Social Security is (still) a Millstone Tied Around My Neck

As I wrote last year, the maximum amount of wages subject to the Social Security tax was increased by 4.67%, whereas the average rate of inflation for the previous year was 3.39%. This year, the maximum amount of wages subject to the Social Security tax has been raised to $97,500, a 3.5% increase from 2006. While the increase for 2007 thankfully is less than what it was a year before, it is still more than the 3.24% average rate of inflation for 2006 as reported by InflationData.com. As long as the increases in the maximum wage rate exceed the rate of inflation, it's going to be harder to escape subjecting our hard earned wages to this socialist income redistribution scheme.

State Individual Income Tax Rates for 2006

The Tax Foundation has 2006 state income tax rates posted here. The good news is that state income taxes didn't increase last year, and hopefully that trend will continue into this year.

Wow! Just Wow!

Remember "Jesse Helms is back! And this time he's black"? Well, Vernon Robinson is back in 2006 and has some outrageous campaign ads that are quite humorous and refreshing to hear in his bid for the 13th Congressional District seat in North Carolina. Check them out, but don't expect the boring talking points you usually hear.





Beverly Hill-Miller

Brad Miller's Mariachi Party

Bill Cosby Radio Ad

As refreshingly direct as his ads are, Robinson may be too extreme and politically inexperienced in his presentation style to be elected. As you can see here, Robinson has a hard time standing up to Alan Colmes and articulating his views.

New Strategy for Iraq

It's clear that the US strategy in Iraq is not progressing very well. Ralph Peters suggests an alternate strategy against the militant factions vying for control of Iraq (from Pennsylvanian in exile). I've highlighted some key thoughts in the excerpt below.

Does that mean we should leave?

Not yet. Iraq deserves one last chance. But to make that chance even remotely viable, we'll have to take desperate measures. We need to fight. And accept the consequences.

The first thing we need to do is to kill Muqtada al-Sadr, who's now a greater threat to our strategic goals than Osama bin Laden.

We should've killed him in 2003, when he first embarked upon his murder campaign. But our leaders were afraid of provoking riots.

Back then, the tumult might've lasted a week. Now we'll face a serious uprising. So be it. When you put off paying war's price, you pay compound interest in blood.

We must kill - not capture - Muqtada, then kill every gunman who comes out in the streets to avenge him.

Our policy of all-carrots-no-sticks has failed miserably. We delivered Iraq to zealots, gangsters and terrorists. Now our only hope is to prove that we mean business - that the era of peace, love and wasting American lives is over.

And after we've killed Muqtada and destroyed his Mahdi Army, we need to go after the Sunni insurgents. If we can't leave a democracy behind, we should at least leave the corpses of our enemies.

The holier-than-thou response to this proposal is predictable: "We can't kill our way out of this situation!" Well, boo-hoo. Friendly persuasion and billions of dollars haven't done the job. Give therapeutic violence a chance.

Our soldiers and Marines are dying to protect a government whose members are scrambling to ally themselves with sectarian militias and insurgent factions. President Bush needs to face reality. The Maliki government is a failure.

There's still a chance, if a slight one, that we can achieve a few of our goals in Iraq - if we let our troops make war, not love. But if our own leaders are unwilling to fight, it's time to leave and let Iraqis fight each other.

Our president owes Iraq's treacherous prime minister nothing. Get tough, or get out.

The problem with fighting a guerrilla insurgency is that it is difficult to identify, and therefore kill the insurgents without upsetting the innocent civilian population too much by casting too wide a net. But the least the US could do is kill the provocateurs that they do know about. Granted that would be very bad for public relations and possibly create more insurgents, but the least that would do is expose the identities of the angry followers who would come out of the woodwork to avenge their leaders' deaths. This would likely lead to greater violence, but it has to be better than what we are doing now. We need to proactively draw out the insurgents into a stand up fight so that we can defeat them using more conventional warfare tactics. Simply policing insurgent acts of violence, arresting and interrogating suspects, and developing intelligence networks is just not going to cut it.

1. Kill an insurgent/militant/provocateur leader in a very public and outrageous manner.
2. Drop a MOAB on his funeral procession, which will be filled with his very angry followers/sympathizers burning American flags and firing AK-47s in the air.
3. Lather, rinse, and repeat.

OK, maybe I'm overreacting and going overboard a bit, but the strategy of buying time with US lives until the Iraqi defensive forces are ready is looking too open-ended. I just hate the idea of trusting the successful outcome to a weak and corrupt Iraqi government of questionable loyalty.

Holding Her Nose and Voting Republican

Here's an article by Linda Chavez that laments the fact that Republicans have abandoned their principles, also noting that the Democratic alternative would be worse. Here are some excerpts that reflect some of my thoughts.

I'm angry at Republicans for abandoning their principles. This Republican president, aided and abetted by Congress, has increased federal spending at a reckless rate, even when the costs of the war in Iraq are taken out of the equation. I'm embarrassed by the scandals that have plagued some Republicans and by the abject failure of the leadership to do anything meaningful on lobbying reform.
...
I'm disappointed that after years of claiming to be the party of colorblind equal opportunity, Republicans have actually expanded racial preferences in federal programs.
...
But none of these issues will make me stay home, much less vote Democratic. The fact is I don't trust the Democratic Party to lead this country in a time of uncertainty and war.
...
Democratic control of Congress also worries me when it comes to the economy. Democrats always want to raise taxes in order to pay for social programs, transferring money out of the hands of ordinary people and turning it over to bureaucrats. Most Democrats are also infatuated with government regulation and rarely find a government directive they don't like. Higher taxes and more regulations are a recipe to cool our healthy economy. Democrats seem to want to punish businesses rather than encourage the creation of more wealth. And they have a nasty propensity to encourage envy and class warfare, which benefits no one.

Politics is sometimes about making the least bad choice. I know some of my fellow Republicans will stay home on Election Day, hoping to send the party a message that they're fed up with the current leadership. But putting the Democrats in control won't bring about needed changes -- it will make matters even worse. The place for revolt is within the party itself, by urging the elected representatives to pick carefully when they choose House and Senate leadership in January and by challenging incumbents in primaries next time if they don't stand up for basic Republican principles.

