Saturday, November 2, 2013

Perhaps This is Why Delaware is Such a Tax-Friendly State



First, some background, which I learned about from the Capital Times' Mike Ivey.

Kiplinger recently selected Delaware as one of its "most tax-friendly" states

A couple of reasons why,
  • It has no state or local sales tax.
  • Property taxes on a median-price home of $249,400 is $1,078.  (Our home has a similar value; our taxes are almost four times what someone in Delaware pays.)

Then I stumbled across this op-ed piece today.

Delaware:  Den of Thieves?  (The New York Times, 11/1/2013)

Excerpt: While officials in Delaware, Wyoming and Nevada talk about their corporate “traditions,” I am unimpressed. Business incorporation fees have accounted for as much as a quarter of Delaware’s general revenues. It’s no surprise that officials in Dover and Wilmington want to protect their state’s status as a corporate registry, but if that means facilitating criminal activity, their stance is a form of willful blindness. America must require uniform corporate-registration practices if it is to persuade other nations to cooperate in the fight against financial crimes.

 But Nevada wants your business more.

Haven't I Read Something Like This Before?


F. C. C. Plans Sweeping Changes to Bolster AM Radio, by Edward Wyatt.   (The New York Times, 11/1/2013)

Excerpt:    The proposed changes, supporters say, could salvage a technology that once led Americans to huddle around their radios for fireside chats and World Series broadcasts but that has now been abandoned for the superior sound of digital and online music and news outlets.

A Quest to Save AM Before It's Lost in the Static, by Edward Wyatt. (The New York Times, 9/8/2013)

Excerpt:   The digital age is killing AM radio, an American institution that brought the nation fireside chats, Casey Kasem’s Top 40 and scratchy broadcasts of the World Series.

When I think of AM radio, I recall the clear-channel broadcasts of CKLW, whose signal beamed across Lake Erie and 60 miles beyond to Warren PA 16365, day and night, during the mid-to-late 1960s. 

Thanks to program director Rosalie Trombley, CKLW featured the most adventurous playlists of any AM station I've listened to -- outside of WZUM in Pittsburgh.  But during the year I attended Pitt's library school (1973-74), WZUM was basically an FM station that somehow found its way to the AM dial.  Its program director was a big fan of Genesis.

Business Groups Attempt to Escape the Chokehold of their Frankenstein Monster

This poll seems to indicate that they're still gasping for breath.


In Alabama Race, a Test of Business Efforts to Derail Tea Party. (The New York Times, 10/31/2013)

Excerpt:   Despite Mr. Byrne’s substantial advantage in campaign money and endorsements, Republican consultants and voters here say that the zeal of Mr. Young’s Christian conservative supporters puts the outcome of the runoff at even odds, suggesting that the fight over control of the Republican Party is likely to be long, hard and unpredictable.

Alabama's 1st Congressional District.

Taxpayer Money and Political Contributions



Legal costs for GOP redistricting plan top $2 million. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 11/1/2013)

Excerpt:   The legal fight also proved a financial challenge to Michael Best & Friedrich, the law firm that helped Republicans draw the political maps. Taxpayers paid the firm $431,000 for that work, but it later had to turn over more than $377,000 to the plaintiffs. 

Related posts:
Iowa's nonpartisan approach to legislative redistricting.  (10/14/2013)
Wisconsin State Journal editorial board not impressed with The Little Soldier.  (10/14/2013)
Against much evidence to the contrary, Sen Neil Kedzie (R-Elklhorn) spouts the company line.  (9/20/2013)
Wisconsin Democratic legislators who have yet to sign on as co-sponsors of Senate Bill 163/Assembly Bill 185 (Redistricting Reform) -- UPDATED.  (9/17/2013) 
Common Cause in Wisconsin calling out Sen. Lazich and Rep. August.  (8/19/2013) 
Undoubtedly, Tyler August is just following orders.  (8/12/2013)
Will Republican Leadership in Wisconsin Fail to Support Redistricting Reform? (7/22/2013)
The Redistricting Weasels Sing a Chorus of "Because I said so!!"  (5/16/2013)
Common Cause in Wisconsin asks, "Do your state legislators support non-partisan redistricting reform?"  (5/14/2013)
A trio of non-responses in this redistricting story.  (4/22/2013) 
Actually, Robin, Your Riposte is Patently Absurd.  (12/30/2012)  Expect a Frigid Reception from Wisconsin Republicans to This Redistricting Bill.  (12/7/2012)
Close, but no cigar, in this Republican redistricting effort to steal an Assembly seat.  (11/20/2012)
Redistricting in Wisconsin:  The plumber controls the spigot.  (11/15/2012)
Eric Litke can't see the forest for the trees.  (11/12/2012)
Robin Vos and religious imagery.  (10/15/2012)
The faces of gerrymandering.  (10/9/2012)
What it's all about in Wisconsin.  (8/1/2012)
Who's running for state office in Wisconsin:  31st Assembly District.  (7/4/2012)
Not anymore!  (2/7/2012)
Redistricting in Wisconsin:  the Basics.  (12/6/2011)
Define "judicial activism".  (12/3/2011)
More headaches but this time Sen. Lazich has the cure.  (10/27/2011)
Legislative redistricting in Wisconsin, part 2.  (10/24/2011)
Legislative redistricting in Wisconsin,  part 1.  (10/18/2011)
Legislative Reference Bureau legislative brief:  Local redistricting readjustment.  (9/6/2011)
Let's call this bill exactly what it is:  an unfunded mandate.  (7/21/2011)
Wisconsin redistricting plan popeils DeForest, Windsor.  (7/21/2011)
Fred Clark gets redrawn out of  his district?  Just a coincidence, of course.  (7/21/2011)
Oshkosh Northwestern editorial board tells it like it is.  (7/29/2011)
Wisconsin legislative redistricting:  Abandoned principles, interactive maps, bill text, and more. (7/13/2011)
Congressional redistricting in Wisconsin.  (6/19/2011)

