Getting the Message

How could you miss it?

"House passes tax bill but faces skeptical public" by Victoria McGrane Globe Staff  November 17, 2017

WASHINGTON — The relatively smooth passage of the tax overhaul in the House Thursday, and accompanying GOP celebration, belies certain political realities: that despite the hard sell, Republicans haven’t persuaded the American people they want this plan, or even need it.

This from the people who are consistently wrong about political realities.

The economy is growing stronger, unemployment is very low, and Americans are just not sold on the idea that slashing taxes deeply for corporations is going to cure wage stagnation among the middle class.

The dearth of enthusiasm for Republicans’ latest legislative effort is documented in several recent polls. Most voters believe the wealthy would be the main beneficiaries.

The push for changes such as lower corporate tax rates, elimination of estate taxes, and more favorable treatment of business partnerships comes mostly from the “swamp’’ President Trump ran against in 2016: the corporations, GOP contributors, and conservative think tanks that drive Beltway ideology.

That's where you get stuck after all the smoke, sound, fury, and illusion of the pre$$.

Yet the lack of support among the public has proved barely a speed bump for Republicans, who — desperate for a legislative win and eager to fulfill longstanding party doctrine — are hustling the tax bill through Congress.

The vote Thursday, passing the House version of the tax bill 227 to 205, comes a mere two weeks after leaders unveiled its details, the latest example of Republican leaders sticking to their ambitious timeline and keeping the rank-and-file largely united behind the package.

Meantime, unlike with the Republicans’ ultimately unsuccessful effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act earlier this year, Democrats are having a harder time scaring voters about the tax bill.

Why do we always have to be scared into things? 

“It’s harder to see a kind of riled up, vocal, made-for-television opposition over taxes,” said Sarah Binder, a political science professor at George Washington University and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

Even if many people believe the tax package won’t benefit them, or would even result in higher taxes, “it’s nothing compared to the optics — let alone the reality — of taking away health care benefits from a wide array of voters, many of whom voted for the president. You just don’t get that on taxes. Nobody’s mad as hell about tax cuts.”

Still, some strategists see political problems for the Republicans pushing a package that most people see as skewed toward the rich.

“It’s really befuddling to me, just politically speaking, that they would promote a tax bill in this environment that actually raises taxes on the middle class, that balloons the deficit, [and where] there’s serious debate that it will have any real positive impact on the economy,” said John Weaver, who served as top political strategist to Ohio Governor John Kasich’s 2016 presidential campaign.

“They are so out of touch with the average American,” Weaver said of congressional Republicans.

Who said that? Kasich's people? 

Then why didn't he win the nomination?

I'm smelling more dung.

He pointed to the big losses Republicans suffered in the Nov. 7 elections in Virginia and New Jersey as a reason to tread carefully with a tax cut that doesn’t obviously benefit the middle class.

That is to set the narrative for another "change" election and to give us the entertainment of impeachment.

The measure faces a tougher test in the Senate, where Republicans can afford to lose only two of their 52-member majority. One GOP senator, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, said Wednesday he would vote against the current Senate bill; several others have raised concerns.

See: "The tax bill Senate Republicans are championing would give large tax cuts to millionaires while raising taxes on American families earning $10,000 to $75,000 over the next decade, according to a report released Thursday by the Joint Committee on Taxation, Congress’ official nonpartisan analysts....."

The Senate version includes a repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, which the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated will cause 13 million people to drop insurance. That gives Democrats more ammunition and could prompt key Senate swing votes like Maine Republican Susan Collins to oppose the package.

Is that why there is talk of Steward Health moving out of Massachusetts?

Related:  "US health authorities announced plans Thursday to crack down on doctors pushing stem cell procedures that pose the gravest risks to patients amid an effort to police a burgeoning medical field that previously has received little oversight....."

House Speaker Paul Ryan has been touting that the average American family of four would save $1,182 under the House plan, even turning the figure into a hashtag on social media, as well as emphasizing that filing taxes will become much simpler.

“Passing this bill is the single biggest thing we can do to grow the economy, to restore opportunity, and to help middle-income families that are struggling,” Ryan said before the vote Thursday.

I don't believe him, sorry.

