A New Source of Money For The State?

About Politics finds it and the pitfall.

Median Household Income $33,024

Denny Rehberg voted to repeal the estate tax, something that only affects 3/10ths of one percent of the population of Montana. It is the estate tax, there is no death tax.

Paris Hilton and the Bush twins might be appreciative if they aren't too stoned to care. That means that everybody that works for a living just got a tax increase.

Maybe not today or tomorrow, but somebody has to pay for Bush's permanent war and relentless cronyism. It won't be the products of the lucky sperms who are getting even richer from this permanent war and relentless cronyism, so it has to be us.

Denny Rehberg not only voted for but co-sponsored Firebombing and Loansharking Protection and Advocacy Act of 2005 that deliberately refused to make any exceptions, even for those soldiers who are losing their businesses and their limbs to benefit the lucky sperms.

Denny sez

Our bankruptcy laws are in desperate need of reform. That is why I am now a co-sponsor of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. H.R. 685 will bring relief to consumers and creditors, as well as much needed permanent relief to farmers. Bankruptcy should be the last resort, not the first. Too many debtors are using the current system to avoid their creditors, and it’s costing consumers.

No Denny, if anyone in the farmer's family gets seriously ill they are MORE likely to lose their farm. Let me recap Riggsveda's excellent list of what this bill does and doesn't do:

S.AMDT 16 to protect servicemembers and vets---NO 58-38
S.AMDT 17 to protect the elderly---NO 59-40
S.AMDT 28 to protect people whose own medical problems caused their debt---NO 58-39
S.AMDT 29 to protect homeowners with medical debt---NO 58-39
S.ADMT 31 to limit the amount of interest charged to 30%---NO 74-24 (they really hated that)
S.AMDT 32 to protect people whose debt is incurred from being caregivers to ill/disabled family members---NO 60-37
S.AMDT 37 to protect people whose debt was incurred through identity theft---NO 61-37
S.ADMT 38 to protect people from predatory lending practices---NO 58-40
S.ADMT 49 to protect employees & retirees from corporate practices that rob them of their earnings/retirement savings when the business files for bankruptcy---(Say it with me now:)NO 54-40

Denny sez:

The average family pays a hidden cost of $500 per year because of people filing for bankruptcy and running up debt. That’s not fair to responsible consumers. Studies indicate that it takes 33 responsible consumers to pay for one irresponsible bankruptcy.

We won't be getting a cent back and he darn well knows it

H.R. 685 alleviates this problem by requiring debtors with the ability to repay some or all of their debt to do so. The bill keeps people with credit problems from abusing the system. It’s designed to reduce repeat filings, improve the administration of bankruptcy cases, and provide debtors with information about alternatives to bankruptcy. It also prevents the “gaming” of the bankruptcy system, such as running up credit card bills right before filing for bankruptcy.

Most bankruptcies are a result of illnes or injury, divorce and job loss. That includes people who are educated, employed and insured. People who did everything right but got a crappy hand somewhere in life.

What was deliberately left in this bill is a millionare friendly loophole big enough to drive an Amtrack through it. People like us, living on our median income of $33,024 dollars a year could lose everything if a family member gets seriously ill and still not end up with a clean slate. The Ken Lay's and Bernie Ebbers' of the world will still get to keep their mansions and their ill gotten gains.

Men and women comming home from Iraq with shattered bodies but not housing or health coverage can lose everything. Sometimes the government takes their money away so they don't even have gas money to get home with.

Conrad Burns voted the same way on these bills. I wonder why it was so important to them?

There Were Violations In Montana Too

At least I think there were. Wasn't there a General in Missoula? We had Republicans scurrying out of the woodwork last fall. If it wasn't for the Kos reverberations, I wouldn't know about this.

Buried in the comments is this nifty little link. Go there even if you've done it before

Armstrong Williams Held Accountable

Not.

When I Die

I want somebody to give me a eulogy like this. Then I want a big party with lots of food and laughter and music. There has to be dancing.

In the meantime I am still here so I'm going to bitch and rail. Thanks to Digby for pointing this out.

Don't drink and drive, it really does hurt people. God bless MB and his family and love one another.

Sir, Have You Stopped Sodmizing Your Wife?

Might have been a more appropriate question than the one asked of The Supreme Court's Orgy Old Man the other night at New York University.

One could make the argument, if one wished, that the real question to be asked would be: Sir, have you stopped sodomizing Dick Cheney?

I wouldn't be the one to ask because it brings up another can of worms.

Eew!

I Wish Conrad and Denny Had Their Own

Gravitas.

If they did, they wouldn't need to cling so tightly to The Bugman's through the thin lining of his pockets.

These are difficult days for anyone with integrity on the Hill. I'm damn proud of Chris Shays too!

Tag--I'm It!

I saw Farmer tag Mimus Pauly the other day and I was quite shocked when Mimus tagged me!

Q1 - You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be [saved]?

Animal Farm by George Orwell. Wait, The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. No. The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. Tolkein, make that C.S. Lewis. I changed my mind, make it Ray Bradbury or The Stand by Stephen King. No, I want that really great book on mythology of the world I read in high school...What? What do you mean the only thing left is by Marilou Henner--oh please don't let that be the only remnant of world literature, burn it! [I should probably tell you that I get way too skinny when I'm left on my own because I can't decide what to eat and I get bored just thinking about it]

Q2 - Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? Sure, lots of them. I think the last one was that guy who was a 'really good Christian'. It lasted long enough for me to learn that he was a bitter, self absorbed person who wanted to fill all my brainspace with his endless blabbering about all the people he spent his time saving from really bad people...

Q3 - The last book you bought is? Humpty Dumpty, I got it at the grocery store for 99 cents. We read it 14 or 40 times a day. Every day. I don't understand the facination with Georgie Porgie, and wonder if I should worry about it.

Oh, I went to the Heretic ( I would love to link our local bookstore that sells banned books, political books and used books too, but their website isn't up yet)and bought myself The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels and I bought 'The Tough Coughs As He Ploughs the Dough (Early writings and cartoons by Dr. Seuss)

Q4 - What are you currently reading? Humpty Dumpty, Babie Fozzie is Afraid of the Dark, Corrente Talking Ponts Memo Seeing the Forest Digby... 'Jennie VolumeII, The Life of Lady Randolph Churchill', Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken, Crossing The Rubicon by Michael Rupert.

Q5 - Five books you would take to a deserted island? I want something like my Websters 1946 Complete Reference Dictionary, but I want it to be softbacked and without brittle paper, I want a really nice botany text so I don't have to rely on my memory for all the edibles,I want an algebra text that starts easy and works it's way up to Calculus or Trigonometry because I would go nuts if I didn't keep the noggin busy, The Brothers Dvoetski by Fydor, and Paradise Lost by Milton.

If I wasn't alone, I might want the option of taking the Karma Sutra and relying on my memory for the botany details.


I think that I'm going to tag some western bloggers:

Zach Hagadone

Wulfgar

Winter of Dissent

The world famous Matt Singer

Jesse

Kalamity Karen

And non bloggers Tinfoil Hat Boy, Chica Toxica, and The Other Sarah. They facinate me!

The questions are:

Q1 - You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be [saved]?
Q2 - Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
Q3 - The last book you bought is?
Q4 - What are you currently reading?
Q5 - Five books you would take to a deserted island?

Terror Terror Terror

Why now?

How conveeenient!

Anybody Here Seen Our Old Friend Ross

Can you tell us where he's gone?