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New Hampshire

How About a Cocktail Tax?

Binge_Drinking_College_Students_HAPPIER_Study_A social services advocacy group called New Futures recently promoted a study that suggested a cost recovery tax per drink on all cocktails in New Hampshire.  They (or the study they promoted) claim that excessive drinking costs the state as much as 1.15 billion per year.  The tax could/would, help offset those costs.

New Hampshire has a large percentage of the population that drinks alcohol but the primary source of the expense appears to be binge drinking, which I have discovered is another moving target on the social sciences spectrum.  According to the CDC, binge drinking (for women) was recently changed–for reporting purposes–to four or more drinks on any one occasion.

That’s like calling binge-shopping visiting four or more stores on any one occasion.  Women can sit and talk for hours making four drinks more like one per hour, which in the real world is called “nursing.”

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Another Day With NH Democrats….Two More Taxes…or is it Six?

NH Roads and bridges - NH Democrats look to raise gas taxThe Concord Monitor is reporting on a  plan by New Hampshire Democrat David Campbell (D- Nashua), that would eventually extract $115,000,000.00 million more dollars per year out of the pockets of struggling New Hampshire families.  He’d like to raise the gas tax and the increase the cost to register your vehicles every year.

His ‘plan’ would raise the price you pay for gas five cents a year for three years.  At the same time the cost of your vehicle registration would also increase five dollars a year for three years.  So you’d’ see two separate tax increases every year for three years; is that two new taxes of six?

The promise, and given past experience this means nothing coming from a New Hampshire Democrat, is that they will use this additional tax money exclusively for road and bridge work.

We obviously need money for roads and bridges but I don’t think we need any new taxes and fees–so I have a better idea.

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Lung Association Says Hike Cigarette Tax $1.00/Pack…for the Children

Problems with youth smoking
Does taxing cigarette’s actually reduce youth smoking in NH?

The American Lung Association would like New Hampshire legislators to increase the state’s tobacco tax by $1.00/pack.   It is their opinion that this will reduce youth smoking and…they’d be more inclined to give us better grades.

The Lung Association gave the Granite State some of the lowest rankings in the Northeast in categories dealing with the cigarette tax, spending on tobacco prevention, smoke-free air and cessation programs.

It also noted that New Hampshire has the highest youth smoking rate in the region — 19.8 percent compared to 12.5 percent nationally — and that no state tax dollars are spent on programs to discourage smoking.

-Union Leader

Is the lung association prepared to compensate us for the 20% loss in sales revenue and secondary commerce to neighboring states as a result because the last time I checked, regardless of what the American Lung Association has to say about their special interest issue, New Hampshire is still consistently one of the top three healthiest states in the nation, year after year.

Oh, and then there’s this inconvenient truth…

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NH Politics with John Burt – John Interviews Bill O’Brien

New Hampshire House Representative John Burt interviews NH House Rep and former New Hampshire House Speaker Bill O’Brien about the new session, proposed laws, Rule 63, and more…(Links to all the discussion topics available here.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HySDVvtN9WU

The Left’s War on Education

The left’s objection to even one tax dollar finding its way into the hands of a church is legion.  It is (apparently) a matter of even greater concern that we might engage in tax policy that accidentally encourages others–by allowing them to keep more of their own money–to give some of it to a religious group.

Such is the current quandary, pressed into the arms of the New Hampshire Superior court judiciary; if a business owner is incentivized by the state to give their own money for a k-12scholarship to a non-profit that manages such scholarships, and some kid or their parents just happens to use their qualified scholarship award at a school run by a religious group, has the state shown an establishment of religion?

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If Democrats Really Want to See Wages Increase….

minimum wage cartoon payneEvery good New Hampshire Democrat knows that the best way to have an immediate impact on jobs and the economy is to increase the cost of doing business.  Making it cost more to run a business acts like a tax on the business owner, and Democrats love taxing business.

Enter HB127, An act relative to the state hourly minimum rate.

Rep Tim Horrigan and admitted socialist Peter Sullivan (New Hampshire Democrats), are unsatisfied with the machinations of the Federal government in the value of labor relative to the task at hand and are certain that they know better, not just than their Federal master in D.C., but better than every employer and employee in the entire Granite State, what any hour of labor is (at minimum) worth.

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Amherst New Hampshire’s Problems…Are there? Problems?

A few days ago I asked…”what are the Amherst New Hampshire Selectman Hiding.” The Selectman were playing games with 91-a, the Granite State’s right to know law, to hide the abrupt absence of the town administrator. My good friend Ed Naile (over at NH Insider) spent some quality time with the Amherst meeting minutes and … Read more

Henniker New Hampshire’s Local Aristocracy Wants What They Want

Henniker NH Local battle with ZBA and town
Henniker NH – It’s Not All Pretty Picture Postcards

Back in November we reported that despite meeting all the legal requirements the town of Henniker had cited Stephen Forster of Forster’s Christmas Tree Farm with the illegal use of his property.

Typically, when such nonsense erupts it is to either punish a landowner for some perceived slight, or to help an abutter (or the town) get something they want.

Somebody still wants something.  And it appears to have escalated.  We’ve received reports that an intimidation campaign is underway against Dr. Bruce Trivellini who serves on the towns zoning board (ZBA).

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What Are The Amherst New Hampshire Selectman Hiding?

The Amherst New Hampshire Town Selectman are trying to use the state’s Right to Know Law to hide something.  Town Administrator Jim O’Mara has been put on administrative leave and the selectman are refusing to answer any questions.