For complex legislation that affects an individual taxpayer’s pocketbook in multiple ways — fewer tax brackets, curbs on deductions, ending certain tax benefits for students, the sick, and others — many Republicans see this as the best argument leaders can make.

“These are the right tools to be communicating the benefits in terms of the middle class — more jobs and higher wages. That’s the winning argument for this kind of reform,” said Michael Steel, a veteran of former GOP House speaker John Boehner’s office and Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential campaign. “I think you’re seeing generally the House, Senate, and White House all making the most compelling argument that they can.”

But the Republican message machine is competing with protests from a range of critics —armed with analyses by outside tax specialists — that the benefits for average Americans aren’t as great as they appear.

The tax cut Ryan cites so often, for instance, would turn into a tax increase by the end of the decade, according to New York University tax law professor David Kamin, a former Obama adviser. That’s partly because some of the breaks for average Americans are temporary in the package, while the corporate cuts are permanent.

Steadier message discipline has come from numerous conservative and business groups, an army of unified support that the Republicans have rarely enjoyed all year.

President Trump remains a wild card in the messaging wars.....

Did YOU get the "message," readers?

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So where is the money for the tax heist coming from?

"IRS starts to enforce health law’s rule that employers offer insurance" by Stacy Cowley   November 17, 2017

NEW YORK — As Republicans and the Trump administration continue trying to chip away at the Affordable Care Act, the Internal Revenue Service has begun, for the first time, to enforce one of the law’s most polarizing provisions: the employer mandate.

Thousands of businesses — many of them small or midsize — will soon receive a letter saying that they owe the government money because they failed to offer their workers qualifying health insurance. The first round of notices, which the IRS began sending late last month, are being mailed to companies that have at least 100 full-time employees and ran afoul of the law in 2015, the year that the mandate took effect.

They are scrounging around for all the loot they can get their grubby little hands on!

Large companies, defined in the law as those with 50 or more workers, are required to offer their employees affordable insurance or pay stiff tax penalties. The IRS held off for years on assessing those fines, saying that it needed more time, and money, to build its compliance systems.

Now, the agency says it is finally ready to go after scofflaws. “As the IRS has publicly stated, the agency is obligated to enforce the Affordable Care Act’s employer shared responsibility provision,” said Bruce Friedland, an agency spokesman.

Since when did government care about obeying the law?

Ten months ago, in his first executive order, President Trump directed government agencies to waive, defer, or delay carrying out as much of the law as possible. This week, the Treasury Department said that it objected to the employer mandate but was legally compelled to enforce it.

By whom?

“Treasury lawyers see no ground for the secretary to direct the IRS to not collect the tax,” the agency said in a written statement. “The ACA’s employer mandate unfortunately remains the law of the land.”

Senate Republicans plan to include a repeal of the law’s individual mandate in their tax bill. Eliminating that mandate, which requires people to buy health insurance or pay a penalty, would free up hundreds of billions of dollars that could be redirected to tax cuts. The IRS recently indicated that it would tighten enforcement of that provision as well.

The employer mandate, which would be unaffected by that proposed change, is lucrative for the government. It is expected to bring in penalty payments of $207 billion over the next decade, according to projections by the Congressional Budget Office.

So the ACA was about THEIR HEALTH, not YOURS, and a LOOTING SCHEME TO BOOT!

When the health law was passed, lawmakers feared that without an employer mandate, companies would cancel their insurance benefits and send large numbers of employees to the health care law’s insurance exchanges, where many people qualify for government subsidies. Employees who are offered health insurance through their jobs are ineligible for the subsidies.

Which turned out to be complete failures.

The law’s exact rules are complex, but businesses will generally incur fines of around $2,000 per employee (excluding the first 30) if they do not offer qualifying coverage to nearly all of those who work an average of 30 or more hours a week. The penalty is activated if at least one employee then buys insurance on the health law’s marketplace and receives a subsidy for it.

The per-employee fine increases each year, and can add up quickly: A company with 100 workers that ignored the law this year would owe a penalty of more than $158,000.

To prove their compliance, businesses are required to send the IRS a report on their employee head count and the health care coverage that they offered. The tax agency began requiring those forms two years ago, but it repeatedly ran into problems processing them.

