Airport security: A Paradigm Shift

Airport security has been beefed up considerably since the “shoe bomber” in 2001 and the “underwear bomber” in 2009. Most recently, metal detectors have been replaced by full body x-ray machines.  Manual inspections are often required that extend to touching of the buttocks and genitalia.  Many Americans think that TSA has gone too far.  Serious charges are being made that in the name of security, the government has legalized sexual assault at our airports.  Reputable scientists worry that the small risk of cancer from repeated x-rays may exceed the risks from the terrorists from whom we are trying to protect ourselves.  A protest movement has started on-line and in the press.   Our Congressman and women, always at the forefront of change, are determining how best to take advantage of this new populist revolution.  Osama Bin Laden is laughing his head off in a cave somewhere, as America liberties are reduced in the name of freedom from terrorism.

America, we can do better.  Let’s put on our thinking caps.  We can use this security threat to completely overhaul our airport security systems.  We could put hard working Americans to work and make airport security fun.  Here’s what I propose:

(1) We hire qualified masseuses and masseurs to do airport security checks. They will be trained both to detect dangerous materials and to make passengers relax during physical inspections of intimate body parts.

(2)  We allow customers to choose during online check-in what type of masseuse or masseur he/she would prefer.  For example, many men would prefer that women conduct the physical inspections of their intimate body parts rather than someone who looks or acts like Attila the Hun.  Some women may prefer that men conduct the examinations.  Arrangements could be made for masseuses and masseurs based on sexual preference. Sweet grandmothers could be hired to inspect children.

(3) TSA staff, now mostly masseuses and masseurs, would be paid and promoted based on feedback from customers.  Evaluation forms would be available after each inspection. The best TSA staff would become famous with nicknames such as “Sensual Suzy” and “Erotic Eddy” replacing the insulting names now used such as “Senior TSA groper.”

(4) Over a short period of months, dangerous x-ray machines will be placed aside to allow more space for the much preferred personal physical examination by tender TSA agents.  The job satisfaction of TSA agents will soar.  On the economic side, Americans will want to fly again and tourists will flock to our country to experience America’s new security system. 

America is famous worldwide for unrestrained gratification.  Let’s use this quality to make the nation safer AND happier. Write to your Congressman or woman today and urge these changes to our airport security.

Increasing Inequality: We Must do More for Wealthy Americans

I read an article by Nicholas Kristoff recently that said that the wealthiest 1% of Americans earn nearly 24% of the income in the United States.  Mr. Kristoff compared the U.S. to the “banana republics” of South America, such as Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Guyana, where kleptocrats and others have ruined the economies.  He further states that from 1980 to 2005, more than 80% of the increase in American incomes went to the richest 1%.

This is deeply troubling.  How can America be a truly great country if our wealthy are being compared merely to the richest people in troubled South American countries?  Has our nation, the nation of the Carnegies, Rockefellers, and Vanderbilts, really fallen this far?

We must do more for the wealthy in our country.  The debate before Congress about extending the Bush era tax cuts for the wealthy is absurd.  We must do away completely with income taxes for the richest 1% of Americans immediately. But this is not enough.  I propose the following immediate steps:

·        1. Implement mandatory increases in CEO pay until it is at least 1000 times higher, on average, than that of the lowest paid workers.  Right now, the poor CEOs are getting only about 550 times more, a miserly rate of pay for the truly wealthy.

·        2. Eliminate all capital gains taxes for the wealthiest 1%.  These dedicated Americans are driving our economy and their wealth must be protected.

·        3. Eliminate permanently all inheritance taxes.

·        4. Initiate supplemental government payments to companies managed by the wealthiest Americans to increase the competitiveness of these businesses in the troubled global economic environment in which they operate.

·        5. Develop a few elite government-funded schools for wealthy children so they can get an early start on managing wealth.  It is not as easy as it looks.  One spoiled child can ruin a family empire.

·       6.  As a last resort, we should initiate welfare payments to our wealthiest Americans to be sure that they remain on top of the global wealth standings.

America’s great reputation is at risk if we don’t move quickly.  A failure to act will ensure that the richest people in China, India, and Mexico will earn more than our own wealthy.  We cannot stand idly by while our country is put to shame by others.

Another Corruption-free Election in the United States

Let’s give credit where credit is due.  The United States has just completed another election without any major hiccups.  Despite the disagreements we have, we executed this election without major charges of vote buying, threats, cheating by ballot counters, etc.  The voice of the American people has been heard and the government will have to become smaller, more efficient, with less taxes, and more benefits for all.  It’s a tall order, but this is why we send new Congressmen/women to Washington every two years.

As an American, I feel proud to know that one doesn’t see the name of our country associated with a corrupt electoral process.  Nobody was beaten bloody and only one woman had her head stepped on during campaign events.   This is a far cry from the problems in many countries where armed thugs inhibit the democratic process, ballots are stolen, and voters are paid off.