Once Again, Scott Walker is Unintimidated by the Facts



Is Scott Walker responsible for the success of Ian's Pizza?   (Capital Times, 11/2/2013)

Excerpt:   In the book, Walker doesn't outright claim credit for the success of Ian's Pizza, the downtown Madison institution, but in a chapter titled "Occupy Madison," he draws a strong connection between his anti-collective bargaining law and the growth of Ian's from a "small shop" to a pizza palace.

What does Ian Gurfield, the founder of Ian's Pizza, have to say about this observation?

As if anticipating a certain governor's fact-challenged book, he answered the Capital Times' headline question more than two years ago, on March 24, 2011, in a "Letter from Ian", posted on the business's blog.   (Highlights added.)

When I founded Ian’s Pizza 10 years ago, I wanted to create a business that could make a positive difference in the lives of our employees and customers. I wasn’t convinced I could change the world, but within the confines of the four orange walls in our original store I was confident Ian’s could be a force for good. Over the past decade Ian’s Pizza has grown to four stores, yet the values, which were so important to me in beginning, persist throughout our company today.

Although Gurfield is quoted in the Cap Times as saying he doesn't use his business to make political statements, his letter contains what I would call a not-so-subtle critique of Walker's approach to governing Wisconsin.

One of the greatest contributions we can make to our community is to be a good employer. We believe being a good employer means, above all, treating people with dignity.

He makes a similar statement to Cap Times reporter Jessie Opoien.

Gurfield also points out that the move to a different location across State State had nothing to do with the protests.   The lease was up on their former space, which is now part of the Block 100 Foundation Project redevelopment, where I'm sure the rents will be much higher than what Ian's was charged.   (Observation based on these code words "...the project will greatly improve the quality of the real estate available....")

All I can say in closing is that Scott Walker and Christian Schneider must have learned their dubious research skills from the same ineffective teacher.

Related post:
Unintimidated by the Facts: Has Scott Walker Got a Deal for You!  (10/28/2013)

Friday, November 1, 2013

Emily Abides

Perhaps this song had something to do with the Emily's turnaround in the 1970s.  (The album was released in 1966.   It spent 145 weeks on Billboard's Top 200 albums chart.)



Average popular baby name rank of Emily by decade:
  • 1880s -   91
  • 1890s -   93
  • 1900s - 101
  • 1910s - 103
  • 1920s - 136
  • 1930s - 166
  • 1940s - 178
  • 1950s - 226
  • 1960s - 246
  • 1970s -   84
  • 1980s -   23
  • 1990s -     4
  • 2000s -     2

#1 from 1996 to 2007.

Worst performing year:  1962 (#273)

An influence?  Maybe yes, maybe no.



Laura Nyro was hugely popular on the UB campus in the late 60s and early 70s.   Performing at Buffalo's Kleinhan's Music Hall in March 1970, she had a sold-out, mostly student crowd in the palm of her hands.  It remains one of my most memorable live-music experiences.

But I think Billy might have been in a different place and time.

Laura Nyro, Kim Richey, and Kathy and Carol, by Billy Altman.  (Paste, 8/1/2004)

Piled high and deep.     Having witnessed a show a few years later in which she nearly set fire to Buffalo, N.Y.’s venerable Kleinhans Music Hall by leaving a lit cigarette dangling from the edge of the Philharmonic Orchestra’s grand piano while she wandered around the stage between songs murmuring to herself, I can personally attest to the often bizarre vibes Nyro could engender in even the most sympathetic of audiences.

OK, Billy, so maybe Laura Nyro made a second appearance at Kleinhan's.  I'll cut you some slack.

Otherwise, there can be only one explanation.

As for the concert I attended.

A few songs into the first set, Nyro lit up a cigarette, placed it on the edge of the piano, and explained that the management had given her permission to smoke.  At the time, I figured, "Yeah, right.  She's setting her own rules here".  Kleinhan's had the reputation of being a veddy, veddy proper concert venue, although two years after Nyro's concert, I witnessed the odd musical coupling of J. Geils and Yes on the same stage.)

Perhaps not in the mood for wandering around the stage, Laura remained seated at the piano during both of her sets.  And although her between-songs patter occasionally tended towards the stream-of-consciousness, I can report that she never murmured to herself.