That delayed efforts to identify, and fine, companies that did not offer their workers adequate insurance. The bottleneck largely came down to money, according to the agency.

Everything does when it comes from government or the ma$$ media and pre$$!

“For the past four years, the IRS has received almost no funding for implementation of the Affordable Care Act,” John A. Koskinen, then the agency’s commissioner, told Congress last year. (Koskinen’s tenure at the agency ended this month, but no change in the enforcement of the mandate is expected.)

A recent audit by the Treasury’s inspector general for tax administration found that the IRS had “delayed, not initiated, or canceled” crucial systems needed to enforce the employer mandate. 

Other systems “did not function as intended,” causing confusion both for the agency and for companies trying to comply with its reporting requirements. 

Who was paid to do that "work?"

Accountants and others familiar with the process say they are bracing for more problems....

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The order came from the Treasury, huh?

"Mnuchin bank’s former CEO confirmed to lead US watchdog" by Jesse Hamilton Bloomberg News  November 17, 2017

Former OneWest Bank Group chief executive Joseph Otting won Senate approval on Thursday to lead a key US bank regulator, further clearing the way for the Trump administration to roll back Wall Street regulations.

In heading the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Otting will be the chief overseer of banking units at giants such as JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., and Citigroup Inc., plus hundreds of smaller lenders across the country. He’ll have a central role in efforts to reverse Volcker Rule trading restrictions, certain capital constraints, and tough supervision that lenders say reflect an overreaction to the 2008 credit crisis.

Otting will replace Keith Noreika, a bank lawyer who made waves at the OCC after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin installed him as temporary chief. The new comptroller will be reunited with Mnuchin, who was OneWest’s chairman when Otting was CEO. Their time at the bank, which rose from the ashes of crisis casualty IndyMac Bancorp Inc., was complicated by an OCC enforcement action targeting improper foreclosures.

Have you noticed how Mnuchin stays above the fray?

Noreika sent a resignation letter to Mnuchin on Thursday, saying that government service was an “exception to the norm” for him and that he intends to return to the private sector. The letter could resolve persistent questions about whether he might take over the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau after Director Richard Cordray announced plans to step down. Noreika said he’ll leave the OCC after Otting is sworn in.

The road to confirmation was rocky for Otting, who faced criticism for his role in OneWest’s foreclosure practices and questioning of his credentials. At one point, the White House was forced to clarify his biographical information after Bloomberg News reported that Otting hadn’t attended Dartmouth College, as a reference to his being a “graduate of the School of Credit and Financial Management at Dartmouth College” seemed to indicate. In fact, it was only a management training course that used space on the school’s campus.

He lied, 'er, embellished his resume?

At his Senate confirmation hearing, Otting said he’s open to revising regulations, such as those established in the Dodd-Frank Act. He said oversight should be more certain and predictable, and regulators’ discretion should be “as constrained as possible.”

Would have been nice if they had actually written any regulations.

American Bankers Association president Rob Nichols said Noreika gave Otting an “excellent foundation” to build on, and Otting’s professional experience will mean he “understands the important role that banks play in promoting economic growth.”

If Trump were serious about change he would start with the banks. 

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Related:

"Shipbuilder Bath Iron Works wants to extend a tax credit for up to $3.5 million a year, which it says is needed to remain competitive. The Times Record reports that the Maine Legislature will consider a proposal to continue the tax credit that’s due to expire in 2018."

They build warships.

"A massive defense spending bill sent Thursday to President Trump would make it illegal for the federal government to do business with Kaspersky Lab, a move that comes amid continued concern that its software has been compromised by Russian intelligence services. The measure, part of the $692 billion authorization for fiscal 2018, follows a September move by the Department of Homeland Security to ban executive agencies from using Kaspersky antivirus software. The company is based in Russia and has its US headquarters in Woburn. The company has denied wrongdoing, and has offered to show its source code to an independent reviewer to prove that it is safe to use. “Kaspersky Lab fully supports the goals of protecting federal information and federal information systems; however, we maintain that these provisions unfairly target Kaspersky Lab without any credible evidence of the risks presented by the company’s products,” the company said in a statement."

We don't need no stinkin' evidence, and that move will drive them out of business. 

Can't patch things up and get back to work, huh?

