Dr. Tom Witt and his colleagues at WVU have issued an excellent (and sobering) report on the State Road Fund. While you may have already read comments by Dr. Witt and Transportation Secretary Fred VanKirk about the report, I believe that there is one paragraph that you need to read for yourself. It appears in the accompanying text box.
"In comparing the West Virginia highway system in 1984 with that of the present highway system, several characteristics have remained unchanged. These include ranking first in the percentage of highways under state jurisdiction, last in vehicle miles driven per capita and per licensed driver, and first in total highway miles per capita. One characteristic that has changed is the reliance on annual appropriations from the state General Revenue Fund. In 1982, West Virginia was ranked first of the fifty states in the percentage of annual appropriations from the General Revenue Fund. At present, the West Virginia State Road Fund receives no appropriations from the General Revenue Fund; the last annual appropriation from the General Revenue Fund occurred in 1983."
Future of West Virginia’s Highway System, p.5; Drs. Tom S. Witt, Patrick C. Mann, Mehmet S. Tosun; 2004
The state put the Road Fund on cruise control in 1984 when it was decided that only dedicated user taxes would have to carry the highway budget. It should be obvious that when you rank first in highway miles per capita and last in vehicle miles driven per capita that a user fee revenue system will not keep pace with expenditures.
A second flaw in cruise control budgeting is that WV Code §11-14-5(3) exempts the state’s biggest fleet of vehicles, school buses, from paying motor fuel taxes. Big yellow school buses may not damage the roads the way coal trucks do, but buses wear out roads just the same as medium-weight trucks do. Perhaps even more, since we heavily salt bus routes in wintertime.
And the third flaw is our elected political class. They have found a lot of new uses for gasoline taxes other than repairing roads. The Courtesy Patrol and regional offices of the Department of Motor Vehicles have siphoned millions from the Road Fund. On a positive note, patronage jobs were created.
The elected political leaders will soon likely suggest to you that Road Fund user taxes need to be hiked. You will probably hear, "One more nickel per gallon is not much to pay for good roads!" Please, don’t believe this come on. Throw your nickels in a wishing well if you want, but don’t throw them at Charleston.
Once again: You cannot address the Road Fund’s insufficiency of user taxes by increasing those same user taxes when you are first in road mileage and last in usage. Even if you raise taxes, higher taxes will further reduce driving and fuel consumption. A tax cut, on the other hand, would likely improve the Road Fund. And any tax cut would most assuredly benefit the general retail economy. Follow the nickels.
According to the WVU report, "A comparison of West Virginia highway financing with that of surrounding states as well as Delaware and North Carolina shows that West Virginia had the highest per capita highway user tax revenue among these states in FY 2000." West Virginia’s regressive tax code already punishes working people. Do we dare nickel and dime them into 50th place?
There was a time when the legislature and governor understood that user taxes alone could not balance the highway budget. The solution was a transfer from General Revenue. The General Revenue transfer addressed the fact that school bus fuel is exempt from tax. The General Revenue transfer also took into account two other important points. First, contractors, material suppliers, vendors, and their employees who are paid by the Road Fund pay business and income taxes which go into the General Fund. This is a bigger drain on the Road Fund than you’d ever imagine. And second, most jurisdictions around the nation earmark a portion of real estate taxes for the maintenance of county or township roads. The transfer tried to address the fact that, in our state, property taxes do not support local roads.
General Revenue Fund transfers did not make for a perfect system of funding the highway budget. But one thing they did do was to cause the legislature and governor to examine and prioritize annual spending. Once the highway budget went on cruise control, however, the #1 priority eventually became the Budget Digest.
The other side of the highway budget has to do with costs. In this space last May, I reported that a flag person was paid $30.01 per hour on highway projects. The flag person pay rate has since risen to $30.51 and won’t stop there. If paying a flag person more money than a nurse earns doesn’t convince you that changes are needed, then there is no use discussing highway cost issues any further.
Addressing the problems outlined in "Future of West Virginia’s Highway System" will require decisive cost cutting as well as General Revenue Fund transfers. The decisions will not be politically popular. They never were, of course, and that’s how we ended up on cruise control in 1984.
Friday, January 21, 2005
Friday, December 3, 2004
Could A Whisper Campaign Improve Our Image?
First came the Hollywood expedition that hoped to trap "Beverly Hillbillies" in their native habitat. Then came the Abercrombie & Fitch safari that mocked us with their incest jokes. Our leaders were shocked that the civilized world perceived us this way. So shocked, that they decided to spend millions on an ad campaign to improve our image.
A committee of tribal elders summoned mumbo-jumbo shamans from all across the territory. Four of the five who came failed to make it through the gauntlet run. As demanded by tradition, the survivor won the ad contract. But later on, the elders had a change of heart and she was boiled in the soup kettle. Now we must wait for the new king to take the throne before we can beat the drums.
During this regal interlude, I thought I would just go ahead and lay out the best marketing plan for West Virginia. This way, King Joe won’t have to waste time next year by making mumbo-jumbo gumbo from scratch.
I call my plan "The Whisper Campaign."
Simply put, West Virginia does not have Niagara Falls. We have Blackwater Falls. Both waterfalls are awe-inspiring, but in completely different ways. Standing before Blackwater Falls in late summer, when just a trickle of water splashes across its craggy face, is a religious experience.
To market Niagara Falls, you’d want to capture the deafening roar of the waterfall. To market Blackwater Falls, you have to capture its near-silence in the dry season. Blackwater Falls might just be quietest waterfall in the world and it is certainly a secret place to most people. Whispers, I think, convey the Blackwater’s message.
Here’s the pitch.
