I went to our quarterly "high-school buddies" lunch yesterday.
I sat next to one of the men who was in the same Boy Scout troop that I was in. In fact, he was one of the kids who twisted my arm to join. Consequently, I owe him a debt of gratitude.
Tim always thought before he spoke and is invariably economical with his words. His observations are incisive and cut to the heart of the matter.
I asked him what he did that gave him satisfaction or a sense of fulfillment.
He shared that he is very active in the Knights of Columbus (a fraternal organization) and that he delivers a two or three minute lecture or "fable" once a month. The content is highly variable but his goal is to connect-the-dots in a way that makes baffling events snap into focus.
Part of the secret-sauce of his talks is that he seldom gives them new information. He paints the background by reminding them of seemingly unrelated items that every member of the audience has at least some degree of awareness of. The climax of his speech is when he skewers the tidbits on a kebab-stick and creates a focal-plane that makes everything clear, sort of like a cut-away drawing showing the innards of a mechanical watch.
I joked that he didn't deliver TED Talks, he deliveres TIM Talks.
He agreed that was more-or-less true. He also shared that it takes a huge amount of time to compress that degree of information into less than 180 seconds. It isn't just the amount of information, but creating the flow that makes it seamless and easy for the listener to absorb.
That is an interesting ministry.
Kentucky and West Virginia to tax Pepsi Corporation profits
When Mamdani was asked about the risks of companies headquartered in NYC leaving due to higher taxation rates, he blew-off the concern with an interesting legal solution. "If they continue to do any business in New York, we will continue to tax them."
I am sure that legislators in Charleston and Frankfort took notice. Consumption of soda-pop causes a great deal of damage to the health of people in Appalachia. It directly impacts oral health, diabetes and obesity. All of those are huge drains on the financial coffers of those states.
Also up for grabs are the profits of any network that broadcast content in Kentucky or West Virginia, advertising firms whose work is carried by those broadcasters, profits of banks that finance any activity in either of those two states, law firms that ever filed a brief in either of those two states...
Yessirree, that Mamdani fellow is bringing joy to Appalachia with his profound insights on capitalism and taxation.
Weather
It will be cold on Monday with a low of 21F. That is not cold by January standards.
The mid-West has a "Continental climate". That means large excursions in temperature are to be expected.
Seed collecting
Seed collecting is in process. I-115 persimmon seeds, Goosepond and Kanza pecans are packed away. Bald cypress seeds are being hydrated before being packed in sand and stored. I still need to pick Lehman's Delight persimmons and process them for seeds. I purchased some Red Oak acorns from a vendor on eBay but they haven't arrived yet.
I also have about 70 Red Haven peach pits that my sister saved for me.
My focus has shifted over the last few years from "Collect lots of seeds" to "Plant the seeds I collected". I am very good at running from twenty-yard-line to twenty-yard-line. I struggle to punch the ball into the end-zone.
Continuing to pilfer from Midwest Chick's hoard
Having someone like Tim to hang around with is definitely a beam of sunlight in this haze we now live in. --ken
ReplyDeleteTwo pains. You can avoid one, but never both.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting idea by Tim.
ReplyDeleteFables have become an underutilized medium for storytelling.
With the super majority of GOP in both houses, I highly doubt Kentucky will tax pop/soda producers.
ReplyDeleteGerry why do you think that there is a real difference between the Millionaires on the Right Vs the Millionaires on the Left?
DeleteLaughable they care a whit about you and I except for cheap foot Solders and tax cattle.
Two wings on the same carrion bird.
But please go on pretending your 'tribe" is more noble than the other (what's the current approved dem term now?) Nazis.
The sense I got wasn't that Mamdani wanted to tax just the activities within NY. He wanted to tax ALL of Pepsi's profits regardless of where it was generated even after Pepsi (and others) leave NY.
DeleteSo the KY and WV move would be to tax all of the profit generated by companies that do any business in their states, not just tax the sales of the goods/services rendered within their state.
Michael, since you do not know me or live in KY you may want to know the super majority has reduced taxes in the state every year there has been a surplus. This is done because those same folks passed legislation mandating it overriding a veto to do so. Since EJ is a gentleman, I'll ignore the Nazi dig.
DeleteGary, I have no clue what you're posting about.
DeleteAre you claiming the Republican State of Kentucky has done the right thing for years?
That's great, what does that have to do with the vast bulk of CONgress and Co behavior?
Sorry if I mistook you for the liberal that posts apparently on a name quite similar to yours.
And still the Liberals still call anyone that disagrees with them for the past several years "A Nazi" so why is that FACT a dig against you?
Michael the anon today
Thanks, Gerry.
DeleteMichael, yes, I think you mistook Gerry for somebody else.
One of the things I like about "our side" is that we are usually pretty tolerant of experimentation. Unlike the folks I like to poke fun at, we rarely punish people who dare think for themselves. Our strength is that we leverage the results of our different ways of approaching issues. We take what works best and play variations on a theme from there.
Yes,it seems I did confuse him with our progressive.
DeleteI am sorry.
Michael the anonymous
There is a reason that fables have lasted millennia.
ReplyDeleteThere is also a reason that good storytellers have been highly valued for centuries.
(It's only recently that they haven't been valued).
As for taxation between states, there is already federal case law on it - M can't just do whatever he wants.
In particular, New York State has long tried, and failed, to tax part year residents through various schemes. I believe companies would be similar, taxed at most on their activity in state and the property they own in state.
The exodus from New York started decades ago; it will only accelerate now.
Jonathan
California's Franchise Tax Board administers the State's income taxes and they are relentless in pursuing every possible bit of taxable income from non-residents. As Anon 10:14 notes they haven't been successful but they still try. That's one of the reasons I refuse to enter CA for work reasons.
DeleteYacht owners and airplane owners have been dunned by California based solely upon fuel receipts. The state assumes state residence. The state relies on the owner having to prove that their yacht or aircraft is not based on that state. It gets stickier. Much more.
DeleteIf I recall, CA may also tax pensions for state employees even if they live in other states. Or at lewst have talked about it.
DeleteThey don't yet, but yes the bring it up every year or two.
DeleteTaxes will probably be that proverbial straw, pity the camel.
Perhaps Tim would be amenable to writing his "fables" down for us to peruse? I'd be interested.
ReplyDeleteWhen RFK finally does the right thing (what's taking him so long?) and removes soda pop from the SNAP program, there will be a lot less profit to tax anyway. SNAP reform will do more good for the health of American people, and for our society, than Ozempic pushers could ever imagine.
ReplyDelete