Our daughter and her family, who live in Potomac, Maryland, have two cats who like to roam in their spacious home. They are the same age and play constantly with one another. These are young house cats, in good shape, and not declawed.
The kitchen eating area is situated in a spot near window walls which look out upon a ground-level deck, facing a lawn which runs up to a line of trees and a woodpile further out in back. The deck sits near double-pane glass doors which form the window wall.
One Friday morning, at breakfast, my wife and I watched two squirrels who like to hop on the deck in search of bird seed fallen from the feeder. The two active cats like to watch them as well. The cats run along the perimeter of the glass, looking for a way to get at those squirrels.
The squirrels have come to know that the glass barrier protects them. They are very audacious, having lost all fear as they run alongside the outer perimeter of the glass doors, taunting the cats. Indeed, one Friday morning, my wife spotted one of those squirrels which came right up to the bottom of a glass door, stood on its haunches, and defiantly began scratching the glass, a mere half-inch away from Lightning, the male cat on the opposite side.
The following Saturday evening my wife and I, just after retiring, heard a ruckus outside the bedroom door. Early the next morning, I discovered the source: Lightning the cat had found an unwelcome intruder -- a mouse. I don’t know how it entered the house, but it would not be leaving intact. Unlike the audacious squirrel of the previous day, the mouse did not enjoy the protection of a glass wall.
Investment bankers and their minions who ginned up the sub-prime debacle threatening the economy (hedge fund executives of Bear Stearns are a few that come to mind) might have thought they were like that squirrel on the opposite side of the glass. They teased the ‘cat’ incessantly, thinking that they could get away without penalty, gorging on ‘free seed.’ Like those Potomac squirrels, investment bankers believed they were safely beyond reach of the regulatory ‘cat.'
What they discovered is that the protective window wall of financial speculation was a mirage and that, for some of them, their fate would become that of the mouse.
Note: For recent articles about proposed regulation of the nation's financial services industry, including securities firms, mortgage brokers and insurance companies, see www.washingtonpost.com/
Monday, March 31, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Tamping Down N. J. School Costs
Sometimes, it takes a little perspective coming from a different place to get a better view of how things are in your own neck of the woods.
"The News-Press," a Fort Myers, Florida newspaper which covers Lee County, had a front-page story on March 26, about the financial condition of that county-wide school district. The county includes Cape Coral and tony places such as Sanibel Island. For its 2008-2009 school year, the county is proposing a $1.5 billion budget, of which $700 million is for operating expenses.
Because of economic conditions in Florida, Lee County School District faces a cut of $30 million in state aid. Therefore, the district is considering cuts of $3.76M in personnel and $3.83M in other reductions. Even the Collier County School District, which includes poshy Naples, Florida, is facing a proposed $8 million cut, according to The Naples Daily News. The newspaper indicates that the causal factor is a predicted "general revenue shortfall of more than $2 billion" at the state level.
So, while states like Florida are cutting back on school subsidies because of reduced state tax revenues, New Jersey continues to dole out cash which it doesn't have, while proposing to sell off a large chunk of New Jersey's asset base to give out even more Monopoly money. Simultaneously, New Jersey places no serious limits on the extent to which its school districts can continue to increase real estate taxes.
I'm not arguing for downgrading education in New Jersey -- but, when is enough, enough? How long, if ever, will it take for New Jersey, which has the highest education costs in the nation, to get serious about addressing the high expense of its school districts, and to place permanent, real, and enforceable limits on school tax increases?
"The News-Press," a Fort Myers, Florida newspaper which covers Lee County, had a front-page story on March 26, about the financial condition of that county-wide school district. The county includes Cape Coral and tony places such as Sanibel Island. For its 2008-2009 school year, the county is proposing a $1.5 billion budget, of which $700 million is for operating expenses.
Because of economic conditions in Florida, Lee County School District faces a cut of $30 million in state aid. Therefore, the district is considering cuts of $3.76M in personnel and $3.83M in other reductions. Even the Collier County School District, which includes poshy Naples, Florida, is facing a proposed $8 million cut, according to The Naples Daily News. The newspaper indicates that the causal factor is a predicted "general revenue shortfall of more than $2 billion" at the state level.
So, while states like Florida are cutting back on school subsidies because of reduced state tax revenues, New Jersey continues to dole out cash which it doesn't have, while proposing to sell off a large chunk of New Jersey's asset base to give out even more Monopoly money. Simultaneously, New Jersey places no serious limits on the extent to which its school districts can continue to increase real estate taxes.
I'm not arguing for downgrading education in New Jersey -- but, when is enough, enough? How long, if ever, will it take for New Jersey, which has the highest education costs in the nation, to get serious about addressing the high expense of its school districts, and to place permanent, real, and enforceable limits on school tax increases?
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Voter Enfranchisement
Although it doesn't affect New Jersey voters directly, the ongoing debate about how to deal with delegates from Florida and Michigan in the last Democratic primary can't be confined to those states.
Cut through the issue of what to do about the seating of delegates in the upcoming Democratic National Convention, and what you encounter is the basic right of voter enfranchisement -- the obligation of government to count every person's vote.
Viewed in this light, it doesn't really matter what Howard Dean or the DNC think. The votes of Michigan and Florida need to be counted as cast in the party's primary elections. Voters should not be made to pay for the mistakes and disagreements of party leadership.
