Plastic Bag tax...

There is a bill in congress right now called the "Plastic Bag Reduction Act of 2009". Basically it is a tax that will charge you as a consumer $.05 from 1/1/2010 to 1/1/2015, and then $.25 from then on for every "single-use carryout bag" you use.. So when they ask paper or plastic, make sure you say paper.

The term `single-use carryout bag' means a carryout bag, including a grocery sack, dry-cleaning bag, take-out food bag, retail bag, membership or wholesaler bag, and service station bag, manufactured or imported for use by a retail seller at a point of sale with a customer.

If you are a retailer that collects the tax, you will get $.01 until 1/1/2015 and then $.05 there after. The money collected and payments will come out of the Trust Fund created for the bill. So, what is the government going to do with the money they collect that is not paid back to the retailer? Oh, that is right. They need the extra 80% to cover the administrative costs for the Fund, the paperwork, and the regulation.

This is awesome. Another tax.

I wonder if Uncle Bama will be required to pay for his bags when he goes shopping? Did they ever consider the industry and companies that actually produce those bags? They will be laying people off, and closing their doors if this bill passes.

When we go shopping for the family, we have at least 20-30 bags of food. I guess we will need to start putting the meat with the veggies. This is yet another example of how a family making less that $250,000 will be paying more taxes.

I personally think that instead of taxing us, they should make it easier to recycle the bags. Look into making that technology work instead of finding yet another GREEN way to pull money out of my pocket.

Just the Facts

$1,000,000,000,000.00 - Amount of money so far used in bailouts.

92,740,927 - Number of tax payers in 2006 (most recent statistics from the IRS)

4,637,046 - 5% of the tax payers (remember, 95% of us will not have any tax increases)

$215,654.53 - Tax that each of the tax payers will have to pay just to pay the principle of the bailouts. If 95% of tax paying Americans don't have to pay any extra [See this video], then the 4.6 million taxpayers will have a tax increase of over 215 thousand dollars in 2010 just to pay off the bail out money. And that does not include interest.

The white house says that it will help reduce that amount by removing $100 million for its budget. Thanks for the help, you have decreased the 5%s tax liability by $21.57. That is not going to cut it. Remember, that the 5% is anyone who makes over $250,000. If they had to pay back what was loaned out, they would effectively have to pay an 86% tax rate.

I think this puts the numbers in a more understandable form. If all of the tax payers in 2006 were to pay off the bailout money, everyone would have a tax increase of $10,782.73. I personally don't have that amount of many to give when I pay my 2009 taxes. Man, I better get a lot of services for my 10 thousand dollars.

Yes, the federal government is going to take more of your money. There is no way they can't raise taxes and expect to stay a float. Not only do they have to come up with the money to pay for everything they want to, they have to come up with an additional Trillion dollars. But then again, Uncle Bama says not to worry about the deficit, or government spending [Washington Times: Obama: Need for stimulus trumps deficit fears]. I just don't understand how people can actually think they are not going to have to pay for any of this. The government can print money, but they need to collect it from the tax payers at some time.

Al Gore

"I am here today to lend my support to one of the most important pieces of legislation ever introduced in the Congress. I believe this legislation has the moral significance equivalent to that of the civil rights legislation of the 1960’s and the Marshall Plan of the late 1940’s."

This is a quote from Al Gore on April 24, 2008 when he was making a statement to the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Wow... Global Climate change legislation is more morally correct than civil rights, and rebuilding Western Europe after World War II. Shows just were the hearts of congress is right now. And what they see as moral priorities. I personally think it is morally wrong to impose such a huge tax on the American people. And yes, this will be a tax. Utility and Manufacturing companies will pass the cost to the American people. Uncle Bama even tells us that there will be a significant increase in utility costs if Cap and trade is passed. Uncle Bama said the following during a January 2008 interview with the San Francisco Chronicle.

"You know, when I was asked earlier about the issue of coal, uh, you know — Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it — whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers."