Calling it a personnel issue, selectmen refuse to comment on O’Mara’s status as a town employee. Bruce Bowler, selectmen chairman, said previously that private employee matters are protected under the state’s right to- know law, refusing to give details of O’Mara’s leave.

H/T Union Leader

That includes not explaining if the leave is paid or unpaid.

No offense intended to the Amherst Selectman but seeing as you are paying or not paying him with tax dollars, that information is not personal.  You can’t hide behind 91-a.

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This Isn’t Sexist?

Obama - G8 Photo, Checking Out Her ASSHypocrisy from the left is always on my radar and let me tell you–my radar is always beeping.  Take this for example.  Just imagine if former Senator John Sununu (or any man anywhere) had said this…

Keep the New Hampshire Delegation in men’s hands.

I can smell the tar boiling from here.  So who has the feathers?

But it is perfectly acceptable for Daily Kos to lead it’s fawning article about New Hampshire’s female delegation with this.

NH-Sen: Keep The NH Delegation In Women’s Hands, Help Jeanne Shaheen (D) Win Re-Election In 2014

We should re-elect Senator Shaheen because she is a woman?

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Cynthia Chase Moved Here From Rhode Island – Recently

Rhode Island - This is not New Hampshire
This is not New Hampshire

New Hampshire Democrat Cynthia Chase (Cheshire Dist 8) is getting a lot of press.  Her comments have gone viral.  While I’m happy to have played my small part, the benefits go a lot further; people are searching the original story, landing on FreeKeene,  Reason.com, coming across Dr. Tom Woods original report, even cruising over to GraniteGrok where the Breitbart story was sourced, which ended up on Rush Limbaugh.

And they are discovering that the same woman who views Free Staters moving to New Hampshire as a threat is herself a self-admitted, pro-Alinsky, progressive transplant from Rhode Island.  (Makes for a great followup doesn’t it?)

A fan of the radical Saul Alinsky here to ruin the New Hampshire Advantage no doubt.  And the kicker?  She admits she has only lived here since 2006.

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Why Did We Need RGGI?

With the recent approval of significant electric rate increases that will allow PSNH to recover some $67 million dollars a year in costs related to legislated state energy mandates (NH Renewable Standard and the RGGI tax), having this fall into my in-box could not have been more fortuitous.

From the journal Earth System Dynamics billed as “An Interactive Open Access Journal of the European Geosciences Union” comes this paper which suggests that the posited AGW forcing effects simply isn’t statistically significant in the observations, but other natural forcings are.

What that means is that a European Science journal is reporting a study that tried to consider all the data and all the factors that might influence global temperature change and human activity (AGW) was deemed statistically insignificant.  The things that drive temperature change–natural forcings–are what makes the world get warmer and cooler.

So why did we need RGGI?

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CFL’s May Cause Cancer?

cfl-bulb-dangerousA study released last Summer by Stony Brook University – “The Effects of UV Emission from CFL Exposure on Human Dermal Fibroblasts and Keratinocytes in Vitro,”  (published in the June issue of the journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology)– suggests that compact fluorescent light bulbs release dangerous amounts of UV rays that create a serious health risk.

STONY BROOK, NY, July 18, 2012 – Inspired by a European study, a team of Stony Brook University researchers looked into the potential impact of healthy human skin tissue (in vitro) being exposed to ultraviolet rays emitted from compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs.

Two days ago I laid out a long list of problems with compact flourescents, some health related but mostly practical objections, but only touched on the implied health risks of simply turning them on.  This university report makes some startling observations.

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Trust and Safety in New Hampshire

Here are two pull quotes from the New Hampshire Union Leader that I wanted to share.  One is about trust, the other about safety.  I think you’ll find them…interesting.

In an article on 2013 LSR H-0451 regarding a proposed change to the right to know law, New Hampshire House Democrat Majority Leader Steve Shurtleff, D-Penacook, said of local elected officials having more opportunities for private executive sessions meeting out of public view…

“At some point, you have to trust these officials not to abuse it,.”

Now that is funny, right there, I don’t care who you are.

and…

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Will Terie Norelli And The Democrats Try To Ban My Refrigerator?

My Fridge has a modified magzine in it
Will Demcrats try to ban my ‘Fridge because its got a modified magazine in it?

I think it is appropriate to add this picture (right) to Susan Olsen’s post.  The one with the ‘Journalist’s Guide To Firearm’s Identification.’

This is my refrigerator door.  It was modified by the manufacturer to accommodate an extra magazine capable of holding all manner of ‘lethal’ ordinance.  Soda.  Beer.  Water, in those earth destroying plastic bottles, paid for with a plastic card, slid through a device made of plastic, carried home in plastic shopping bags and yes…that fridge door modification is made of plastic.

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Obama Campaign Never Paid

dead beat Obama Campaign doesn't pay for local security
It’s Not just in NH That the Obama Dead Beats stiffed local taxpayers

According to this editorial, Obama never paid for security or other costs related to his campaign visits in New Hampshire.

In a response to this newspaper and a letter to Portsmouth, Obama campaign officials said they had no role in making security decisions, so the campaign should not be expected to pay. After employing that non-sequiter, the campaign directed local officials to the Secret Service, suggesting that federal taxpayers might help defray the burden placed on local taxpayers.

Remember, these are political campaign events.  As I’ve pointed out before, refusing to pay for these forces local taxpayers to make an in-kind contribution to that campaign to cover the costs of partisan political activity.  It is an argument that makes sense but that in the past was met by Obama supporters who demanded to know why I wasn’t bitching about Romney’s visits.

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