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Archive for December, 2010

Thoughts About Richard Holbrooke

Posted in Congress, Politics, War, tagged , , , , , , , on December 11, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Update: And so, 12/13/10, he is gone. As reported in the NYT HERE:

[But his boss and old friend, Mrs. Clinton, expressed absolute confidence in him. “Richard represents the kind of robust, persistent, determined diplomacy the president intends to pursue,” she said. “I admire deeply his ability to shoulder the most vexing and difficult challenges.”]

Even as the State Department rushes to fill the void, the knowledge is that the face and force of American diplomacy in the Middle East will be different. It appears that for the interim, Ambassador Karl Eikenberry will be the “essentially alone in conducting US Diplomacy with Karzai’s Government”. RIP Ambassador Holbrooke, your job is done.

While I don’t know if this is what happened yesterday, I think President Obama’s sudden departure from his own conference on H.R. 4853, the “Middle Class Relief Act of 2010″, leaving ex-President Clinton to run a dog and pony show, had more to do with Richard, than it did Michelle.

Richard Holbrooke, Obama’s personally appointed Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan is in critical condition, after undergoing surgery to repair a tear in his aorta Saturday morning.

As you may know, according to Bloomberg;

[Holbrooke has been preparing a report for President Barack Obama on the current state of governance and development in Afghanistan. The U.S. and allies have a combined force of about 150,000 troops to turn back Taliban advances and train Afghan soldiers and police.]

SOS Clinton was reported scurrying back and forth from the hospital, and you have to imagine that concern for Holbrooke’s state over reports of a heart attack, stroke and/or possible blot clot was great. A repaired torn aorta sounds almost benign compared to the possibilities that something like a stroke could inflict. Even so, if things go well for him, he will be out of commission for a while. That means someone else has to pick up the ball and keep it rolling. Considering our situation in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq, I’m sure the WH was in a tizzy, especially with the other news that Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner was in surgery for kidney stones. Having watched my husband experience the pain of those things, I know they can turn you into a profound pile of mush in a hurry.

Our thoughts are with Ambassador Holbrook and his family. We hope for a speedy and complete recovery. Same goes for SoT Geithner, and his family.

As to his perfunctory duties with the First Lady, imagine Diplomats and DC partygoers of all sorts would have been awaiting his entrance. We all know those things are necessary in Washington DC. Is he such a flutterby that his date with Michelle is the real reason he had bad timing, and left his conference? That would make him just vapid- something I find hard to believe.

 

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama descend the Grand Staircase as they make their way to a holiday reception on the State Floor of the White House, Dec. 10, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Do read the link of the transcript Lynne Sweet provided on the conference. I’m with Riverdaughter on this one, Clinton displayed heroic aerial acrobatics, but Bernie Sanders is the hero of the day.

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Anania and Int’l Human Rights Day

Posted in 51 Percent, ERA, Feminist Majority, Great American Women, Human Rights, Humanism, LGBT, Politics, tagged , , , , , , on December 10, 2010| 1 Comment »

Elizabeth Anania Edwards died on New Year’s Day in the new Lunar Hijri calendar of 1432. That first day in the month of Muharram, where it is forbidden to fight, she stopped and gave up her life to a disease. Though most in the US don’t use the word or embrace the context, she could have been considered a martyr, to the cause of ending breast cancer.

We in the United States often wear blinders when it comes to looking beyond our boundaries, but her death was noted outside our confines. Pakistan Times carried THIS.

I found myself wondering at the complexity of translation from English to Arabic that must have occurred, and fascinated by the resulting translation back to English in the Pakistan Times, I nevertheless recognize the syntax of the press release found in many other publications. It’s a reminder to me that the world really does listen, engage and even honor those it finds worthy.

In looking at the day in Wikipedia, it seems in a mystical sense, all of a piece that her death day was also that of the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor Bombing, the day Indonesia invaded East Timor, the day Yassar Arafat acknowledged Israel, the Day the Republic of China moved to Taipei and the day the US first executed a person by lethal injection. Days of tribulation and days of human rights achievements are always linked.

Anania studied law, then, spent her life helping others, struggling for their rights in bankruptcy court and family law. She went to Washington and told our government how the dysfunction of our health system and bankruptcy laws did more than anything in our country to break people financially and kill them.  Anania spoke out for the human rights of others. Maybe there were other reasons, but she did not take the name of Edwards until and in honor of her son’s death in 1996. In another time she would probably have held the stage herself, rather than as a Senator’s wife. A daughter of the 70’s promise of human rights, her life was too short, but she strove to make it worthy. I think she succeeded.