It will be interesting to see if Cap and Trade does pass, who can afford to heat/cool their homes. This is going to be one of the biggest taxes ever placed on the people of the US. It is a burden that none of us should have to shoulder. I wonder if the White House, and Federal Buildings will have to abide by the new legislation. I bet they will be excluded from the Cap and Trade regulations and restrictions. Just like they are excluded from IRS tax penalties, and jail time.

Strip searching students illegal? Supreme Court not so sure - Los Angeles Times

Strip searching students illegal? Supreme Court not so sure - Los Angeles Times

"The Supreme Court gave a skeptical hearing today to lawyers who were urging a
rule against strip searching students at school.

Instead, most of the justices voiced concern that students could hide dangerous drugs such as crack cocaine or heroin in their clothes."

"For a moment, Justice David H. Souter tried to put himself in the mind of the vice principal who ordered the strip search of Savana Redding. The year before, a middle-school student had become violently ill after taking mysterious pills at school. The official may have feared a repeat.

"Better embarrassment [of one student] than the risk of violent sickness and death," Souter said."

Does this scare anyone else? Do you really want your children being strip seached at school?

LA Temple - Anthrax Scare

This was forwarded to me via email. I really liked it, so I am going to post it here.

My heart is overflowing with joy and gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His tender mercies and mighty miracles in our behalf. I just have to share this with you. As most of you know, I am a Temple ordinance worker and work the morning shift in the LA Temple every Saturday. Today, I had the privilege of translating sister Martz-the new assistant Matron's-Message during our devotional.

She started like this "The prophet Joseph Smith said that no unhallowed hand would be able to stop this Work from progressing. These past few weeks when mobs have combined and armies have gathered against the saints, the Lord has protected His house". She went on to say that those, like her, who were inside the Temple when mobs were surrounding it, did not realize how scary and terrifying this looked on TV to the rest of us, because inside the House of the Lord all was calm and there was peace abundant.

After Proposition 8 passed, the Temple began receiving threatening calls and mail from those opposing it. They were warned that more than 5000 people would come to the Temple and burn it to the ground, and stop Its work. The first Thursday when the mob came, the new LA Temple President [Mendenhall] called the Salt Lake City Temple Offices for instructions. He was instructed to call the local police and to insure the safety of those attending the Temple by closing the gates. The assistant Matron said today, that it was a tender mercy from the Lord that the mob chose that Thursday to come since they had only one person coming to receive his own endowment that day, which he received in time to leave before trouble started. The LAPD and the FBI responded quickly to the Temple Presidency's summons and patroled the grounds and kept the mob from entering the same.

Most of them had never been there before and expressed their surprise at how beautiful and peaceful all around was. They were invited to come back during the Christmas season to see the lights and they promised they would. On Thursday, November 13th, sister Campbell, a Secretary in the Temple, was opening the mail and upon opening a large manila envelope found inside a smaller one. When she opened this one, a white powder flew all around her desk. She thought this could be related to the demonstrators and feared the worst-ANTRAX. She contacted the President, who in turn called the Salt Lake City Temple office again for instructions. The FBI, the LAPD, and even the SWAT teams were once again in the grounds to investigate, and the Temple once again had to close from around 11:30 AM to 5PM.

They closed the gates and were instructed to keep all the people there wherever they were found at the time. Those in the parking lot had to remain in the parking lot. Those entering the Temple had to remain in the first floor and those already upstairs were taken to the Celestial Room. Then, the miracles began to happen: A brother serving as a recorder that day is a Microbiologist by profession and used to deal with hazardous substances every day. He was the first to say the white powder in the envelope was only talc, and put every one at ease. Then the sister coordinator upstairs was impressed to call upstairs to the sealing area, and said "They said we can't go down but no one said we can't go up, and I have many people in the Celestial room with their ceremonial clothes on ready to work. Could they do some sealings?"

