Over the past year or so, Gil Smart has come to combine scholarship with opinion, popularizing complicated subjects so that all with an open mind can understand them. What used to often come across as midnight rants baiting conservatives, now are learned columns worthy of syndication.
Month: June 2011
“Starve the beast” meant to bankrupt government
I get a kick out of how Republicans, who strongly supported George W. Bush for eight years can attempt to make their own errors go away by simply repudiating Bush. This goes for all the Republican supported unfunded spending (huge) on top of tax cuts (huge), following of the conservative Republican principle to “starve the […]
Afghanistan Corruption: Study Says Taliban Influence Will Outlast U.S. Military Presence
From HUFFPOST: The farmer picking apples in the outskirts ship out each truckload of fruit. Theship out each truckload of fruit. The governor sends in armed men to chase workers off job sites if the official bribes aren’t paid. Poor neighborhoods never get their U.N.-provided wheat, long since sold on the black market. These are […]
Miracle on South Queen Street
The final phase of bid openings took place at the Southern Market Center on Vine Street on May 17. On that day, when the envelopes for the 13 remaining bid packages were opened, project sponsors were disappointed that the bids appeared to be $13.6 million over budget, bringing the construction budget to $102.6 million, instead of the projected $89 million, according to then-LCCCA executive director, David Hixon.
A few words changed Peter Falk’s life
From WIKIPEDIA: [Peter] Falk also studied with Eva Le Gallienne, who was giving an acting class at the White Barn Theatre in Westport, Connecticut. Falk later recalled that he had “lied his way” into the class, which was for professional actors. He drove down to Westport from Hartford every Wednesday, when the classes were held, […]
U.S. movie studios increasingly rely on emerging foreign markets
From L. A. TIMES: …Box-office growth in countries such as Russia, Brazil and China (Europe and Japan have long been fertile ground for American movies) comes as theater attendance in the U.S. and Canada has flattened and once-lucrative DVD sales have plummeted… Overseas ticket buyers now account for nearly 70% of Hollywood’s box-office revenue, and […]
Pot Legalization Effort Unites Odd Couple in U.S. House
From NEWSMAX: …House of Representatives Democrat Barney Frank and conservative Republican libertarian Ron Paul joined forces to introduce a bill that would take marijuana off the government’s list of controlled substances and eliminate criminal penalties. “Criminally prosecuting adults for making the choice to smoke marijuana is a waste of law enforcement resources and an intrusion […]
Mountville Library to re-open on Monday
The Lancaster Public Library West-Mountville Branch will re-open in its new location at the Mountville Area Community Center 120 College Ave on Monday June 27th at 10:00 a.m. Lissa Holland, volunteers and staff, aided by LPL’s maintenance crew and the Library System IT Department , have been hard at work since last week-end moving books, setting up shelves and making the facility ready.
LETTER: Huge deficit, no recovery
I am tired and sick of hearing about the “US economic recovery”. The Federal government borrowed and spent $6.1 trillion during the last 4 years to obtain a cumulative $700 billion increase in the country’s GDP. That means we’ve borrowed and spent $8.70 for every $1 of nominal “growth” in Gross domestic product.
N.Y. legalizes gay marriage
From USA TODAY: Same-sex marriage is now legal in New York after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a bill that was narrowly passed by state lawmakers Friday, handing activists a breakthrough victory in the state where the gay rights movement was born. New York becomes the sixth state where gay couples can wed and the biggest […]
Republicans pull out of debt talks
From the WASHINGTON POST: Congressional Republicans abruptly pulled out of debt-reduction talks with the White House on Thursday and demanded that President Obama meet directly with GOP leaders to resolve an impasse over taxes. With the clock ticking toward an Aug. 2 deadline, senior Republicans said negotiations led by Vice President Biden had ceased making […]
PAM petitions court to transfer endowment fund to LPPAC
The Pennsylvania Academy of Music (PAM) has petitioned Jean K. Fitzsimon, Bankrupty Judge, to dispose of its remaining assets. According to the document: “Debtor has entered into Asset Purchase Agreement/Letter of Intent ( “LOI” ) to sell or transfer the assets listed at private sale to Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center ( “LPPAC” ) , One Lincoln Park, Midland Pennsylvania 15050, for the sum of $300,000.00.
Oil reserves release shocks markets
From the FINANCIAL TIMES: Oil prices dropped more than 7 per cent after western nations released the biggest amount of oil from their emergency strategic stocks since 1991, in a warning shot aimed at Opec, the oil producers’ cartel… The US led the release with its special petroleum reserve providing 50 per cent of the […]
Majority Of U.S. Babies Are Non-White For First Time, Census Finds
From the HUFFPOST / AP: For the first time, minorities make up a majority of babies in the U.S., part of a sweeping race change and growing age divide between mostly white, older Americans and predominantly minority youths that could reshape government policies. Preliminary census estimates also show the share of African-American households headed by […]