A recent front page story in the Cape Coral Daily Breeze (Florida), affirmed that the "Democratic delegates will be seated." But, when you read further into that article, what you come across is that Leonard Joseph, Executive Director of the Florida Democratic Party concedes that, "The slates's composition is out of the voters' hands and (is) now up to the national party's rules and bylaws committee and the credentials committee." So much for according the respect which voters are due!
We in New Jersey have our own problems, and they are not trivial. But at least the votes of both Democrats and Republicans will be counted as cast in each party's primary. Where are Al Gore and of all the other Democrats who were so outraged in 2000, when Florida was in the midst of its 'chad' problem, an issue which resulted is the election results of that state going all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court?
Cut through the issue of what to do about the seating of delegates in the upcoming Democratic National Convention, and what you encounter is the basic right of voter enfranchisement -- the obligation of government to count every person's vote.
Viewed in this light, it doesn't really matter what Howard Dean or the DNC think. The votes of Michigan and Florida need to be counted as cast in the party's primary elections. Voters should not be made to pay for the mistakes and disagreements of party leadership.
A recent front page story in the Cape Coral Daily Breeze (Florida), affirmed that the "Democratic delegates will be seated." But, when you read further into that article, what you come across is that Leonard Joseph, Executive Director of the Florida Democratic Party concedes that, "The slates's composition is out of the voters' hands and (is) now up to the national party's rules and bylaws committee and the credentials committee." So much for according the respect which voters are due!
We in New Jersey have our own problems, and they are not trivial. But at least the votes of both Democrats and Republicans will be counted as cast in each party's primary. Where are Al Gore and of all the other Democrats who were so outraged in 2000, when Florida was in the midst of its 'chad' problem, an issue which resulted is the election results of that state going all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court?
Monday, March 24, 2008
Peace for a Day
This weekend was at least one day that I had to remove myself from the political dissonance of the last two weeks. The Easter holiday, it seems, needed to be a time to focus on something more meaningful than the posturing emanating at both the state and national levels, some of it, ironically enough, in the name of religion and patriotism.
My wife and I drove to Potomac, Maryland, where we rendezvoused with our children and our grandkids to celebrate this joyous feast. There comes a time when an American has to call a timeout and pay attention to matters other than government and politics. For us, Easter is one of those times.
I hope that those of you who profess the Christian tradition as your claim to faith had a weekend of good will. It’s just as important to extend the spirit of Sunday’s celebration to all sincere people of faith in the Bridgewater area, however different that tradition may be. Even to those of good will with no particular faith conviction.
In the words of the Irish bard, “May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back.”
My wife and I drove to Potomac, Maryland, where we rendezvoused with our children and our grandkids to celebrate this joyous feast. There comes a time when an American has to call a timeout and pay attention to matters other than government and politics. For us, Easter is one of those times.
I hope that those of you who profess the Christian tradition as your claim to faith had a weekend of good will. It’s just as important to extend the spirit of Sunday’s celebration to all sincere people of faith in the Bridgewater area, however different that tradition may be. Even to those of good will with no particular faith conviction.
In the words of the Irish bard, “May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back.”
Friday, March 21, 2008
This Week’s Friday is not a “Rockin’” One
On Monday, March 17, the Courier News published a front-page story about Good Friday. I’m sure that the newspaper had good intentions. I also suspect that someone there must have been embarrassed. At least I hope someone was embarrassed. On the front page, picture and all, was a lead story describing how churches were planning to add an “entertainment value during Holy Week.”
The primary headline in bold letters, just above that lead-in, read, “Have a rockin’ Good Friday.” Now I don’t know your thoughts on this matter, but I think I can safely say that Jesus had anything but a “rockin’ Good Friday.” Even the non-religious would probably agree that hanging on a cross for endless hours is not conducive to the best of times. The Romans themselves thought this form of punishment to be so extreme and cruel that it was outlawed for all Roman citizens.
I’m not a prude, and I’m well aware of the statistics which show that most traditional, mainline Christian churches have lost millions of members in the last few decades. I support the notion that Christian denominations should do all they reasonably can to attract new membership. But reducing the description of one of the most sacred days in the Christian calendar to a “rockin’ Good Friday” is not the way to get there.
Despite that, I think that some prudent editor must have caught this awkwardness, because the online edition of the same story did not carry the print edition’s designation. Thank goodness for good sense.
Let’s reserve the rockin’ celebration for Easter.
The primary headline in bold letters, just above that lead-in, read, “Have a rockin’ Good Friday.” Now I don’t know your thoughts on this matter, but I think I can safely say that Jesus had anything but a “rockin’ Good Friday.” Even the non-religious would probably agree that hanging on a cross for endless hours is not conducive to the best of times. The Romans themselves thought this form of punishment to be so extreme and cruel that it was outlawed for all Roman citizens.
I’m not a prude, and I’m well aware of the statistics which show that most traditional, mainline Christian churches have lost millions of members in the last few decades. I support the notion that Christian denominations should do all they reasonably can to attract new membership. But reducing the description of one of the most sacred days in the Christian calendar to a “rockin’ Good Friday” is not the way to get there.
Despite that, I think that some prudent editor must have caught this awkwardness, because the online edition of the same story did not carry the print edition’s designation. Thank goodness for good sense.
Let’s reserve the rockin’ celebration for Easter.
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