Martha's Big Adventure - Fat Like Me
Martha Randolph Carr February 5, 2010 Human beings are great at tinkering with things. Sometimes this turns out splendidly and we end up with penicillin or fuel-efficient cars. Great minds set out to improve on what was available with the intention of bettering mankind’s chances of living longer and helping the planet to survive. (More)
Simplifying the Tax Code?
Tom Purcell February 5, 2010 I have mixed feelings about it, if you want to know the truth. (More)
Regions on the Rise
February 4, 2010 (THE ECONOMIST - M. Ray Perryman) -- Although the recovery is just starting to gain a little respect and the pace is still slower than we might wish, all things considered, the Texas economy is performing relatively well. No area remained untouched by the economic difficulties over the past two years, but Texas’ short-term outlook is encouraging with continued population growth and a resumption of overall job growth in the near future. (More)
And Now, a Word From the Independents
February 4, 2010 (By Jackie Salit) -- The Republican and Democratic Parties have finally found something to agree on. Americans are angry. And what do the parties propose to do about it? The Republicans say they know the answer. Just put them in power. The Democrats say they know the answer. Just keep them in power. But wait! Isn’t it partisan vanity that made Americans so angry in the first place? (More)
Texas Alliance of Energy Producers
February 2, 2010 President Obama’s proposed changes to eight oil and gas tax provisions in the federal budget for 2011 will have a $50 billion price tag on it for Texas over the next 10 years, according to an analysis of the tax changes by the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. (More)
Tempest in a Teapot
January 29, 2010 (By E. Ralph Hostetter - January 28, 2010) -- Carbon dioxide (CO2) in its present concentrations has never been proved to be hazardous to either human beings or the environment. Research done at the U.S. submarine base at New London, Ct., indicates that increases in CO2 within reason would pose no health hazard. (More)
A New Year Of Opportunity
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn January 28, 2010 If ever there were a year that we might want to forget, it would likely be 2009. Our country saw the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression. The housing industry all but collapsed, and thousands of Texans faced foreclosure. The automobile industry laid off thousands and turned to Washington for billions in bailouts. Wall Street buckled. Giant corporations made giant layoffs, and small businesses went under. In Washington, leaders scrambled to solve these crises by haphazardly throwing trillions of dollars at America’s problems. Record-setting spending bills were thrown together, including a $1.1 trillion stimulus package, a $2.5 trillion health care overhaul bill, and proposals that increased government spending by more than 10 percent. We were told the stimulus would jumpstart the economy immediately, create jobs and keep unemployment below 8 percent. Yet today, unemployment remains in the double digits, and roughly 4 million jobs were lost in 2009. Clearly 2010 must truly be a year of change. At the top of the agenda must be job creation. For every proposal considered in Washington, we must first ask the question: will this create jobs? High on the “2010 to-do list” for some is passing the cap-and-trade bill, which would be a devastating job-killer for Texas and our nation. The proposed language will raise taxes, kill up to 400,000 jobs in Texas alone, and be catastrophic for our energy and agriculture industries. Today’s weakened economy calls for meaningful tax relief and incentives that translate into jobs and money in the pockets of everyday Americans. A number of important tax cuts, including capital gains, are set to expire this year. These measures should be extended, or better yet, made permanent. I’m confident Texans will do a better job than Washington spending or saving their money as they see fit. In addition to economic security, we must redouble our efforts in homeland security. As we saw in the tragic attack on Fort Hood last year, and the terror plot that came too close to completion on Christmas Day, terrorists continue to target innocent Americans. The need for vigilance against this enemy cannot be underestimated. While some are determined to treat terrorists as common criminals, we cannot allow this mindset to drive our policymaking. Instead, we must afford our intelligence community the tools they need to secure our nation, instead of affording would-be-terrorists rights they have not earned. Just as important, we must stand united behind our men and women in uniform as they defend our freedoms abroad. I recently had the privilege of visiting Afghanistan and meeting with several of our Texas troops serving there, in addition to the senior U.S. commander there, General Stanley McChrystal. The President’s surge strategy in Afghanistan was the right decision, and we must provide our troops and generals on the ground with every resource they need as they hunt down members of al Qaeda and the Taliban. Here at home, a concerted effort to secure our borders and reform our flawed immigration system is long overdue. I stand ready and willing to roll up my sleeves and work with the President and Congress to tackle real, meaningful, comprehensive immigration reform. On health reform, there is still time to get it right. While we were promised a transparent and post-partisan debate on health care reform, we saw exactly the opposite. Health care proposals were crafted largely behind closed doors and layered with billions in sweetheart deals. Fortunately, with the recent election in Massachusetts of Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate, all elected representatives and the American people must finally be given a seat at the table for this historic debate. I’m hopeful we can finally collaborate in a transparent and bipartisan way to enact real reforms that accomplish the goals of lowering costs and covering more Texans. Although 2009 was a tough year, it is not too late to turn last year’s unmet promises into this year’s reality. The strength of our nation in the years to come will depend on the level of security we ensure across the board – from the economy and energy, to health care and our borders. I look forward to continuing to hear from the Texans I represent and working to make Texas more prosperous and secure in 2010. (More)
Are Some Americans More Equal Than Others?
Lisa Fabrizio January 28, 2010 All men are created equal. This was the noble sentiment expressed by our founders at the birth of our nation; a statement of a religious truth yes, but also a profound hope that it might someday be a governing reality as well. Now these words appear only in the Declaration to the world that we desired to live in a different manner than any other people had up until that time. (More)
