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Showing posts from February 15, 2009

Back to the "Deep South" in Duluth GA

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I get a kick out of hearing the term "Deep South" in 2026. It is a crazy incredibly outdated label. I think maybe I should start saying the "Deep Northeast". I am a Yankee. My family came over on the Mayflower and moved to Upstate NY via Connecticut. Terms used in the revolutionary and Civil war days are generally inappropriate. My family is all but totally out of NY State now. I find the term "deep south" to be of the same thinking that the movie "Heidi" is what contemporary Europe is like. Watching the fireworks in Rochester, NY from the back yard of a house in the city made it look like a real war zone. It is a long drive between Berkshire, NY and Duluth, GA. Most of the 35K miles on the truck were spent in between. I drove the truck about 3k miles in 2-1/2 weeks. It was great to spend time on the farm. It was good to make some progress on needed repairs and improvements. I also felt good about making some new friends up there. I will be...
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I can tell you I am pretty upset about the state of affairs with our government. Generally, I am upset that i get to keep so little of my wages. Between all the taxes and fees there is little left. There is no check and balance on spending. The folks in government feel they have lost control and must keep increasing revenues to keep the spending going. In NY state 50 percent of the voters are either a govenment employee or an employee paid by tax dollars. Where is the money supposed to come from? I think the more important consideration is that when does a voter really get a say on spending? It in effect does not happen. We may have the chance to vote on a budget, but these budgets are all out of control spending. Unlike most folks I actively participate in my local Government. I believe it is not an us-againist-them situation. We are the government if you get off your butt. There is a huge silent majority that is just plain untapped. I am excited about my vaction in 2 weeks. I have...