hugo

[attach=full]2661[/attach] It's great to be a commie!

Palin Boosted Oil-Company Taxes While Alaska Had Budget Surplus Share Business ExchangeTwitterFacebook| Email | Print | A A A By Alison Fitzgerald Sept. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who has joined the Republican national ticket as a tax-cutter, was a driving force in raising a tax on oil companies last year that will help swell the state's budget surplus. The increase backed by the Republican vice presidential nominee will, at current prices, raise oil revenue to $11 billion this year -- almost twice what the state needs to fund its government -- state documents show. Alaska also has gotten more money from the federal government than its residents pay in taxes -- $1.75 per tax dollar in 2006, the most recent year available, according to the Tax Foundation, a Washington research group. ``Alaska is an outlier,'' Thomas Mann, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, said in an interview. ``They have traditionally used their fossil-fuel resources to generate some wealth for the citizens of the state.'' Republican presidential nominee John McCain, who last week chose Palin as his running mate, is campaigning as a tax-cutter and opposes raising taxes on oil companies because he says they discourage investment and cut production. ``There's never a good reason to raise taxes,'' said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, a Washington group that encourages politicians to sign a no-new-taxes pledge. ``She does have a track record of cutting other taxes. We're interested in what she does going forward.'' Alaska has no state income, property or sales tax. ``It's like Dubai. It gets enormous royalties and taxes and fees of various types from oil,'' said Chris Edwards, an economist and state budget expert at the Cato Institute, a Washington group that advocates low taxes and small government. Current Price According to the state Legislative Finance Division, Alaska will get $11 billion in oil taxes and royalties -- $5 billion more than the $6 billion fiscal 2009 budget -- if prices average $106 a barrel, yesterday's price on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The state received $5.1 billion from oil companies in fiscal 2007, when it had a $1.2 billion surplus. Each Alaska resident gets an annual rebate from state oil revenue, and this year Palin added $1,200 more to the $2,100 check each person received. Palin, 44, proposed the tax increase Sept. 4, 2007, and called a special legislative session to pass it. At an Oct. 12 community meeting in Anchorage, the governor referred to oil as ``our very valuable non-renewable resource.'' ``When we develop our natural resources, we will do so for the maximum benefit of Alaskans,'' she said then. Palin signed the tax increase Dec. 19. Obama's Proposal Edwards said Palin's oil tax is similar to the windfall profits tax proposed by Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. McCain, 72, has criticized Obama's plan.

Nice socialist stand ya got there. You, Hugo Chavez and Sarah are all in the same boat.

Why is it we did not have an overwhelming problem with cocaine addiction when coke was in cola? Idiots never learn, the black market causes more harm than any potential increase in drug use. I am sure drug use went up quite a bit when Sarah gave every Alaskan a welfare check. The fact is it is easier for a kid to but marijuana than it is for him to buy beer.

Palin's record is more liberal than GW Bush's was when he was governor of Texas. In 2000 conservative Republicans voted overwhelmingly for GW and we ended up with 8 years of reckless spending and government growth. I'll vote for someone in 2012 who believes in limited government. That ain't Palin. I ain't even talking about independents. There are Republicans that actually believe in limited government and are not simply political opportunists jumping on the bandwagon, ie Sarah Palin. Y'all gonna vote for a commie just cuz she's cute with her makeup on.

Have a great one!

We don't need another tax and send out checks party. Where's Arthur Bremer when ya need him?

Hopefully, those photos of Sarah without makeup will sink her political ambitions.

That is made clear by Pelosi's book sales.

No. we would not. Busts are just an added cost of doing business. Another shipment will soon arrive. It does add some cost to the consumer, but addicts tend to pay the extra costs to get their fix.

A lot of idiots buy books these days.

I would have taken a baseball bat to both of them.

Back when I was a realtor I had a muslim family as clients. One time the husband was busy and the wife went alone with me to look at houses. She was acting giddy and I asked her what she was so happy about. She told me it was the first time she had been alone with a man besides her husband and family members. People do change.

The reason it is legit is because if conservatives do not learn from history they will nominate another big spender Bush II or tax raiser Bush I or federal agency creator Richard Nixon and we will continue down the socialist path. I suggest they look at the list of the 25 reps whose names I have posted for individuals with a track record of conservative votes, not simply partisan ones. You are correct the fact that GW was a reckless spender does not justify Obama bankrupting our nation. The debate needs to be over how do we nominate a true conservative in 2012.

The 25 Republican House members who voted against Bush's expansion of medicare: HONOR ROLL These 25 GOP representatives deserve the applause of free-marketeers for courageously [rejecting the expansion of Big Government]: Todd Akin of Missouri Greshem Barrett of South Carolina Dan Burton of Indiana Steve Chabot of Ohio John Culbertson of Texas Jim DeMint of South Carolina Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri Tom Feeney of Florida Jeff Flake of Arizona Scott Garrett of New Jersey Gil Gutknecht of Minnesota John Hostettler of Indiana Walter Jones of North Carolina Jeff Miller of Florida Jerry Moran of Kansas Marilyn Musgrave of Colorado Charlie Norwood of Georgia Ron Paul of Texas Mike Pence of Indiana Jim Ryun of Kansas John Shadegg of Arizona Nick Smith of Michigan Tom Tancredo of Colorado Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania Zack Wamp of Tennessee Proud to say Culbertson is my rep.

The Biggest Medicare Fraud Ever by James Bovard The Republicans have only nominated one truly conservative candidate for President since 1964. McCain was the most liberal yet and their new darling taxed businesses in order to give the citizens of her state a welfare check.