No bizarre vibe.  Nobody had to call the fire department.

Geezer alert.  Now I'm trying to remember where the inspiration for this rambling post came from.

And finally, doesn't my long-lost library school friend Grayce Marazzo slightly resemble the star of this post?



Ammoland Praises Seattle Public Library


Whoa, mama!  Somebody's been busy pimpin' this book.

Second Amendment Foundation Applauds Seattle Library Gun Policy, Donates Copy Of Miller Book.  (Ammoland, 11/1/2013)

Excerpt:   Emily Gets Her Gun is published by Regnery Publishing, Inc., of Washington, D.C.  [Great Conservative Books [dot] Great Conservative Authors.]  The 370-page book chronicles Miller’s months-long effort that began with a burglary and led through a sea of confusing and costly regulatory steps. Texas Gov. Rick Perry calls the book “a must read for anyone who cares passionately about the right to bear arms.”

As Emily poses, with bare arms.

More about Emily.  Is Emily Miller A Victim Of Sexism, Or Her Own Abrasiveness.  (Jezebel, 11/03/2009)

And while we're at it, let's check the availability of Emily's book in LINKcat.

Whoa, mama II.



What's in your library catalog?

More likely, show music.

"....you can't shoot a male like a quail in the tail....."

Something to be thankful for, I guess.

Democrats Suffer Whiplash as a Result of New York Times Headlines


The New York Times, 10/31/2013



Out-of-State Experts Like Sam Blumenfeld?



Common Core standards debate heats up over payments by John Birch group.  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/31/2013)

Excerpt:  Alan Scholl, executive director and vice president of the American Opinion Foundation, Appleton, said Wisconsin citizens who knew of his group's opposition to the Common Core asked if they could help bring out-of-state experts to the hearings.

The American Opinion Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation.

Opinion by Sam Blumenfeld at The New Statesman.

Related post:
Legislators hear a wide range of opinions at Common Core public hearing.  (10/4/2013)

Other Ebook Market Trendspotting Confirms Latest BISG Report


Study:  E-Books settle in.  (Publishers Weekly, 10/31/2013)

Excerpt: The research also provided more evidence of a hybrid print-e-book market with over 30% of August respondents reporting they purchase e-books and print books interchangeably—the same percentage as in September 2010. Just over 40% of e-book buyers said they purchase mostly e-book and fewer print books, a percentage that peaked at just fewer than 50% in February 2013.

From the comments section:     It is important to see BISG's survey data converging with the results of our own surveys  at Verso Advertising. From our earliest survey, conducted in 2009, to our last conducted in 2012, the data consistently pointed to the emergnece of a hybrid print-ebook market, with ebook pentration hitting a plateau at 25-30% of the trade market in unit terms. The reasons are threefold:

1. A majorty of bookbuyers continue to be resistant to screen reading for books. This resistance particularly is pronounced among avid readers (ten or more books purchased per year). In fact, by the time of our last survey, the resistance had actually intensified to over 50% of bookbuyers. 

2. Even among bookbuyers who owned ereaders, split-purchasing behavior is the norm, with most ereader-owners planning to buy an equal number of print and ebooks going forward. 

3.The accelerating shift to tablets versus ereaders creates additional drag on ebook adoption, given the pull of multifunction tablets to other media (e.g. streamed video, music, games, email, etc.) and away from books. 

