Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. ‘Since you are all such good customers, he said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for r the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes, so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men – the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so: The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings)
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead o f $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant the men began to compare their savings.
‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10!’
‘Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!’
‘That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!’
‘Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!’
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics, University of Georgia
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.
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October 28th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Announcements, Gossip, Joke of the Day, politics |
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Hello Neighbors! I wanted to share with you the email response I received from Governor Schwarzenegger regarding his veto of AB2270 (the water softener bill)…
Thank you for writing to urge that I veto AB 2270. I appreciate your active participation in the democratic process, and I value your suggestions on how government can better serve the people of California.
I am pleased to inform you that I vetoed this bill after extensive consideration and thorough deliberation of arguments from both supporters and opponents of this issue. The provisions of this bill create a system that could unduly limit choices for consumers and small water systems and would have little positive impact given the limited contribution of water softeners to our salinity problems. My veto message for this legislation may be found on the Official California Legislative Information website: www.leginfo.ca.gov.
Again, I appreciate hearing your opinion on legislation that affects the future of our great state. Taking the time to communicate your views and offer suggestions is essential to good citizenship and good government.
Sincerely,
Arnold Schwarzenegger
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October 16th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Announcements, Gossip |
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OK, I get it! We’ve only been planning this trip since the first of January. The earliest I’ve ever booked a vacation since I’m inherently a procrastonator. We booked the resort in January and our flight in March. Everything was set and we just forgot about it.
Well, Lily said to me a couple of weeks ago “is everything set? You have the passports, right?” I replied “yep. I have all of them in our room and mine is in my backpack. No problem.”
I spent the last few days getting all of our documents together and confirming our flight, frequent flier numbers for all of us and confirming the reservation at the resort. Dammit! I should have looked at those passports. We headed to the airport today, went through TSA hell, got on our flight — NO PROBLEM!
Once in Phoenix (we needed to change planes threre), our passports were checked again and we got the shocking news! Tia and Maya’s passports expired on July 29, 2008! We were told that Mexico will not let us in and we were immediately sent back to San Jose. However, if they had expired while we were out of the country, the USA would let us come back.
I’m writing this on my PDA on Saturday night in San Jose. We have a 10AM appointment at the passport office in San Francisco on Monday morning and then the airline is supposed to fly us back. We’ll see how that goes.
In the mean time, I’ll keep the blog informed about our exciting trip.
-mark
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August 23rd, 2008
Posted by
admin |
Gossip, vacations |
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Title: Taste of Morgan Hill
Location: Downtown Morgan Hill
Description: Enjoy the flavors of local
restaurants, wineries, breweries,
musicians and artisans in an
exciting festival atmosphere.
Start Date: 2008-09-27
End Date: 2008-09-28
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August 1st, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Good Eats, Gossip |
no comments
I’m posting this reminder that the next scheduled poker game is at Martin’s house this Saturday night, July 19 at 8:30 PM. Make sure you get the night out cleared with your respective bosses.
In addition to playing live games, I know Charlie and Ola play a lot of online poker. Not sure which site they play at but I signed up on Full Tilt Poker recently. You can follow these links to register too. One of the things we can do is create our own online tournament which would allow us to expand the game beyond the neighborhood to friends and family living elsewhere. Leave some comments if there is interest in doing this.
Play Online Poker
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July 14th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Gossip, Party, Poker |
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Title: Farmer’s Market
Location: 3rd & Depot, Downtown Morgan Hill
Description: Farm fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh cut flowers and more.
Every Saturday morning at Downtown Train Station (3rd and Depot) from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.
Start Time: 09:00
Date: 2008-06-28
End Time: 13:00
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June 21st, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Good Eats, Gossip |
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Title: July 4th Parade
Location: Downtown Morgan Hill
Description: Northern California’s largest Independence Day Celebration and festivities and Santa Clara County’s Official 4th of July Parade
Date: 2008-07-04
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June 20th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Gossip |
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Title: Farmer’s Market
Location: 3rd & Depot, Downtown Morgan Hill
Description: Farm fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh cut flowers and more.
Every Saturday morning at Downtown Train Station (3rd and Depot) from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.
Start Time: 09:00
Date: 2008-06-21
End Time: 13:00
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June 14th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Good Eats, Gossip |
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Mustard-Glazed Beef Short Ribs
June 9, 2008 – 12:07 ET
 RECIPE COURTESY OF MICHAEL LOMONACO
Porter House New York
10 Columbus Circle
4th Floor
New York, NY 10019
212-823-9500 |
6 pounds beef short ribs, on the bone, cut into 4 portions
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
¼ cup tomato paste
1 cup red wine
3 cups low-sodium, store-bought beef broth
Bouquet garni: 3 sprigs rosemary, 3 sprigs thyme, and three sprigs oregano tied in a cheesecloth
½ cup Pommery mustard
½ cup honey
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Pour the oil into a wide, deep-sided sauté pan and heat it over medium-high heat. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, add them to the pan, and brown them all over, approximately 4 minutes per side. Transfer the ribs to a large casserole or roasting pan.
