pianogonzology

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

2,492 . . .

2,492

(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball_consecutive_games_played_streaks)
". . . The record of playing in 2,632 consecutive games over more than 16 years is held by Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles. Ripken surpassed Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees, whose record of 2,130 consecutive games had stood for 56 years. Before Gehrig, the record was held by Everett Scott (1,307 consecutive games), a shortstop with the Red Sox and Yankees whose streak ended in 1925, less than a month before Gehrig's began. Scott broke the previous record which was established by George Pinkney (577 consecutive games) from 1885–1890. . . "

. . . so, give or take, I have logged 2,492 blog posts since I began this, yes many of them were frivolous; some of them were silly; a number of them had absolutely no point at all; several of them contained typos and other errors of which I am NOT proud; some of them were a bit clever. But I did it! And believe me, I well know, expect and deserve NO AWARD. I have posted a blog containing a thought, a fantasy, a musing, a digression, a song, a photo, an otherwise 'unconsidered' (hopefully to someone) issue - but they were there, each and everyday since February 9, 2011. . . and here is the first one . . . (for any and all that may, or may not, give a fig). . .

". . . I've always been curious about blogging and wary of tweeting. I mean, who really wants to know every fleeting thought that crosses my warped little mind? And I base this curiosity and wariness on my own tastes. In all honesty, I have little to no interest in the fleeting thoughts of too many people. If I think about it hard enough, I may be able to conjure up two or three names. But pop 'icons', actors/actresses (or other 'entertainers'), media 'celebrities', 'news' commentators, talk show hosts and politicians for the most part, have difficulty enough formulating a coherent sentence let alone expressing any thought, sentiment or observation about a topic that would be of even the most remote interest to ME. . . So having said THAT, I begin my first blog. Yes, the thoughts, sentiments, observations, incoherent (and hopefully a few coherent) sentences and fleeting thoughts of MINE for all to see! . . What the $*&#k was I thinking???? . . . "

Working
©1998 Raymond M. Jozwiak

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Monday, December 4, 2017

Obstruction. . .

(https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/feinstein-senate-russia-probe-building-obstruction-case-against-trump-n826031)
". . . A Senate investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 presidential election has revealed a possible obstruction of justice case against President Donald Trump, Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein said on "Meet The Press" Sunday. . . "The [Senate] Judiciary Committee has an investigation going as well and it involves obstruction of justice and I think what we're beginning to see is the putting together of a case of obstruction of justice,” Feinstein, the panel's top Democrat, said. . .“I think we see this in the indictments, the four indictments, and pleas that have just taken place and some of the comments that are being made," Feinstein added, referencing the indictments of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his associate Rick Gates, who face charges that include conspiracy and money laundering that were uncovered during Special Counsel Bob Mueller's investigation into potential links between Trump and Russia. . . "

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Sunday, December 3, 2017

Intelligence . . .

(from https://www.webmd.com/brain/news/20121218/iq-test-really-measure-intelligence#1)
". . . A new study of more than 100,000 participants suggests that there may be at least three distinct components of intelligence. So you could not give a single, unified score for all of them. . . Researchers' understanding of the complexities of the human brain has evolved, and so too has the notion of IQ, what it really means, and how it is most accurately captured. . . It is time to move on to using a more comprehensive set of tests that can measure separate scores for each type of intelligence. . . there are at least three components that affect overall performance on tests. These include short-term memory, reasoning, and verbal recall. . . Lifestyle factors count, too. For example, gamers -- or people who play a lot of computer games -- score higher on tests of reasoning and short-term memory. Smokers do poorly on tests assessing short-term memory and vocabulary, while test takers who have anxiety don't do as well on short-term memory tests, the study shows. . . IQ is a massive oversimplification of the spectrum of human cognitive ability. . . "

. . . But now for a completely different kind of intelligence . . .

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Saturday, December 2, 2017

Average . . .