Other ebook/reading-related posts:
Book Industry Study Group: "Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading" (Volume 4, 2013).  (11/1/2013)
Word of the day:  accretive.  (10/21/2013)
Survey sez: 72% of U.S. adults have read at least 1 book during the past 12 months.  (10/8/2013)
For years, many people asked the wrong question about ebooks and print books.  (10/6/2013) 
Ebook Flash Sales Grab Consumers' Attention.  (5/27/2013) 
BookStats 2013: It's not all about ebooks.  (5/15/2013)
Staying ahead of the learning curve.  (4/9/2013)
"Books are dead yet," sez Salon.  (3/21/2013)
Ebooks and the hype of emerging technology.  (1/8/2013)
Based on this column graph, print books are not likely to go away anytime soon.  (1/2/2013)
Printed books still lead ebooks by a significant margin.  (12/28/2012)
Ebook market pauses to take a breath.  (12/25/2012)
Year-to-date book revenues:  Jan-Jul 2011 and Jan-Jul 2012.  (11/1/2012)
Libraries get screwed when it comes to price of and access to ebooks.  (9/10/2012)
Millennials lead the way....to fewer bookstores?  (8/22/2012)
Ebooks sliding down the peak of inflated expectations.  (8/18/2012)
Adult hardcover book sales hold their own, paperbacks sales drop in 1st quarter of 2012.  (6/17/2012)
Library ebook circulation skyrockets @ the Greendale Public Library and throughout Wisconsin.  (5/29/2012)
In so many words:  Libraries will have a place at the table. (4/30/2012)
3M Cloud Library ebook lending service goes beta at select libraries.  (4/28/2012)
Pew Research:  The rise of e-reading, summarized. (4/5/2012)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution attempts to get a handle on the ebook era.  (4/2/2012)
And I quote from "Bringing Up an E-Reader".  (3/29/2012)
The Philadelphia Inquirer editorial board weighs in on ebooks and libraries. (3/19/2012)
Carl Zimmer responds to Franzen.  (1/31/2012)
It's only Monday but this is still the best ebook headline of the week.  (1/20/2012)
Jonathan Franzen has something to say about ebooks.  (1/30/2012)
As they have been doing all along, libraries adapt to technology.  (1/29/2012)
Floating an Idea: The Harvard Library Innovation Laboratory's Library License.  (1/17/2012) 
Getting in line @ your library for ebooks.  (1/15/2012)
The Post-Christmas ebook sales surge. (1/10/2012)
Honey, we've been 'trying' it.  For years.  (12/25/2011)
Chris Bohjalian on our totemic connection to books.  (12/20/2011)
Hold that bricks-and-mortar bookstore obituary.  (12/13/2011)
Your local public library: The greenest option of all in the ebooks vs. print books debate.  (12/11/2011)
Go directly to Amazon, do not pass library.  (11/3/2011)
Ebooks in U.S. public libraries.  (10/22/2011)
How ebook buyers discover books.  (9/27/2011)
Cookbooks make the transition to digital publishing.  (9/27/2011)
Redefining what an ebook is and who gets to publish it. (9/19/2011)
The L.A.Times on ebooks: An Amazon tablet, push into interactivity. (9/16/2011)
The Economist:  "Great digital expectations".  (9/16/2011)
Lev Grossman presents a short history of the reading device..  (9/6/2011)
Speaking of gadgets, here's the latest iteration of ebooks.  (8/25/2011)
Sounds like another digital divide in the making.  (7/30/2011)
Libraries and ebooks:  Any book, not any time soon.  (6/1/2011)
On the distinction between the book reader and the book owner.  (5/10/2011)
Demand for ebooks grows exponentially in Wisconsin.  (5/2/2011)
Struggling to find an ebook common agenda between libraries and publishers.  (4/5/2011)
Ebooks and libraries:  "The challenges just keep piling up".  (3/28/2011)
Publishers Weekly tracks ebook sales.  (3/18/2011)
Word is getting out:  Ebooks @ your library.  (3/18/2011)
Ebooks continue to gain market share.  (3/17/2011)
Publishers look to bottom line in formulating ebook policies for libraries. (3/15/2011)
News stories on HarperCollins ebook decision go mainstream.  (3/5/2011)
9 years of book sales:  trade and ebook.  (2/17/2011)
Will ebook readers be wooed by Barbara Cartland?  (2/12/2011)
The impact of ebooks on libraries.  (2/11/2011)
OverDrive news release: Library eBook circs up 200% in '10. (1/10/2011)
Mashable: 5 ebook trends that will change the future of publishing. (12/29/2010)
Christmas 2010 the tipping point for ebooks?  (12/24/2010)
Ereader as brown paper bag.  (12/9/2010)
The ebook reader compatibility surprise.  (12/3/2010)
Ereader ownership:  Survey says....  (11/30/2010)
David Carnoy asks, "Does the Kindle pay for itself?" (11/29/2010)
Need to repair that ebook reader?  (11/19/2010)
Who uses an ereader:  Survey says....  (9/22/2010)
Book industry wrestles with print vs. pixels.  (9/2/2010)
Coming soon to a screen near you:  Ads in ebooks.  (8/20/2010)
Ebooks now comprise 8.5% of book sales. (8/12/2010)
Genre paperback publishers drops print.  (8/6/2010)
Ebooks and libraries.  (5/4/2010)
Ebooks eliminate a free form of adversiting:  the book jacket.  (3/31/2010)
Ebooks: another round of false promises?  (3/19/2010)
The skinny on ebooks.  (3/8/2010)
Hardcover vs. ebook:  Breaking down the costs.  (3/1/2010)

Book Industry Study Group: "Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading" (Volume 4, 2013)

It'll cost you.

Press release.



Publishers Weekly summary.  "Study:  Ebooks settle in".  (10/31/2013)

A quote from the article.

In other words......

We appear to be ascending the slope of enlightenment in the technology hype cycle as it applies to ebooks.


