From: Michael Lorrey (retroman@tpk.net)
Date: Sat Apr 19 1997 - 10:30:04 MDT
ard wrote:
>
> A couple of weeks ago, we had the opportunity to thumb through a weekly
> American magazine called TIME, perhaps you have heard of it. It is filled
> with short, shallow articles on a variety of topics.
Yes, it is however a good measure of what pap is popular with the
public, and what sort of disinformation they are being fed by the
establishmentia.
One article was about
> encryption for computers which would make it too expensive for the State to
> break. This was tied in with E-Money being the new world currency.
> Scenario: With encryption on our PC we have secrecy concerning our
> financial affairs if we use E-Money. The spread of E-Money will break the
> STATE/BANKS and their monopoly on the money supply. It will also cause the
> collapse of governments because of the vastly increased underground economy
> which cannot be taxed.
> The author seemed to be unaware that the STATE could very easily tax
> something that cannot be hidden, such as real estate, which they do
> already. So the STATE might be thwarted in attacking production and merely
> take its share of the "action" via the spot where our home or business is
> located. The BANKS would lose their nice marriage to the STATE and would
> have to compete on the open market. With property tax, people get one tax
> bill, no forms to fill out, just a bill marked "Pay this amount....."
> Renters pay with greatly increased rent. Businesses use property
> efficiently. Land speculation goes bust. Property values drop. The only
> way out of paying taxes is to have your home or business off of STATE
> controlled real estate. (although the effect of taxes, reflected in the
> higher cost of goods and services, would still be experienced).
Being a resident of a State (New Hampshire) which derives roughly 2/3 of
its tax revenues from property taxes, I think I can comment on this with
some authority (we also have no income or sales tax, though there is a
rooms and meals tax, a professional services tax, cigarette taxes, as
well as state lottery and state control of liquor sales). If I
illustrate my own situation at the moment I think you can uderstand the
economic impacts.
I accept temporary design, CAD, webauthoring, and desktop publishing
jobs, and average between $10-15 per hour, though 1/3 of my time is free
between jobs. I'm paying about 10% of my income to uncle sam in income
taxes, plus about 15% in everything else (SS, WC, etc..) Business is
starting to pick up as this area begins to become more computerized.
I live in Lebanon, NH, a city of 12,000 on the Conneticutt river, with
immediately to the north, Hanover, NH, home of Dartmouth College. The
area has a total of 45,000 people in mostly rural surroundings. We are
one hour from Concord NH, and two from the Massachusetts border. We
currently have very low unemployment, estimated at around 2.5% or less.
There are three pages plus of help wanted ads in the paper.
Rent on a one room apartment varies through the area, but here in
Lebanon, rent typically is between $400-600 per month. Electricity costs
are $0.10 per kWh with comparably high heating oil and propane costs
(natural gas is not available). Property taxes are around $4,000 on a
$110,000 house annually. This $110,000 house I am using is in an upper
middle class neighborhood, has 2,200 square feet and is on a 3/4 acre
lot on top of a hill with a great view. The house has a septic system
rather than sewage, has a paved driveway with a 2 car garage, 2
bathrooms and four bedrooms.
THere are towns with much lower property tax rates, but about the only
thing to do in those areas is spiking deer out of season and incest with
your sisters.
Culturally, there is little to do, except for what is available at
Dartmouth, though the local opera house has regular musical
performances, and the small six plex theatre at the local mall. Being on
the NH/VT border, Lebanon has a huge amount of shopping centers (VT has
an 8% sales tax) and retail space ranges from $10-20 per square foot.
The intersection of Interstates 89 and 91 right across the river help
funnel Vermont and Quebecois shoppers to our area.
As for government, NH has the largest legislative body in the world, so
with a state population of just over 1,000,000 representatives still
have a close relationship with their constituents, (I know at least one
of mine personally) and they only get paid $400 per year plus gas money
to do their jobs, and are only in session for I beleive two months of
the year. The state tax burden, when measured as a percentage of income,
is second lowest only to Alaska, I beleive, and we used to be first in
the country. Its around 2.5-3.0% of income.
We also have the lowest expenditures per student on education in the
country, yet consistently score in the top 5% of states on SAT tests (we
were once first for several years running, when our expenditures were at
their lowest rate).
As for the cost of living, I would say that a single person needs to
make at least $8.50 an hour just to tread water around here. My little
brother makes $15 an hour on average delivering pizza and is supporting
his family of three and slowly getting ahead.
> That, my friends, suggests Cities, Floating on the Sea and in the Air.
> Private Cities, which provide (no roads of course...who would need them?)
> the structure for living, playing, working. Cities, which compete by
> giving better service for less. Cities, which provide the space for
> automated hydroponic farms. Cities, freed from the STATE. Cities,
> providing all the variety or sameness one wishes. (Although EXTROS,
> midgets, and animal trainers would probably not find a City just for
> them.....perhaps a neighborhood..........a BIG neighborhood, mind you...)
> :-)
Yes, when political power resides mainly in local bodies, the locality
will be a direct reflection on those who weild power locally. Hanover, a
white collar/intelligentsia/alumni town is quite progressive, while its
bedroom hamlets of Etna and Lyme are extreme NIMBY practitioners of the
rich and hermit celebrity sort.
Lebanon is more average, with a normal level of buddy buddy corruption
in city gov't, with a cultural impasse between natives and Taxachusetts
carpetbaggers.
> Well, we can just let our imagination run rampant with orgasmic joy at the
> changes to be wrought by the creation of a tool for war. (The Internet, of
> course.) It looks like it is going to eat its MAKER. My, my...the times
> they are a changin...
>
> ard
With all due respect ard, please do not quote the entire digest in one
message.....
--
TANSTAAFL!!!
Michael Lorrey
------------------------------------------------------------
mailto:retroman@tpk.net Inventor of the Lorrey Drive
Agent Lorrey@ThePentagon.com
Silo_1013@ThePentagon.com http://www.tpk.net/~retroman/
Mikey's Animatronic Factory
My Own Nuclear Espionage Agency (MONEA)
MIKEYMAS(tm): The New Internet Holiday
Transhumans of New Hampshire (>HNH)
------------------------------------------------------------
#!/usr/local/bin/perl-0777---export-a-crypto-system-sig-RC4-3-lines-PERL
@k=unpack('C*',pack('H*',shift));for(@t=@s=0..255){$y=($k[$_%@k]+$s[$x=$_
]+$y)%256;&S}$x=$y=0;for(unpack('C*',<>)){$x++;$y=($s[$x%=256]+$y)%256;
&S;print pack(C,$_^=$s[($s[$x]+$s[$y])%256])}sub S{@s[$x,$y]=@s[$y,$x]}
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