As it happened, there were four sealers present that day and they ran four sealing sessions non stop while the Temple was closed. Downstairs, someone else thought to invite those in the Lobby to do some initiatories, which they promptly did for all those hours too, brothers and sisters alike. Among those waiting in the parking lot there was a large group of young men and women with their leaders who had come to do Baptisms for the dead, and who waited patiently all those hours and decided when the Temple was reopened to go ahead and fulfill their assignment
instead of driving back home. The Temple reopened in time for the 5:30 PM session. The next day when recording the ordinances, they discovered that they had performed 2000 sacred ordinances on Thursday, only one less than the day before when three stakes had been visiting the Temple.

Once again the assistant matron reminded us of the words of the prophet Joseph Smith, "No unhallowed hand can stop the Work from progressing...". But, this is not all, a prophecy was fulfilled also.

When the new LA Temple President was set apart by President Uchdorft of the First Presidency, he received a blessing and these words were pronounced: " The time has come for the LA Temple to come out of obscurity and become an Ensign for Righteousness to the world
under your presidency." The pictures of the Temple have been shown on TV, newspapers and the internet, not only in this country but worldwide. People of other faiths have called and sent letters to the Temple thanking the Church for defending marriage and protecting the family, and commenting how impressed they are by how beautiful and majestic the Temple looks .

One minister of an African American church, who by his own admission had harbored ill feelings against the mormons before said " I am impressed by your integrity and Christ like behavior, and even if I am not ready to consider you my brothers and sisters in Christ, we can be first cousins!".

I asked the assistant matron if I could share her comments and she said to go ahead. I can only add my own testimony that I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has the power and authority of God on earth. God Lives and Jesus, His only Begotten Son and our Savior is coming soon to redeem His people. I am grateful to know this and I pray we stand firm, steadfast and immobile while the prophecies of the signs before His Coming are fulfilled. "Be not afraid, only believe" He has said, and also " What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is
the same." I testify that this is true and testify it in the Holy Name of Whom I strive to serve, even Jesus Christ. Be faithful and safe is my humble prayer.

Your sister in Christ,

Patricia H. Arnazzi

Carbon Dioxide to be regulated by EPA

We are all saved from global climate change.... The EPA in its infinite wisdom has now declared the following gases as as endangering to us and need to be regulated. You can read their press release here at epa.gov.

EPA’s proposed endangerment finding is based on rigorous, peer-reviewed scientific analysis of six gases – carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride

So to protect us, the EPA has labeled these gases as bad, and are now in the process of pushing for legislation and regulations on these gases.

The proposed endangerment finding now enters the public comment period, which is the next step in the deliberative process EPA must undertake before issuing final findings. Today’s proposed finding does not include any proposed regulations. Before taking any steps to reduce greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, EPA would conduct an appropriate process and consider stakeholder input. Notwithstanding this required regulatory process, both President Obama and Administrator Jackson have repeatedly indicated their preference for comprehensive legislation to address this issue and create the framework for a clean energy economy.

The funny thing is... Well, not so funny.... Humans are a huge producer of Carbon Dioxide. Did you know that one of the by products of our body breaking down fat? So basically, we are now producing a gas that is going to be regulated by the federal government. Call me a right-wing nutjob, but I can see at some time there being a Carbon Dioxide personal tax. I wonder if I would get a break because I have asthma, and produce less of it during the winter.

Here are some interesting facts... There are also companies that require Carbon Dioxide to produce their product. If the EPA pushes this, they will also have to pay higher fees for actually using the chemicals. And they will also have to have an extensive containment system, etc. We can't have them using this gas in a bad way. Here is a list of some of the industries that we can expect to see prices raise on as well because they are now regulated.

• Soft Drinks - Carbon dioxide is used to produce carbonated soft drinks and soda water.
• Pop Rocks will be outlawed, they use pressurized carbon dioxide to give you that pop.
• Baker's yeast - carbon dioxide is a by product of fermentation of sugars that makes our bread nice and fluffy. Maybe the un-leaven bread group had it right from the start.
• Fire extinguisher - Guess what electrical fire extinguishers use liquid carbon dioxide under pressure to combat fires.
• Welding - Most welding equipment uses Carbon Dioxide
• Plants - Hey, plants need Carbon Dioxide to live.
• Plastics - Lots of plastics use Carbon Dioxide as one of their ingredients.
• Refrigerants - Liquid carbon dioxide is used in some refrigeration systems.
• Dry Ice - You may know it as Dry Ice, but it is really solid carbon dioxide.
• Wine - Wine yields and needs carbon dioxide to be created. Oh, I bet the regulations will exclude wine. Liberals can't live without it.