Set Phasers to ROCK!

Star Trek and Wayne's World fans unite! Go here for a great nostalgic laugh (from 45-Caliber Justice).

Zucker's Taxman

Ever feel like the government literally has it's hand in your pocket every step you make? Jerry Zucker does in his latest video (from The Club for Growth).

Only in Texas

Only in Texas can you see positive local news coverage of action shooting sports. Here's a nice video clip from the Dallas Fort Worth Fox affiliate highlighting the activities of the Dallas Action Pistol Shooters.

Update: It seems the crew from Texican Tattler were participants on the shoot.

Korean Archery

South Korea has dominated the Olympic medal count in archery ever since modern archery was introduced in 1972. Here's an amazing video showing off Korean archery prowess (via VIDEOFINDS.com).

Free to Choose

Update: The Google Video links listed below have been taken down, but you can watch the series on IdeaChannel.tv.

Greg Mankiw has provided Google Video links to Milton Friedman's excellent Free to Choose series from 1980. Link provided by Club for Growth.

Here are the links to the 1980 Freedom to Choose series.

Volume 1: Power of the Market
Volume 2: The Tyranny of Control
Volume 3: Anatomy of a Crisis
Volume 4: From Cradle to Grave
Volume 5: Created Equal
Volume 6: What's Wrong With Our Schools?
Volume 7: Who Protects the Consumer?
Volume 8: Who Protects the Worker?
Volume 9: How to Cure Inflation
Volume 10: How to Stay Free

Here are Google Video links for the 1990 update to the series, with an introduction by Arnold Schwarzenegger.




Introduction by Arnold Schwarzenegger
Volume 1: The Power of the Market
Volume 2: The Tyranny of Control
Volume 3: The Failure of Socialism
Volume 4: What's Wrong With Our Schools?
Volume 5: Created Equal

Perfect Pasta

The secret to great pasta is obtaining a balanced ratio of sauce to pasta. Too much sauce sticking to the pasta will overpower the pasta, and too little sauce sticking to the pasta will make for a bland dish. I've found that linguine provides the best sauce to pasta ratio. The flat linguine provides the perfect amount of surface area to which the right amount of sauce can stick. Spaghettini (thin spaghetti) is also comparable in its noodle mass to surface area ratio.

Regular round spaghetti has less surface area for a given mass of noodles, and so not enough sauce is able to stick to the noodles, giving it a slightly doughy flavor. Other pastas susceptible to this are fettuccine, penne, and rigatoni. The exception would be when making a baked casserole, where the sauce and flavor would have an opportunity to be baked into the pasta, thus overcoming the smaller outer surface area. Pastas such as angel hair and capellini have too much surface area, and are overpowered when using thicker sauces, but do better with lighter sauces.

The linguini that I like best is DeBoles Linguini, which is made of durum semolina and Jerusalem artichoke flour. DeBoles' organic linguine is also excellent.

Pro-Gun TIME article?

Here's a great pro-gun article from an unexpected source: Time Magazine (well, the Pacific edition anyways). Here are some choice bits.

Three months after I joined a shooting club, I've learned not to jump when the gun does. But I'm still being surprised, and not just by the bang or the occasional bullseye. When I tell friends about my new interest (O.K., obsession), the conversation chills. It's as if I've taken up voodoo: they'll still talk to me, just not about It. "I just don't like guns," says one. "Don't like the idea of them." In the days when the only unholstered guns I'd seen were in the movies, I might have said the same. Guns for me equaled danger and crime. Even after I started shooting, I had a lingering sense that the rifle or pistol, even the brass rounds I was pressing into its magazine, might explode at any moment. I still handle guns with caution—the first rule of firearms safety is to treat every gun as if it's loaded. But I now know that to call them evil, as Australian Prime Minister John Howard recently did, is a statement of good-hearted ignorance.

Guns aren't moral agents, they're machines—elegant, superbly efficient, made to fit the human hand. I now think it entirely possible that the American gunsmith John Moses Browning "sitteth," as his admirers say, "at the right hand of God." Shooting for sport isn't, as I once thought, the desperate outlet of sad Hemingway types, but a fiendishly difficult art. As Peter, a former naval officer, says, "It's got all the Zen you could want." Trying to hit a bullseye smaller than a saucer from a distance of 100 m or more—and do it over and over again—demands things of you, and gives things to you. You have to align yourself not just with the gun and the target but with your surroundings: light must be taken into account (people tend to aim lower in dim light), temperature (on a hot day the bullet flies faster and higher), and wind. "Three minutes," says Ian, an Army weapons instructor turned lawyer. He means that to counter today's stiff easterly, he'll move his horizontal sight three-60ths of a degree to the left. Shooting is all about precision, he says. And consistency. And tenacity, says David, an engineer who won a U.S. sniper-rifle championship last year. "Don't let anything faze you. Breathe. Relax. If you do a bad shot, forget it. Put everything you've got into the next one." The reward of total concentration: total relaxation. Even when I score poorly, shooting makes me forget everything else in the world.

It was seeing civilians targeted en masse that made Grant take up shooting. "9/11 was a defining moment for me," says the computer consultant. "I thought, if things are going to get this crazy, I'd rather know how to use a gun than not." David regrets the passing of an Australia that, in time of war, could draw on a huge pool of citizen marksmen. "We lost that after Vietnam," he says. With it went not just skills but a cast of mind. "Given the choice," says Ian, "I would always employ a shooter over a non-shooter. A good shooter is responsible, he's careful. He thinks about what he's doing, and when it's over he thinks about how to do it better." Says Alan, a teacher: "The art on the range, on the job, in life, is to aim and to hit exactly the target, the one target, the only target, dead center, with one round." Clearly, I have a lot of practicing to do. But shooting has taught me that while to err may be human, to aim true is almost divine.

Republican Report Card

Kim du Toit has a pretty accurate analysis of the state of Republicanism these days broken down by issue.

