The federal gas tax has not been increased since 1993. It’s a fixed per-gallon tax, not a percentage of the price of gasoline like a sales tax, so as gas prices have gone up, this hasn’t led to increased gas tax revenues. On the contrary: higher gas prices and more fuel-efficient cars are leading to… Continue reading Falling Apart
Month: March 2012
Legislating via amendment
There are a lot of reasons why the photo ID constitutional amendment is a bad idea (it was sent to the house floor today), but I’m going to ignore all the policy for now and focus simply on the mechanics. No matter what you think of the concept, putting it in the constitution could make… Continue reading Legislating via amendment
Fair and Balanced
What’s wrong with journalism today? Look no further than this article in today’s New York Times about voter ID laws. Specifically, this paragraph: Supporters argue that the restrictions are necessary to prevent fraud. Critics say there is no evidence of significant amounts of in-person voter impersonation fraud — the kind addressed by photo identification requirements… Continue reading Fair and Balanced
Stadium Angst
I know there’s a “stadium deal” in the works, but there are deals, and then there are deals. The current plan is not going to survive either the Legislature or the Minneapolis City Council, so the real question is what the end product, if any, will look like. I have my desires; we’ll see if… Continue reading Stadium Angst
More pointless health accounts
Two Republicans in the state legislature have an idea to make health insurance more affordable. No, it’s not health care exchanges. No, it’s not universal coverage. Instead, it’s a plan to create a “personal health premium account” for paying for health insurance. They say people could use it to pool money from employers, family members,… Continue reading More pointless health accounts
Review: Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Last weekend Julia and I ended the tyranny of our T-Mobile contract (even though the merger with AT&T fell through, I was sufficiently spooked by the spectre of giving money to AT&T that we bailed). AT&T being out of the question, as well as Sprint, our choice was none else but Verizon. Verizon had two… Continue reading Review: Samsung Galaxy Nexus