And the pen Trump will use to sign it? Made in China!

"A Rhode Island company that has supplied many of the pens used by President Trump and his predecessors to sign executive orders has been sold. WPRI-TV reports that A.T. Cross Co. was sold to Transom Capital Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm. The sale price was not disclosed. Transom confirmed that they are cutting some jobs, but did not say how many. A.T. Cross officials say it has provided pens to presidents at least since the Gerald Ford administration. It was once a major Rhode Island employer but now makes most of its pens in China. Previous owners Clarion Capital Partners bought the company in 2013 for $60 million."

Time to start writing some love letters:

"‘Al Franken kissed and groped me without my consent,’ Tweeden says; senator apologizes" by Amy B Wang, Michelle Ye Hee Lee and Lindsey Bever The Washington Post  November 17, 2017

WASHINGTON — Broadcaster and model Leeann Tweeden said Thursday that Al Franken ‘‘forcibly kissed’’ and groped her during a USO tour in 2006, two years before the Minnesota Democrat’s election to the US Senate.

The allegations came two days after a stunning hearing in Washington, where lawmakers acknowledged sexual harassment is a pervasive problem on Capitol Hill — and amid mounting sexual misconduct accusations against Alabama Republican Roy Moore.

Sending it to the Ethics Committee where complaints go to die.

On a Thursday episode of the KABC radio show ‘‘McIntyre in the Morning,’’ Tweeden said she wanted to tell the world about the photo a decade ago but was worried about her career. ‘‘People are going to go, ‘Oh you’re a model. You’ve been on the cover of Playboy, you’re a lingerie model and a swimsuit model and you’re a sportscaster and you’re a girl in Hollywood’ — Tweeden said she finally decided to share her story because ‘‘the tide has turned.’’

‘‘I’ve wanted to tell this story because it’s bugged me for so long. It’s made me angry for so long. I’ve been humiliated for so long,’’ she said. ‘‘Now is the time . . . We’ve got to change the culture.’’

I saw her interview on TV and it was chillingly disgusting.

The allegations rocked the Capitol, prompting numerous senators, including more than a dozen Democrats, to call for an ethics investigation.

Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat from Minnesota, condemned her home state colleague’s behavior. Just last week, the Senate had unanimously approved a bill, which Klobuchar co-sponsored, that will mandate sexual harassment training for all senators and their staffs.....

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Also see:

"It is not easy being Steve Kirby at the Berklee College of Music these days, but as it turns out, there were two Steve Kirbys at Berklee....."

He's the good one, and was inspired by James Taylor.

Statewide campaign encourages women to join construction industry

I'm told “they’re just as hard-working, or even more hard-working, than the men,” which is also what I'm told regarding illegal immigrants and their American counterparts.

Fidelity’s CEO physically moved her office so she could keep an eye out on harassment

Related: Time For Divorce

Call the police:

"Cambridge police are investigating an attempted assault and battery on a woman while she was walking near Harvard Square on Tuesday night. The woman was alone in the area of Putnam Avenue and Green Street around 10:15 p.m. when the suspect started following her, said Cambridge police spokesman Jeremy Warnick. “She felt the presence of someone behind her,” he said. “As she was turning around, a male suspect grabbed her shoulders and waist.” She managed to free herself and alerted police, Warnick said. “She was not injured, aside from being emotionally shaken up,” he said. Police are investigating the incident as an assault and battery, Warnick said. The woman said the suspect was a stranger to her. The suspect is described as a white man age 18 to 25 wearing a beanie with a thin build and a clean-shaven face, Warnick said. He is around 5 feet 10 inches tall and possibly has blond hair."

They eventually found him.

"The sexual harassment scandal that’s roiling Hollywood could have consequences for people who aren’t accused of anything. It’s unclear what effect the revelations about actor Kevin Spacey and filmmaker Brett Ratner, will have on pending projects. But given the seriousness of the allegations against them, neither seems certain to have a career in Hollywood anymore...."

Maybe they can get a book deal and live like the Obamas.

Back to the Senate:

"New Jersey senator’s bribery trial ends in a hung jury" by David Porter Associated Press  November 17, 2017

NEWARK — The federal bribery trial of Democratic Senator Bob Menendez ended Thursday with the jury hopelessly deadlocked on all charges, a partial victory for him that could nevertheless leave the case hanging over his head as he gears up for reelection to a sharply divided Senate. 