Aggregate Grade: F-minus

The UAW Must Be Destroyed

Is there any wonder why GM and Ford are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy? Here are a couple of articles that highlight how the UAW's welfare entitlement mentality is hurting the competitiveness of US auto manufacturing, as well as the entire American public. Here are some choice bits from an article (thanks to Karthik) by George Will.

Under contracts negotiated, beginning in 1984, with the United Auto Workers (UAW), there are about 14,700 laid-off autoworkers in the "Jobs Bank." About 7,500 of them are from GM. They get paid most of their wages and benefits -- between $100,000 and $130,000 a year, for an annual cost to GM of $750 million to $900 million.

The former workers -- expected to be 17,000 by next year -- are required to do nothing that adds value to the auto companies. Some attend classes given by GM. The Wall Street Journal reports that one worker took a class in which he learned how to play Trivial Pursuit.

Detroit's Jobs Bank, which was GM's idea, is a product of an oligopoly's -- the Big Three domestic automakers still were such in 1984 -- misplaced sense of permanent abundance: They assumed that layoffs, if any, would be brief because expansion of demand for their products would generally be automatic. This mentality was self-defeating. It caused management to focus not on producing desirable products but on running private-sector welfare states, allocating much of the supposedly ensured cash flow to fund employees' benefits. And labor's myopic focus was on extracting benefits from the corporation-as-welfare-state, not on the long-term vitality of the corporate employer.

The crisis engulfing the UAW and the companies entered a new stage with last year's bankruptcy of Delphi, the nation's largest manufacturer of automobile parts. That was the pebble that presaged an avalanche.

The avalanche may mean two large things; it certainly means one. Perhaps it means the bankruptcy of GM. Certainly it means, for the UAW and for organized labor generally, the worst crisis since the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 enabled private-sector unionization. In 1969 the UAW's active membership peaked at 1.53 million. Today it is 640,000 and, depending on the success of the buyout incentives and continuing failure to stabilize the domestic automakers' market share, might dip below 600,000.

Here's another article (thanks to Al) highlighting the UAW's antics at a Ford plant in Virginia.

One provision that may be in Ford’s sights is the Guaranteed Employment Number program, or the Jobs Bank. It is a two-decade-old program that pays workers their full wages and benefits when they are laid off, even if they do not transfer to other plants. Workers have the right to refuse work at plants more than 50 miles from their home base.

The Jobs Bank has paid workers to idle away hours reading or to attend classes on subjects such as dealing blackjack. There is no limit on how long a worker can stay in the program, which includes an estimated 1,100 Ford employees and could cost U.S. auto companies up to $2 billion this year.

“The fact that they can stay in a room and play checkers for the rest of their life is an unbearable burden,” said Peter Morici, a professor of international business at the University of Maryland. “The fact that the UAW has not conveyed to the workers that this is unsustainable … is irresponsible.”

It's one thing for a company and union to lavish exorbitant benefits to its members, and quite another when the public is forced to bail out a company that bankrupts itself (and the union that compels it) for trying to provide a welfare state (particularly made worse since the UAW consistently lobbies to force all Americans to live in a socialist welfare state via its support of "liberal" politicians/policies). A bailout of GM or Ford would be very costly for taxpayers, but hopefully more bankruptcies of UAW affiliated companies will reduce the already dwindling influence the UAW has over public policy.

Noam Chomsky: Liberal Hypocrite

Here's a great article exposing the hypocrisy of yet another rich liberal, Noam Chomsky.

One of the most persistent themes in Noam Chomsky's work has been class warfare. The iconic MIT linguist and left-wing activist frequently has lashed out against the "massive use of tax havens to shift the burden to the general population and away from the rich," and criticized the concentration of wealth in "trusts" by the wealthiest 1%. He says the U.S. tax code is rigged with "complicated devices for ensuring that the poor -- like 80% of the population -- pay off the rich."

But trusts can't be all bad. After all, Chomsky, with a net worth north of US$2-million, decided to create one for himself. A few years back he went to Boston's venerable white-shoe law firm, Palmer and Dodge, and, with the help of a tax attorney specializing in "income-tax planning," set up an irrevocable trust to protect his assets from Uncle Sam. He named his tax attorney (every socialist radical needs one!) and a daughter as trustees. To the Diane Chomsky Irrevocable Trust (named for another daughter) he has assigned the copyright of several of his books, including multiple international editions.

Chomsky favours massive income redistribution -- just not the redistribution of his income. No reason to let radical politics get in the way of sound estate planning.

...

Corporate America is one of Chomsky's demons. It's hard to find anything positive he might say about American business. He paints an ominous vision of America suffering under the "unaccountable and deadly rule of corporations." He has called corporations "private tyrannies" and declared that they are "just as totalitarian as Bolshevism and fascism." Capitalism, in his words, is a "grotesque catastrophe."

But a funny thing happened on the way to the retirement portfolio.

Chomsky, for all of his moral dudgeon against American corporations, finds that they make a pretty good investment. When he made investment decisions for his retirement plan at MIT, he chose not to go with a money market fund or even a government bond fund. Instead, he threw the money into blue chips and invested in the TIAA-CREF stock fund. A look at the stock fund portfolio quickly reveals that it invests in all sorts of businesses that Chomsky says he finds abhorrent: oil companies, military contractors, pharmaceuticals, you name it.

When I asked Chomsky about his investment portfolio, he reverted to a "what else can I do?" defence: "Should I live in a cabin in Montana?" he asked. It was a clever rhetorical dodge. Chomsky was declaring that there is simply no way to avoid getting involved in the stock market short of complete withdrawal from the capitalist system. He certainly knows better. There are many alternative funds these days that allow you to invest your money in "green" or "socially responsible" enterprises.

They just don't yield the maximum available return.

Instead of opressing hard working citizens by advocating the infliction of crushing taxes to pay for his "liberal" ideals, Chomsky can always put his money where his mouth is by contributing towards the creation of his utopian state. But it seems that he'd rather maximize his returns in "evil capitalist" tax deferred accounts. That's the crux of liberalism: make other people pay for what you want.

