In 1792 Congress passed The Coinage Act for the minting of the new government's coins. A facility was built in Philadelphia, the country's capital at the time, which still produces coins along with the Denver mint. Bills are produced at the U.S. Mint in Washington D.C. and Janet and I toured it, through high security and thick plexiglass walls, on one of our many excursions there, my birthplace. Interestingly, the Mint was the first Federal building authorized by Congress to be built, and now we have tens-of-thousands of Federal buildings. In 1866 the motto In God We Trust was stamped on all coins except the dime. By this time many regional mints have come and gone, yet Denver and Philadelphia remain. In 1874 the San Francisco Mint was built. The Mint also began producing foreign coins for a fee. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing, which produces all U.S. bills, was merged with the Mint under the Treasurer in 1981.
So that's where Kennedy half-dollars, coins, bills, Sacajewa dollars etc. are made and distributed from. Easy right? Up until 1861, silver was the standard, not gold, to provide the actual value of the coins, along with "the full faith and credit of the United States." Other countries also followed the Silver Standard. Beginning in 1906 the Gold Standard was adopted, but suspended throughout the World Wars. After 1946, the dollar was valued at $35 a troy ounce, and other countries pegged their currencies to the dollar. President Nixon ended true convertibility from dollars to gold in 1971, and the International Monetary Fund was established to fulfill a similar role, based on financial conversions, not gold conversions.So now, money is only backed by the full faith and credit of the issuer.
That's one reason we have trillions of dollars in debt. We don't literally print and mint the money we need to pay government expenses. The Feds borrow it, essentially, from themselves, investors in T-bills and China etc. -- but interest payments accrue. This gets to my point. When you have a finite government, "n" number of employees, "x" number of programs, and identifiable costs, setting tax rates and policies is straightforward. But the staffing, programs and costs to government change daily.
For example, take the Department of Human Services in the State of New Jersey. 10,000 employees and dozens if not hundreds of programs. Take DYFS, the Division of Youth and Family Services, still a part of Human Services. However, all they do now is certify and regulate child care centers in the state. At one time they also had hundreds of case workers working with children and families. My good friend David Gainer used to be one. DYFS workers could come to your home or the child's school and take your child away, no questions asked, usually to foster care, in cases of supposed or real abuse. Now that function is performed by a Department -- the Department of Children and Families. Ever since a gruesome death of a child by the neglect of their parents some years ago, which highlighted the division's spotty track record, monies have been poured into the new department to avoid future recurrences. So policies and staffing changed overnight.
Unforeseen things happen, and funds, and sometimes laws, are required to address them. Unplanned funds, uncollected funds are needed. That's why everyone ends up borrowing. "Life is plotless," Stephen King says, you never know what will happen. But in New Jersey we're lucky. We have a balanced budget amendment - it is illegal to borrow indefinitely like the Feds do to pay bills -- unforeseen or not.
Look at Hurricane Sandy. Billion of dollars in damages to East Coast infrastructure, homes, business and shorelines. New Jersey government has no "found" money to help make repairs -- which is partially its responsibility (with owners and insurance companies). Look at FEMA -- making low cost loans to homeowners and businesses. Where do you think they get the capital for those loans? Right, they borrow it from the Treasury. Congress just passed $50 billion in aid to NJ and NY hard hit by Sandy. You guessed it, where did they get the $50 billion from? There's no rainy day fund that big. Multiply that by disasters everywhere, building infrastructure, the cost of solving crime etc., and you see we would be crippled without borrowing. So the debt keeps increasing.
How do we pay it off? Simple: higher taxes, fewer deductions, and cuts to spending. We could continually hike taxes. That would just mean a revolving door in all governments every two and four years. And you know what they say about FNGs -- by the time they're trained, they leave. So, in my opinion, if New Jersey and many other states have to have balanced budgets, the Feds should also. Borrowing must be allowed for staffing, program changes and emergencies. But the piper needs to be paid back sooner and not later. A set time period should be fixed for paying down debts incurred, and plans formulated to do so, before incurring the debt in the first place. Laughingly, The NJ League of Municipalities has been trying for years to get the state to pay for all its "unfunded mandates" (laws), which local communities have to obey, implement and pay for. I have personal experience with this and New Jersey unfunded liability pension funds which jeopardize tens of thousands of future pension payments.
