Reach for a Lime

Reconciliation is a legislative process in the United States Senate intended to allow consideration of a contentious budget bill without the threat of filibuster. Introduced in 1974, reconciliation limits debate and amendment, and therefore favors the majority party.

Congress used reconciliation to enact President Bill Clinton's 1993 (fiscal year 1994) budget. (See Pub.L. 103-66, 107 Stat. 312.) Clinton wanted to use reconciliation to pass his 1993 health care plan, but Senator Robert Byrd insisted that the health care plan was out of bounds for a process that is theoretically about budgets.

Why is this important? Well, guess what they are trying to do with the healthcare bill?! You guessed it: Reconciliation. But wait. The White House said Monday the leading tactic to win passage of the health-care bill was nothing extraordinary, rehearsing a key argument in the final public-relations battle over the bill. Ah yes. Downplay it. Downplay the fact the bill is getting rammed through legislation using a parliamentary trick which was not designed for anything this large.

"When it comes to enacting laws and then later amending those laws, it doesn't matter in what order Congress passes bills. All that matters is the order in which the president signs those bills into law. As long as the president signs the health care bill 30 seconds before he signs the reconciliation bill, the latter can amend or repeal any provisions in the former. So the House and Senate could, in theory, vote on a conference report amending the Senate health care bill before the House actually has to take the tougher vote to accept the Senate bill. No matter whether the House votes on reconciliation or the Senate bill first, the Speaker can ensure that the health care bill is signed into law before reconciliation."

Is it not ironic that the opponents of the Democratic initiative have begun referring to the use of reconciliation as the “nuclear option”? This is a term that was used to describe the majoritarian procedures that effect formal change in Senate rules.

“Using reconciliation would be an acknowledgment that there is bipartisan opposition to their bill, another in a series of backroom deals, and the clearest signal yet that they’ve decided to completely ignore the American people.” It’s not that I’m against the bill. I just think it’s odd when politics rears its head in clear view.

"Too much and too long, we seem to have surrendered community excellence and community values in the mere accumulation of material things. Our gross national product ... if we should judge America by that - counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors and the jails for those who break them. It counts the destruction of our redwoods and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm and the cost of a nuclear warhead, and armored cars for police who fight riots in our streets. It counts Whitman's rifle and Speck's knife, and the television programs which glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children.

"Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages; the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our wit nor our courage; neither our wisdom nor our learning; neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country; it measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile. And it tells us everything about America except why we are proud that we are Americans."

-Robert F. Kennedy

Cost savings for quitting smoking:

Savings on Medical Premiums:
$300.00 per year ($12.50 X 24 pay periods)

Savings on Cigarette Purchases:
$2007.50 per year for "pack a day" smokers (using $5.50 per pack)
$1003.75 per year for "1/2 pack a day" smokers (using $5.50 per pack)

Look at the site. Post on in there. Pepsi is really trying to capitalize on the state of things. But I can't really decide what they are attempting to do. Venerate Brand Image? Expand brand awareness? Impressions to sales? I don't think an avid Coke consumer is going to buy Pepsi now because they want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. I mean, on the whole, do people really deep down care? "In reality, PepsiCo owns some of the most sought after brands in the world, including Gatorade, Tropicana, Frito-Lay, and Doritos. It does business in more than 200 countries worldwide, including key emerging market economies like China and India". So this global "one love" thing-how is it going to help? In this author's mind, I think it is going to raise audience involvement and make Pepsi a more personal brand. The cause is to tap into cause-related marketing or pro-social marketing, by which corporations seek to back up their talk about benefiting society.

So Coke and Pepsi couldn't compete in price anymore. Now they get to compete in who is more of a philanthropist. Pepsi points a finger saying Coke capped its donations at $500,000 and says look at us we are doing 40 times that. Coke comes back and says, "[it]will donate a dollar to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America each time a visitor to the Coca-Cola fan page on Facebook (facebook.com/livepositively) shares a virtual Coke gift" and that the 500k was only "a portion of the almost $60 million in cash and in-kind donations".

Either way it is showing innovation and evolution of the advertising industry.

Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Hopefully love was abounding. That’s said; let’s take a second to embrace the inner nerd in the quest for saving money. When it comes to matters of the heart at higher levels such as marriage, income tax becomes a chess piece. Filing jointly you get breaks, but you are also in a higher bracket now which means higher tax rate.

Once the ring is on the finger, the scene changes. Sometimes one spouse wants to leave the rat race and build the nest. If the budgeting and career planning are correct, families can flourish. Of course there are others like newlyweds, which have everything, but taxes on the brain. They never thought about the credit of the other, nor were financial issues like outstanding student loans ever discussed prior to the exchange of vows. Many lose out on larger returns because they don’t realize that if most of the year they were not married, then they can still file as single. And what if you are marrying someone with kids?-kids that you are planning on taking care of. Well, there are a few ways to capitalize on that situation too. Ensure the support you are providing is deducted via medical expenses, Earned Income Credit or Child Tax Credit.

Love doesn’t always work out, nor is it always true at face value. Divorce is never auspicious for both sides. Manipulation over control of assets and the claiming of exemptions and benefits for children he/she isn’t entitled to claim make the process very messy. It gets even more confusing when both parties supply equal support.

And believe you me, there are a number of people out there who have managed to see the tax fraud availability in marriage. Audits all around. Some people like to file as head of the house and get their EIC even though they are married and don’t qualify if a joint return was filed. Some people try to claim their family members kids; of which they have never given support to or maybe even met. Fraud in love? Who knew…


TaxFiling.net

1. Phil Vassar Last day of my life


“So I'm gonna bring home a dozen roses,
An' pour us a glass of wine.
An' I'm gonna put on a little music,
An' turn down the lights.
An' I'm gonna wrap my arms around you,
An' rock you all through the night,
An' I'm gonna love you,
Like it's the last day of my life.


2. Diamond Rio One more day


“One more day
One more time
One more sunset, maybe I'd be satisfied”


3. Bucky Covinton I’ll walk


She said, I'll walk.
Please come and hold my hand.
Right now I'm hurt, and I don't understand.
Lets just be quiet, and later we can talk.
Please stay, don't worry.
I'll walk.


4. Tim McGraw Don’t take the girl


“Johnny hit his knees and there he prayed
Take the very breath you gave me
Take the heart from my chest
I'll gladly take her place if you'll let me
Make this my last request
Take me out of this world
God, please don't take the girl”


5. Brad Paisley Whiskey Lullaby (Featuring Alison Krauss)


“Life is short but this time it was bigger
Than the strength she had to get up off her knees
We found her with her face down in the pillow
Clinging to his picture for dear life
We laid her next to him beneath the willow
While the angels sang a whiskey lullaby”


Honorable Mentions


One wing in the fire

When I call your name

Watching Airplanes

The best I ever had

If tomorrow never comes

3 wooden crosses

Tonight I wanna cry