Schools are Businesses, Too

Here's a thought, as I think about Dallas ISD's debt woes:

Why is it the superintendent and all school administrators come from a background in which not a single hour of college credit is required in Business?

Why is it every school board is made up of everyone EXCEPT teachers? In fact, teachers are not even allowed to run for school board.

So we end up with non-business people running multi-million dollar enterprises and business people, who are not required to have a high school degree, setting education policy?

This is what you would call "setting up for failure". And, sure enough, time and time again schools fail at managing budgets and fail at educating children.
Meanwhile school boards (such as Dallas ISD) feel they should not "micromanage". Micromanage is the term given to a process in which a supervisor gets in the day to day business of a person who knows what they are doing. It would be micromanaging for a head coach to tell the line coach what drills to run.
However, if you have someone that do not know come here from sic'em about running a business it is called "oversight".

School boards who do not provide oversight should be fired. Superintendents who cannot run a "business" and does not ask for help, should be fired.

HEY - Uncle Sam Here's a Thought

The current "financial crisis" is the result of a simple accounting process brought on by your favorite uncle.

Let's assume you have a house that you convince a banker is worth $200,000. You establish a line of credit for $200,000. You rock along borrowing money and paying it back. All is well.

In fact, you have used some of the money that you borrowed to buy another house worth $200,000. Now youhave $400,000 of property and $400,000 line of credit.

One day the banker says "Those houses you have are only worth $100,000 each. Therefore, you need to pony up the $200,000 that is in excess of your line of credit". In other words you have exceeded your limit.

Now you go looking for ways to borrow the $200,000. Problem is, everybody is in the same boat.

The bank that loaned you the money had actually borrowed it from another bank, who had borrowed from another bank, etc., etc.

If I default on my loan each bank along the is going to default. Therefore, Uncle must give me the $200,000 I owe in exchange for one of the houses.

I now have a house worth $100,000 which will increase in value sometime and $200,000 cash to go out and do it again.

Meanwhile, Uncle Sam has a house worth $100,000 that he paid $200,000 for which he hopes he can sell for $201,000 - some day.

Solution? Simply tell the "banker" (in reality the government regulators) that you can claim the houses are really worth $200,000 but one year from now, you must begin reducing your line of credit and sell one of the houses. as a result, you don't need to go looking for emergency money and each bank doesn't have to default. Problem solved without using Uncle's money.

This solution is so simple it TICKS ME OFF no one else has thought of it. Except that as the person with the mythical houses I don't really want this solution because I would rather have the cash and no bad debts.

Recalls and Bailouts

When tomatoes are suspected of causing headaches, the FDA removes tomatoes from the shelves. Do the farmers get reimbursed? Heck no!
When China put lead in children's toys, they are removed from the shelves.
Does Toys R Us get a write-off? Heck no!
When tires blow out, all tires from a company are removed from the market, ALMOST bankrupting the company.
Does Firestone get federal relief? HECK NO!!

Now we have financial companies who sold risky investments as if they were "backed by FNMA". Those loans were from people who could not afford to buy a house in the first place. They were encouraged to get a loan for the downpayment on an interest-only loan so they could afford the house payment - at least until rates were adjusted.
When rates adjusted and people started defaulting on loans, the house of cards that Lehman and others built came crashing down.
What happens to all the financial firms participating in the scam - WE HAVE TO BAIL THEM OUT.
THAT TICKS ME OFF!!!!

In this election season we are hearing a lot from the libs about "fair taxes" and "tax breaks for the middle class". I heard B. Hussein Obama say that he could afford to pay more so others would not have to. His running mate, Joe "I don't want to be VP" Biden says it is patriotic to pay more taxes.
Here are two solutions:
1. Have the IRS insert a new line in the Form 1040. For 2007 this could have been line 45a. The explanation could have been "Additional Taxes I Wish To Pay". You would then simply insert the amount of additional taxes you feel you should pay.

2. Deductions, allowances and dependents are factored into the tax code to reduce your tax obligation. If you feel you are paying too little, simply do not include any deductions (home mortgage interest and charitable gifts), allowances (fuel efficient vehicles and home buyers in DC), or dependents (children). The result will be that you will pay more taxes.

See how easy it is for all the liberal wackos to pay more taxes!

In the future how about if all media, bloggers, commentators, and radio talk show hosts would simply ask "Did you claim any deductions last year?"

If the answer is "Yes", cut them off and tell them to file amended returns then come back and talk about tax increases.