Other ebook/reading-related posts:
Word of the day:  accretive.  (10/21/2013)
Survey sez: 72% of U.S. adults have read at least 1 book during the past 12 months.  (10/8/2013)
For years, many people asked the wrong question about ebooks and print books.  (10/6/2013) 
Ebook Flash Sales Grab Consumers' Attention.  (5/27/2013) 
BookStats 2013: It's not all about ebooks.  (5/15/2013)
Staying ahead of the learning curve.  (4/9/2013)
"Books are dead yet," sez Salon.  (3/21/2013)
Ebooks and the hype of emerging technology.  (1/8/2013)
Based on this column graph, print books are not likely to go away anytime soon.  (1/2/2013)
Printed books still lead ebooks by a significant margin.  (12/28/2012)
Ebook market pauses to take a breath.  (12/25/2012)
Year-to-date book revenues:  Jan-Jul 2011 and Jan-Jul 2012.  (11/1/2012)
Libraries get screwed when it comes to price of and access to ebooks.  (9/10/2012)
Millennials lead the way....to fewer bookstores?  (8/22/2012)
Ebooks sliding down the peak of inflated expectations.  (8/18/2012)
Adult hardcover book sales hold their own, paperbacks sales drop in 1st quarter of 2012.  (6/17/2012)
Library ebook circulation skyrockets @ the Greendale Public Library and throughout Wisconsin.  (5/29/2012)
In so many words:  Libraries will have a place at the table. (4/30/2012)
3M Cloud Library ebook lending service goes beta at select libraries.  (4/28/2012)
Pew Research:  The rise of e-reading, summarized. (4/5/2012)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution attempts to get a handle on the ebook era.  (4/2/2012)
And I quote from "Bringing Up an E-Reader".  (3/29/2012)
The Philadelphia Inquirer editorial board weighs in on ebooks and libraries. (3/19/2012)
Carl Zimmer responds to Franzen.  (1/31/2012)
It's only Monday but this is still the best ebook headline of the week.  (1/20/2012)
Jonathan Franzen has something to say about ebooks.  (1/30/2012)
As they have been doing all along, libraries adapt to technology.  (1/29/2012)
Floating an Idea: The Harvard Library Innovation Laboratory's Library License.  (1/17/2012) 
Getting in line @ your library for ebooks.  (1/15/2012)
The Post-Christmas ebook sales surge. (1/10/2012)
Honey, we've been 'trying' it.  For years.  (12/25/2011)
Chris Bohjalian on our totemic connection to books.  (12/20/2011)
Hold that bricks-and-mortar bookstore obituary.  (12/13/2011)
Your local public library: The greenest option of all in the ebooks vs. print books debate.  (12/11/2011)
Go directly to Amazon, do not pass library.  (11/3/2011)
Ebooks in U.S. public libraries.  (10/22/2011)
How ebook buyers discover books.  (9/27/2011)
Cookbooks make the transition to digital publishing.  (9/27/2011)
Redefining what an ebook is and who gets to publish it. (9/19/2011)
The L.A.Times on ebooks: An Amazon tablet, push into interactivity. (9/16/2011)
The Economist:  "Great digital expectations".  (9/16/2011)
Lev Grossman presents a short history of the reading device..  (9/6/2011)
Speaking of gadgets, here's the latest iteration of ebooks.  (8/25/2011)
Sounds like another digital divide in the making.  (7/30/2011)
Libraries and ebooks:  Any book, not any time soon.  (6/1/2011)
On the distinction between the book reader and the book owner.  (5/10/2011)
Demand for ebooks grows exponentially in Wisconsin.  (5/2/2011)
Struggling to find an ebook common agenda between libraries and publishers.  (4/5/2011)
Ebooks and libraries:  "The challenges just keep piling up".  (3/28/2011)
Publishers Weekly tracks ebook sales.  (3/18/2011)
Word is getting out:  Ebooks @ your library.  (3/18/2011)
Ebooks continue to gain market share.  (3/17/2011)
Publishers look to bottom line in formulating ebook policies for libraries. (3/15/2011)
News stories on HarperCollins ebook decision go mainstream.  (3/5/2011)
9 years of book sales:  trade and ebook.  (2/17/2011)
Will ebook readers be wooed by Barbara Cartland?  (2/12/2011)
The impact of ebooks on libraries.  (2/11/2011)
OverDrive news release: Library eBook circs up 200% in '10. (1/10/2011)
Mashable: 5 ebook trends that will change the future of publishing. (12/29/2010)
Christmas 2010 the tipping point for ebooks?  (12/24/2010)
Ereader as brown paper bag.  (12/9/2010)
The ebook reader compatibility surprise.  (12/3/2010)
Ereader ownership:  Survey says....  (11/30/2010)
David Carnoy asks, "Does the Kindle pay for itself?" (11/29/2010)
Need to repair that ebook reader?  (11/19/2010)
Who uses an ereader:  Survey says....  (9/22/2010)
Book industry wrestles with print vs. pixels.  (9/2/2010)
Coming soon to a screen near you:  Ads in ebooks.  (8/20/2010)
Ebooks now comprise 8.5% of book sales. (8/12/2010)
Genre paperback publishers drops print.  (8/6/2010)
Ebooks and libraries.  (5/4/2010)
Ebooks eliminate a free form of adversiting:  the book jacket.  (3/31/2010)
Ebooks: another round of false promises?  (3/19/2010)
The skinny on ebooks.  (3/8/2010)
Hardcover vs. ebook:  Breaking down the costs.  (3/1/2010)

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Probably Best Not to Count on Sears over the Long Term



For Mighty Sears, Pictures of Decay.  (The New York Times, 10/29/2013)

Excerpt:   When Brian Sozzi, the chief executive of Belus Capital Advisors, visited Sears locations in New York and New Jersey this month, he said, he found barren shelves, haphazard displays and badly stained carpets. 

Also missing: customers.

My favorite aspect of Sears' history.



The History and Future of Sears.  (Investopedia, 1/16/2012)

This doesn't sound like a promising set-up.  You might best know Sears as the department store where your grandparents shopped, but the company has a long and storied history.

