Two Handsome Guys



I bet I know who the Boston Golfer, Scott DeSano, is voting for.

The Book Club

Almost finished with Michael Barone's new book, Hard America, Soft America, Competition vs. Coddling and the Battle for the Nation's Future.



I really love Michael Barone. He's smart and so very interesting. One of my favorite books is The New Americans. I love the fact that on TV he's not a blowhard. I love that he writes about obscure ideas.

The 1978 tax law lowered the maximum capital gains tax rate to 25 percent---a change which did much to invigorate financial markets in the 1980s. But invigorating them even more, at least in the long run, was another provision of the law which attracted little attention, Section 401(k). At the time most workers relied for retirement income on Social Security, personal savings, and defined benefit pensions from their employers---pensions which tied them to one employer for at least 10 years and which obliged the employers to set aside huge funds for future paments, funds which were usually invested conservatively. In the years after passage of 401(k), many employers, to the surpise of experts, started switching from defined benefit plans to 401(k)s and other defined contribution pension plans, in which employers made one-time contributions to investment accounts contolled by individual employees. Internal Revenue Service regulations in the 1980s encouraged many employers to switch to defined contribution plans, and they were accepted by employees. These plans seemed more attractive aftr the highly visible failure of a few large defined benefit plans, including the LTV steel pension fund and the United Mine Workers' hospital fund. By 19898, the number of people covered by defined contribution plans had risen to 50 million, from 19 million in 1980, the number of people covered by defined benefits pensions had fallen to 23 million, from 30 million in 1980.

The result was the infusion of vast sums into the financial markets in a way that helped change them in a force Hardening the private-sector economy. Individuals were now accountable for their own retirement funds, and in investing 401(k) money they could be less conservative and more venturesome than trustees of corporate pension funds. They could put their money into mutual funds whose managers' careers depended on achieving good rates of return. The growth of 401(k)s nurtured in increasing numbers an investor frame of mind, which appears to have motivated many more people to invest in the financial markets. Political pollsters noted that in 1992 only about 20 percent of voters were investors, while in 2002 about 60 percent were.

Reading this made me think of my old friend Ed Zschau, who was instrumental in getting the capital gains tax reduction law passed. Legend had it that he wrote a song, The Capital Gains Tax Blues and wandered the halls of Washington singing the blues.

Zschau can do it if anybody can. After all, he's already built one successful company, System Industries Inc., which he founded in 1968 and grew to $60 million. Along the way, he emerged as a star of the American Electronics Association, leading the fight to reduce the capital-gains tax in 1978. That role helped propel him to a congressional seat in 1982. Four years later, he won the Republican nomination for the Senate in a tough primary and came within 104,000 votes of defeating Cranston.

That made me think of the Zschau campaign in 1986. Again Ed had a song.

Zchau Campaign Song (to a tune he made up)

This is the year, hip, hip, hooray for our Ed
He's our hero, cutting deficits to zero.
He'll teach Californians how, to say and spell Zschau.
A Prof, a businessman, a Dad is he,
Born and Bred in High Technology
And in Washington, he's working so we
Can have peace and prosperity.

Thank you all for everything you've done
Come November when we say we won
We'll have done it in a way that is fun
Good night and God Bless everyone.



P.S. Ed Zschau played rugby at Princeton. I don't think he ever played against George W. Bush because he's a little older.

Sunday Surfing

I was looking for some mindless entertainment and ran across CSPAN, replaying the Dick Cavett - John Kerry Show. How devastating to John Kerry to have people watch this show.

Shocking

John Kerry thought that the assassination of a few thousand of our South Vietnamese allies would be a small price to pay to get our troops home.

MR. KERRY: //I realize that there would be certain political assassinations, and that might take place. And I think when you balance that against the fact that the United States has now accounted for some 18,600 people through its own Phoenix program, which is a program of assassination, and when you balance that off against the morality of the kind of bombing we've been doing in Laos and the kind of destruction wholesale of the country of Vietnam, which amounts to some 155,000 civilians a year killed, then I think to talk about four or five thousand people is lunacy in terms of the overall argument and what we're seeking in Southeast Asia.

35 years later, he thinks that he will be more successful with Iraq, because he will be able to get cooperation from our allies. Maybe the allies will never realize that he would abandon them in a snap if they became inconvenient.

