Deal With It People

In recent months there have been a number of stories about college students that leads me to believe today's students need to grow up and toughen up.  Students are demanding so many protections against speech and activities of others that they should not need.  In fact, being exposed to such speech and activity will better prepare students for life, during and after college.

Examples include:
Being offended by a movie at Michigan
Needing to cope with tough times at Columbia
Safe zones at schools to protect feelings
Fraternity hazing which can hardly be called hazing

I really think our students today are being overly protected, and demanding of more protection.  When law students need to be excused from exams to deal with emotional distress over a legal matter involving crime, what does that say about their future prospects as lawyers?

If students in their late teens and early twenties cannot deal with hearing or seeing possibly offensive subjects, then how will they ever deal with jobs, families and society after college?

Isn't college intended to be a place where a variety of viewpoints, subjects and activities are to be learning exercises that will prepare you for life? 

Our nation, our world, will be in deep trouble if people are taught and trained to avoid unpleasantness by retreating into a cocoon or burying their heads in the sand.  People truly to embrace the reality that no one has a right to never be offended or troubled.  Deal with it people.

Want to Stop Poverty, Create Wealth?

Then read this column by Walter Williams, Ph.D.

When will we begin to realize that intentions mean nothing without results?  This builds on my eralir post:  Social Science and Social Policy

Clintons Don't Deserve the Respect They Get

Clinton Memory Lane: George Will

If you read this column by George Will, you should recall all of the scandals involving President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton.  The latter being a former First Lady, Senator and Secretary of State, and now the eventual Democrat nominee for President.

If the Clintons were Republican, this would never be allowed to stand.  The media would be playing hardball with them in that case.  Even today liberal minded journalists predict great things for Hillary and say those things will happen because these scandals are just more among many that won't stick.

Voters need to ask themselves if voting for the first woman President is really more important than voting for the best candidate for the job.

Prisoner Gender Swap

Convicted Murderer to Get State Funded Surgery

Question #1:  If this person was not a convicted murderer serving 17 to life in prison, who would be paying for this surgery?

Question #2:  Did this judge consider the feelings of the murder victim's family before deciding they should help pay for this surgery?

Tax Incentives Work, So Why Not More of Them?

The Cincinnati Enquirer reported on the lack of tracking by the city of Cincinnati for return on the investment of tax incentives designed to attract businesses to the area.  They found there is no such tracking of ROI.  City doesn't track return on incentives

The state of New York has been advertising their program of reduced taxes, abatement and other incentives to attract businesses and expansions in their state. The federal government has been giving grants, low interest loans, and tax incentives to many businesses to expand and build, especially in the area of green energy technology.

Does this work to attract new and expanding businesses?  It does, but how much so is the question.  Cincinnati cannot tell you that answer.  Maybe others can. My point here is that if tax incentives work, even in mostly liberal New York, why are liberals opposed to reducing taxes for all business, and even for all people?

The tax incentive business is a negotiating ploy to get business owners to choose one city or state over another for the location of new business or expansions.  If I was the governor of any state, or mayor of any city, I would fight to lower all taxes, then tell all business owners to move here.  In fact I would tell all citizens that our doors are open for business and all taxes are lower than you'll find in the next state over.

We know there is an optimal tax rate where tax receipts are the highest possible and the rate is the lowest possible.  Lowering tax rates has lead to higher tax receipts under Kennedy, Reagan and G.W. Bush.

Liberals typically claim corporations are not paying their fair share.  The 1% are not paying their fair share.  But then they create these tax incentive zones to attract business.  Well, which is it?  If it works in some places, why not all places?

If we really want the economy to take off and wealth to be created, then why don't we actually practice what we know to be true?

Operation Choke Point - Killing Legal Business

Operation Choke Point - Washington Post

The Obama administration, through use of the FDIC, is choking off legal business' access to financial services such as checking accounts, payment processing and loans.  They are doing this not because there is any particular illegal activity by those businesses, but because they don't like them.

Imagine if a government official told your bank manager to close your checking account because he did not approve of your lifestyle.  Below is the telling quote form this article, along with links to supporting reports.

"... just because there are some bad apples within a legal industry doesn’t justify effectively destroying a legal industry through secret executive fiat."

Mind you, there is not a piece of legislation supporting this government action to force legal business out of business, or at least impose serious roadblocks to continued operations.

This policy was introduced by the Department of Justice under Attorney General Eric Holder, and obviously endorsed by President Obama.  Fundamentally Changing America!

To Shoot or Not To Shoot

Civil Rights Leader Goes Though Scenarios
If you have any opinion about whether or not police shootings are justified, please watch this video.  The first man to experience the scenarios is a community civil rights leader who has protested against cops involved in shootings.  His opinion has since changed.  Interesting when you consider the "hands up, don't shoot" protests of the past several months.