It's not.   Few people are betting on a revitalization of the retail arm of Sears; not even the company itself. In 2010, Sears announced that it would sell its Craftsman and Kenmore brands in other retail stores like Costco and Ace Hardware.

My parents -- Dad was born in 1915, Mom in 1920 -- loved shopping at Sears.  Me, not so much, an retail assessment I had made by the time I was in my teens.  As for my 2 sons, they would never shop at Sears by choice.

A narrative history of Sears.

I've been told this this house at 11 Wilson Street in Warren PA 16365 is a Sears home but haven't been able to verify.



The Nipper Chronicles (Chapter 2): The NRA Masters Speak

Local school leaders question gun proposal. (La Crosse Tribune, 10/31/2013)

An excerpt from the article.  (Not the slide title, of course.)


Speaking in code, of course.

But Kleefisch is overruled.  Robin Vos finds this amend too hot to handle.

At least he made an effort to earn the $500 he received from the NRA Political Victory Fund.   Not to mention the $2,000 to the Republican Assembly Campaign Committee.

Funny how, years after being out of circulation, a song can suddenly pop into your head .  From 1974.



Related Kleefisch post:
Learn the Legislation Lingo (Amendment), or, Yup, just what we need, Rep. Kleefisch, more guns in schools.  (10/31/2013)

Another Nipper Chronicle:
The frac sand mining masters speak.  (10/18/2013)

Related concealed carry posts.
The concealed-carry two-step.  (4/24/2012)
Advocating for no concealed carry @ the "cuzzy fuzzy" Sun Prairie Public Library.  (11/19/2011) 
Wisconsin concealed carry update.  (11/6/2011)
Wisconsin Department of Justice application for concealed weapon license.  (11/2/2011) 
Wisconsin's Concealed Carry Law Goes into Effect Today.  (11/1/11)
Wisconsin municipalities impose restrictions on concealed carry.  (9/21/2011)
Whitewater Council approves public buildings firearm ordinance. (9/9/2011)
Two Rivers council prohibits concealed carry in public buildings.  (9/7/2011)
Milwaukee area communities move to ban guns from public buildings. (8/21/2011)
Linus Van Pelt, now all grown up, goes to the dark side.  (8/2/2011)
No concealed carry in Columbus public buildings.  (7/25/2011)
A lesson in Wisconsin administrative rule-making. (7/23/2011)
Sheboygan County District Attorney Joe DeCecco calls out gun lobby paranoia. (7/13/2011)
City of Middleton Council votes to approve ordinance to prohibit entry or presence in public buildings while carrying firearms. (7/6/2011)
Milwaukee Public Library trustees ban firearms from all buildings. (6/29/2011)
Milton Mayor and gun-rights advocate Tom Chesmore: Only police should carry guns into city buildings. (6/27/2011)
Dane County and City of Madison propose restrictions on concealed carry. (6/18/2011)
Wisconsin Senate Bill 93: Concealed Carry. (6/10/2011)
Milwaukee Police Chief to Gov. Walker on concealed carry: Exhibit statesmanship and provide adult supervision. (6/4/2011)

Learn the Legislation Lingo (Amendment), or, Yup, just what we need, Rep. Kleefisch, more guns in schools


Republicans decide to cut bill that would expand guns in schools.  (Wisconsin State Journal, 10/31/2013)

Excerpt:   The bill, which was scheduled for discussion and a vote in the Assembly’s criminal justice committee Thursday, turned increasingly controversial recently after state Rep. Joel Kleefisch, R-Oconomowoc, proposed an amendment to allow all concealed carry permit holders in the state to bring their weapons into schools.

A move that put the bill into "hot potato" territory, a place that Sen. Tom Tiffany, R-Hazelhurst, recently visited.

AB9 history.
  • Introduced February 13, 2013
  • From the Legislative Reference Bureau analysis:  This bill exempts from these prohibitions law enforcement officers who are acting in their official capacity (who are currently exempt only from the prohibition against carrying on school grounds); qualified law enforcement officers, without regard to whether they are on duty; and qualified former law enforcement officers.
  • Rep. Kleefisch offered his more far-reaching amendment on October 15, 2013

In the screenshot of Kleefisch's amendment below, the areas of the Wisconsin state statutes being amended are highlighted in red.


An orange highlight indicates language that is to be, literally, stricken out, i.e, deleted, repealed.

And what is that pesky 948.605 (2) (b) 1r?

Except if the person is in or on the grounds of a school, a licensee, as defined in s. 175.60 (1) (d), or an out-of-state licensee, as defined in s. 175.60 (1) (g).

In other words, if you are licensed to carry a concealed weapon anywhere in the United States, this amendment sez you may do so "in or on the grounds of a school".


Related article:
Local school leaders question gun proposal.  (Lc Crosse Tribune, 10/31/2013)

Related posts:
Learn the legislative lingo:  act.  (10/30/2013)
Learn the legislative lingo:  slash number.  (10/30/2013)

Where the Cuts in Food Stamps Hit Wisconsin's Children Hardest

Vulnerable Wisconsin Families to Receive Less Food Assistance. (Wisconsin Budget Project, 10/30/2013)

Counties in which more than half the children received SNAP benefits at some point during 2013.
  • Menomonie (93%)
  • Milwaukee (61%0
  • Adams (60%)
  • Sawyer (59%)
  • Burnett (51%)
  • Washburn (50%)

Welcome to Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District, represented by Sean Duffy.


Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Learn the Legislative Lingo (Act)


Page 1 of 3
Passed by the legislature in April 2006.
Signed into law by Governor Jim Doyle
on May 19, 2006.

Being Christian Schneider Means Never Having to Tell the Whole Story

Being liberal means never having to say you're sorry. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/29/2013)

Excerpt:     Last month, the Madison Public Library Foundation celebrated construction of a vast new library in the city's downtown. Apparently immune to irony, it then decided to honor an individual best known for taking such buildings down. 

On Oct. 17, the foundation scheduled an author meet and greet with William Ayers, a domestic terrorist and co-founder of the Weather Underground, a group that spent the early 1970s bombing the Pentagon, the New York City police headquarters and the U.S. Capitol building.



Schneider neglects to mention that Bill Ayers was one of many authors, poets, artists, and journalists to visit Madison during the 2013 Wisconsin Book Festival, sponsored by the Madison Community Foundation in conjunction with the Madison Public Library Foundation.

Here's a list of other program presenters.

Thursday, October 17
  • Emily Oster
  • Steven Nadler
  • Jennifer Ratner Rosenhagen
  • Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy
  • Leonard Marcus
Friday, October 18
  • Jessie Garcia
  • Thomas Purnell
  • Eric Raimy
  • Joseph Salmons
  • John Holl
  • Lemon Andersen
  • Gil Scott-Heron
  • Margaret Rozga,
  • Ching-In Chin
  • Amaud Jamaul Johnson
  • Andy Gricevich
  • Dan Chaon
  • Clive Thompson
  • Adam Fell
  • Kara Candito
  • Christopher Mohar
  • Caryl Stern
  • Jon Ronson
Saturday, October 19
  • Kevin & Patsy Alderson
  • Emma Smith
  • E. M. Kokie (with Nick Podehl)
  • Tom Ragatz
  • Paul Humphrey
  • Rebecca Ryan
  • Jude Stewart
  • Dale Kushner
  • Dean Jensen
  • Jonathan Alter
  • Brinny Morrow-Cribbs
  • Lynda Barry
  • Ivan Brunetti
  • Chris Ware
  • Lucas Mann
  • Jody LePage
  • John D'Agata
  • Max Garland
  • Susanna Daniel
  • Stephen Jimenez
  • Emma Straub
  • Michelle Wildgen
  • Lindsay Hunter
Sunday, October 20
  • Jesse Gant
  • Nicholas Hoffman
  • David Rhodes
  • Jessie Haas
  • Wendy Vardaman
  • Sarah Busse
  • Jennifer Angus
  • G. Willow Wilson
  • Allen Salkin

No small task, Christian, putting together such an event.  The least you could have done is given it a mention.  But then that would have laid bare your silly premise.

Related post:
Fantasy vs. reality.  (2/15/2013)

Learn the Legislative Lingo


6 pages.  80 terms defined.

Including.....



In other words, there is only one version of AB288.  The bill has undergone no revisions.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Sounds to Me Like Plenty of Wisconsin Voters are Content to Have Scott Walker Be a One-term Governor

Poll: Burke unknown, but tied with Walker. (Portage Daily Register, 10/29/2013)


She also appears to have some relevant experience with toasters.

Related posts:
Perhaps This is Why the Scott Walker Re-election Team is Making All Those Trips to Walgreen's.  (10/29/2013)

Perhaps This is Why the Scott Walker Re-election Team is Making All Those Trips to Walgreen's

It ain't workin'.



Mary Burke announces she's running for Governor on October 7 and already she's neck-and-neck with media whore Walker?

No wonder the Walgreen's on the Capital Square is stocking up on this item.

Another Library Begins a New Chapter


Excerpt: After years of permit battles and financial snags, librarians at the Frankford Public Library have dusted the construction debris off the shelves and opened the doors to the newly expanded facility.


Battle of the Evaporated and Condensed Milks

Photo credit:  Retiring Guy


Pet Milk.  Ruthless pricing today.  The softest of soft sells yesterday.

Scott Walker Donor Promises Jobs, Permanence for Independence and Whitehall Residents


Independence OKs frac sand annexation. (La Crosse Tribune, 10/29/2013)

Excerpt:  Hi-Crush CEO Bob Rasmus said the mine would provide 61 full-time jobs for Independence and Whitehall residents if it were OK’d for operation, and assured the council the company was “in it for the long run.

The Economic Benefits and Costs of Frac-Sand Mining in West Central Wisconsin.  (Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, May 15, 2013) 


Excerpt from executive summary:    The promise that mining can lay the basis for prosperous, vital economies has not usually been fulfilled. Wisconsin has had a long history of mining that tells the same historical story found in other mining districts across the United States and around the world. Mining has rarely laid the basis for sustained prosperity. Often, as in Appalachia or the Ozarks or the Upper Peninsula of Michigan or the Iron Range of Minnesota, mining has been synonymous with economic depression, high rates of unemployment and poverty, or simply “ghost towns.” 

