performance. Just sayin’…
San Francisco is thinking about banning pet goldfish. No really. I can’t make this crap up. They already banned happy meals, so I guess goldfish were the next logical step. Next step? Banning people.
And lastly, Troopathon! Yay for our peeps overseas. Thank you to everyone that helped us raise over $500,000 for care packages for the troops.
California is releasing tens of thousands of inmates after a ruling by theSupreme Court on Monday. No, they haven’t been wrongfully imprisoned and suddenly found innocent due to some new DNA technology.
It’s just that the prisons are overcrowded.
A sane solution would be to build more prisons. Unfortunately, there’s apparently not enough money to build more steel bars. So, we should totally tax the rich, because even though they pay the vast, vast majority of our taxes, they still aren’t paying enough, because new prisons aren’t getting built!
Another logical option would be to spend less money per prisoner, so that the savings could go toward building new facilities. The average prisoner in the State of California costs over $48,000 annually, with about $16,000 of that going to health care, mental health, and dental costs.
Prisoners, convicted felons, probably have better health care than you do.
Seriously, does your health insurance cover free hormone replacement therapy for you if you happen to be transgendered? California prisons do. And soon, they may even provide gender reassignment surgery as well.
Read the rest at The Stir
While I try not to judge others, occasionally I come across something that makes me stop and say to myself, “Wow. That’s disturbing.” Such a moment happened this week when I stumbled upon a story about Adult Babies. Fully grown humans that like to wear diapers, sleep in giant cribs, and suck on pacifiers.
If I can’t say this is weird, then I might as well not be able to call the sky blue, because that stuff is messed up.
Thanks to the Internet and prime-time network television (hello CSI and the “Furries” episode!), I’ve become aware of some of the stranger oddities that people sometimes choose to indulge in. Being someone that doesn’t understand the appeal of defecating in a giant diaper or putting on a bunny suit to get it on, I’m always strangely fascinated by these people.
Read the rest at The Stir
California is just about bankrupt, which must mean that it’s time to pass a law outlawing flat sheets and short-handled feather dusters in hotels across the state.
Seriously.
This year alone, the Golden State will spend about $25 billion more than the $82 billion it expects to take in from taxes and fees. We have big problems in California, but instead of tackling issues that actually matter, the legislature has introduced a bill to ban flat sheets at the Hotel California.
Supporters of the bill argue it will reduce worker injuries by eliminating the need for workers to repetitively lift extremely heavy mattresses when making beds. They contend that flat sheetscause workers to strain their backs, shoulders and wrists, and are often responsible for repetitive motion injuries.
State Bill 432, sponsored by Senator Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles), also calls for the use of long-handled tools like mops and dusters so housekeepers do not have to get down on their hands and knees to clean bathroom floors.
Read the rest at The Stir
In which I chat about our splendiferous family vacation and how California politics almost marred it, and Ashley Sewell joins me to talk about Osama bin Laden’s death.
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California is one of the most generous states in the nation toward illegal immigrants, teachers, the unemployed, and single mothers. It’s also just about bankrupt. As the saying goes, it’s easy to be generous with other people’s money.
One of the biggest money pits that the oh-so-generousCalifornia taxpayers are funding is the state workers’ pension fund. California public employees have some of the cushiest retirement packages around. These so-called public employeesoften get fatter paychecks in retirement than they did when they were working.
The Golden State? The Welfare State seems more appropriate.
Something is horribly wrong with California’s pension system, and unless something is done to reform it (soon!) the pyramid scheme will collapse. Early retirement ages combined with longer life expectancies means that retirees often collect more checks during retirement than they did during employment. This is not a pension — this is welfare.
No one needs to retire at the ripe-old age of 55 and receive an average of 75% of their last annual salary for the rest of their life. California is unique in this, as all other states average salaries over the last 3-5 years on the job when determining pension payouts. Because of this ‘one year’ rule, California retirees are often able to artificially inflate their salary by switching to a high-earning job for one year, or cashing out years worth of accrued vacation time.
Read the rest at The Stir