4.2) How do you make a contribution to reduce the debt?
Please follow these important steps to make a contribution to reduce the debt. Make check payable to the Bureau of the Public Debt. In the memo section of the check, notate Gift to reduce Debt Held by the Public.
Mail check to -
ATTN DEPT G
BUREAU OF THE PUBLIC DEBT
PO BOX 2188
PARKERSBURG, WV 26106-2188

Sandwiches That You Will Like

During PBS' fund raising drives, one show that is heavily broadcasted these days is a show called Sandwiches That You Will Like. Sandwiches That You Will Like is a WQED Pittsburgh production that basically showcases the best sandwiches in the country. Here are some of the outstanding sandwiches that are highlighted in the show.

1. Muffulettas from Central Grocery. Perhaps the greatest sandwich ever created.
2. Pat's Cheesesteak. See my analysis.
3. Shrimp Po' boy. Lot's of good places. I like them from Mandina's with some Turtle Soup au Sherry.
4. Pastrami on Rye from Katz's Deli. I'm looking forward to trying Katz's, but until then, Koch's Deli is my favorite.
5. Barbeque sandwiches. I prefer pulled pork or rib sandwiches in a vinegar based sauce myself, but all barbeque is good. The Rib Stand at Reading Terminal Market makes a fantastic rib sandwich.
6. Lobster Roll from Red's Eats. Lobster meat on a buttered roll drenched in clarified butter. One of my missions in life is to try out this sandwich before I die, although the cholesterol might kill me when I do.

Other sandwiches of note that were showcased included:
7. Italian hoagies from south Philadelphia. The ones from Chickie's Italian Deli looked particularly good.
8. Italian beef with hot peppers and giardinara from Chicago
9. Falafel sandwiches
10. Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwiches
11. Beef on Weck from Schwabl's. I recently had a Beef on Weck sandwich from Jimmy's Old Town Tavern. It was pretty good (beef was well done, though I prefer rare), and the Kummelweck roll with caraway seeds and kosher salt was the highlight of the sandwich.
12. The Elvis from Peanut Butter and Company. A peanut butter sandwich containing bananas, bacon, and honey, that's then grilled in butter.

The show prominently features Holly Moore, one of my gastronomical heroes who has some good reviews of greasy dives on his website. Roadfood.com also has some informative reviews as well. I highly recommend watching this show for anyone who appreciates cheap, yet delicious food. Oh, and make sure you have plans to eat afterwards because you will be hungry.

PBS Rant

I rarely watch PBS these days. When I was a child, I watched PBS' excellent shows for children such as Sesame Street, The Electric Company, 3-2-1 Contact, Reading Rainbow, and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. When I was a teen, I enjoyed watching NOVA, Scientific American Frontiers, and various cooking shows such as The Frugal Gourmet and Yan Can Cook. While in college, Bob Ross' soothing voice would melt away my stress. These days, I just tend to watch Frontline off of their website.

I'm generally annoyed by PBS' leftist bent, and the fact that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is funded by the federal government. When the question of federal funding comes up, PBS supporters love to harp on about how the majority of its funding comes from private and corporate donations, and that federal funding is minimal. Well then why accept federal money in the first place? I guess it's too hard to pass up "free" money. I refuse to contribute a single cent to PBS when I'm being forced to subsidize it, especially when Congress has not been given the power under the Constitution to fund such an organization. I am content to take advantage of PBS since I'm forced to pay for it anyways, while flipping the channel during their tedious fund raising drives, although sometimes I will watch them beg for money while letting out an evil conservative cackle. I wonder how much of the pledged money goes into hiring lobbyists to bilk more money from the feds.

Tax Cuts Make Money

Bill Frist writes an article in USA Today explaining how Bush's tax cuts have resulted in higher government revenues. Although he doesn't mention the Laffer Curve or other aspects of supply-side economics, he does appeal to common sense. More money in private hands means more incentive to work and invest, which grows the economy and therefore increases tax revenue. Although he saves a couple of paragraphs at the end to appeal for reform of entitlement programs for the sake of "our children and grandchildren" (gaaack!!), it's too bad that he's all too willing to spend the increased revenue as soon as it comes in, as well as rack up massive debt. In addition to low taxes, the federal government needs to chop off welfare leeches looking for a hand-outs (corporate, NGOs, or individuals) and simply spend less.

Jesse Jackson's Worst Nightmare

National Review Online has an article on Ken Blackwell (R), Ohio's current Secretary of State and 2006 gubernatorial candidate. City Journal also has a more in depth article. I hope he and other conservative black republicans have more success this year than in 2004, as he is joined by other contenders such as Michael Steele and Lynn Swann.

Tim Kaine's Left Eyebrow is Possessed!

In Tim Kaine's Democratic response to Bush's 2006 State of the Union address, his left eyebrow decided to rebel against his face by taking a life of its own. I don't mean to be uncharitable or to take a cheap shot, but did anyone else think it was bizarre how his left eyebrow kept jumping around everywhere? I could barely pay attention to what he was saying while being fixated on that crazy eyebrow!

C-SPAN video

Back in my day...

The Gunn Nutt's got a great post about how all these young whippersnappers have got it so easy these days, and have no appreciation for the "hardships" that Generation Xers have had to go through. Despite all the conveniences we have today, I still miss the 80's.

Accidental Shooting in Fairfax, or Negligence?

The Washington Post is reporting that Fairfax County police unintentionally shot and killed an optometrist outside of his home.

Fairfax County's police chief said yesterday that one of his officers accidentally shot and killed an optometrist outside the unarmed man's townhouse Tuesday night as an undercover detective was about to arrest him on suspicion of gambling on sports.

Police had been secretly making bets with Salvatore J. Culosi Jr., 37, since October as part of a gambling investigation, according to court records. They planned to search his home in the Fair Oaks area, just off Lee Highway, shortly after 9:30 p.m.

Culosi came out of his townhouse on Cavalier Landing Court about 9:35 p.m. and was standing next to the detective's sport-utility vehicle, police said, when the detective gave a signal to tactical officers assembled nearby to move in and arrest Culosi.