This may be a little extreme, but then again, if you read my BLOG you know I can be extreme. The government needs to make money, so it needs to tax us to death for its ever growing size. I wonder what other elements or combination of elements will be tagged by the EPA so they can be regulated and taxed. Remember the only reason they are being added to the list is so we can tax them.

God the artist

I personally don't think that I could have a happy, purposeful, and fulfilling life without a belief in God. And that is not a hypothesis I am not willing to test.

For me personally, if you were to take the magic of God and His wonder out of life, it would be a really boring, repetitive world to live in.

Is a sunset just the light bending around the Earth, or a rainbow just light shinning through rain drops, or a fresh blanket of snow just water crystals? Or is it something that God arranged so it would happen to give us beauty?

That is how I like to look at it. It is the scientific components, but touched by God for our happiness and enjoyment.

Think of art. You basically just have a bunch of random elements (paint, wood, metal, stone). But then someone takes those elements and manipulates them, arranges them, and creates beauty from them. That is how I view the role of God. He takes the elements, and then arranges them so they create beauty and joy. But not just on a small limited scale, but a universal scale.

I also believe that he does the same thing to us personally, if we let him. He will eventually turn us into a thing of beauty that will help others find joy.

Science vs. Religion rant

I am so tired of being told that I am small or little minded because I believe in a God. The science only camp would make you believe that I am some nut, crazy, or lunatic because I believe in something that cannot be seen, classified, or shown to exist. Well, I am putting the gauntlet down.

I remember my K-12 schooling years. I was told that there were ONLY three states of matter. You had solid, gas, and liquid. There were no other states matter could be in. It was either in a solid, gas or liquid state. But then it was discovered that there is a forth state that matter can be in. A new state has been discovered in the last 20 years. Matter can now be in the state of a plasma. It amazes me how science at one time could prove and teach that there were only three states of matter, but now there are four. Did the forth magically appear, or was science wrong and had failed all of us who were educated pre plasma?

Here is my challenge to the scientific community.

CREATE LIFE.

The scientific community can tell you what building blocks are needed for life. There are lots of papers that tell us what was in the sludge that life hypothetically came from (no one has ever seen this sludge, tested this sludge, or has scientifically proved it existed). But has anyone ever actually created life? No, that is something that science has not been able to do. They can manipulate life that already exists. We can take already living cells and modify them genetically. We can also force living cells to replicate. But we have yet been able to create a living cell from the basic elements and proteins found in cells. Science can only see life come from life that already exists.

Why do you think stem cells research is so hot right now. We can't create the stem cells. We can only harvest stem cells that are already created and then get them to do what we want them to do. We can then get the stem cells to develop into other types of cells. We are not creating life, we are manipulating it.

A living cell has never been created in a laboratory. For some reason science understands everything they need to know, and has all the ingredients for life, but they can't create it. They can take already living cells and clone them, but they have to start with at least one living cell.

Take the common seed. It can lay dormant for years, without showing any form of life. Then that seed can be given what it needs to grow, and it generates life after its own kind. Scientists can take the stuff the seed is made of, they can reproduce the elements, but for some reason, they can't reproduce the magic that creates the life. They can't create a seed and have it come to life.

How can someone tell me that science proves there is not a God. That I am crazy for believing in magic and mystical non scientific things. But that same person can't tell me how the basic proteins and basic elements can generate life? Because they are missing one ingredient. They are missing the magic influence of God. And that is something they will never be able to add.

By removing God, they are missing out on the most important and beautiful parts of living. The are removing the magic and mystery of life.

