Pumping iron à la Ahnuld is the latest fad in Baghdad:
In a city of few diversions and long cut off from the outside world, the boom in health clubs represents another sign that Iraq is slowly emerging from decades of dictatorship and war.
At least 300 gyms and fitness centers are believed to be operating in Baghdad, compared with about 30 before the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, according to people who work in the industry.
Of course, you take take things too far.
Today, his desperate tax-and-spend ballot measures are expected to all go down in flames at the polls. Tea Party activists of all political stripes have lambasted the deceptive initiatives. The intellectually and financially bankrupt state GOP is in full meltdown, having poured $650,000 into Schwarzenegger’s coffers to promote the phony spending cap measure before the state party waffled, then turned around and voted to oppose it and the other tax hikes.
Fundamentally, the Golden State is both broke and broken. The state has a $42 billion dollar budget gap between revenues and obligations that its political class is unable close, legislative restraints mandating two-thirds majorities in the state house to pass budgets and raise taxes, a “good idea” direct democracy system of propositions that has gone wildly off-track and a solidly gerrymandered state house with virtually no prospect for change.
This in a state of amazing natural resources, a buoyant tourism industry that brings unearned income from practically everywhere, and a state tax burden that has been in the top quintile since 1994. The problem, it seems obvious, can not be taxation, but rather spending and a hostile business climate that encourages our most productive citizens to flee to parts elsewhere while encouraging a partially off-setting importation of a dependency class.
So, yeah, Baghdad? Go easy on that Cullivornia thing.
Good advice for the rest of you, too.
It is really sad the state of affairs in California, but this did not happen overnight. Lex, you are absolutely correct that thre rest of us need to heed the warning for the political class in D.C. appears to be running the country toward the same cliff California is falling from.
My wife desperately wants to return to her native North County, but I just cannot bring myself to seek billets at North Island until either all of this gets resolved or San Diego becomes an independent city state!
Billboard seen a while back.
“Don’t Californicate Idaho.”
Darn shame.
Heh, we’ll see about that! We’ll become as adept as Cubans in keeping old cars alive. Already, I have plans for chopping and chanelling my current V-hickle, adding twin turbos, some pearlescent paint…….
We’ll see how concerned the idiotarian electorate is with the results of today’s elections. Wanna bet all three measures pass?
The first creature comfort the Army puts on a FOB is a fitness center, and working out is pretty much the only stress relief/hobby on the ground. I wonder if some of this is flattery by imitation.
These days California is a good place to be from. It really has become the Land of fruits, flakes and nuts!
But it’s not just the taxes, unfriendly business atmosphere etc that bothers me. The fact that it is going to be a national situation bothers me.
The biggest thing that bothers me is that the NRC is due to go the way of the California GOP. Not that I am a strong Repub., but, as Calif. is basically one party rule, so will the nation.
That’s REALLY scary……
Favorite bumper sticker seen in Texas a few years back on a ubiquitous Ford F-150 (complete with Gun Rack of course):
“Get the US out of Texas”
Seems a little less radical now days even if offered with tongue firmly implanted in cheek.
The tragic thing is that, no matter what evidence is offered by California and other places example that you can’t tax your way to prosperity, our political class from both parties seem intent on seeing more spending, more government programs, and more dictates (meaning less freedom and liberty) as all they have to offer by way of “solutions” to the problems that ail us.
Reagan had it right: “more government isn’t the solution to the problem, it is the problem…”
But we the people don’t want to take our medicine and insist in swallowing the wrong-headed notion that there is a free lunch that someone else is magically going to pay for.
California is just the canary in the mine – Congressman Frank is already talking about how the rest of us must save California from itself. Why is this not surprising?
The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article on this problem, and why taxing the rich isn’t going to solve it.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124260067214828295.html
Tax them too much, they leave. And they take those dollars they’d normally spend that would ripple through the local economy and keep others employed.
Which, makes sense. Money is mobile. So are the people who earn it.
– Max
Max — that concept is lost on people that have never had to compete for a customer’s dollar. They have no idea of the portability of talent, or money. They believe in static fiscal analysis (paging Mr. Flit). If tax rate X produces Y dollars, then 2X will produce 2Y dollars. Except that people make choices, and screw that one to the wall. And our permanent political class is left scratching their heads over why it happened.
And why I moved a bunch of money into STSMX.
OldT6Flyer, Max, Scott/
Just like Clinton and most other Donkey politicians, Obama is a man who has never had to meet a payroll in the real world and worships at the utopian alter of socialism (at best) to boot. Watch for increased currency controls to prevent the flow of money overseas and moves in Congress to prevent corporations from doing the same. EVERY SINGLE “progressive” policy proposed by left-wing governments eventually ends up as a totalitarian attempt to make the facts ( i.e., the people) fit the theory.
OT, but we’ve just had another after-shock out here in LA.@ approx 350 local
Virgil, I find I am in complete agreement.
Which probably explains the latest earthquake.
What the meat-heads cannot understand is that there are very simple methods to get around these things, and people are using them.
I live in South Dakota now. I’ve lived in other states, made a lot more money, but do better here without the income taxes eating at it. I telecommute to avoid the state taxes. I do work for others and take work or inventory in trade rather than maintain a balance sheet.
No money changes hands, there’s no value placed on the work, there’s nothing to track.
It would normally amaze me that our Congress could not figure this out.
Then they installed a tax cheat at Treasury and removed all doubt from my mind.
– Max
Even the earth is protesting the government’s handling of the state….
OldT6/
It was a 4.1 same place, near LAX, @Hawthorne.
re: Baghdad gyms. IIRC, the last place Nicholas Berg was seen alive was a Baghdad gym.
For what it’s worth.
California… a good exampe of what NOT to do…