Her death day folds into this week’s UN celebration: International Human rights Day, where this year’s recognition is for those defenders to end human discrimination.  To recognize her is to understand the honorable struggle ongoing in the world.

So, it will be sad and pathetic it will be when these people show up at her funeral tomorrow. My pity is for them. If you wish to send an  honorarium you might send to the Komen Fund in South Florida, (At the bottom of the Examiner page.) or the Wade Edwards Foundation. It’s all of a piece.

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H.R. 4853, the “Middle Class Relief Act of 2010″

Posted in 51 Percent, Congress, Disaster, Finance, I Own My Vote, Justice, Politics, tagged , on December 9, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Update – If you want to study the 1986 tax code a little more throughly than that provided in the named link below, try Cornell’s LII / Legal Information Institute’s look at the 1986 tax code HERE, or the IRS page HERE.

Seriously, if the Democrats want any hope of passing Democratic measures and want the public to clearly understand who is representing what, NOW NOW NOW is the time to introduce single item measures. Such action reduces the possibility of hidden pork barrel type additions, and allows adequate time for reflection on the measures both from Congress and from the public. It simplifies all kinds of things, like paper use, reenactment and modifications.  Clear, up and down votes on single measures is THE WAY TO REENGAGE PUBLIC SYMPATHY by showing clearly how the battle is being fought and who is on what side.

Consider the example of our current legislation entitled H.R. 4853 or the “Middle Class Relief Act of 2010” a prime example of negotiation gone wrong.

H.R 4853 is currently an 18-page pdf document. It’s fairly straightforward, however, someone who was familiar with the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, tax code prior to the BushCo era interventions should read it and give us advice. While it substitutes 25% for 28% and 28% for 31% in two tax brackets, for example, it doesn’t’ specify what the brackets are. So, it appears these could be movable. Take a look on the last page of the 2009 Tax Tables HERE ,to see where this might apply.

It discusses rates on capital gains and dividends, but makes no comment on funds derived from 401Ks, or IRAs and pensions. Since this is where most regular folk have actually invested, I think again a review of the 1986 tax code by someone familiar with it, would be helpful.

Update – it appears that funds derived from capital gains and dividends, withdrawn from 401K’s etc, would  continue to be taxed at the taxpayer’s current or retirement rate, rather than some lesser tax as is proposed and has been done for non sheltered capital gains and dividends.  The problem with this set up, as I see it is, pension fund holders cannot as easily opt out and speculative earnings are driven by others outside that can dip in and out. The pension fund canard that suggests the retiree comes out ahead because they withdraw at a lower tax rate simply doesn’t hold for most people. Folks can easily wind up with say a 21-25% percent taxable rate on their withdrawals, while those who just bought and sold stocks pay a 15% or proposed 20% rate.

Its’ truly distressing that in a year when Social Security has to go begging, and the housing market has tanked, the small business proportion of the bill allows for an increase of the phase-out expensing of depreciable assets from $200,000 to $500,000, cost of living adjustments, and rounding of limitations by the $1000s, and $10,000’s.

A little lollipop for the Republicans is at the end of it, wherein it states that the ALT extension is effective in 2010, or anytime after December 31, 2009.

I encourage folks to read the below related bills for a better understanding of how unemployment insurance has anything to do with airplanes and airports. A hint, if  you are a 99er you are screwed and  about to enter the realm of the invisible. If you make it a year however, you might be eligible for Obamacare.

H.R 4853 entrains thirteen different related bills. They are:

H.RES.1745, “Providing for consideration of the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 4853) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the funding and expenditure authority of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, to amend title 49, United States Code, to extend authorizations for the airport improvement program, and for other purposes, and providing for consideration of motions to suspend the rules.”

H.R.1512, the “Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2009”.  It already became public law re: 111-12.

H.R.3607, the “Fiscal Year 2010 Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act”. It already became public law re” 111-69.

H.R.4217, the “Fiscal Year 2010 Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act, Part II”. It became public law re 111-116.

H.R.4915, the “Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010”.  Referred to the Senate Finance Committee-meaning, I guess, since it’s still in committee, it can’t be voted on. So, I don’t know how it was supposed to be included in today’s vote.

H.R.4957, the “Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010”. It already became public law re: 111-153.

H.R.5147, the “Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010”. It already became public law re: 111-161.

H.R.5611, the “Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010, Part II”. It apparently already became public law.  (See 111-972.)

H.R.5900, the “Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010”. It already became public law re: 111-216.

H.R.6190, the “Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010, Part III”. It already became public law re: 111-249.

H.R.6467, the “Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010”.

H.R.6473, the  “Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010, Part IV”. It was received in the Senate on 12/2/10.

S.3187, the “Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010”. It was returned to the Senate re: H. Res. 1653.

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