The Current

Surely you can't be serious

So, the American Film Institute released its top 100 movie quotes. The favorite in our office was listed at number 79, from the movie Airplane!:

“Surely you can’t be serious.”

“I am serious… and don’t call me Shirley.”

As funny as that entire slapstick movie was, the unchecked rhetoric of the administration and some state legislators may be just as ridiculous. But instead of the actual quotes (see the House Journal from 6/22/05 and DOR testimony from 3/1/05), let’s look at their math:

According to the Department of Revenue, 73 percent of corporations don’t pay taxes. Shirley you can’t be serious.

The administration argues, as do their agents in the legislature, that in order to be fair, we need to pass mandatory unitary combined reporting (MUC). They then claim that under MUC, 83 percent of the companies will pay LESS in taxes. Shirley you can’t be serious.

Now, I ain’t a mathematician, I’m just a Parrot head from central Pennsylvania, but if 73 percent don’t pay taxes, how can 83 percent pay less after they implement their solution??????? Shirley you can’t be serious.

Furthermore, under their “fair” plan, the Department of Revenue admits that over 50 percent still won’t pay taxes! Only when pressed do they admit that there are legitimate reasons why a registered corporation might not pay taxes. Shirley you can’t be serious.

Now, here’s one of my favorite movie dialogs, and it’s from The American President:

“…People want leadership. And in the absence of genuine leadership, they will listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone… They’re so thirsty for it, they’ll crawl through the desert toward a mirage, and when they discover there’s no water, they’ll drink the sand.”

“…People don’t drink the sand ‘cause they’re thirsty…. They drink it ‘cause they don’t know the difference.”

Now I’M serious… stop drinking the sand! Oh yeah, and don’t call me Shirley.

Ghost Blogger

Greetings! I'm Jim's editor and his guest blogger for today. He's busy eating beluga caviar and doing God's work on behalf of the business community--so you get me. No name (I’m no fool).

As Jim's editor I get to look at his blog stats, his blog hits, and more importantly, the Google searches that land people on his blog. Some examples: Jimmy Buffet ice luge; economic growth and NBA basketball; I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more; Viagra; and my personal fave – how to do a feathered haircut. (Note to self -- tell Jim to be careful what he writes.) So, I prefer that anything I say here be attributed to Jim.

Jim thought it might be worthwhile to share an editorial that recently appeared in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review along with our response. Here's the link to the article (The Cotton Swabs vs. the Q-tip Campaigns), and below is our response.

If Jim is still missing in action next week, I’ll be forced to tell everyone the story about his fear of scaly, legless reptiles, and his run in with a gardner snake…

Hang in there Jim, it's almost over.

Dear editor,

Colin McNickle hit the nail on the head with his assessment of the governor’s flawed economic policies and the culture of uncontrolled spending that has increased under his administration (The cotton swabs vs. Q-Tips campaign, June 5, 2005).

Pennsylvania employers struggle to create jobs in the face of tax laws that are antiquated and burdensome; health-care costs that are rising at alarming rates; a legal system that lacks fairness and personal responsibility; and labor laws that are not cost-effective.

Meanwhile, government in the Commonwealth continues to grow beyond its means, viewing both business and individual taxpayers as its personal piggybank.

Between 1991 and 2002, Pennsylvania had the fifth highest real per capita spending growth at 103 percent. However, during that same time period, Pennsylvania’s employment job growth rate was 50.5 percent lower than the national rate; and Gross State Product and personal income growth were 18.3 percent and 20.1 percent slower respectively than the national rate.

Taxing and spending our way into prosperity doesn’t work. Government doesn’t create wealth, it only redistributes it. The more government takes away from hard-working, risk-taking business owners, the less money is available for expansion, growth and jobs.

Pennsylvania will continue to languish unless efforts are made to limit government spending and allow the private sector to drive the economy. The objectives of the Keystone Manufacturing Initiative are similar to the PA Chamber’s own Agenda for Jobs – a job creation plan developed with input from more than 9,000 Pennsylvania employers. Both proposals all allow the private sector to be the economic engine that provides quality jobs for residents. KMI and the Agenda for Jobs recognize a fundamental principal lacking from the governor’s policies; jobs come from a free market within an environment of competitive business taxes; limited and efficient regulation; balanced labor laws, and freedom from lawsuit abuse – not from government.

The PA Chamber will continue to work with pro-jobs lawmakers in the General Assembly to create a climate that will enable Pennsylvania to flourish, not fall further behind.

Let’s Play Jeopardy!

I’ll take “Positively Procedure for $800...”

The answer is, “Mason, Jefferson and Robert.”

“Who are dead guys with Rules, Alex?”

“Correct!”

I’m no Ken Jennings (the egg-head who won $2.5 million on Jeopardy last year) or Brad Rutter (the Lancaster native who beat Ken in the Tournament of Champions a few weeks ago), and I seldom watch game shows. But it’s good trivia, none-the-less.

You see, Mason’s Manual, Jefferson’s Manual and Robert’s Rules of Order are the three primary sources for parliamentary procedure. The PA House uses Mason’s and Jefferson’s as the primary guides for their rules (no offense to Robert). And in fact, one of the first votes of every legislative session, the PA legislature adopts rules on how it will operate.

To many, the vote on the rules is boring and unimportant. Others, however, see the rules as a roadmap for advocacy efforts. Procedure can be used as a way to defeat or advance an issue. In part, this tactic exemplifies the adage that the legislative process is like sausage – sometimes you just don’t want to see it being made.

Despite these procedural wranglings, what the public may not understand is that no matter how hard a legislator may work to defeat an issue procedurally, once a substantive vote is required to be cast, the same legislator who worked against an issue may vote FOR the issue. Why, some may ask? Quite simply, the vote allows that legislator to go back to constituents and say they “supported” the issue.

In Harrisburg, this is referred to as being “politically astute.” In Vegas, it’s called “hedging your bets.” Others see it as a familiar acronym… “CYA.” But for the Chamber and our more than 9,000 members representing more than 50% of the private workforce, we call a spade a spade – if procedural games are played to delay or avoid a vote on an issue we support, we view it as a vote against jobs.

Complicating matters further, many lawmakers campaign in their districts as pro-business lawmakers, despite efforts to impair business-supported issues. However, the Chamber’s government affairs team serves as the eyes and ears in Harrisburg for the business community. No matter what legislators may say or how they may ultimately vote, we closely watch proceedings in order to identify our friends and enemies on the issues of importance.

So, Mason, Jefferson and even poor Robert, we thank you for your guidance on procedure, and may you rest in peace. But legislators should know that hiding behind procedure may create their own Jeopardy once the Chamber informs constituents of any “procedural” shenanigans on job-friendly issues.