- Add the onion, carrot, and celery to the sauté pan and cook for 5 minutes to lightly caramelize them. Add the jalapeño, garlic, tomato paste, wine, and broth to the pan. Bring the mixture to a rapid boil, then pour it over the ribs in the casserole. The liquid should not rise more than two-thirds up the side of the ribs and the ribs should not be entirely submerged. If you have extra liquid, maybe your casserole is too small and the ribs are too tightly packed; try dividing the ribs and liquid among 2 casseroles.
- Put the casserole in the oven, add the bouquet garni, and braise the ribs approximately 2 ½ – 3 hours. Pierce the ribs with the tines of a fork; if cooked enough, the fork will meet no resistance.
- Remove the casserole from the oven and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before transferring the ribs to plate or platter. Degrease the braising liquid, strain it, discard the solids, and reduce and reserve the juices for serving. The short ribs can be cooled, covered, and refrigerated for 1 to 3 days. Let come to room temperature before proceeding.
- Prepare an outdoor grill with a drip pan to prevent-flare ups or preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Combine the mustard and honey in a bowl and liberally brush over the ribs. Grill or cooks the ribs in the oven for 10 minutes, turning once, until the glaze is caramelized, dark, and delicious. If grilling, brush on more glaze as the ribs cook.
- Serve the ribs family-style, passing the reduced braising liquid alongside in a sauce boat.
Serves 4 to 6
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June 11th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, For Sale or Free, Good Eats, Gossip, Referrals, politics |
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Double Crust Apple Pie
June 9, 2008 – 12:03 ET
Double Crust Apple Pie
RECIPE COURTESY OF MICHAEL LOMONACO
Porter House New York
10 Columbus Circle
4th Floor
New York, NY 10019
212-823-9500 |
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2½ pounds firm, tart apples, preferably seasonal local specials like Macouns, Northern Spy, or Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and sliced into ¼-inch wedges.
½ cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon for dusting
¼ cup raisins
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground clove
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Basic Pie Dough (recipe follows)
1 egg, beaten with 2 tablespoons water to make an egg wash
- Put 3 tablespoons of the butter into a large, heavy-bottomed sauté pan and melt it over medium heat. Add the apple wedges and sauté until slightly softened but holding their shape, 3 to 4 minutes. Add ¼ cup of the sugar and stir to combine. Add the raisins, cinnamon, and clove and stir.
- In a bowl, combine the lemon juice and cornstarch. Stir the mixture into the apple mixture and remove the pan from the heat. Let cool completely.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Fill an unbaked bottom crust with apple filling and dot the top with the remaining butter. Top with a rolled-out top crust. Cut ½-inch vents in a round-clock pattern into the top crust to allow steam to escape. Brush the top lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
- Put the pie on a cookie sheet or other low-sided baking tray to catch any spillage. Place on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20 minutes, checking occasionally to ensure that the top is browning evenly. Rotate the pie 180 degrees to move the front edge to the back of the oven, and bake until the top is uniformly golden-brown, 15 to 20 more minutes.
- Remove the pie from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Makes 1 pie, enough to serve 6 to 8
Basic Pie Dough and Double Crust Pie Dough
2½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus more for greasing a pie mold
About 1/3 cup ice-cold water
1 egg yolk, beaten with 2 tablespoons water to make an egg wash
1. Put the flour, salt, and baking powder in a stainless steel bowl, and use a pastry knife to mix them together well. Add the cold butter cubes and mix until the mixture begins becomes mealy and the butter forms plainly visible pea-sized nuggets.
2. In a separate mixing bowl, dissolve the salt in the water. Begin adding half the water to the flour mixture adding just enough to pull the dough together. Sprinkle the water over the flour slowly to ensure that only the minimum amount of water is used. Do not over-mix the dough; if it appears dry and is not holding together, add a few additional tablespoons of water.
3. Form the dough into a ball, flatten it, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
If using another recipe that calls for dough, refer to that recipe at this point. If making your own pie, follow the remaining instructions for assembling and baking it.
4. When ready to use, lightly flour a pastry board and a rolling pin, and unwrap the dough. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces, and keep the second piece refrigerated. Tamp down the dough with the rolling pin and gently begin to roll it out into a circular pie shape by rolling evenly outward from the center, working quickly, and turning the dough in 1/8 turns to keep the rolling even. When the dough is rolled out to an even thickness of about 1/8-inch and is about 12 inches in diameter, it is ready to be transferred to a 10-inch pie dish. I prefer to use Pyrex glass pie dishes; they transmit heat uniformly, don’t warp like tins, and let you see just how the bottom crust in progressing during baking.
5. Lightly butter the tin, lift the dough with the rolling pin by partially rolling the dough up on the pin, center the dough in the tin, and unroll. Pierce the dough in several places with the tines of a fork.
6. Roll the second half of the pie dough into a round shape slightly larger than the pie pan. Fill the bottom crust with your chosen fruit filling. Cover the filling, such as apple, with the top half of the pie dough. Using both hands, crimp the edges of the two crusts together to seal. With a sharp knife, make several cross-hatch slits in the top crust. Brush with the egg wash and bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes.
Makes 2, 10-inch pie crusts, enough for 1 double pie or 2 bottom-crust-only pies
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June 10th, 2008
Posted by
Mark |
Activities, Announcements, Good Eats, Gossip |
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