"As they approached him . . . one officer's weapon, a handgun, was unintentionally discharged," said Fairfax Police Chief David M. Rohrer.

Culosi was not making any threatening moves when he was shot once in the upper part of his body, police said. He was taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

I don't want to jump to any conclusions without all the facts at hand, but just going by the article, I wonder why the police even had their guns drawn when making the arrest. The article said that Culosi was not making any threatening moves. Did the police have any reason to believe that Colosi would have been armed and/or dangerous? I wonder what the standard operating procedure is for when a gun can be drawn, and when the officer can put his finger on the trigger. Also, do you really need a tactical team to arrest a single guy for a gambling charge? I suppose if the police had reason to believe that Colosi was armed or dangerous, that would explain it, but the article does not explicitly say. I'm sure the investigation will shed some light on why the officers had their guns drawn.

Social Security is a Millstone Tied Around My Neck

In 2005, up to $90,000 in wages were subject to the 6.2% Social Security tax (12.4% including the employer's matching "contribution"). However, for 2006, the maximum amount of wages subject to the Social Security tax was raised to $94,200. That's a 4.67% increase from the previous year. According to InflationData.com, the average rate of inflation for 2005 was 3.39%. I don't know what the average pay raise rates are around the country, but in my company the average annual pay increase is usually between 3.5% and 4%. I doubt we're going to see any meaningful Social Security reform in the near future, so with these increases that exceed the inflation rate, it's going to be harder for people to escape subjecting their hard earned wages to this socialist income redistribution scheme.

How to Shake a Snapple

I was recently in my office cafeteria, when I noticed a young whippersnapper buying a bottle of Snapple iced tea. Before opening it, he inverted the bottle about 160 degrees, and then proceeded to pound the bottom of the bottle with the palm of his hand several times. Each strike causes the depression in the cap to pop out with a popping sound, while presumably mixing the contents at the same time. I was so annoyed by this that I almost went into a crazed epileptic seizure.

Ok, before you start thinking I'm some kind of obsessive-compulsive psycho, I've always been annoyed by this since the height of Snapple's popularity in the 90's. I was in school in Philadelphia at the time, and noticed that all my classmates who hailed from the northeast would do this with their Snapples prior to opening them. Supposedly, this was the "cool" way to shake a Snapple. I had no end of northeastern "elites" to admonish for wasting motion on such an inefficient process in order to look hip.

Now, I'm no guru of fluid dynamics, but this method of shaking does not adequately or efficiently mix the settled gunk on the bottom of the Snapple to produce a uniform mixture of juicy goodness. The pounding on the bottle simply creates compression waves that do not displace particulate matter well enough to create a uniform mixture. Contrast this to the technique the other 99% of the world uses to shake a bottle, which is through rotating the bottle. Rotational shaking produces much more torque, which promotes the aeration of the liquid with bubbles and the creation of eddies, all of which contribute to better scraping the gunk from the bottom of the bottle and mixing it.

So, now that you have the facts at hand, please, please, for the love of efficiency shake your Snapple like a normal human being, and not like some Snapple fashionista, or you will one day face my wrath (or see me foaming at the mouth in a crazed epileptic seizure). OK, you may still think I'm an obsessive-compulsive psycho, but I had to get that off my chest. ;-)

Kahr TP9 Review

I purchased a Kahr TP9 with Novak night sights (TP9093-NOVAK) about a month ago, and after putting about 400 rounds through it, I have to say that this is a fantastic gun.

Background
First some background information. I first got the idea of purchasing a TP9 after fiddling around with my P9 (KP9093). I bought the P9 about four years ago, because I needed a concealable gun that I could carry for those occasions where I had to have my shirt tucked in without having a sweater or jacket on. The P9 seemed to be a good choice due to its combination of firepower and size, particularly its thinness. My method of carry was to use a Thunderwear holster in an unorthodox fashion. Instead of the normal method of placing the Thunderwear so that it hangs between your legs (which feels too uncomfortable with the gun resting on my private parts), I shift the Thunderwear so that it is in line with my left leg. I also position it a tiny bit lower on my leg so that I can sit comfortably. All I have to do to draw the gun is to suck in my gut, stick my hand in my pants and grab the P9. The only time drawing is problematic is when I am sitting up straight, but this is alleviated by shifting to a slouched sitting position. I think this is a small price to pay for the very good concealability the Thunderwear affords.

In order to mitigate felt recoil and muzzle flip from the lightweight P9, I installed a 4" ported barrel and a Harrt's recoil reducer (which is unfortunately no longer being produced). This helped a great deal when firing rapidly. The P9 shot well, but I began to want to replace the P9 with another Kahr due to the following factors.

1. I wanted to get a Kahr with a longer sight radius in order to shoot better groups. I also wanted to squeeze some extra speed out of a longer barrel (the extra 0.5" on the ported barrel doesn't count).
2. There's a bit of horizontal play between the slide and the frame. I doubt this has any effect on accuracy at 7 yards, but it annoys me.
3. When I dry fire the P9, I can see the front sight jerk to the right a bit when the trigger is pulled fully to the rear. I never see this on any other handgun I own, so I know I'm not using improper technique. I think that this occurs due to the heaviness in the trigger prior to letoff, and then the very long overtravel after reaching the trigger letoff. This also does not affect accuracy, as my groups are not veering to the right at all. The bullets are probably exiting the barrel by the time the trigger fully reaches the rear. Still, this also annoys me.
4. Although I really like the bar/dot sights on the P9, I wanted to get tritium night sights.

My first thought was to send the P9 to Cylinder & Slide for a trigger job, night sight installation, and installation of a Bar-Sto barrel. However, I heard that they have a very long backorder, and that the wait could be up to a year. I didn't call C&S to verify this, because I had already just decided that it probably wasn't worth the cost. My second consideration was to get a T9 with Novak night sights (KT9093-NOVAK). I would have loved to get a heavier Kahr to help with recoil and muzzle flip, but the longer (T9) and thicker grip panels (T9 and K9) would have adversely affected concealability in my Thunderwear setup. It was then that I saw a TP9 with Novak night sights in the counter at Shooter's Paradise in Woodbridge, VA. Now, onto the review.