Related posts:
Sen. Tom Tiffany's sand mine bill a hot potato.  (10/28/2013) 
Another Walker campaign donor for SB349.  (10/25/2013)
Expensive to the Tune of $430, 505.49 (as of June 30, 2013).  (10/25/2013) 
The Nipper Chronicles: The frac sand mining masters speak.  (10/18/2013)
Things aren't so tranquil in Glenwood City Wisconsin lately  (10/10/2013)

Monday, October 28, 2013

Meet Dylan Grall, Resident of Wisconsin's Twilight Zone



Wisconsin man brutally attacks Hebrew speakers for speaking ‘Spanish’. (The Raw Story, 10/27/2013)

Dylan Grall on Facebook.

What Dylan likes

Unintimidated by the Facts: Has Scott Walker Got a Deal for You!

Image from Retiring Guy's postcard collection

Gov. Walker says he cannot yet comment on alleged discrepancies in his book.  (WKOW, 10/28/2013)

Walker as quoted in the above-cited article.

I think the Italian Secret Service has something to say about this.

"Wonderwall" by Paul Anka: Is This the Best Ever Cover Version of a Song?



Although Anka's version of "Wonderwall" is included on his 2005 album, Rock Swings, I had never heard it until earlier this year.  (Curiously, the song doesn't merit a mention in John Bush's AllMusic review.)

And where did I first hear it?  On luxuriamusic.com, which promotes itself as "the kind of music your parents wanted you to listen to", among other taglines.  (Best example that I can think of right now:  A version of Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" as if sung by the Ray Conniff Singers, something I would have considered elevator music in my teens.  I suspect to some this reappraisal makes me seem old(er), but certainly not wise(r).  Hey, folks, I've always had an eclectic taste in music.)

Once I identified the singer, the song brought to mind Paul Anka performing on The Tonight Show (Starring Johnny Carson) accompanied by Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Band.   Somehow Anka has given this Oasis song an extra 30+ years of history.

So what I want to know:  How was Anka's luminous, outstanding interpretation NOT nominated for an Grammy award?

Don't believe me?  Here's some YouTube comments
  • strange listening to this after the original, but still pretty amazing.
  • Love this cover. It makes the lyrics really stand out.
  • As a huge Oasis fan and this being one of my favourite song of all time... I like this, its done so great and it sounds as if it could have been a jazz song first.
  • I kind of like this better than the original. I like both.
  • Heard this on the radio. Bought the CD.  (Once upon a vinyl time, that was one of my bad habits,)

In 1957, Paul Anka had his first of three #1 hits with "Diana", recorded when he was 15 years old.

The original.

Standard and Nonstandard Halloween Decorations

Spotted during today's meandering walk to the post office, Sue's Hallmark, and Willy Street Food Coop.  (Photos by Retiring Guy.)

Standard

Quite a few Middleton households along the 7000 and 7100 stretch of Elmwood Avenue appear to be big fans of the current season.


Nonstandard

I saw this desiccated animal -- or what appears to be a desiccated animal -- clearly visible along the path that provides access to Woodside Heights Park from South Avenue in Middleton. Considering the number of walkers, joggers, and bicyclists that regularly use this path, I suspect it's a "plant" to give people an unexpected jolt during Halloween week.  If so, it worked its spooky effect on me; I snapped this photo and quickly moved on.



Appleton Mayor Tim Hanna Hits the Nail on the Head

Residents urge changes after gun-carrying incident in downtown Appleton.  (Oshkosh Northwestern, 10/26/2013)

Mayor Hanna quoted in the Northwestern article.
Photo credit:  City of Appleton

The September 7th incident as reported by 

Salaciousness, Always in Season: MTV's "Scrubbing In"




The Canadian Nurses Association also weighs in.

Change.org petition to cancel show.

TV by the Numbers calls it a "docu-series", although Merriam-Webster drops the hyphen.

Apparently, the debut of "Scrubbing In" did not crack the top 100 cable shows for Thursday, October 24, 2013.

Salaciousness.  Always in season.

Sen. Tom Tiffany's Sand Mine Bill a Hot Potato



Sand mine bill author concedes changes are needed. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/26/2013)

First of all, mining industry waterboy Tom Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst) admits that municipal officials have raised valid objections to SB349 that need to be addressed.

More tellingly, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Burlington) sez the bill won't be scheduled for a vote until spring 2014 --  "at the earliest," according to Journal Sentinel reporter Lee Bergquist.

Not helping matters any further, Sen. Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) has expressed his opposition to the bill, and other (unnamed) Republican state senators "have raised questions about support for the bill".

Related posts:
Another Walker campaign donor for SB349.  (10/25/2013)
Expensive to the Tune of $430, 505.49 (as of June 30, 2013).  (10/25/2013) 
The Nipper Chronicles: The frac sand mining masters speak.  (10/18/2013)
Things aren't so tranquil in Glenwood City Wisconsin lately  (10/10/2013)