There are alternatives to borrowing. No FEMA. No Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Few government services. No more loans and a constant outlay of borrowed cash, especially when there's no hope of reasonable payback. (Look at the cause of the mortgage crises -- the lenders evil practices, buyers inability to pay, AND the collapse of home values.) Obviously, we couldn't live under such draconian measures. But, its simple really. When I signed my bank mortgage, I agreed to pay my loan back at a fixed rate for a fixed period of time, based on my income at the time. The bank didn't consider my future earnings -- it looked at my income and job stability when I applied. In 1989 we obtained a home equity loan to build our house addition. Again, given under terms of expected repayment. Janet and I can borrow on our VISA credit line, and we do. But we also pay it off every month, regardless of how much we have to spend that month. We were lucky -- we both had decent jobs, and later, decent pensions. Expenses must be offset by income, even if they're paid over time....
The Feds need a humongous debt-relief service. There's hundreds out there, they should call one.
Like you, I've had many ups and downs, and quite a few sideways experiences. I firmly believe everyone should write theirs and share them, whether just for themselves or their kids. Here are some from my memoirs, observations and thoughts.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Time will Tell for Now is the Time
The White House has released its plan to reduce gun violence in America. You can read it at http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/wh_now_is_the_time_full.pdf It contains four areas with action points.Some of them, like a national assault weapon and high-magazine ban, require action by Congress. Some states, like New York on Tuesday 1/15/13, have already passed restrictive laws in this regard. I hope New Jersey follows. Some points do not require laws, but do require funding, such as the hiring of police and school resource officers. Some require regulation as well, like background checks, and improving mental health resources (funding also).
On the surface, the language used in the document "Now is the Time," is broad, clear, simple and to the point.
Point One: Closing background check loopholes. Step one is requiring criminal background checks for all gun sales. A positive response will cancel the sale. This includes all sales by gun dealers and private owners as well. Did you know right now I can legally buy, on one day, as many guns as I want to? No limit. I could, and some do, turnaround and sell those guns on the street for high profits. I've also heard, but don't read here, that a gun sale should be restricted to one gun purchase per month. That one rule would greatly cut down this proliferation of guns in illegal hands. Background checks (and gun registration) seems a no-brainer to me. I have to register my car in order to drive legally. So what's the big deal here? This point also precludes gun purchases by mentally ill persons. I've written elsewhere that mentally ill folks like myself, should not be allowed to own guns.
Point two: Banning automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines, except for military (as is the case now) and police organizations. This is self-evident. How many bullets in one second does it take to kill a pheasant or a deer? And, why would shells need to be armor-piercing? I understand that some folks may believe we are even now in a police state, like 1984, and need to defend themselves from . . . what exactly? If we ever get to that stage, I will be the first to go out and try to buy a gun. I just don't see it now. And the bigger question: Will my owning a gun (and using it) prevent such a state from happening? What's the point of owning a gun if I'm not going to use it? This is where, besides background checks, registration is also required and should be vetted. Why exactly do I need this gun?
Secondly, the ATF needs to be strengthened if we are serious about gun regulation and control. This goes along with stricter enforcement of laws and prosecution for infractions. As is the case now, assault with a weapon is different than simple assault. I was on a County Grand Jury for 16 weeks and heard those cases first hand. Weapons can hurt people easier, quicker, and deadlier than a beating, although neither is "preferable" to the other.
Why would anyone pass a freeze on gun violence research (or deny funding) if they aren't being manipulated to a degree by the gun lobby? Can they actually say they have the best interest of American citizens at heart by such a ban?
Lastly, doctors need to ask their diagnosed mentally ill patients about violent tendencies or feelings, including suicide, and report unstable individuals to authorities, or at least prevent gun ownership. I've already said, when I'm in a manic phase I could do anything, including harm others, because in those episodes wayward thoughts can control my actions. If I'd kill myself I might kill others. I'm talking from experience here, even though I never thought to harm others. Thankfully I'm on medications that prevent that. But what if I miss some doses?