Review
I made sure first of all that the TP9 had minimal horizontal slide/frame play, and that I didn't encounter the dry fire jerking that I described above. After I verified the TP9 was free of these conditions, I bought it for $650.

The TP9 is essentially the same as the P9, except that is has a 4" barrel as opposed to the 3.5" barrel on the P9. The thin grip (0.9") fits my smaller hands perfectly. The front sight is 0.140" wide and the rear sight notch is 0.150" wide according to my Lyman Dial Calipers. The white outlines around the tritium capsules look painted on. I prefer the white inserts that Meprolight uses, but the Novaks are adequate. Using my Lyman Electronic Digital Trigger Pull Gauge, the trigger weight averages to 6.5 lbs. and is smoother that the P9 (the P9 gets very heavy right before letoff, whereas the TP9 is more uniform). The overtravel is noticeably less than the P9, and the reset is somewhat long. The TP9 comes with one 7 round and one 8 round magazine.

Shooting Impressions
After cleaning with Breakfree CLP, and then lubing with Wilson Ultima-Lube oil and grease, I took the TP9 (along with the P9 for comparison) to the range to break it in. The Kahr manual recommends a 200 round break in period. I ended up shooting about 400 rounds through the TP9 using 115 gr. WWB (USA9MMVP), 115 gr. Federal AE (AE9DP), 115 gr. +P Corbon DPX (DPX09115/20), and 127 gr. +P+ Winchester Ranger (RA9TA) ammo. I experienced one failure to feed on the second magazine (WWB), but then experienced no other problems whatsoever. I think this is typical, as my P9 had about a dozen FTFs during its 200 round break in period, but no other problems afterwards. For the first 100 round or so, I was a bit underwhelmed, as the recoil and muzzle flip were noticeably greater than my P9 with ported barrel and Harrt's recoil reducer (although still relatively low). I could definitely shoot a lot faster with the P9. However, I got better groups (< 1.5" @ 7 yards offhand) with the TP9 than on the P9. After the first 100 rounds, I got accustomed the feel of the TP9, and noticed that the front sight went right back into the rear sight notch exactly after each shot. I also learned to adjust my grip as high as possible so that the rearmost part of the frame is sticking into, and not over, the web of my hand. With practice and a higher grip, the TP9's recoil and muzzle flip became very controllable even for fast firing. I am now very pleased with my TP9 purchase and have lost the desire to continue shooting and carrying my P9 for the time being.

Further Observations
One thing I noticed was that after extensively firing the TP9, the horizontal slide/frame play on the TP9 became even greater than on the P9, even though it had almost none when I bought it. Paradoxically, the accuracy does not seem to be degraded at all. I think that because the horizontal movement is located only in the front, that this does not adversly affect lockup of the barrel to the slide. I think I might still purchase a T9 or K9 in the future. I really like the feel of heavy guns, and although they are a good deal thicker, I've never actually tried to place one in my Thunderwear to see how much can or can't be seen. My TP9 made such a good impression on me that I definitely want more of what Kahr has to offer.

2005 in Review

According to my statistics, for the 3 months I've been blogging in 2005, I've only had 151 page hits for 25 posts. This blog is really living up to its name. Maybe it's time to get a digital camera and add some pizzazz to my otherwise mundane posts.

Motown Loses Its Mojo

If only Detroit could just declare bankruptcy.

Well, what's taking so long already?! Put an end to this disfunctional socialist city once and for all!!

This article brought up memories of the following scene from Kentucky Fried Movie.

Dr. Klahn: The CIA thinks they can infiltrate the Mountain of Dr. Klahn!
CIA Agent: You can't scare me, you slant-eyed yellow bastard.
Dr. Klahn: Take him to... Detroit!
CIA Agent: No! No, not Detroit! No! No, please! Anything but that! No! No!

Masters of Ping Pong

Incredible video of Chinese ping pong players.

Also see here for Japanese low-tech Matrix ping pong.

Jobs Rebound and Unemployment Falls as Bush Economic Policies Come into Effect

Here's a chart released by the Department of the Treasury linking Bush's economic policies with employment statistics. I wonder how much press coverage this will get.

Tales of the Philly PD

Wyatt Earp wrote about an incompetent Philly cop that reminded me of my favorite Philly cop story that happened around 1997. I was driving two college kids back to church after picking up some groceries with them in Upper Darby. We were heading east on Market at about 50th street, and were stopped in the right lane when a bus stopped to pick up some passengers. Well, the car in front of us got impatient and tried to get past the bus. The driver must have been really impatient because he overshot the middle lane and slammed into the car driving in the far left lane. I was tempted to just leave, but with two impressionable kids in the car, I decided to do my civic duty and present myself as a witness to the crash.

So I got out of the car and went to the crash scene, and the guy who got hit was a Chinese guy who had almost no command of english. The perpetrators of the crash were two young guys who looked very nervous. They start arguing with the Chinese guy about whose fault it was (it was definitely not the Chinese guy's fault, as he was simply driving in his lane when the other guys rammed the rear corner of his car from two lanes away). Very soon, a police van rolls along, and so the Chinese guy and I approach it to explain what's going on. In it are two women officers who look like this is the last thing they want to deal with, and they stay in the van while speaking to us from the driver side window. Since they're getting angry because they can't understand what Chinese guy is saying, I take over and explain what happened. While I'm speaking, one of the guys who started the crash starts to walk quickly away, while the other starts to drive away in another direction. Seeing this, both the Chinese guy and I excitedly exclaim to the cops that they're making a run for it and that they (the cops) should catch them! Now, what happened next I'll never forget. Both the cops get really upset and with some major attitude say, "Uh uh, you don't speak to US that way! YOU don't tell US what to do!" I can see where this is leading, and since there's no time to lose, I quickly calm the Chinese guy down and say in a polite and calm manner, "Officers, the guys who rammed into this guy are leaving the scene..." I try to describe the car and what direction they went in, but as I was trying to do so they just drive off in mid-sentence!! Unbelievable!!

