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Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 01:27:10 +0000

trust a private agency more? YOU BETCHA! _______________________________

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 01:45:09 +0000

this also got me thinking about tolls whether yr on the Mass Pike or FE Everett, TOLLS SLOW CARS DOWN. One of the only taxes I would advocate would be a gasoline tax to get rid of the tollbooths. The Pike gets so backed up around the route 84 connection where I get off, that on several Friday, Saturday, and Sundays during peak hours the toll takers just wave people through for free to keep things moving. Hell, and when you do get charged most if it will just get siphoned to a bloated leaky Big Dig 60 miles away from me.... you can't win... _______________________________

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 01:47:25 +0000

I'm not anti-fee, I'm anti Robbery. for my $100 USD, I got a laser printed peace of cardstock to hold for 6 days followed by a .50 cent piece of plastic in the mail. _______________________________

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2005-08-05 09:23:12 +0000

Here here! So perhaps the private sector should perform governmental duties! I suppose a private sector army is out of the question (as I've proposed before), but licensing boards, post office construction, road building, etc... Great idea, right? I think so. Let the market dictate the job you and your taxes pay for, and get better work at a better price! Too bad Bush/Cheney handed out tens of billions of our tax dollars to companies on No-bid contracts to friends (disregard your opinion on the Iraq invasion, right or wrong), while creating the large$t government in 50 years (tax percentage of GDP). We all sound like a big happy bunch of Kerry supporters... Why didn't he win again...?

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 13:46:04 +0000

You can thank Republicans for siphoning money. How much should the federal gasoline tax be raised to afford a $286 billion highway bill? --- The state income taxes generated in Boston pays for state services west of Worcester.

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 13:47:48 +0000

A driver's license is worth more than the material it's printed on. Much like the greenback in your pocket. I don't believe your doing a fair accounting of the work needed to transfer driver records between states.

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 13:49:07 +0000

The Republicans are now _the_other_ party of Big Government.

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 14:11:23 +0000

Next to Vennochi lecturing the Democrats in the Globe yesterday, was Jacoby schooling the Republicans.

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 14:34:59 +0000

how about $50 USD then? If your happy parting with all that bread, be my guest. I think the state of Mass gets more $$$ from me than it deserves. _______________________________

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 15:07:14 +0000

Look, neither of us knows how much it costs to do this transaction: people, software, IT systems. I don't expect the state to make a profit on it, neither do I expect it to take a loss. We should be able go about figuring if the price is fair since this is a public function. What's the cost of getting a brand new driver's license?

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 15:22:21 +0000

I paid THAT on top of the "conversion" fee as well... (Not to mention registration and LICENSE plate fees.) I thought all of those were par for the course. Its the "conversion" fee that boils my blood. _______________________________ "Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidise it." Ronald Reagan

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-05 15:51:02 +0000

Ideology will get you nowhere (witness Marxism, Stalinism, Thatcherism). I'm for practical solutions.

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 16:38:19 +0000

fair enough. it came to mind while we were going back and forth. If a tax and/or fee is necessary: so be it. Im sure we all have our own definitions of what necessary and reasonable mean. Im just trying to point out that when a govt has a program in place, making sure it is adequately funded is one thing. What about looking at strategies such as efficiency, productivity, and preventative maintenance? Those are all strategies that can be used that dont necessarily require a continual and escalated yearly money flow. Throwing money at a problem IS one solution: Im just making an argument that govts should consider ALL potential solutions. You're right, TGL. An ideology won't solve the problem. If anything, we need an ever changing mix of different ideologies when looking at complex municipal issues. I dont see $100 conversion fees as a fair exchange. I feel like looking at other ways to secure info across state lines where the efficiency savings could be passed on to the consumer. Do I want a drivers license for free? Do I think state workers arent important? absolutely not. I just want to be treated fairly, and (even If Im wrong about this, which I could very well be) I feel like Im getting hosed. sorry, no more .02. Im broke. _______________________________

Posted by tendiamonds on 2005-08-05 17:53:13 +0000

Can we get this [url=http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mhear.html]straight[/url], please?

