Random Nuclear Strikes

NPR will be laying off 7% of its employees because of a budget shortfall.

While commend them for not just going back to mommy and asking for more funds, do we really NEED NPR for anything?

We’ve got over a half a dozen other alphabet stations singing the Democratic talking points on the hour every hour, why do we need one more brand infatuated with He Who Shall Not Be Middle Named (unless it is He at His inauguration)?

Here is the story as published at the HuffPo, which is where we get our QotD.

In our city, the NPR local news “partner” is our corporate owned newspaper! So much for independent media.

janeinmia – 12/10/08 @ 1155PM

Since when is something that is government financed “independent”?

Isn’t that like calling the USMC “independent”?

Head up ass.

Full speed ahead (in an electric car)

The price of a gallon of regular gasoline, which peaked at over $4 last summer, is now about $1.75. This means that today’s drivers are enjoying the equivalent of 1980 prices, according to the Energy Information Administration. Meanwhile, the average per-gallon tax on gasoline is about 40 cents, including state levies. The federal portion of that has held steady at 18.4 cents since 1993; thus, in real terms, consumers have gotten a significant gas tax cut over the past 15 years. This tax should have been indexed to inflation long ago.

Congress should enact a steep, inflation-indexed hike in gas taxes, one big enough to alter consumer incentives and habits permanently. This would take back some of the de facto economic stimulus consumers have received from the recent drop in gas prices, and it would be a hard sell politically.

Washington Post Editorial Department – 12/08/08

Because that is exactly what we need right now; to slow down the economy more.