So now the Chinese guy is really distraught because of his wrecked car, and I'm upset at myself for not noting the license plate number of either the car that got away or the police van (I was too shocked). A few minutes later, another cop comes walking along and we explain the situation to him, and he is very sympathetic and courteous, but there is little he can do if we didn't get the license plate numbers. So I end up leaving dumbfounded. I had seen this kind of police apathy in New Orleans, but this was my first negative experience with Philly cops. Now, I have a lot of respect for hard working cops and think for the most part that they are grossly underpaid and under-appreciated, but can't FOP or the city do anything about these bad apples?! Anytime one has a pretty much guaranteed job, what incentive does one have not to act this way?

Potpourri of Insanity: Tough jobs

Potpourri of Insanity: Tough jobs

Here are some funny pictures and commentary that helps put working in a cubicle in perspective.

Weekend at the Nation's Gun Show

I went to the Nation's Gun Show this last weekend, and I have to say that it was better than the last time I went. Although there was still a plethora of vendors selling useless junk, the selection and prices of guns were much better this time. In addition to buying a bunch of ammo and some mags, I also broke my "no new guns" commitment, and broke down and picked up a few goodies. I'll have full reviews once I hit the range.

I also observed that non-PC books are possibly making a comeback. After 9/11, it seemed that a lot of anti-government, tax avoidance, revenge, survival, lock picking, and how to make your own bomb/full auto/silencer books (such as the ones from Loompanics and Delta Press) started to disappear from the gun show scene. I presume this was due to the wave of patriotism that swept over the country after 9/11, as well as the lessening influence of the black helicopter conspiracy theorists and the feeling of less overall oppression with the end of the Clinton administration. I did, however, see a bunch of these books being sold at the show, albeit not at pre-9/11 volumes. At least two vendors were selling The Turner Diaries. Quite an interesting phenomena.

How To Write Unmaintainable Code to Ensure Job Security

I once had to take over development and testing a very badly written VB/Oracle client-server app that was developed in Honduras. Needless to say, all the comments were written in Spanish. After much wrangling, the original developers were hired on as consultants to help decipher the whole mess. Here's a tongue in cheek guide on how to write unmaintainable code in order to make yourself indispensable as the only person who can decipher it, therefore guaranteeing your job for years to come, at least in theory (via Slashdot).

View From The Porch: Boomsticks: A New Level of Hunting Snobbery.

View From The Porch: Boomsticks: A New Level of Hunting Snobbery.

Here's another reason why I miss living in Pennsylvania.

Texican Tattler: Snipers' head shots had to kill terrorists simultaneously to prevent explosions

Texican Tattler: Snipers' head shots had to kill terrorists simultaneously to prevent explosions

Some interesting news from Iraq.

Tips for Evil Overlords

In my quest to become an Evil Overlord, I've had numerous missteps. Peter Anspach has some tips that should aid me in my quest. Here are some that I've already taken to heart.

4. Shooting is not too good for my enemies.
7. When I've captured my adversary and he says, "Look, before you kill me, will you at least tell me what this is all about?" I'll say, "No." and shoot him. No, on second thought I'll shoot him then say "No."
24. I will maintain a realistic assessment of my strengths and weaknesses. Even though this takes some of the fun out of the job, at least I will never utter the line "No, this cannot be! I AM INVINCIBLE!!!" (After that, death is usually instantaneous.)
27. I will never build only one of anything important. All important systems will have redundant control panels and power supplies. For the same reason I will always carry at least two fully loaded weapons at all times.
43. I will maintain a healthy amount of skepticism when I capture the beautiful rebel and she claims she is attracted to my power and good looks and will gladly betray her companions if I just let her in on my plans.
44. I will only employ bounty hunters who work for money. Those who work for the pleasure of the hunt tend to do dumb things like even the odds to give the other guy a sporting chance.
46. If an advisor says to me "My liege, he is but one man. What can one man possibly do?", I will reply "This." and kill the advisor.
56. My Legions of Terror will be trained in basic marksmanship. Any who cannot learn to hit a man-sized target at 10 meters will be used for target practice.
61. If my advisors ask "Why are you risking everything on such a mad scheme?", I will not proceed until I have a response that satisfies them.
81. If I am fighting with the hero atop a moving platform, have disarmed him, and am about to finish him off and he glances behind me and drops flat, I too will drop flat instead of quizzically turning around to find out what he saw.
88. If a group of henchmen fail miserably at a task, I will not berate them for incompetence then send the same group out to try the task again.
93. If I decide to hold a double execution of the hero and an underling who failed or betrayed me, I will see to it that the hero is scheduled to go first.
100. Finally, to keep my subjects permanently locked in a mindless trance, I will provide each of them with free unlimited Internet access.

Here are some other tips that didn't make the top 100 list.

117. No matter how much I want revenge, I will never order an underling "Leave him. He's mine!"
120. Since nothing is more irritating than a hero defeating you with basic math skills, all of my personal weapons will be modified to fire one more shot than the standard issue.
139. If I'm sitting in my camp, hear a twig snap, start to investigate, then encounter a small woodland creature, I will send out some scouts anyway just to be on the safe side. (If they disappear into the foliage, I will not send out another patrol; I will break out the napalm.)
144. I will order my guards to stand in a line when they shoot at the hero so he cannot duck and have them accidentally shoot each other. Also, I will order some to aim above, below, and to the sides so he cannot jump out of the way.
147. I will classify my lieutenants in three categories: untrusted, trusted, and completely trusted. Promotion to the third category will be awarded posthumously.
170. I will be an equal-opportunity despot and make sure that terror and oppression is distributed fairly, not just against one particular group that will form the core of a rebellion.
174. If I am dangling over a precipice and the hero reaches his hand down to me, I will not attempt to pull him down with me. I will allow him to rescue me, thank him properly, then return to the safety of my fortress and order his execution.
183. Before using any device which transfers energy directly into my body, I will install a surge suppressor.
189. I will never tell the hero "Yes I was the one who did it, but you'll never be able to prove it to that incompetent old fool." Chances are, that incompetant old fool is standing behind the curtain.
190. If my mad scientist/wizard tells me he has almost perfected my Superweapon but it still needs more testing, I will wait for him to complete the tests. No one ever conquered the world using a beta version.
197. I will explain to my Legions of Terror that guns are ranged weapons and swords are not. Anyone who attempts to throw a sword at the hero or club him with a gun will be summarily executed.

