A violation of my own rules, but this is the best news that i have heard all year. . .

Originally posted on the Onion News.

Follow this link to find the original article:

http://www.theonion.com/articles/us-government-to-save-billions-by-cutting-wasteful,17171/

U.S. Government To Save Billions By Cutting Wasteful Senator Program
March 30, 2010 ISSUE 46•13
Nearly all of the U.S. senatorial positions were categorized as inefficient redundancies.

WASHINGTON—In an effort to reduce wasteful spending and eliminate non-vital federal services, the U.S. government announced plans this week to cut its long-standing senator program, a move it says will help save more than $300 billion each year.
According to officials, the decision to cut the national legislative body was reached during a budget review meeting on Tuesday. After hours of deliberation, it was agreed that the cost of financing U.S. senators far outweighed the benefits they provided.
"Now more than ever, we must eliminate needless spending wherever possible," President Obama said at a press conference Wednesday. "When we sat down to go over our annual budget, we asked ourselves, where can we safely trim back? What programs can we do away with without negatively impacting the American people? Which bloated and ineffective institutions can we no longer justify having around?"
"The answer was obvious," Obama added. "The U.S. Senate just needed to go."
Established in 1789 as a means of overseeing the passage of bills into law, the once-promising senator program has reportedly failed to contribute to the governing of the nation in any significant way since 1964. Last year alone, approximately $450 billion was funneled into the legislative chamber, an amount deemed fiscally unsound considering how few citizens actually benefit in any way from its existence.

In fact, the program has gone unchecked for so long that many in Washington are now unable to recall what purpose U.S. senators were originally meant to serve.
"I'm sure when it was first introduced the U.S. Senate seemed like a worthwhile public service that would aid vast segments of the population and play an important role in the years to come," said Sheila McKenzie, president of the watchdog group the American Center for Responsible Government. "But in reality, this program has been a complete and utter failure."
"It simply doesn't work," she added. "We've been pouring taxpayer dollars into this outdated relic for far too long."
An analysis conducted last week revealed a number of troubling flaws within the long-running, heavily subsidized program, including a lack of consistent oversight, no clear objectives or goals, the persistent hiring of unqualified and selfishly motivated individuals, and a 100 percent redundancy rate among its employees.
Moreover, the study found that the U.S. government already funds a fully operational legislative body that appears to do the exact same job as the Senate, but which also provides a fair and proportional representation of the nation's citizens and has rules in place to prevent one individual from holding the operations of the entire chamber hostage until he is guaranteed massive federal spending projects for his home state of Alabama.
Not only have U.S. Senators cost the country billions of dollars in misspent funds over the years, but Washington insiders claim they have also derailed a wide range of other government programs, from social welfare to job creation to environmental protection.
"Even just the space the Senate currently occupies could be put to better use," consumer advocate Michael Dodgerson said. "Were the government to open a day-care center, a homeless shelter, or even an affordable restaurant in that building, it would make more of a difference in the lives of everyday Americans than what's there now."
So far, reaction to the cutback has been overwhelming positive, with many across the country calling it a long-awaited step toward progress.
Still, a small pocket of the nation's populace vehemently disagreed with Tuesday's decision.
"This is outrageous," said Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut-area resident and concerned citizen who makes more than $150,000 a year, enjoys full health care benefits, and lives comfortably in a large, non-foreclosed home. "The U.S. Senate has always looked out for my best interests. It's always done right by me."
Added Lieberman, "Without it, I'll have no choice but to exploit my extensive connections in the real estate, legal, insurance, and pharmaceutical industries to obtain strictly honorary positions at large companies that, in exchange for my subservience over the years and the prestige of my name, will compensate me generously and allow me to continue living a privileged life without contributing even a moment of my time to the society that has made it all possible."


- Thank you Onion for this article!! Maybe a true fix to the economy ;-P

A coupla days late

So i promised myself that i would try to only visit my home computer on Fridays to do blogs and other such things but so far i have failed. It's now Tuesday night of the following week and i am just getting to it.
This has been an exciting week. We had an accidental lamb. . . . meaning that we didn't know that the ewe (Dyna) was pregnant. It was the greatest surprise of the week. It happened on Saturday morning, when i am usually not at work. This particular weekend i happened to be at the farm with some freshmen from Bates college who were working off some service project hours. Needless to say, the service project was put on hold. . .

In other news. . . we are back in Boston getting ready for surgery. Many thanks to Sally and Jane, we are crashing their pad again so that we don't have to drive to Boston at the crack of dawn.

Stand by for a focused Friday post. . .

So on and so forth

This warm weather has me a little nervous. This has been the trend the last two years, both of which led into a very cold and wet summer. The snow is long gone. In fact i am looking very forward to tilling the garden tomorrow.

Amy is home. She is healing very well, and we are looking into surgery number two in order to finish what couldn't be in the last surgery. It will be nice for Amy to be able to fully function this summer. We would love to go out and do things, but we don't want to over work her knee or make her feel left out. . .

Duck eggs have already starting appearing. Last year our three ducks produced eleven offspring. This year we have five ducks. . . eeeeeeek! No eggs from the turkeys yet, but the chickens are producing well. i have resolved that we are going to have or two evil roosters butchered as soon as the nice butcher man opens up. The kids have been having a lot of trouble with the roosters. Especially James, who is largely responsible for the birds. i fear that in my inability to deal with kids being afraid of something silly like a chicken, that i have ruined chicken rearing for James.

It all came clear this weekend. Stu, Mike B. and i went to a retreat with the Sisters of Mercy to learn more about Catherine McCauley. It was insightful, inspiring and much needed.

Since Amy's surgery i have had no quiet time, no still time. The retreat was exactly what i needed to refocus. Catherine's whole life was about love. Where have i failed in my love?

It is a question that will require some pondering in the future. For now i will start with James. . . and the chickens.

Tomorrow (today now) we are going to spend the morning with our neighbors fellowship. It is a Baptist gathering, the tradition that i grew up in, so i am already very skeptical. Why waste the day that could be used for working?

Hopefully the time with family will be worth it and God will speak to us all. It would be good to have us all moving toward being on the same page again. . .

Spring. . .or is it

The last few weeks have been such a tease. . . potentially. There is virtually no snow around, the temperatures have been up and the sun has taken center stage in the sky.
The trolls have been outside a lot. The neighborhood has a whole new feel to it these last few months. We went from a couple of kids to a whole mess of them. The street is alive with giggling, running, and chaos.

Amy is recuperating well. She is getting around better and has even managed around the house without her crutch. What a difference the house has been with her out of the loop. The first couple of surgeries weren't too bad, but back then it was just Amy, James and i. Add two more and the work load increases disproportionately. This whole process has helped me to appreciate Amy more. It has also helped me to appreciate single parents (and i know a few). Holding down two jobs (to make up for Amy's not working), doing all of the house work and tending to three kids would end me if i had to do it for any length of time. . . i love my wife.

Planting in our yard starts soon. Well, just as soon as the lakes disappear. Even with no snow we have more than enough precipitation in the form of rain. Even as i am typing the news is commenting on "dry" conditions everywhere in the state except southern Maine. This is the time of year for it and i would rather have it now than all summer.

Happy day before Saint Patty's Day!!