New things
So today I had promised that I was going to talk about the elections that will affect people here in Missouri more than the election of a president, which is really just an honor position. A president cannot actually make policy, he can try to convince congress to pass something he backs but is not as effective as some are led to believe. But first I want to talk about what I have done today, which I am writing this at a little after 10 in the morning but I have been up for awhile and feel I have already done a lot. I am thinking that I need a part time job, for a few reasons, first; it would be nice to have a little extra money and two; it would get me out there and make me more sociable or at least seem like I am. I am also looking for freelance writing gigs online. There a lot of those opputunities for people to make a few dollars. Some of the jobs I have run across are pretty involved and require someone with experience, which I do not have yet. So I try to always look for things to do, since I am now retired.
So, onto the more local issues with this upcoming election in about a months time. I live in Columbia Missouri so I will be talking about the ballot initiatives for this area. The first one I want to talk about is that there are two things to vote on about cigarette tax increases. I do not think that will help the economy at all, which I think should be a big focus on this election and most of them, how to improve the economy. The next is something a little confusing the first time I read it. It is Prohibition on new sales and use taxes. This is an amendment on a ban of state or local or use taxes on services. This one I will need to do some more reading on but it is backed by some big hitters such as the Missouri Bankers Association, so we will have to see what this is all about. A kind of big thing now is the voter id law, or requiring people to use a photo id to be able to vote. I don't really see a problem with this, you have Democrats arguing that it is discrimination. I think that is a short sighted view, anyone can get a photo id even if that person cannot have a drivers license for various reasons. So I do not see why they think that it is discrimination, just another thing to bitch about. The next issue is campaign contributions limit, which I think there should be a limit on it but I do not think the government is the right "agency", that was the best word I could come up with, sorry. And last is an issue regarding continuing the sales tax for Missouri parks, soil and water. That one will probably pass no matter what we vote. I am surprised though, I did not see a school tax increase on the ballot for this November. Just usually always is a school tax increase on the ballot, it is not hurting my feelings though. One issue absent from the ballot, which has angered a few people in the state, is some form of legalizing marijuana. I am sure that it will be on a ballot soon for the state, so don't give up hope yet.
Now we go into the race for other offices besides president. The big one for Missouri is the governor, there are three people running for this office. Chris Koster, Eric Greitens and Cisse Spragins, a Democrat, Republican and a Libertarian. I decided that I should read up on the Libertarian candidate since I really have not heard much about her positions. From what I have read today involving Cisse Spragins, I like what she stand for. One thing that she supports is a proportional representation, which is voting for party. Such as, there is an election for state representatives and Missourians vote 50% Republican, 40% Democrat and 10% Libertarian, then that is how the House would be made up. It is similair to how many other countries do election and how countries with a Prime Minister get them elected. That is maybe one thing I am against with her stances. I cannot wait till election day, so we can finally get over all this stuff.
So, I was a history major in college and I am a self styled history nerd, I am going to talk about something that has a lot to do with history, the Thanksgiving holiday. First off, the thing that really gets at me is the hats, they did not wear hats with a buckle on them. If there was any material that could be used for building or survival it would not be on a hat. Second, they were not called "pilgrims", if anything they called themselves saints or a different branch of Puritans. Next is the timing, the only reason why Thanksgiving is at the end of November is to boost sales for the Christmas season. It was a political move by Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the depression, because think about it, it is supposed to be a holiday for the harvest time and harvest time is not the end of November, it is too cold at that point.
So anyway, that is all for today. I hope you enjoy, be back tomorrow. Have a great day everyone.
So, onto the more local issues with this upcoming election in about a months time. I live in Columbia Missouri so I will be talking about the ballot initiatives for this area. The first one I want to talk about is that there are two things to vote on about cigarette tax increases. I do not think that will help the economy at all, which I think should be a big focus on this election and most of them, how to improve the economy. The next is something a little confusing the first time I read it. It is Prohibition on new sales and use taxes. This is an amendment on a ban of state or local or use taxes on services. This one I will need to do some more reading on but it is backed by some big hitters such as the Missouri Bankers Association, so we will have to see what this is all about. A kind of big thing now is the voter id law, or requiring people to use a photo id to be able to vote. I don't really see a problem with this, you have Democrats arguing that it is discrimination. I think that is a short sighted view, anyone can get a photo id even if that person cannot have a drivers license for various reasons. So I do not see why they think that it is discrimination, just another thing to bitch about. The next issue is campaign contributions limit, which I think there should be a limit on it but I do not think the government is the right "agency", that was the best word I could come up with, sorry. And last is an issue regarding continuing the sales tax for Missouri parks, soil and water. That one will probably pass no matter what we vote. I am surprised though, I did not see a school tax increase on the ballot for this November. Just usually always is a school tax increase on the ballot, it is not hurting my feelings though. One issue absent from the ballot, which has angered a few people in the state, is some form of legalizing marijuana. I am sure that it will be on a ballot soon for the state, so don't give up hope yet.
Now we go into the race for other offices besides president. The big one for Missouri is the governor, there are three people running for this office. Chris Koster, Eric Greitens and Cisse Spragins, a Democrat, Republican and a Libertarian. I decided that I should read up on the Libertarian candidate since I really have not heard much about her positions. From what I have read today involving Cisse Spragins, I like what she stand for. One thing that she supports is a proportional representation, which is voting for party. Such as, there is an election for state representatives and Missourians vote 50% Republican, 40% Democrat and 10% Libertarian, then that is how the House would be made up. It is similair to how many other countries do election and how countries with a Prime Minister get them elected. That is maybe one thing I am against with her stances. I cannot wait till election day, so we can finally get over all this stuff.
So, I was a history major in college and I am a self styled history nerd, I am going to talk about something that has a lot to do with history, the Thanksgiving holiday. First off, the thing that really gets at me is the hats, they did not wear hats with a buckle on them. If there was any material that could be used for building or survival it would not be on a hat. Second, they were not called "pilgrims", if anything they called themselves saints or a different branch of Puritans. Next is the timing, the only reason why Thanksgiving is at the end of November is to boost sales for the Christmas season. It was a political move by Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the depression, because think about it, it is supposed to be a holiday for the harvest time and harvest time is not the end of November, it is too cold at that point.
So anyway, that is all for today. I hope you enjoy, be back tomorrow. Have a great day everyone.
Comments