Where were all the small government, deficit hawk Republicans when GW was spending money like a drunken sailor with a credit card?

He that falls in love with himself will have no rivals. Benjamin Franklin

We're diverse.

Navy gonna get their ass whupped Dec 31.

Doubt if a golfer is a hero to too many black kids anyways. My heroes when I was a kid were Bob Gibson and Lou Brock, two baseball players for the St Louis Cardinals who happen to be black. Can't call them role models. My dad was my role model.

I will bet Tiger weighs more than a duck.

I'm not a role model... Just because I dunk a basketball doesn't mean I should raise your kids. Charles Barkley The real problem is too many black kids have no male role model in the home. It does not take a village to raise a child it takes a mother and father.

I am more attracted to Filipinas and Latinas. Does that make me a racist? I would argue the vast majority of individuals who marry within their race are more likely to be racist.

U.S. Will Pay $2.6 Million to Train Chinese Prostitutes to Drink Responsibly on the Job Tuesday, May 12, 2009 By Edwin Mora (CNSNews.com) -- The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAA), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), will pay $2.6 million in U.S. tax dollars to train Chinese prostitutes to drink responsibly on the job. Dr. Xiaoming Li, the researcher conducting the program, is director of the Prevention Research Center at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit. The grant, made last November, refers to prostitutes as "female sex workers"--or FSW--and their handlers as "gatekeepers." "Previous studies in Asia and Africa and our own data from FSWs [female sex workers] in China suggest that the social norms and institutional policy within commercial sex venues as well as agents overseeing the FSWs (i.e., the 'gatekeepers', defined as persons who manage the establishments and/or sex workers) are potentially of great importance in influencing alcohol use and sexual behavior among establishment-based FSWs," says the NIH grant abstract submitted by Dr. Li. "Therefore, in this application, we propose to develop, implement, and evaluate a venue-based alcohol use and HIV risk reduction intervention focusing on both environmental and individual factors among venue-based FSWs in China," says the abstract. The research will take place in the southern Chinese province of Guangxi. Guangxi is ranked third in HIV rate among Chna's provinces--and is a place where the sex business is pervasive, Li said. ?The purpose of the project is to try and develop an intervention program targeting HIV risk and alcohol use,? Li told CNSNews.com. ?So basically, it?s an alcohol and HIV risk reduction intervention project." The researcher outlined three components of the intervention program in the abstract for the project: ?(1) gatekeeper training with a focus on changing or enhancing the protective social norms and policy/practice at the establishment level; (2) FSW (female sex workers) training with a focus on the acquisition of communication skills (negotiating, limit setting) and behavioral skills (e.g., condom use skills, consistent condom use); and (3) semi-annual boosters to reinforce both social norms within establishments and individual skills,? wrote Li. The doctor said the heart of the study involves ?a community-based cluster randomized controlled trial among 100 commercial sex venues in Beihai, a costal tourist city in Guangxi.? "We anticipate that the venue-based intervention program will be culturally appropriate, feasible, effective and sustainable in alcohol use and sexual risk reduction among FSWs," says the NIH grant abstract. Li said his study is being done in China rather than the U.S. because prostitution occurs with alcohol use in the United States like it does in China, Americans will be able to benefit from the project?s findings. ?We want to get some understanding of the fundamental role of alcohol use and HIV risk,? he said. ?We use the population in China as our targeted population to look at the basic issues. I think the findings will benefit the American people, too.? Li said minimal research has been conducted on the link between alcohol use and prostitution as it relates to HIV. ?Alcohol has been a part of the commerce of sex for many, many years. Unfortunately, both global-wise (and) in the United States, very few researchers are looking at the complex issue of the inter play between alcohol and the commerce of sex,? he told CNSNews.com. The grant is one of several ?international initiatives? sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. Ralph Hingson, director of epidemiology and prevention research at NIAA, told CNSNews.com, ?There are many Americans who travel to China each year and they should be made aware of the HIV problem.? Hingson said that Americans will be able to apply the studies findings to the American situation because 1.2 million Americans are currently living with HIV. Li?s research includes exploration, development, implementation and evaluation. Currently, the project stands at the exploration stage, which the doctor expects to last 18 months. ?The first phase is kind of an exploratory study just trying to get a good understanding of the phenomena in the population of female sex workers in China. The second phase is the program development,? the professor told CNSNews.com. Phase two will be based on the first year of the study and on ?field observations,? he added. The third phase will be the implementation and evaluation of the program. ?Prostitution is illegal in China but it exists in China," Li told CNSNews.com, ?but the Chinese government and the society?s attitude towards prostitution is complicated.? According to Li, there may be as many as 10 million female prostitutes in China with the majority raging from teenagers to those in their 20s. ?We see a lot of governmental initiatives in China, like 100 percent condom distribution promotion programs, so they deliver condoms in those (prostitution) venues," he added. ?The global literature indicates an important role of alcohol use in facilitating HIV/AIDS transmission risk in commercial sex venues where elevated alcohol use/abuse and sexual risk behaviors frequently co-occur,? Li wrote when introducing the project last November. "We expect that the intervention will improve protective normative beliefs and institutional support regarding alcohol use and HIV protection,? he added. The NIH proposal hypothesizes that the program will decrease "problem drinking and alcohol-related sexual risk" among prostitutes that participate. "We hypothesize that the venue-based intervention will change and enhance the protective social norms and institutional policies at the establishment level and such enhancement, accompanied by individual skill training among FSWs, will demonstrate a sustainable effect within commercial sex establishments in decreasing problem drinking and alcohol-related sexual risk, increasing consistent and correct condom use, and reducing rates of HIV/STD infection among FSWs," says the NIH abstract.