Fiat 500 Could Be Coming To America By 2010

From: AutoBlog

By John Neff on Apr 24th 2007 at 2:28PM

The new Fiat 500 is one hot little Italian hatchback that is highly anticipated.

And why would I be pimping this historic badge and particular auto? Because it will come in an "Abarth" version, that's why, a mini-hot rod with phenominal gas mileage as well as huge performance.

The revived 500 will go on sale earlier than expected in July, and the automaker expects its little hatch to be sold out through 2008. Yesterday, Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne revealed that the 500 may be sold in the U.S. by 2010, stating "sooner or later it is a possibililty."

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Oregon House Bill HB 2015: The LNG Public Protection Act

The LNG Public Protection ActMoving forward!

The LNG Public Protection Act was formally introduced yesterday.

The bill number is HB 2015. This is the number you should refer to when asking you legislators to support the bill.

Chief sponsors of the bill are Rep. Riley and Sen. Prozanski.

Co-sponsors include: Rep. Bailey, Rep. Barker, Rep. Barnhart, Rep. Buckley, Rep. Boone, Rep. Dembrow, Rep. Greenlick, Rep. Harker, Rep. Shields, Rep. Tomei, Rep. Weidner, Sen. Rosenbaum and Sen. Walker.

Please thank the co-sponsors, especially if they are from your district.

Please contact your Rep and Senator and ask them to support the bill.

Next steps: The bill will go to committee and there will be a public hearing on the bill during the next month or so.


What the bill does: HB 2015 is a common sense bill that says that we should not give away state land and water rights unless there is a need for LNG in Oregon.

Specifically, the bill states:
Prior to issuing state water rights, removal/fill permits or granting state land leases for LNG terminals and LNG-related pipelines, the Oregon Department of Energy is required to conduct a needs assessment to determine whether there is a significant need in Oregon for LNG that cannot be filled by North American sources of natural gas.


The price of natural gas derived from LNG will not exceed the price of natural gas from North American sources the operation of the LNG terminal is consistent with Oregon’s strategies to address climate change.

The bill also requires that LNG terminals and related pipelines have no adverse impact to beneficial uses including but not limited to fishing, recreation, agriculture and wildlife.

DEQ would apply this stronger standard protection in their permitting process for pollution discharge permits and water quality certification.

For more info: Brett VandenHeuvel, Executive Director, Columbia Riverkeeper
724 Oak Street, Hood River, OR 97103

phone: 503-348-2436, fax: 541-387-3029

bv@columbiariverkeeper.org

Oklahoma Senator Coburn's List Of Pork In The Obama Stimulus Bill

Club for Growth

Keeping in mind the presumption that "The Stimulus" is supposed to be an emergency measure to save our poor asses from the doom perpetrated on us by whomever: Do the items on this list below perpetuate a resolution to this emergency or just drive us deeper into danger?

February 4, 2009

Stimulus Garbage and Pork

Sen. Coburn is doing a great job highlighting a lot of the nonsense in the so-called stimulus bill.
His office published this list, titled "Wasteful and Non-Stimulus Spending Provisions;"

"The List!!

What Will That Extra $13.00 A Week Buy You?

13 Things Obama's $13 Stimulus Will Buy You
February 19, 2009 02:15 PM ET
By Paul Bedard & Nikki Schwab - Washington Whispers
It's one of the most heralded benefits of the $787 billion stimulus bill: Taxpayers will get about an extra $13 a week in their paychecks starting this spring. So, with spring break and the summer tourism season coming, we did a little snooping around Washington to see just how you can spend that cash.

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How Your Clatsop County Tax Dollar Is Spent

How Your Tax Dollar is Spent

Although you write your property tax check to Clatsop County, only some of the money goes to the county.

The county collects the taxes and then distributes the money to 66 taxing districts.

For each $1 paid by the average Clatsop County taxpayer:
* 48.3 cents goes to school districts, including Clatsop Community College
* 22.3cents goes to the cities, including urban renewal districts
* 14.7 cents goes to recreation, transportation, water and other districts
* 2.6 cents goes to rural fire protection districts
Just 12.1 cents of each average tax dollar goes to the county government.
Of that 12.1 cents:
* 4.6 cents helps fund public safety and justice programs, such as sheriff's patrols, the jail, district attorney's office and juvenile department;
* 2.2 cents goes toward public service programs such as assessment and taxation, elections and records, surveyor, land-use planning and development, animal control, parks and some public health programs;
* 2 cents goes to miscellaneous services as data systems services, finance, building maintenance and veterans services;
* 1.5 cents is set aside as contingency for unforeseen expenses or revenue shortfalls;
* 0.9 cent goes for administration such as county administration, human resources, legal counsel and board of commissioners;
* 0.9 cent goes for the fair grounds special levy approved by the voters for enchanced operations and facility improvements.
Property taxes provide about one-third of the county's funding for public services. The rest comes from state and federal funds, fees for service, timber, carryover from the previous year's budget and other sources.

KOIN News: Money To Heat Your Home Available

Last Update: 3/03 10:48 pm

The Federal stimulus package is providing homeowners with incentives to upgrade heating and cooling systems for basically half off the original price.......

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From Fred Van Horn: Dear IRS

Actual 'Letter to the Editor' from the February 5th edition of the Wichita Falls, Texas Times Record News...


Dear IRS,

I am sorry to inform you that I will not be able to pay taxes owed April 15, but all is not lost.

I have paid these taxes: accounts receivable tax, building permit tax, CDL tax, cigarette tax, corporate income tax, dog licence tax, federal income tax, unemployment tax, gasoline tax, hunting licence tax, fishing licence tax, waterfowl stamp tax, inheritance tax, inventory tax, liquor tax, luxury tax, medicare tax, city, school and county property tax (up
33 percent last 4 years), real estate tax, social security tax, road usage tax, toll road tax, state and city sales tax, recreational vehicle tax, state franchise tax, state unemployment tax, telephone federal excise tax, telephone federal state and local surcharge tax, telephone minimum usage surcharge tax, telephone state and local tax, utility tax, vehicle licence registration tax, capitol gains tax, lease severance tax, oil and gas assessment tax, Colorado property tax, Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico sales tax, and many more that I can't recall but I have run out of space and money.

When you do not receive my check April 15, just know that it is an honest mistake. Please treat me the same way you treated Congressmen Charles Rangle, Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and ex-Congressman Tom Dashelle and, of course, your boss Timothy Geithner. No penalties and no interest.

P.S. I will make at least a partial payment as soon as I get my stimulus check.

Ed Barnett

Wichita Falls

AP: States Urged To Improve Probation, Parole Programs

States urged to improve probation, parole programs
By DAVID CRARY – 1 hour ago

NEW YORK (AP) — The number of offenders on parole and probation across the United States has surged past 5 million, complicating the challenges for fiscally ailing states as they try to curb corrections costs without jeopardizing public safety, according to a new report.....


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City of Ashland Defines Affordable Housing

And "You" cannot afford it unless you make about $115,000.00 a year so, what is the answer?

The median income for a family in Clatsop County was/is about $44,575.


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Flathead Beacon:Could Land Trusts Be Part Of The Answer?

Jackson County Receives HUD Funding