If you break life down to a scientific theory, you loose the real beauty of life. You miss the miracle of the starting of life, the growing of the life, and the outcome of a life lived. If you break it down to just its physical elements, you then have the ability to dispose of it, and eliminate it, because it has not magic or miracle. Once life looses its magic and mystery, it can easily be disposed of or disregarded as important.

So, back to my challenge. CREATE LIFE!

Until you can do that, don't tell me I am small or closed minded. I believe in the elements, and the same ingredients you do. But I add an additional one to it. I add the influence of God and his ability to actually add life to those ingredients. How does that make me close minded? How does believing in what I can't see close my mind.

20 years ago, if someone was not thinking there was more than what science says there is, then we would not have plasma screen TVs. Just because you can't prove it is there, don't ridicule me because I believe it is there. At one time there was a scientist that thought that plasma must exist, and hey, they were right. One day everyone will say, hey, there is a God, there he is.

My scientific hypothesis is this: Life is created by God, and that God is responsible for all life that starts on Earth. That is my hypothesis, now disprove it by creating life. Take the ingredients of a cell and give it life. Until this hypothesis can be disproved, then it must be true. Isn't that how science works? You come up with a scientific theory or hypothesis, and then try to either prove it or disprove it. If it can't be disproved, then by default it must be true.

Utah Humor

This blog as a really funny post about living in utah...

http://jaredshannonallenfamily.blogspot.com/2009/03/you-live-in-utah.html

Phil Spector the man with the mane.

This is a tribute to the mane of Phil Spector. I hope Jail suits him well.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/14/us/14spector.html?hp

I have enjoyed watching the news on this Murder trial. At times I think the hair may of done it.

Christian in America on the decline

I was reading an article in Newsweek in the April 13, 2009 issue. The article was entitled "The End of Christian America". This article quoted statistics from a survey done called "American Religious Identification Survey" or ARIS. It is a survey was collected from 54,461 respondents across the US. There were some trends that I think I personally think are disturbing.

The fact that the number of total Christians has decreased from 86.2% of the population in 1990 to 76.0% in 2008 worries me. And it is not because people are moving to different forms of religion, they are moving to No Religion. In 1990 8.2% said they did not believe in a religion, and in 2008 it is now 15%. The percentage difference is made up by the a 3% increase in people who refused to take the survey. Our society is not moving to different religions, but are moving to wards Atheist and Agnostic views.

There were a couple of other interesting points the survey also illustrates. Even though the population says they are 76.0% Christians, only 69.5% of the population that there is a personal God.

Muslim has the highest number of 18-29 year olds and the lowest 50-69 year olds as members.

The LDS Church has a higher demographic of 30-49 at 40% than any other age group of its members.

The LDS Church has the highest married couples than the other religions with 68% of its membership married (no wonder they were such big supporters of Prop 8 in CA).

There has also been an increase of College Graduates 25 and over in all the religions. The LDS Church has increased from 22% to 31% from 1990 to 2008.

GREAT more SPAM

OK, this is funny. Now I am not only going to get Viagra and other Canadian Pharmacy spam, but since the increase in the Federal Tax on Cigarettes, I am going to have to deal with Cigarette spam.

Lets hear it again for the internet and federal taxes. I will now get a regular flow of 20% off coupons for smokes. Hey, but the last one says I will get a free Zippo Lighter.

Tax something enough, and you will see a black market for it.

Here is the cool ad I got today:

http://em-sender4.com/fb/fb/70B040A898A6E8A62C8E6C212C08E25AE2E77E9366E07B2DD5FB85A2C5B00EF6/show.aspx

Gun ban... Lets spend the money on other things...

The recent attacks in PA, New York, and the gun problems in Mexico have all brought up the gun ban debate again. I always like to look at numbers. I personally think that money and effort should be put into other programs, etc to help prevent deaths than on gun control.

