Thoughts On A Sunday

It's NASCAR weekend here in New Hampshire, with the Lennox 301 running in Loudon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The race fans certainly made their presence known since Friday, with very heavy traffic all through the Lakes Region (we're about 15 miles north of the track).

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I have to admit to being lazy this weekend, not accomplishing nearly as much as I might have. Yard work was low on the priority list, with the lawn being mowed late today and weeding being put off until after work over the workweek. Housework and laundry are about the only things I've managed to accomplish over the past two days.

At least BeezleBub and Deb have been busy with work, though both have had some time off to recreate.

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Bogie shows us some photos from northern New Hampshire where there's an ongoing dispute about a power line project that would bring Quebec hydroelectric power to southern New England. Most folks up north are concerned about the path of the new Northern Pass power line – right through the prettiest scenery that attracts lots of tourists. Needless to say they're worried the destruction of the scenic views would adversely affect the tourist trade, the 'bread and butter' of the economy up there.

While the Northern Pass folks are working hard on PR to get their way, there are just as many locals working to stop the construction of the proposed route. It's not that they're against the project so much as they believe the route will cause major damage to their livelihoods. Some have proposed using existing routes to run the power down to southern New England, but the Northern Pass folks appear to dislike that idea.

Who will win this one? As much as I would like to think the folks up north will get their way, I think the fix is in for Northern Pass and they're gonna rip a wide scar right across some of the prettiest scenery in the country.

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Does anyone want to tell me we're now out of the recession and the economy is just hunky-dory?

I didn't think so.

While things have been hopping here in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, summer business isn't anywhere near where it's been in previous years. Many of the folks spending vacation time up here are from New Hampshire, rather than folks from out of state. At least the Canadians have been showing up in greater numbers than in the past, but then their economy is booming and their dollar is worth more than the US dollar, meaning vacations here are a bargain...for them.

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And speaking of vacations, it appears a large percentage (34%) of Americans have said they have changed their vacation plans this summer, the largest number in quite some time.

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I had a rather lively discussion with one of the customers of our small business, a nice lady that seems to gravitate towards all kinds of conspiracy theories, BS economic theories, and believes the rich don't pay any taxes at all. But it appears the tax burden of the top 1% of taxpayers exceeds that of the bottom 95%. I guess that isn't enough for her as she keeps complaining that the rich don't pay their fair share. I asked her what she pays in income taxes and she wouldn't say. If I had to guess I'd say she's probably one of those folks who pays nothing. In my experience the folks who pay the least amount in the way of income taxes bitch the most about income taxes. Isn't that always the way?

(H/T Maggie's Farm)

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Stacy McCain has three little words we can use whenever liberals decry the alleged “lack of civility” by conservatives: Sheila Jackson-Lee.

Of course I don't expect them to understand the reference.

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Do you really want to understand the tax fight going on between Obama, his Democrat sycophants, and the GOP? Then take a look at this point of view from a small business owner, someone who will be the most affected by the tax policies being proposed by Obama and the Democrats in Congress.

So when politicians are talking about raising taxes on the filthy rich, they want us to think that those nasty old bankers, corporate swells, and union thugs are finally going to get what's coming to them. Unfortunately, these protected groups will be largely immune to the tax and regulatory burden. The real losers will be the small business owners, ordinary folk like you and me who have no means of protecting ourselves against the power of the government.

Don't be fooled by political rhetoric that claims taxes will be extracted from the super rich. It's the small business owner, already suffering in a poor economy, who will be hurt the most.

As a small business owner myself, I can see exactly where he's coming from.

(H/T Pirate's Cove)

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And that's the news from Lake Winnipesaukee, where the race crowd has gone home until next month, the tourists (what there are of them) are spending their money carefully, and where bits and pieces of The Boat are strewn across the floor of our garage as we work to repair it.