Property rights

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04/15/09: Tax-free Internet shopping may be at an end by Declan McCullagh

If a little-known but influential alliance of state politicians, large retailers, and tax collectors have their way, the days of tax-free Internet shopping may be nearly over. A bill expected to be introduced in the U.S. Congress as early as Monday would rewrite the ground rules for mail order and Internet sales by eliminating what its supporters view as a "loophole" that, in many cases, allows Americans to shop over the Internet without paying sales taxes. "We will have the bill ready for introduction by next Monday," said Neal Osten of the National Conference of State Legislatures. "We finalized the language and now we're working out the remaining issues and adding some new provisions at the request of various stakeholders." "One of the big things the states have learned in the recession is they have declining revenues," said Scott Peterson, executive director of the Streamlined Sales Tax Project, which counts state politicians and tax collectors on its governing board. "We're very optimistic about Congress this year. We think we are within a day or two of finalizing the legislation." "The states are desperate for new revenue and I think they realize they're straying far from the simplification they originally promised," said Steve DelBianco, executive director of NetChoice, which counts as members AOL, eBay, NewsCorp, Oracle, Verisign, and Yahoo. "That creates an urgency on their part--to get the federal mandate before it becomes clear they have no intention to simplify." "They have no real intention of simplifying or compensating sellers for the burdens of collecting," DelBianco said. "It's a shell game." news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10220649-38.html

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01/07/10: Are Rednecks the Unsung Heroes of Ecosystem Management? by Francis E. Putz

Where fires are frequent and deer are scarce, densities of full-sized, American-made pickups are high, a substantial proportion of adult males lack formal employment, and per capita tofu consumption is below detectable levels. A composite independent variable that captures the essence of these relationships is the local density of what are referred to in American vernacular as "rednecks." As incendiarists and hunters, the oft-disparaged rednecks play vital but seldom recognized roles as environmental stewards, roles that are currently being only partially filled by officialdom. Human population densities, fence laws, house prices, and zoning regulations may be too high to allow rednecks the freedom to continue their traditions of burning and hunting, but this historically important group of ecosystem managers should not be entirely shunned. ...I would like to acknowledge them for literally "taking up the torch" of the indigenous people whom they replaced in many parts of the world. And although I do not condone destructive or anti-social activities, I hope that rednecks are recognized for the ecosystem management services that they have traditionally supplied, even if they were having fun in the process... www.wsca.ca/index.php?Page=228.0&Key=770  100107-are Rednecks Unsung Heroes Of Ecosystem Mgmt

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Links

Taking Liberty: How private property is being abolished in America

Taking Liberty is a comprehensive look at the lower 48 states showing, region by region, how the Environmental Movement is rapidly abolishing Private Property in America. From the Introduction: Only 6% of America's land mass is currently developed. Only 3% of America is classified as urban. Yet 77% of all Americans live in these urban areas. The rest is largely untouched by humans. Click on the link below to explore the Web site. www.takingliberty.us/TLHome.html

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Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners

Stewards of the environment protecting private property rights in West Puget Sound. www.kapo.org

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Citizens' Alliance for Property Rights

Citizens' Alliance for Property Rights was organized in 2003 as a non-partisan political action committee where individual citizens and existing organizations can work together defending property rights. www.proprights.org/

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Bainbridge Citizens United

Commonsense environmental regulations and accountable government. www.bainbridge.cc/index.htm

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Wildfire

How a Forest Stopped a Fire in Its Tracks by James Gorman, New York Times

Where the fire came through Blacks Mountain Experimental Forest last September, the ground is ash and the trees are charcoal. Black and gray are the colors, lightened only by small mounds of red dust at the base of some of the charred trunks - the leavings of bark beetles - and flecks of green where new growth pokes above the ash. Through the tall, ravaged columns, however, a living pine forest is visible. And as visitors inspecting the fire damage walk toward the living forest, they come to an abrupt transition. When the Cone Fire swept through these woods it came to a patch of forest that was different from the rest, and stopped dead, like a mime at an invisible wall. What stopped the fire was an experimental plot that had been selectively logged to thin it, and had been burned in controlled fashion. The result was an open forest, much the way it might have been 500 years ago when regular forest fires swept through the high dry country and no one tried to stop them... 030721-how A Forest Stopped Fire In Its Tracks

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Five ways to prepare your property for the wildfire season

The state fire marshal's office suggests these tips to prepare your home and property for the upcoming wildfire season: • Clear the leaves from your yard, gutters and roof and cut tall grasses to help eliminate fuel for fire. • Cut dead branches from trees and prune limbs to a height of 6 to 10 feet above the ground to help prevent trees from catching fire. Also remove branches that hang over your house or other buildings. • Trim bushes and shrubs regularly. • Clear most landscaping and trees from within 30 feet of buildings to provide "defensible space" where firefighters can operate should a wildfire approach your home. Keep this safety zone well-irrigated. • If you own a generator, make sure it is in good repair. Several Internet sites offer information on wildfire forecasts, fire danger in your county and ways to safeguard your home from wildland fire. www2.wadnr.gov/burn-risk/: Shows wildfire danger levels in Washington's 39 counties and links to the state Department of Natural Resources wildfire resources site. firewise.org/: Includes information on how to clear brush and trees from your home in the woods to reduce chances it will be consumed by wildfire. Other advice on preventing wildland fires. www.or.blm.gov/nwcc/: Northwest clearinghouse for wildfire forecasts and official statistics. www.tribnet.com/news/story/5073592p-5001203c.html

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Thinning public forests best way to protect them (6/20/2003) by Patrick Moore

Greenpeace has just issued a report claiming that it is better to let our forests burn to the ground than to adopt programs that will reduce catastrophic wildfire. As an ecologist, I can tell you that this approach ultimately leads to soil destruction, air and water pollution, and wildfires that can kill every living thing in our forests -- all in the name of "saving the forests." 63.220.14.48/scandalsheet/030620.asp  030620-thinning Public Forests To Protect Them

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