Certainly there are some pundits who will claim that allowing anonymous contributors to donate millions of dollars to elect candidates who will support their business and professional interests is not completely consistent with true democratic values.  Some decry the role of lobbyists who spend millions of dollars to help enact or inhibit legislation consistent with their beliefs and financial interests. Others criticize the role of the media for presenting opinion while labeling it news.  

These might be considered serious matters in some countries. But the United States knows well how to avoid charges of corruption associated with elections and the legislative process. We are a model for the world.

Through the good faith efforts of our Congress and the Supreme Court, we have developed an innovative process to address corruption in our elections and legislative processes - we have legalized it!  Surely, the world has much to learn from our democratic form of government. No, you won’t see the good name of the USA sullied about in mud.

Saving America: Reducing the Threat of Illegal Immigrants

Although the economy has been the number one issue in this 2010 election season, the problem of illegal immigrants has been lurking closely behind.  Many people say that these illegals are taking jobs away from Americans, thus contributing to our economic woes.  There is a gas station near my house where immigrants hang out and look for work.  On a couple of occasions, I hired people from this location to help with yard work that I couldn’t do on my own.  I didn’t ask if they were illegal or not, but I suspect that they were.  I’ve learned several clues to detecting illegal immigrants that I believe would be useful for screening purposes:

·        (1) Illegal immigrants are regularly willing to hang out at a gas station or other location beginning as early as 6:00 am, even in freezing weather with snow or ice on the ground, hoping to find work for a day.

·        (2)  Illegal immigrants work much harder than I do, and much harder than anyone else I’ve ever hired.  They will do back-breaking work without complaining.

·        (3) Illegal immigrants will do anything to make a buck, including nasty yard and house work, caring for our babies and the elderly, and work on chicken farms. 

 

·        (4)  Illegal immigrants will accept lower pay than any of their licensed and bonded competitors. (Some employers have been known to pay less than minimum wage, knowing that they can get away with it because the workers are illegal.)

Clearly, these attributes of illegal immigrants are dangerous and represent a threat to the American economy. If we want to simplify the process of weeding out those illegals representing the greatest threat to America, we should immediately take the following two steps:

1. Implement a screening test of immigrants based on the criteria above.

2. Any illegal immigrants found who are willing to work hard at jobs we don’t want to do, for next to nothing, should be deported as the first priority.

Only by deporting these dangerous, hard-working immigrants can we protect the American dream.

Reducing the Deficit: Raise Taxes on the Poor

I have been following with interest the current debate on letting the tax cuts expire.  President Obama has encouraged new legislation that would allow the tax cuts to continue for only the middle class while resuming the old higher tax rates for families making more than $250,000.   The Republicans and some Democrats in Congress would prefer to continue the lower tax rates for everyone, including the very wealthy.  They argue that we should not raise taxes during the severe economic downturn that the country is enduring.

The same conservatives also argue that the budget deficit is much too high and should be lowered immediately.  They propose that we cut national spending.  However, they do not want to cut defense, medicare, social security, or payments on the national debt.  Nor are they prepared to stop pork barrel spending in their own districts or states.  A reasonable person might get the sense that their position is an untenable one.

Don’t despair.  A practical solution is at hand.  We must increase taxes on the poor immediately to save the country from economic disaster.  I propose an immediate tax of 35% on welfare payments, food stamps, Section 8 subsidized housing, and Medicaid benefits.  My plan has several advantages:

1. There are far more poor people than very rich people, so that the tax increases will be spread among a larger number of people, thus avoiding penalizing the comparatively small number of rich people.

2. It is more equitable to raise tax rates on poor people to the same rate that rich people pay.  After all, they are receiving benefits funded by the taxes of the more well-to-do.

3. The lobbyists and interests groups for the poor are far less powerful than the lobbyists for the wealthy.  As a practical matter, it would be much easier to raise taxes on the poor than on the rich.

The economic health of our great nation is at stake.  Hopefully, the new Congress will quickly implement this practical solution to our economic woes.

Reducing the Deficit: Selling Congressional Seats

A recent report in the New York Times stated that spending on 2010 Congressional campaigns was now up to more than $2 billion, a huge increase from the last mid-term election in 2006.  Some experts attribute this to the Supreme Court decision relaxing spending and reporting requirements on political advertising.  Apparently, hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent by private citizens and companies, with the majority of funds going to support the Republican Party and its causes.

Billions of dollars may seem like a lot of money but it’s not really – only about $4.2 million per seat - considering that some 472 House and Senate seats are up for grabs.  In fact, I would argue that the public would be better served if our government auctioned off each seat and used all of the proceeds to reduce the national deficit. In fact, seats in areas of key interests to lobbyists, such as New York City, could be sold for as much as $50 - $100 million per seat.

There are several advantages to this proposal.  First, money that is now being paid to campaign managers, marketing companies, television stations etc., could be paid to lower the national deficit instead.  Second, the public wouldn't have to listen to all the campaign trash on TV and radio.  Third, it would ensure that all Congressmen and women make a contribution to our government as part of the election process.  Clearly, they haven’t been contributing enough after election.