Thirdly, Making Schools Safer. "Resource officers" and mental health professionals will certainly help, but there are wide disparities between the effectiveness of counselors, teachers and others in recognizing and addressing child development problems. The first step schools take is investigation by a Child Study Team, and they are already overwhelmed. Secondly, teachers are not given formal, medically based training on recognizing these issues (to my knowledge, in college training -- perhaps in in-service sessions?), so effective treatment and application of scarce resources is haphazard at best. And timeliness may not be close either when problems occur or need management. All schools, public, private and parochial should have trained counselors and school nurses. Fund more of these. Now some elementary schools "share" their school nurses (and librarians), getting them only a few hours per day.
Fourth, Improving Mental Health Services. There's no cure, but I'm a very lucky bipolar, mentally ill, person. I've found a drug cocktail that works for me -- as long as I don't miss multiple pill doses. That's the thing, if it weren't for Janet having reminded me for ten years, I wouldn't remember to take my pills regularly by myself. According to NAMI there's 10 million bipolars in the US. There's about 24,000 psychiatrists nationally. That's one psychiatrist for every 417 bipolars. That's another reason why it takes an average of 10 years to be properly diagnosed, and 30% of those who don't get treatment commit suicide. There are hundreds of mental disorders. Bipolar is just one. These issues are much bigger than possibly owning a gun, although, as I've stated, as a diagnosed mentally ill person, I should be prohibited from owning a gun.
In short, these proposals have merit and should move forward quickly.
On the surface, the language used in the document "Now is the Time," is broad, clear, simple and to the point.
Point One: Closing background check loopholes. Step one is requiring criminal background checks for all gun sales. A positive response will cancel the sale. This includes all sales by gun dealers and private owners as well. Did you know right now I can legally buy, on one day, as many guns as I want to? No limit. I could, and some do, turnaround and sell those guns on the street for high profits. I've also heard, but don't read here, that a gun sale should be restricted to one gun purchase per month. That one rule would greatly cut down this proliferation of guns in illegal hands. Background checks (and gun registration) seems a no-brainer to me. I have to register my car in order to drive legally. So what's the big deal here? This point also precludes gun purchases by mentally ill persons. I've written elsewhere that mentally ill folks like myself, should not be allowed to own guns.
Point two: Banning automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines, except for military (as is the case now) and police organizations. This is self-evident. How many bullets in one second does it take to kill a pheasant or a deer? And, why would shells need to be armor-piercing? I understand that some folks may believe we are even now in a police state, like 1984, and need to defend themselves from . . . what exactly? If we ever get to that stage, I will be the first to go out and try to buy a gun. I just don't see it now. And the bigger question: Will my owning a gun (and using it) prevent such a state from happening? What's the point of owning a gun if I'm not going to use it? This is where, besides background checks, registration is also required and should be vetted. Why exactly do I need this gun?
Secondly, the ATF needs to be strengthened if we are serious about gun regulation and control. This goes along with stricter enforcement of laws and prosecution for infractions. As is the case now, assault with a weapon is different than simple assault. I was on a County Grand Jury for 16 weeks and heard those cases first hand. Weapons can hurt people easier, quicker, and deadlier than a beating, although neither is "preferable" to the other.
Why would anyone pass a freeze on gun violence research (or deny funding) if they aren't being manipulated to a degree by the gun lobby? Can they actually say they have the best interest of American citizens at heart by such a ban?
Lastly, doctors need to ask their diagnosed mentally ill patients about violent tendencies or feelings, including suicide, and report unstable individuals to authorities, or at least prevent gun ownership. I've already said, when I'm in a manic phase I could do anything, including harm others, because in those episodes wayward thoughts can control my actions. If I'd kill myself I might kill others. I'm talking from experience here, even though I never thought to harm others. Thankfully I'm on medications that prevent that. But what if I miss some doses?