Time to resign, Bob, or are you addicted to the job?

US District Judge William Walls declared a mistrial after more than six full days of deliberations failed to produce a verdict on any of the 18 counts against the New Jersey politician or his codefendant, a wealthy Florida eye doctor accused of buying Menendez’s influence by plying him with luxury vacations and campaign contributions.

Prosecutors would not say whether they plan to retry Menendez. But on the political front, forces were already mobilizing against him, with GOP Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell immediately calling for an ethics investigation of him. Menendez is up for reelection next year.

Outside the courthouse, a choked-up Menendez fought back tears as he blasted federal authorities for bringing the case and thanked the jurors in the 2½-month trial ‘‘who saw through the government’s false claims and used their Jersey common sense to reject it.’’

It was Obama's Justice Department that investigated and brought the charges.

‘‘Certain elements of the FBI and of our state cannot stand, or even worse, accept that the Latino kid from Union City and Hudson County could grow up to be a United States senator and be honest,’’ said the 63-year-old son of Cuban immigrants.

Talk about diverting attention away from himself and blaming others!

Then he pulls out the Cuban card?

Jury member Edward Norris said 10 jurors wanted to acquit Menendez on all charges, while two held out for conviction.

Those jurors should be applauded and cheered then.

Norris said that after the prosecution rested, ‘‘in my gut I was like, ‘That’s it? That’s all they had?’’’

Menendez was accused of selling his political influence to Dr. Salomon Melgen for vacations in the Caribbean and Paris, flights on Melgen’s jet and hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions to campaign organizations that supported the senator directly or indirectly.

In return, prosecutors said, Menendez pressured government officials on Melgen’s behalf over an $8.9 million Medicare billing dispute and a stalled contract to provide port screening equipment in the Dominican Republic, and also helped obtain US visas for the 63-year-old doctor’s girlfriends.

According to prosecutors, Melgen essentially put Menendez on the payroll and made the politician his ‘‘personal senator,’’ available as needed.

The defense argued that the gifts were not bribes but tokens of friendship between two men who have known each other for more than 20 years and were ‘‘like brothers.’’

Wow, that is a new one. 

Isn't nepotism illegal?

The jurors were instructed that they could find the men guilty even if they felt the prosecution didn’t match specific gifts to specific acts by Menendez.

Jurors needed more, according to Norris.

‘‘I just wish there was stronger evidence right out of the gate,’’ the juror said. ‘‘It was a victimless crime, I think, and it was an email trial. I just didn’t see a smoking gun.’’ 

Tell that to the underaged prostitutes.

The charges against the men included bribery, conspiracy, and honest services fraud, which was the most serious count of all, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The senator was also charged with making false statements in failing to report gifts from Melgen on his financial disclosure form.

So he LIED?

In a statement, the US Justice Department said it will consider its next step.

After the hung jury, Menendez’s political adviser, Mike Soliman, said ‘‘all things indicate’’ the senator will run for reelection, and an announcement will probably be made in the coming weeks. Menendez, who has been under indictment for 2½ years, has raised more than $2.5 million this year.

Menendez himself warned outside the courthouse: ‘‘To those who were digging my political grave so they could jump into my seat, I know who you are and I won’t forget you.’’ 

Sounds like a THREAT!

The Republicans have a thin, 52-48 edge in the Senate as they try to push through President Trump’s agenda.

The jury deliberated most of last week, then restarted midway through with an alternate after a juror was excused for a long-planned vacation. The jurors first reported on Monday that they couldn’t agree on a verdict, but the judge asked them to keep trying.

This time, the jurors said in a note that that had reviewed all of the evidence in great detail and ‘‘tried to look at this case from different viewpoints,’’ but they were ‘‘not willing to move away from our strong convictions.’’ 

Despite the evidence.

Melgen is already facing the possibility of a long prison sentence after being convicted in April of bilking Medicare out of as much as $105 million by performing unneeded tests and treatments. 

Bob's brother wouldn't bilk health funds for poor people!