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 18:31:39 +0000

[smirking]maybe instead of computer programmer we have a budding english prof on our hands here [/smirking] _______________________________

Posted by G lib on 2005-08-05 19:39:30 +0000

[sarcasm] And Reaganomics worked REALLY well, didn't it? [/sarcasm] . The [url=http://www.faireconomy.org/research/TrickleDown.html]'trickle down effect'[/url] that didn't work because all of the companies had watertight government-money-catching-buckets didn't they? . That one was particularly good. His motto should have been "If it's [url=http://www.faireconomy.org/research/Economic_Apartheid_Data.html#p56]rich or powerful, subsidise it so that it grows in wealth and power[/url]. If it's [url=http://www.faireconomy.org/econ/RWG/Taxing_Wealth_to_Broaden.html]middle class, tax it up the whazoo[/url]. If it's [url=http://anitra.net/homelessness/columns/anitra/eightmyths.html]poor or disenfranchised, lie about system cheaters and make it more poor and disenfranchised.[/url]" . Here are some good graphs to go along with it: [url]http://www.rationalrevolution.net/war/trickle_down.htm[/url] ________________ --Feminazi

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 19:41:56 +0000

they are spending money like drunken sailors. I hope you dont think Im advocating what Republicans are doing right now as what I think good policy would be. _______________________________

Posted by G lib on 2005-08-05 19:44:34 +0000

Bush =Reagan Squared. ________________ --Feminazi

Posted by frame609 on 2005-08-05 19:55:11 +0000

Those are some of the longest links in rideside history!

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 19:56:05 +0000

seriously. _______________________________

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2005-08-05 20:27:05 +0000

Interesting to note that Romney's success with the State budget has been to slash programs, maintain tax levels and generally double fee rates. Have any of us called or emailed [url=http://www.mass.gov/portal/index.jsp?pageID=gov2homepage&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Agov2]Willard's corner office[/url] to complain? If we can get people like rladew on board, Willard won't have a chance in '08

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-05 20:38:09 +0000

A thank you, an apology, and a clarification: 1. Thanks for the (many many) links to ponder over. Reading R. Revolution cover to cover will take me some time. If Roald Dahl gets too light, Ive got several heavier options now! :) 2. Attributing who the author of the quote in my other post was a mistake. I'm sorry, and it was honestly not my intent to heat up the thread with any negative energy that may or may not lead to another Rideside Ref appearance... 3. I'm not trying to get into a debate of which politicians are doing good for us and which are doing bad. Im trying to focus on the idea that solving problems in our society might include (but are not solely limited to) routing other people's money to fix them, but that we also need to seriously consider efficiency, productivity, and fairness. Problems dont just go away because someone has put a lot of $ towards fixing said problem. I promise for the duration of this thread that I will name no more politicians as that is not my focus. _______________________________

Posted by G lib on 2005-08-06 00:20:58 +0000

Well said, Ladewtangclan. . I heartily agree with everything besides #2. If Reagan is cool to you, so be it. Don't censure yourself here. So long as you don't mind me poking fun of the Gipper (well, his people), we're good. ________________ --Feminazi

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-06 01:17:40 +0000

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-06 01:19:38 +0000

Give credit to Romney for increasing state Medicare/Medicaid enrollment of children from families of lesser means.

Posted by tgl on 2005-08-06 01:24:34 +0000

I wish that the Republican leadership would take to heart rladew's point number 3. Especially where it concerns the recent energy legislation that just passed. I don't think sending $12.3 billion billion to primarily oil companies is the right way to address the problem of our country's dependence on foreign oil.

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2005-08-06 03:46:56 +0000

Hey, I'm giving credit for keeping the books straight, especially with an opposing party in the majority. Yes, the budget cuts suck (the non-opening of the MDC swimming pool on Mem Drive immediately comes to mind), but if the Commonwealth is in the black, Fuck yeah! Romney's social leanings have always been his biggest flaw, and I mean social, not religious... So should increase the taxes but, say freeze, fees for ten years or so? Or in an economic model, would the taxes, increasing with production, pay for the fees themselves? Great question...

Posted by rladew on 2005-08-06 11:37:04 +0000

chortle inducing. _______________________________