(from https://www.usnews.com/opinion/economic-intelligence/articles/2017-11-10/2017-gop-tax-reform-bill-ignores-lessons-of-ronald-reagans-1986-bill By Claudine Schneider)
". . . This Isn't Reagan's Tax Reform . . . I know this firsthand because I voted to do just that when I was a member of the House of Representatives in 1986, the last time Congress passed major tax reform legislation. But my fellow Republicans don't seem to have learned the lessons of President Ronald Reagan's reform efforts. The 1986 reform rested on a bipartisan deal to lower tax rates in exchange for closing loopholes and exemptions. Revenue neutrality was at the core of the deal, and the reform was meant to be broadly distribution neutral as well, meaning that everyone would benefit, not just the richest. The main driver for our bill was clearly to increase the efficiency of our tax system – something no one can argue against – and not to score partisan points. . . In the 30 years since bipartisan tax reform last passed, the global economy has gone through dramatic changes. Technology and trade have made it easier to move goods, ideas and capital across the globe and to locate them wherever the tax laws are most lax or beneficial. Emerging economies have lifted millions of people out of poverty and reshaped the global political order. And policy decisions driven by an increasingly narrow set of powerful interests have driven economic inequality to dangerous heights leaving us with a world where only eight men own as much wealth as half of humanity, according to Oxfam. . . Indeed, adjusting our tax code to fit the times is necessary. But the bill introduced in the House of Representatives with President Donald Trump's support is not good for the average citizen or for our country. . ."

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Friday, December 1, 2017

Since . . .

. . . Don't believe we SAW you there . . .

. . . thought we would give you some (more) highlights from the OHO Music Show at Millstone Cellars (Monkton, MD) in November . . .

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Thursday, November 30, 2017

Let's . . .

. . . File A Joint Tax Return . . .

(from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/first-read/trump-populist-not-when-it-comes-his-tax-plan-n824851)
THEN
". . . it will no longer be accurate to describe him (Trump) as an economic populist who pursues policies to benefit the poor and the middle class at the expense of the wealthiest Americans. The reason: The Senate tax plan he’s selling is the exact opposite of economic populism. . . During the 2016 presidential campaign — and even in his first year as president — Trump portrayed himself as an economic populist. . . Do you believe in raising taxes on the wealthy? TRUMP: "I do, I do, including myself. I do." (Today Show town hall, April 21, 2016). . . “The thing I'm going to do is make sure the middle class gets good tax breaks. Because they have been absolutely shunned.” . . .(“Meet the Press,” May 8, 2016) . . . “I have joined the political arena so that the powerful can no longer beat up on people who cannot defend themselves” (GOP convention speech, July 21, 2016) . . . “We are transferring power from Washington DC and giving it back to you, the American People ... The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.” (Inaugural address, Jan. 20, 2017) . . . “I have wealthy friends that say to me I don’t mind paying more tax. . . " (Wall Street Journal interview, July 25, 2017) . . “Our framework includes our explicit commitment that tax reform will protect low-income and middle-income households, not the wealthy and well-connected. They can call me all they want. It’s not going to help. I’m doing the right thing, and it’s not good for me. Believe me.” (Speech on the GOP tax plan, Sept. 27, 2017). . ."

NOW
". . . Under the Senate tax plan, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the poorest Americans are worse off (due to no longer receiving tax credits because the bill eliminates the health-care law’s individual mandate), while the richest American are better off; . . . Even if you exclude the individual mandate from the analysis, the CBO showsthe poorest will see their taxes go up by 2027, because the individual tax cuts are temporary while the corporate ones are permanent. . ."

Let's File A Joint Tax Return
©2018 Raymond M. Jozwiak

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Wednesday, November 29, 2017

More Taxes . . .

(from https://www.snopes.com/tax-plan-graduate-students/)
CLAIM
The Republican tax reform plan would increase the tax burden on graduate students by counting waived tuition as personal income.

WHAT'S TRUE
The House of Representatives' 16 November 2017 version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act would tax graduate tuition waivers, and has passed the House.

WHAT'S FALSE
As of 20 November 2017, the Senate version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act keeps the current exemption from taxation on graduate tuition waivers.

WHAT'S UNDETERMINED
Whether the final version of the tax bill, if passed, will include an end to the exemption of tuition waivers from taxation.

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