The last sitting senator convicted of a crime was Ted Stevens of Alaska, a Republican found guilty in 2008 of concealing more than $250,000 in home renovations and other gifts. His conviction was later overturned because of prosecutorial misconduct, and he died in a 2010 plane crash. 

I'm sure I could go find the previous articles on him, but that pretty much says it all. 

Died in a plane crash, huh?

The Menendez case was the first major federal bribery trial since the US Supreme Court in 2016 threw out the conviction of Republican former governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia and narrowed the definition of bribery.

Expanding it would bring down the entire $y$tem.

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Related:

Deal to Bolster Gun Background Checks Is Reached by Senators

Older children quieted younger ones at California school as gunman fired

"A high school student charged with sending death threats to fellow students, teachers, and staff was kicked out of a required mental health program, federal prosecutors said in a court filing. Josiah Leach, 19, originally pleaded not guilty to e-mailing a ‘‘murder list’’ in April targeting 16 students and staff at South Burlington High School. The list led to three lockdowns and the cancellation of classes....."

I was told he escaped  during the concert before saying he was removed after college students have been throwing glass bottles at police officers, and the city and the state had to take action,"and they did.

Senate Judiciary panel: Kushner had contacts about WikiLeaks, Russian overtures he did not disclose

That could affect Homeland Security, 'eh?

"President Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, Kirstjen Nielsen, has been guided through her Senate confirmation process by a private consultant who represents companies seeking millions in DHS contracts, an arrangement that creates conflicts of interest, according to a government-ethics watchdog group as well as current and former national security officials. The consultant, Thad Bingel, is cofounder of the Command Group, a prominent lobbying and consulting firm that offers ‘‘full spectrum solutions related to safety, security, and intelligence’’ to clients ‘‘on six continents.’’ During presidential transitions, unpaid consultants often serve as ‘‘sherpas’’ to help steer a nominee through the confirmation process. But it’s almost unheard of once an administration has legislative political appointees in place whose job it is to perform that function, current and former DHS officials said. A DHS official referred questions about Bingel to the White House."

That's called passing the buck, and didn't she work in the W Bush administration?

Also see:

"A Republican appointee in charge of a Department of Homeland Security center for outreach to faith and community groups has resigned after a report that he said black people had ‘‘turned America’s major cities into slums because of laziness, drug use, and sexual promiscuity.’’ The Rev. Jamie Johnson’s resignation came swiftly after CNN published the comments on Thursday....."

How come only him? Why not Al?

"The driver of a pickup displaying an expletive-filled message to President Trump and his supporters in the Houston area says she won’t remove the decal. Karen Fonseca says that she’s been stopped by law officers, but that they have no grounds to issue a citation. Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls said at a news conference Wednesday he supports freedom of speech but worried that profane messages could incite others and lead to confrontations that would disturb the peace he’s pledged to keep....."

That means he doesn't support freedom of speech, and I try to watch my language when it comes to profanity.

"A controversial free speech rally will go off as scheduled at noon Saturday on Boston Common no matter the weather, organizers said. In a statement posted late Wednesday night to Facebook, a group calling itself Resist Marxism, an umbrella organization putting on the event, said the “Rally for the Republic will take place on the Boston Common at noon. The perils facing our Constitutional Republic don’t slow down for the weather, and neither will we. Rain or shine.” The group didn’t immediately respond to a request for further comment. The organization will hold the rally despite being denied a city permit for the demonstration, which critics say will provide a forum for white supremacists, a charge the group adamantly denies....."

Do you hear a dog whistle?

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Time to drive away from Massachusetts as fast as you can:

"Your car is a big environmental nemesis, and Mass. is stepping in" by David Abel Globe Staff  November 13, 2017

Cars and other vehicles have surpassed power plants as the state’s largest source of greenhouse gases. 

So they say.

The Baker administration is considering sweeping measures that could transform the state’s transportation system, which is responsible for about 40 percent of emissions.

It’s a politically risky undertaking, and potential solutions — from raising the gas tax to increasing tolls to investing more in public transportation — could be expensive and unpopular. But without aggressive reductions in transportation emissions, progress on climate change can only go so far.

State Senator Michael J. Barrett, a Lexington Democrat who chairs the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy, said, “You can’t be serious about this issue without putting a price on carbon.”