Thirdly, Making Schools Safer. "Resource officers" and mental health professionals will certainly help, but there are wide disparities between the effectiveness of counselors, teachers and others in recognizing and addressing child development problems. The first step schools take is investigation by a Child Study Team, and they are already overwhelmed. Secondly, teachers are not given formal, medically based training on recognizing these issues (to my knowledge, in college training -- perhaps in in-service sessions?), so effective treatment and application of scarce resources is haphazard at best. And timeliness may not be close either when problems occur or need management. All schools, public, private and parochial should have trained counselors and school nurses. Fund more of these. Now some elementary schools "share" their school nurses (and librarians), getting them only a few hours per day.
Fourth, Improving Mental Health Services. There's no cure, but I'm a very lucky bipolar, mentally ill, person. I've found a drug cocktail that works for me -- as long as I don't miss multiple pill doses. That's the thing, if it weren't for Janet having reminded me for ten years, I wouldn't remember to take my pills regularly by myself. According to NAMI there's 10 million bipolars in the US. There's about 24,000 psychiatrists nationally. That's one psychiatrist for every 417 bipolars. That's another reason why it takes an average of 10 years to be properly diagnosed, and 30% of those who don't get treatment commit suicide. There are hundreds of mental disorders. Bipolar is just one. These issues are much bigger than possibly owning a gun, although, as I've stated, as a diagnosed mentally ill person, I should be prohibited from owning a gun.
In short, these proposals have merit and should move forward quickly.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Limelight or Behind the Scenes?
When I was a teenager and young man I was conflicted. On one hand I wanted to be known and liked by everyone; on the other I was shy. I was in the middle of being an introvert and extrovert, just like many kids. I had a few friends, but was never "popular" in public high school, or sought after or even known by most of my classmates. This was different from my Catholic grammar school experience, when I knew everyone in grades five thru eight, and they all knew me. Palling around was much easier, as was meeting and kissing girls. Yes, we played Spin the Bottle in those days, but it didn't go further.
When I was a Boy Scout in 7th and 8th grades, we had our scout meetings in the CYO youth center next to my church. They had a pool table on the third floor, and we hung out and played pool, and goofed off, regularly. The scout meetings were really pool marathons. One day I was in the right place at the right time, since our Scoutmaster sent in a picture of me and a fellow scout, playing pool, to the local paper, The Trenton Times. It probably appeared on page 8 or something. You could see my shyness and not my bravado.
That was the first of half a dozen times my name would appear in the paper. A few of my Letters to the Editor showed up in the paper over the years. Some were Baha'i-related, including a photo of me giving a public talk on the disparities of wealth in the U.S. c. 1986. Some were just opinion letters, like my crusade to get all taxes listed on NJ utility bills (which never have been). At those times I was proud of the notoriety and promoted myself. I still do to a degree, but things have changed.
I'm much happier being in the background now, although I still write letters to the Times Editor. In early December I wrote a letter about the loss of our weekly Memoir Class at Lawrence Library. Diana, the letters editor acknowledged receipt. The class had been meeting weekly for over two years, lead by our energetic, enthusiastic and positive facilitator Maria. On Nov. 16, Maria was killed by a driver while she was walking across busy Route 206 near Rider University, and our class was thrown into shock and loss. A week later, with the status of the group in disarray, the Library Manager told the group we could only meet once monthly, and not weekly, effective Jan. 1. We were upset, especially since no reasonable explanations were given for the change, other than "It's our new policy for outside groups."
The group formed a committee of three members to meet with the Manager. They did, and there was no change in the Library's stance, even though we knew plenty of meeting rooms were available, and that we were a wildly successful group with as many as 24 class attendees at times. Emails were flying back and forth. I happened to notice one from Robert, a committee member, which mentioned that the Library Manager had directed us to the Director of Human Services, Marygrace, head of all county libraries. On a whim, I emailed her asking for a response to why we had been changed.
To give her credit, she responded the same day. We spoke on the phone. She reiterated the party line "Once a month." Then she surprised me, "However, because you are a long-standing group, and we want to cooperate, we are allowing you to meet weekly through 2013. After that, it's just once per month because you are not a library sponsored group." I was calm and thanked her, but was inwardly ecstatic. I emailed Robert and told him the news. He emailed the group who were also surprised, happy and thankful. Robert even mentioned my role. I received some personal kudos.We are a close knit group. We are friends. We are intimates.
