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Cartoonist Scott Adams - he does Dilbert - says "I'd like to see a Constitutional Amendment that makes anyone in federal office ineligible for another elected term if the budget isn't balanced during the current term."

Interesting. He also distinguishes between philosophy and plan.

If you think government should reduce spending, that's a philosophy, not a plan.

If you think small government is good, that's a philosophy, not a plan.

If you think the government should provide a safety net for the poor, that's a philosophy, not a plan.

We have a situation where the number of working adults in this country is shrinking, and the number of retirees is growing. My proposal is that we fix that with immigration reform because if we made a bunch of babies, it'd be a quarter century before they enter the workforce in force, and it'd be terribly expensive to educate them. We can import grown and educated workers from Mexico in months, for almost nothing. That's a plan.

So What's YOUR Plan?

It's also a plan to say that we should cut back social programs in order to match revenues when the number of workers shrinks and the number of retirees, with the result that 50% of the old and disabled move in with family, sucking up money that would otherwise be used for leisure and/or education, and the other 50% become homeless. If that's your plan. If you simply advocate cutting back the programs and ignoring the consequences, that's not a plan, that's a philosophy.

Pay your money, and take your choice. As long as you are aware of what you're advocating, that's acceptable. Just remember, I don't know of anyone who hoped to retire early because of health issues, and I don't know anyone who proclaimed, when he was a little boy, that he wanted to grow up to live under a bridge.

Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
homelessness - immigration - philosophy - plan - retirees - Scott Adams - social programs

"Can I ask you something?" the neighbor across the street asks, and before I can point out that she just has, Jen continues. "Have you ever seen a fan dance?"

Well, yes, I said, I had. It was a long time ago, at the Todd Burlesque in Dayton.

"OK," she says, and she asks me a third question. "My boyfriend Jimmy wants me to do a fan dance for him, for his birthday, and I'm wondering, do they use some kind of special fan or something? Because I have a 20-inch breeze box, and when I turn it on, I can't hear the music to dance to."

Happy birthday, Jimmy.

Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
failure to communicate - fan dance

It was a nice day today. Soon it will be time for the baseball season to start.

Watching baseball is such a sad waste of time, even if you're not a Cubs fan. Watching sports is kinda like watching a cooking show, or watching sex - I don't care how much better someone else might be at it, some things I want to do myself, thank you.

I think this summer, I'm going to start gimping my way down some long and winding roads. Think of it as ultimate golf. No clubs to carry, no holes to miss, no balls to lose, none of those damned scorecards to sign, and if Tiger has left some of his castoffs lying about, no reason to want another three holes before heading for a quiet and comfortable place for romance.

Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
baseball - Chicago Cubs - spring fever - Tiger Woods

I suspect the number isn't a whole lot different here than it is in Baltimore.

In 2005, the Baltimore Sun reported that 1/5 of all young (age 20-30) black men in their city were in jail, and 62% were imprisoned, paroled, or on probation. Those statistics are staggering. If you were black, living in Baltimore, how would this affect how you raised your kids? And when you realize that most young kids have a father between 20 and 30 years old, what is this doing to the next generation?

Steven Levitt's Theory

Economist Steven Levitt argues that the changes in the abortion law have led to a dramatic reduction in violent crime. A woman in an unwanted pregnancy is highly stressed, and that challenges the unborn baby. Once he is born, he's likely to not bond well with his mother. Kids under such circumstances grow up to be criminals. When you can't win acceptance, you learn there's no point in trying.

It's a chinese curse: "May you have an interesting life." I've been blessed, in a way, for many of the interesting things in my life have happened to other people. I first started to accumulate anecdotes in the newspaper business, and it turns out that I have a gift for interviewing people, in that I ask questions that others don't think of, or don't think of in time, and when I ask the questions, I pay attention to what the other person is saying.

It's amazing, what people will tell you, if they think you're listening to them. Most people shut up and soldier, and they're thrilled that someone thinks they actually know something. What sad lives these people must lead, that they get so little respect!

An Amazing Wealth