I will illustrate this point using the death rates of 2005 (this is the most recent mortality rate figures I could find). http://www.disastercenter.com/cdc

Homicides done by discharge of a firearm killed 420,000 citizens in the US. Accidental shootings 30,000. So if you add them all up (all deaths caused by a firearm) totals 450,000 deaths in 2005. Now I am not trying to trivialize these deaths, but I want to make a point. (I am not including suicide in this total).

Why not concentrate more on Transportation safety? During 2005 there were 1,620,000 people that died in transportation accidents. It looks like the car is more likely to kill you than someone with a gun. I think we should put the same legislation on getting a drivers license, that we do on hand gun purchases. Lets not let anyone with mental illness or a felony drive a car.

27,730,000 people died from Heart Disease's. Lets spend more on research for this problem, or why don't we just ban the causes of it. Lets ban anything with fat in it.

1,970,000 people died from Pneumonia. I don't know if you can ban the cause of that, but lets try anyway.

640,000 people died from falling down. I guess we need to ban walking, running, and any thing that could lead to falling down.

790,000 people died from exposure to noxious substances and or poisons. Most of these are already banned, or licensed. So why did so many people die from these causes.

My point is this. For the amount of press that the recent gun violence has caused, it gets a lot more coverage than the things that are really killing Americans. For every one person killed by a gun, 3+ people die in a car accident, 17+ people die of Heart problems, 4+ people die of Pneumonia, 1.4 people die from falling down, and 1.7 people die from poison or noxious substances.

Kind of puts it into prospective. But the one I think makes the biggest impact is that for every 1 person that dies from a gun, 2.4 people commit suicide. Lets ban suicide. Oh, wait it is already against the law.

Why do we need to spend so much time and resources banning guns? This was back in 2005, I can't imagine what the statistics for 2008 and 2009 will show. Lets not take peoples guns away, but work on fixing the economy and taking away the reasons why people would want to commit suicide.

African Giant Black Millipede - Archispirostreptus gigas

These are Archispirostreptus gigas babies. Archispirostreptus gigas, the giant African millipede, is one of the largest of the millipedes, growing up to 11 in (28 cm) in length. It lives in tropical and subtropical Africa, in rotting plant life or moist earth, and usually avoids light. It is black in color, and is often kept as a pet.

Most of you don't know this, but they can no longer be imported into the US because of a mite that has effected them in Africa (that can be harmful to some animals). So only US domestic bred or already imported species are available in the US. So far, I have seen 10 different babies in my millipede terrarium. I am hoping that in a little while I will have at least another mature mating couple. Then I will have a colony that will allow me to sell these beauties to other collectors and hobbyists. If you are interested in them, please leave a comment on this post and I will get back with you.

This is a picture of one of the parents. I don't know if this is mommy or daddy (I did not want to un coil it to check). I am guessing this is the male, I have not seen the other one for a week or so, so I assume it went under ground to lay its eggs. There did find evidence that it came out of hiding last night.

I hope the babies do well, and can be raised to adult hood soon. Any suggestions oh their husbandry would be appreciated as well.

Barack O'Bama

Thanks the the company I work for, or one of the web properties they own. Ancestry.com has uncovered the fact that Barack O'Bama is from Ireland. His thired great grandfather was born in Ireland and then immigrated to the US.

Obama - No tax increase for anyone making $250,000 or less.

"If you are a family making less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes go up. Not your capital gains tax, not your payroll tax, not your income tax, no taxes. Your taxes will not go up."

I must not understanding this. He says if you make less than $250,000 a year, you will not see ANY TYPE OF TAX increase. But then what is this? The federal government has now passed a new $.62 per pack cigarette tax. Which Obama did not veto. I think that does counts as a tax. And according to a national gallop poll, only 12% of smokers make more than $90,000. And statistics also show that the more money you make, the less likely you are a smoker.

This tax will hit more people making less than $250,000 a year than those making over $250,000 a year.

Does anyone really believe that this tax will really go to Child Health Care? And the current Child Health Care plan being debated says a Child is anyone under 30 years old. Just another example that the Federal Government thinks its citizens are to immature to take care of themselves, when they classify a child to be anyone under 30.