The show is going to replay again tonight in about an hour.

Olympics

I know it's considered passe, but how can you help but love Michael Phelps



and his mom

Debbie Phelps had no problem agreeing to the intense training regimen that Bowman proposed when her son was 11. She is personally conservative, someone who says she believes that a child with free time will tend to find bad things to fill it with. Even now, whenever it is suggested to her that Michael may have ''missed'' something, she reacts incredulously. ''Like what?'' she said to me at one point. ''Like he missed some of the things that teenagers get into in this country? I don't feel bad about that. There was always a balance. He went to basketball games. He went to football games. He had friends. He was a normal kid. But he always came home early and got his sleep and went to practice the next day.''

Stamp Your Feet

Courtesy of my friend the Window Manager, I've got my own postage stamp



Did you know that you can contact Avery Creative Postage Labels and they will combine your photos with a U.S. Postage Service stamp into a custom self-adhesive postage label that is ready for your envelope. And you can use it to mail a love letter or a check you've written to support George W. Bush for President.

Way cool.

If You're Happy

If you're happy and you know it, Clap your hands. Clap-clap
If you're happy And you know it, Clap your hands. Clap-clap
If you're happy and you know it, Then you really ought to show it,
If you're happy and you know it, Clap your hands. Clap-clap

For the following verses, repeat the first verse but substitute new words and actions.

If you're happy and you know it
Stamp your feet. stamp-stamp


If you're happy and you know it
Shout AMEN! Amen

If you're happy and you know it
Do all three Clap-clap, stamp-stamp, Amen

and I'd like to add another verse

If you're happy and you know it
Write A Check! Don't Wait

The day President Bush accepts the Republican Party nomination, he has to stop accepting campaign contributions. So write a check Now!

Corrupt Lefties

Jim McGreevey
Gavin Newsome
Mark Rich
Sandy Berger
James Traficant
Ted Kennedy
Jim Wright
Benjamin Vanderford
Gray Davis
Jesse Jackson
Kevin Shelley
Robert Torricelli


Who would you add to the list?

Ruggers

I've been getting lots of hits today for George Bush Rugby or George Bush Rugby Yale. Can't figure out exactly why. Is it because a former Scottish Rugby player who is a lifelong friend of President Bush struck oil last week in India?

Update: Oops, guess I missed the big news story in La Times yesterday. Apparently, the author is shocked to report that there was rough play going on. It's Rugby, for goodness sake.

The Mod further elaborates that he's watched lots of rugby, but it sure doesn't sound like it. It doesn't look that rough to me. He never saw Mark Bass and Mark Deaton of the Old Blues or Kevin Golden of the San Jose Seahawks play. Or watched on the side when the team doctor of the San Jose Seahawks, Doc O'Meara (who happened to be an OB/GYN) fixed the broken nose of Maurice McCabe with a little tug.

The Pirate, a fine athlete formerly of Loyola Marymount has the explanation and the rules. And Qando explains the laws of momentum to some goofy lefties who don't know much about sports. Plus, John Cole and his gang have a few things to say.




P.S. Can't believe the Old Blues, who won a million National Championships, don't have a web site. Their junior team, Cal's Golden Bears, are financed by Dean Witter personally.

Let Your Fingers Do the Walking

I think Elliot's trying to take my job.

The Book Club

You have got to read this book!



Hugh Hewitt is brilliant, and his book, If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat, is a fabulous read. Interesting, great pacing, good info. I bought, read and completed it in 24 hours, stealing time in every meeting I attended last week. At the convention, I kept getting up in my meetings to do book reports and tell people, You've got to read this book!"

Party Report

Just back from the California Republican Party State Convention in San Diego. Good Times had by all. The Manchester Hyatt (which by the way is owned by a Republican who is very supportive of the party) is beautiful. Visit and support the cause.

The highlight was this morning's presentation. On the dais, 25 veterans - 4 Medal of Honor winners, a Vice Admiral who spent 6 years as a POW in Viet Nam, a Swift Boat veteran, 4 or 5 vets who served recently in Iraq and Afghanistan, Men (and one woman) from all the branches, all eras, various ranks. One was the oldest living Medal of Honor winner, honored for his service at Pearl Harbor, another a SEAL who made me feel like if the hotel was attacked we'd be very safe. When I unpack, I'll try and get the names posted and some photos.