This occurred c. Dec. 22. I wrote back to Diana, the Times reporter I was working with who was ready to publish my acerbic letter about the situation. I retracted my letter and thanked her. But she said she thought this was an interesting story, and was going to pass it on to the Editor-in-Chief, which she did.
The Times assigned freelance reporter Joyce Persico to the story and we corresponded by email. The rest, as they say, is history. Joyce wrote a magnificient story, and the Times published it on Monday 1/14/13, on the front page, with a large photograph of Karin reading from her memoir. I was pictured in the background. You can see and read it yourself at http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/01/storytelling_seniors_pour_thei.html
I am now firmly convinced I like being in the background better (as in the photo) than being in the limelight.We still have unresolved issues with the Lawrence Library, which we will work on. But our case is decidedly stronger now. I have no doubt that as long as we have a core group of writers, we'll be allowed to meet weekly indefinitely. I certainly hope so..
When I was a Boy Scout in 7th and 8th grades, we had our scout meetings in the CYO youth center next to my church. They had a pool table on the third floor, and we hung out and played pool, and goofed off, regularly. The scout meetings were really pool marathons. One day I was in the right place at the right time, since our Scoutmaster sent in a picture of me and a fellow scout, playing pool, to the local paper, The Trenton Times. It probably appeared on page 8 or something. You could see my shyness and not my bravado.
That was the first of half a dozen times my name would appear in the paper. A few of my Letters to the Editor showed up in the paper over the years. Some were Baha'i-related, including a photo of me giving a public talk on the disparities of wealth in the U.S. c. 1986. Some were just opinion letters, like my crusade to get all taxes listed on NJ utility bills (which never have been). At those times I was proud of the notoriety and promoted myself. I still do to a degree, but things have changed.
I'm much happier being in the background now, although I still write letters to the Times Editor. In early December I wrote a letter about the loss of our weekly Memoir Class at Lawrence Library. Diana, the letters editor acknowledged receipt. The class had been meeting weekly for over two years, lead by our energetic, enthusiastic and positive facilitator Maria. On Nov. 16, Maria was killed by a driver while she was walking across busy Route 206 near Rider University, and our class was thrown into shock and loss. A week later, with the status of the group in disarray, the Library Manager told the group we could only meet once monthly, and not weekly, effective Jan. 1. We were upset, especially since no reasonable explanations were given for the change, other than "It's our new policy for outside groups."
The group formed a committee of three members to meet with the Manager. They did, and there was no change in the Library's stance, even though we knew plenty of meeting rooms were available, and that we were a wildly successful group with as many as 24 class attendees at times. Emails were flying back and forth. I happened to notice one from Robert, a committee member, which mentioned that the Library Manager had directed us to the Director of Human Services, Marygrace, head of all county libraries. On a whim, I emailed her asking for a response to why we had been changed.
To give her credit, she responded the same day. We spoke on the phone. She reiterated the party line "Once a month." Then she surprised me, "However, because you are a long-standing group, and we want to cooperate, we are allowing you to meet weekly through 2013. After that, it's just once per month because you are not a library sponsored group." I was calm and thanked her, but was inwardly ecstatic. I emailed Robert and told him the news. He emailed the group who were also surprised, happy and thankful. Robert even mentioned my role. I received some personal kudos.We are a close knit group. We are friends. We are intimates.
This occurred c. Dec. 22. I wrote back to Diana, the Times reporter I was working with who was ready to publish my acerbic letter about the situation. I retracted my letter and thanked her. But she said she thought this was an interesting story, and was going to pass it on to the Editor-in-Chief, which she did.
The Times assigned freelance reporter Joyce Persico to the story and we corresponded by email. The rest, as they say, is history. Joyce wrote a magnificient story, and the Times published it on Monday 1/14/13, on the front page, with a large photograph of Karin reading from her memoir. I was pictured in the background. You can see and read it yourself at http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/01/storytelling_seniors_pour_thei.html
I am now firmly convinced I like being in the background better (as in the photo) than being in the limelight.We still have unresolved issues with the Lawrence Library, which we will work on. But our case is decidedly stronger now. I have no doubt that as long as we have a core group of writers, we'll be allowed to meet weekly indefinitely. I certainly hope so..
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