Comical Political Satire

I don't know why, but I find that outrageous caricatures of conservatives created by liberals are quite funny. That's why I always get a good laugh from This Modern World by Tom Tomorrow (archives here).

Peter Bagge also has some funny comics from a libertarian perspective published in Reason Magazine.

Also, check out The Leftersons! for a conservative perspective.

Of course, Dilbert is always a daily staple for the cubicle dweller.

Cheesesteak Heaven

Although it's practically heretical to even think about eating a cheesesteak outside of the Delaware Valley, The Best Philly Cheesesteaks provides reviews for cheesesteak joints all across the country for those who have the craving and just can't get to Philly.

No guns, butter, and whisky!

Well, with Tim Kaine winning the VA gubernatorial election, it looks like concealed carry in restaurants with a liquor license (the vast majority of sit-down restaurants it seems) will not come to pass for at least another four years. Maybe one of these days I'll be enboldened to open carry when dining out. Doubtful, as I'd rather not go though the hassle of being asked to leave, which seems like a likely scenario in NoVA.

Bank Deals - Best Rates and Deals: HSBC Online Savings Rate Now 4.0%

Bank Deals - Best Rates and Deals: HSBC Online Savings Rate Now 4.0%

Doh! I just started the long and arduous process of applying for an EmigrantDirect account last week due to its 4% APY, and I still haven't gotten my letter in the mail to access my account. I wanted to switch from ING, which was only at 3.4% (now 3.5%). With all I've heard about Emigrant's horrible interface and lousy customer service, maybe I'll give HSBC a try as well. I'd still like to hold out with Emigrant to be eligible for their upcoming rewards card that they claim is going to top all others.

Cheesesteak Physics

Oh, how I miss eating a real Philly cheesesteak! Here's a page that delves into the perennial question of Pat's or Geno's. He goes into a pretty detailed analysis of each ingredient.

For me, Pat's wins hands down. It's less a matter of the individual ingredients than the overall construction. Here's how they order their ingredients when they build their steaks.

Pat's

1. Bread
2. Meat (greasier; to some, a negative, but for me a plus)
3. Onions
4. Cheese Whiz (slapped on top)

Geno's (all ingredients taste fresher and seem to be of a higher quality)


1. Bread
2. Cheese Whiz (thinly spread)
3. Meat
4. Onions (coarser chopped, spicier, and less cooked)

Now Pat's is superior because since the meat is in contact with the bread, the juices get to seep into the bread and meld with it (the greasier beef helps). Also, the heat from the meat tends to rise, thus further melting the cheese on top and creating a deliciously messy slurry of cheese, onions, grease, and juicy bread.

Geno's, on the other hand, spreads their cheese on the bread first, and then slaps the meat on top. The thin layer of cheese acts as an insulating layer, so the juice from the meat can't penetrate into the bread. Also, the cheese doesn't melt any further all that much, as the heat is radiating upwards and away from the insulating cheese. Then you've got your too spicy onions on top all alone (you've really got to cut the spiciness by mixing with cheese for optimum flavor). Sometimes the onions get put under the meat, but this depends on the preparer, and doesn't help much since there's not enough melted cheese to produce a slurry. This adds up to a steak where instead of all the flavor elements fusing together into a hot and greasy mess, the steak is more sterile with each flavor element being neatly separated from the others, and tends to be drier.

The bottom line is Pat's is the flavor champ due to its scientifically proven construction of melding all the flavors together. Geno's is just OK, but it's really popular for those who demand fresh quality ingredients, a clean decor, and a neater and easier to eat steak.

Oh, and ya gotta get a bunch of the free cherry peppers to go with your steak!! Mmmm...

Froggy Ruminations: A Warrior at Rest

Froggy Ruminations: A Warrior at Rest

A tribute to a beloved brother.

Guns and Butter Blog: Time for Butter (Food)

Guns and Butter Blog: Time for Butter (Food)

Some decent reviews of NoVA asian restaurants from a fellow Korean conservative epicurian gun enthusiast.

Liberal Hypocrisy

I keep hearing liberals talking about paying one's "fair share" of taxes. Of course that means that the more money you make, the higher rate you pay in taxes, offset by a mountain of potential deductions and exemptions that one can claim. I don't see how this is fair at all. If anything, everyone should be paying the same rate, without any deductions whatsoever. Pennsylvania's state tax is set up this way, and doesn't attract much protest from those seeking to steal from the "rich" to achieve "social justice".

However, on the federal level, any attempt to enact a flat tax is met with howls of protest. As per standard class warfare tactics, conservatives are characterized as being heartless, uncompassionate monsters who want to make bread with the blood of poor children. These protests are usually spewed the loudest by wealthy liberals. If rich liberals actually cared about the poor, then they should put their money where their mouths are and fork over their own money, rather than make other people pay. These rich liberals have the gall to say we're not being taxed enough while taking advantage of favorable tax laws to reduce their own tax liability. This is the crux of liberalism: make other people pay for what you want. Here's a way for those who think we're not being taxed enough to rectify the situation, and prove they're not as heartless as "evil conservatives".

4.2) How do you make a contribution to reduce the debt?
Please follow these important steps to make a contribution to reduce the debt. Make check payable to the Bureau of the Public Debt. In the memo section of the check, notate Gift to reduce Debt Held by the Public.
Mail check to -
ATTN DEPT G
BUREAU OF THE PUBLIC DEBT
PO BOX 2188
PARKERSBURG, WV 26106-2188

Link

The dawn of an uneventful era

I hate writing. I also hate organizing my life and thoughts in journals or day planners. I've created this blog to help me practice writing and organizing my thoughts. As most of the posts here will be quite mundane in nature, as well as poorly written, I expect that this blog will be the most unread in all the internet.