Oh, THAT is what it is ALL ABOUT -- even if methane leaks are far worse (then the fracking and gas industries would have to pay, not you).

Barrett has proposed a bill, modeled after a similar policy in British Columbia, that would increase the tax on a gallon of gas from 8 cents to 36 cents over seven years. He describes the plan as a carbon fee, since the revenue would be returned to the public in the form of a rebate.

Then why take it in the first place if you are going to return it? 

Does he actually thing we buy that bull?

What is with these wasteful, greedy, money-hungry sex harassers on Beacon Hill anyway? 

It's not about the environment, it is about their LUST for LOOT!

Critics of his bill have noted that previous hikes in gas prices have only led to modest reductions in driving, and state officials said they oppose such efforts.

“The administration does not support implementing any additional ‘carbon tax’ that would adversely impact businesses’ and families’ utility bills,” said Brendan Moss, a spokesman for Baker.....

You better stick to that or you can kiss the governorship goodbye.

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That  agenda-pushing slop is a front page story while this is an A2 brief:

"Trans- Canada Corp.’s Keystone pipeline leaked an estimated 210,000 gallons of oil in northeastern South Dakota, the company and state regulators reported Thursday. Crews shut down the pipeline Thursday morning and activated emergency response procedures after a drop in pressure was detected resulting from the leak south of a pump station in Marshall County, TransCanada said in a statement. The cause was being investigated. Officials don’t believe the leak affected any surface water bodies or threatened any drinking water systems from the spill onto agricultural land, said Brian Walsh, an environmental scientist manager at the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources. ‘‘Ultimately, the cleanup responsibility lies with Trans-Canada, and they’ll have to clean it up in compliance with our state regulations,’’ Walsh said....." 

The thing hasn't even been open six months and there is already a leak?

Bottoms up but you first, 'kay?

"Authorities are looking for a trucker they say intentionally dumped 20 to 30 gallons of gasoline in a parking lot. A spokesman for the Springfield Fire Department says the driver apparently pumped gasoline into a diesel truck on Wednesday afternoon. He says when the truck started to run poorly, the driver pulled into a parking lot, bought a siphon kit from a nearby auto parts store, and siphoned the fuel onto the ground. Workers at an area pharmacy called authorities, but the trucker was gone by the time they arrived (AP)."

I oppose the waste of any resource.

"General Motors is recalling nearly 49,000 trucks worldwide to fix a fuel tank problem that increases the risk of a fire....."

I guess that means you won't be going home for Thanksgiving:

Thanksgiving travel expected to be at highest level in 12 years

Thanks for helping out with the greenhouse gas problem!

"Now the casual gatherings of the past have caught the attention of marketers, who see an opportunity to sell new outfits, more turkeys, extra decorations for holiday tables. Faux or no, Friendsgiving has real revenue potential. “Friendsgiving is approaching critical mass for retailers as a potential part of the holiday equation,” said Marshal Cohen, a retail analyst with NPD Group. Friendsgiving is a manifestation of a larger trend in holidays shifting from obligatory family affairs to celebrations with friends, Cohen said. The Friendsgiving origin story is not as well documented as its Plymouth forebear, but....."

They served that slop up right in front of you.

Just waiting by the phone for the next nuclear mishap.

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"An Uber driver is charged with selling heroin to undercover state troopers, prosecutors said Thursday. Ariel Pimental, 26, of Lawrence was arraigned Wednesday in South Boston Municipal Court on charges of distribution of a Class A substance and trafficking in heroin, Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley and Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said in a joint statement. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf, and the lawyer who represented him Wednesday had no comment. Pimental was ordered held on $60,000 cash bail. Prosecutors said investigators began monitoring him after receiving a tip over the summer that an Uber driver, later identified as Pimental, was selling heroin in the Boston area, the statement said. Troopers made six undercover purchases from Pimental through the fall after contacting him by phone, though not through the Uber app, according to authorities. In a statement, Uber spokeswoman Susan Hendrick said the company has a “zero tolerance policy for the use of drugs and alcohol.”

They took him to the Brockton where.....

