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This page includes posts from
March 11-24, 2007 in the usual reverse
order.
Each posting on the home page is perma-linked to these archive pages.
March 21, 2007 Cathy Seipp died today, after a long fight with lung cancer. In her honor, I'm adding the American Lung Association to the group of charities on this site's home page for which I seek donations. Her wonderful blog site will also remain on the blogroll here for as long as someone keeps it going.
March 21, 2007 One benefit to having writers such as Christopher Hitchens around is that he provides a handy shortcut for the rest of us, especially in matters of foreign policy and security. Instead of doing all the research necessary to make the same points, I can simply point in his direction and ask folks to read him instead. So go, already, and read his March 19 piece about why entering into the Iraq phase of the Islamofascist conflict was correct, even in hindsight. What he said, especially this part:
Ditto.
March 21, 2007 Celia Cohen is a sharp-witted, long-time reporter on the Delaware political scene, who posts much of her best material at Delaware Grapevine. My computer screen is not often at risk for a spewing incident, but Cohen came close to causing the latest one with her post about the changing Republican leadership in the state House of Representatives, thanks to the recent resignation of majority leader Wayne Smith for a new job as a lobbyist for the state's health care industry:
For those who know what she's talking about, that's funny right there. For those who don't, Cohen's post provides a pithy explanation. She also astutely notes how the downstate Republicans can't be all too pleased with the new arrangement. That will be well worth watching carefully as the rest of the legislative session runs toward June, especially in light of the less than cheerful revenue projections just issued by DEFAC.
March 18, 2007 To put it in polite terms, our dog is a mixed breed. He appears to be exactly half border collie and half sheltie, as you can see to some extent in this picture. He has the border collie coloring, the sheltie size and nose, and the typically pleasant disposition common to both.
What we didn't realize is that as a dog of blended heritage, he's also deeply receptive to a wide variety of prepared treats--especially if they weren't originally prepared with him in mind. For example, my wife is exactly half Irish and half Italian. We've known for several years that the dog loves Christmas time, when my bride and her mother make a huge batch of pizzelle cookies. He comes running at the first whispered suggestion that there's a pizzelle with his name on it, and keeps coming back for more at every opportunity. In honor of this weekend's holiday, my wife baked an authentic Irish soda bread, one of her personal favorites. We sat down last night to watch The Illusionist, and she had a piece of the bread with her. The dog jumped up onto the sofa, grabbed the slice off her lap, leaped back down to the floor, and gobbled it up. Just as the dog boldly walked back toward her for another piece, she realized what he'd done. We had no idea he liked Irish cuisine as much as he likes Italian cooking.
March 18, 2007 This week's golf column is about some of the early signs of spring golf around here.
You might like it. My wife gave me a really wonderful Valentine's Day gift this year. It is a copy of Calvin Trillin's moving tribute to his wife, who died of cardiac arrest on September 11, 2001. The after-effects of a long complicated fight with lung cancer damaged her circulatory system, and she finally succumbed. Based on that description, you might not consider About Alice to be a great gift choice for this particular holiday. Nonetheless, if you've ever been lucky enough to be in a long-term marriage or relationship, you will deeply appreciate this little book.
March 18, 2007 Good luck to the Lady Hornets of Delaware State University and the Lady Blue Hens of the University of Delaware as they both compete in today's first round action at this year's NCAA Basketball Tournament!
March 17, 2007 It's that time of year again, when the Internal Revenue Service tries to convince us not to screw around with our tax returns. I don't really fault the effort, as there are far too many folks about who apply, shall we say, a form of game theory to paying their income taxes. This year's attempt to convince folks to be more honest about their obligations was boosted by new legislation. Congress authorized the IRS to impose enhanced penalty assessments on those who rely on frivolous legal arguments to evade paying taxes.
Notice 2007-30 lists about 40 of the common dodges that
will trigger the higher penalties. Some of my personal favorites are these: Compliance with the internal revenue laws is voluntary or
optional. A taxpayer’s income is excluded from taxation when the
taxpayer rejects or renounces United States citizenship because the taxpayer is
a citizen exclusively of a State (sometimes characterized as a
“natural-born citizen” of a “sovereign state”), that is claimed to be a separate country
or otherwise not subject to the laws of the United States. Income taxation, tax withholding, or the assessment or
collection of tax is a “taking” of property without due process of law or just
compensation in violation of the Fifth Amendment. Mandatory or compelled compliance with the internal revenue
laws is a form of involuntary servitude prohibited by the Thirteenth
Amendment. Federal courts may not enforce the internal revenue laws
because their jurisdiction is limited to admiralty or maritime cases or
issues. A ”reparations” tax credit exists, including arguments that
African-American taxpayers may claim a tax credit on their Federal income tax
returns as reparations for slavery or other historical mistreatment,
that Native Americans are entitled to an analogous credit (or are exempt from
Federal income tax on the basis of a treaty). Good luck to the IRS on this new initiative. Some of us pay
an awful lot of income taxes, and it really rankles when you learn how many
of your fellow citizens boldly refuse to do the same without any legitimate
basis to support their bogus claims.
March 17, 2007 A nephew of mine is a volunteer firefighter, and I have several other friends and acquaintances whom also serve their communities in the same way. Two Sussex County volunteer fire companies recently went a bit beyond the expected boundaries of public service in their efforts to save lives and property from the ravages of flame. Imagine, for example, what it must feel like to hurry along in a fire engine with your fellow volunteers, responding to the incident that occurred earlier this week in Frankford, Delaware:
According to the News-Journal, the fire’s origin was an unfortunate coming together of just the right blend of ingredients:
In other words, Fuel + Oxygen + Heat = Boom. I’ll bet all that burning chicken manure smelled great, too.
March 14, 2007 A little bit more than a week ago, we had what I hope is the last snowstorm of the season. Compared to northern climes, our snowfalls are barely worth noticing, but they have their visual compensations nonetheless:
This view looks south at the southern tip of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk. I assume the two tracks are someone's idea of sweeping the wooden planks.
The beach itself always looks great when there's a mix of snow and sand against the blue background. Even so, I'm happy to be able to hit the practice range on the way home, for the first time in several months.
March 13, 2007 For just over a year now, the Sneaking Suspicions home page has given prominent top-right space for the Rehoboth Beach Film Society's Art House Theater. The fact that I'm on the board of directors is just a coincidence, because I'd be flogging this movie opportunity in any event. The Theater is part of the year-round programming the Society brings to the Cape Region, and an increasingly popular cultural attraction. It's also nice to see that the benefits of the Art House Theater's presence is now being noticed by the local media.
March 13, 2007 Work and other stuff have taken precedence over blogging here the last week or so. Among other diversions, for example, I just finished reading Peter Wood's A Bee in the Mouth: Anger in America Now. I highly recommend it for most folks, but it's not for everybody. The professionally angry might not appreciate an accurate portrayal of their approach to politics, music, family relations, or other elements of our culture. On the other hand, those who are deeply, deeply tired of TV shoutfests, internet flamewars, and the preening air of those believe that outrage trumps reasoned argument every time should find some comfort here. |
Contact Information: Fritz Schranck fschranck-at-sneakingsuspicions.com
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Official small print disclaimer: This is, after all, a personal web site. Any opinions or comments I express here are my own, and don't necessarily reflect the official position of my work as a government attorney or any of my clients. That fact may become obvious later on, but it needs to be said here anyway. © Frederick H. Schranck 2002-2007 |