"Three court officers at Brockton Superior Court were placed on paid leave, and a mother and daughter were charged Thursday as part of an investigation into an alleged heroin distribution ring at the courthouse, authorities said. Christine Lozanne, 54, of Norwood, and Tineisha Lozanne, 25, of Dorchester were arraigned in Brockton District Court on a handful of counts, including distribution of heroin and delivery of an article or drugs to a prisoner in jail. Each pleaded not guilty and were released on personal recognizance, according to the Plymouth district attorney’s office. They are due back in court on Jan. 18. The unidentified court officers will remain on leave, pending the results of an investigation, a court spokeswoman said. "

"Hoping to find an effective response to the opioid epidemic that has cost thousands of Massachusetts residents their lives, Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan and a Waltham think tank Wednesday launched a research effort they hope will keep people alive. The public-private partnership between the prosecutor’s office and the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is aimed at mining data collected by the government, the private sector, and addicts themselves about what has taken place. The research will focus on hospitals, treatment programs, and law enforcement response to the opioid crisis in Middlesex County, which Ryan’s office says has a mix of urban, suburban, and rural communities that make up the state as a whole. “This new initiative is a strategic approach that builds upon these existing resources and partnerships using data that will inform our future efforts and identify even more opportunities to combat this public health crisis,” Ryan said in a statement....."

Maybe you guys should start by looking in your own buildings, and it's marijuana that still generates the most outrage.

No wonder my hits have gone down; people simply don't understand satire in this politically correct tyranny that is being constructed all around us.

Red Sox prospect had a very rare, aggressive cancer, according to death certificate

At funeral, woman says Hudner, man he tried to rescue are ‘together in heaven’

In two Navy pilots — one white, one black — a parable for our times

"One was the son of a Mississippi sharecropper, the other a privileged New England prep school graduate....." 

"The Boston-born home robot known as among the 25 best inventions of 2017 for its ability to to interact with people in a more human-like way than personal assistants such as the Amazon Echo. The machine is based on the research of Cynthia Breazeal, an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It can perform functions that are now common to computerized assistants, such as provide a weather forecast or the latest news. It can also tell a joke or story on request. But unlike Echo, for example, Jibo uses speech and facial recognition to interact with members of a household. It can identify specific individuals and address them by name, rotate on its base to face someone who’s speaking to it, and shoot photographs on command. Jibo is priced at a hefty $899, compared to the Echo or Google Home, both of which have models that start as low as $50....."

All the better to spy on you with!

Thanks to a billionaire, 85-year-old can avoid the stairs

Warren Buffett is so wonderful!

Look who is towering over the North Station and looking towards the future:

Phone companies get new tools to block spam calls

"The Federal Communications Commission voted Thursday to allow a single company to own a newspaper and television and radio stations in the same town, reversing a decades-old rule aimed at preventing any individual or company from having too much power over local coverage. The Republican-led FCC eliminated the restrictions, known as a media cross-ownership ban, in a 3-2 vote along party lines....."

What difference does it make, really?

"Time Inc. is considering a sale to fellow publisher Meredith Corp., according to media reports. The New York Times initially reported that the New York-based publisher of Time and People is involved in a new round of negotiations with Meredith, the publisher of Family Circle and Better Homes and Gardens. The report, based on anonymous sources, also says that billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch are backing Meredith’s offer with more than $500 million in equity....."

Wouldn't you rather get your news from Bezos?

Strong earnings from Wal-Mart, Cisco drive US stocks higher

"Surging online sales and strong food sales helped Walmart delivered its largest sales gain for established US stores in more than eight years. The company also raised its annual profit outlook Thursday after delivering third-quarter results that beat expectations. The report shows that Walmart’s aggressive discounting and its moves to spiff up its stores and increase online services are working to attract shoppers. It also underscores the efforts the discounter is making to narrow the gap between itself and Amazon."

"Siemens is planning to cut about 6,900 jobs and close at least two sites as Europe’s biggest engineering company attempts to turn around its struggling power and gas division after a sharp drop in orders. Half of the 6,900 jobs being eliminated will be in Germany, the Munich-based company said in a statement on Thursday. 6,100 of the jobs will be cut in the power and gas division, with the rest coming in the process-industries-and-drives and power-generation divisions." 

I'm glad they got the tax break then.