Scene: A family loads up in their SUV. Camping and fishing gear are prominent as is the camping trailer. Off they go. Across the street, their neighbor asks his wife, "Where are they going?" The wife cups her hand and whispers in his ear. We can’t hear a word she says but the subtitle at the bottom of the screen reads, "They’re going to West Virginia."
Scene: The CEO of Toyota boards his corporate jet. Off to the side are two ground control guys with red flashlights. One asks the other, "Where’s he going?" The jet’s engines fire up so you can’t hear the other man’s reply. The subtitle reads, "He’s going to West Virginia."
Scene: The Super Bowl. St. Louis wins. Marc Bulger doesn’t walk off the field yelling, "I’m going to Disney World!" No, he walks off the field and one of those floating "I’m thinking" balloons reads, "I’m going to West Virginia!"
The message is that West Virginia is a secret. Indeed, a well-kept secret. Whispers emphasize these "state secrets." The ads also have to convey the sublime message that these secrets are worth discovering. And this leads to the second phase of the promotion.
Scene: A climber dangles by a rope on the face of Seneca Rocks. His whisper (subtitle) reads, "I’m glad I discovered West Virginia!"
Scene: A patriotic parade, perhaps on Independence Day. A little boy waves his flag and his whisper reads, "I’m glad I was born in West Virginia!"
Scene: A young woman in her home office types at her computer. The camera pans away from her and to the window. We see that she lives on a small farm in the country. The camera pans back to the computer monitor just as this IM pops up: it must be nice working in wv :-)
Well, what do you think? Will the Whisper Campaign work?
In the past, the state has produced some good tourism ads. Then it got cheap. Rather than pay out-of-state media to run the ads, and thus actually attract visitors, the state hammered local media to run the tourism ads as part of their public service commitment. If West Virginia intends to change its image, then the state better spend the money to do it right. The current plan to spend a few million dollars probably won’t turn enough heads to make it worthwhile.
Given the mindset of committees and bureaucrats, we’ll probably end up with inane signs carrying moronic slogans. "Certified Business Location" highway signs are a good example of this mentality. If that’s all they can come up with, then we might as well have road signs that read, "Emergency Toilet Paper Dispenser-1 Mile Ahead." At least the Canadians will appreciate us twice yearly.
Personally, I hope my Whisper Campaign is a success. It might keep me out of hot water for awhile.
A committee of tribal elders summoned mumbo-jumbo shamans from all across the territory. Four of the five who came failed to make it through the gauntlet run. As demanded by tradition, the survivor won the ad contract. But later on, the elders had a change of heart and she was boiled in the soup kettle. Now we must wait for the new king to take the throne before we can beat the drums.
During this regal interlude, I thought I would just go ahead and lay out the best marketing plan for West Virginia. This way, King Joe won’t have to waste time next year by making mumbo-jumbo gumbo from scratch.
I call my plan "The Whisper Campaign."
Simply put, West Virginia does not have Niagara Falls. We have Blackwater Falls. Both waterfalls are awe-inspiring, but in completely different ways. Standing before Blackwater Falls in late summer, when just a trickle of water splashes across its craggy face, is a religious experience.
To market Niagara Falls, you’d want to capture the deafening roar of the waterfall. To market Blackwater Falls, you have to capture its near-silence in the dry season. Blackwater Falls might just be quietest waterfall in the world and it is certainly a secret place to most people. Whispers, I think, convey the Blackwater’s message.
Here’s the pitch.
Scene: A family loads up in their SUV. Camping and fishing gear are prominent as is the camping trailer. Off they go. Across the street, their neighbor asks his wife, "Where are they going?" The wife cups her hand and whispers in his ear. We can’t hear a word she says but the subtitle at the bottom of the screen reads, "They’re going to West Virginia."
Scene: The CEO of Toyota boards his corporate jet. Off to the side are two ground control guys with red flashlights. One asks the other, "Where’s he going?" The jet’s engines fire up so you can’t hear the other man’s reply. The subtitle reads, "He’s going to West Virginia."
Scene: The Super Bowl. St. Louis wins. Marc Bulger doesn’t walk off the field yelling, "I’m going to Disney World!" No, he walks off the field and one of those floating "I’m thinking" balloons reads, "I’m going to West Virginia!"
The message is that West Virginia is a secret. Indeed, a well-kept secret. Whispers emphasize these "state secrets." The ads also have to convey the sublime message that these secrets are worth discovering. And this leads to the second phase of the promotion.
Scene: A climber dangles by a rope on the face of Seneca Rocks. His whisper (subtitle) reads, "I’m glad I discovered West Virginia!"
Scene: A patriotic parade, perhaps on Independence Day. A little boy waves his flag and his whisper reads, "I’m glad I was born in West Virginia!"
Scene: A young woman in her home office types at her computer. The camera pans away from her and to the window. We see that she lives on a small farm in the country. The camera pans back to the computer monitor just as this IM pops up: it must be nice working in wv :-)
Well, what do you think? Will the Whisper Campaign work?
In the past, the state has produced some good tourism ads. Then it got cheap. Rather than pay out-of-state media to run the ads, and thus actually attract visitors, the state hammered local media to run the tourism ads as part of their public service commitment. If West Virginia intends to change its image, then the state better spend the money to do it right. The current plan to spend a few million dollars probably won’t turn enough heads to make it worthwhile.
Given the mindset of committees and bureaucrats, we’ll probably end up with inane signs carrying moronic slogans. "Certified Business Location" highway signs are a good example of this mentality. If that’s all they can come up with, then we might as well have road signs that read, "Emergency Toilet Paper Dispenser-1 Mile Ahead." At least the Canadians will appreciate us twice yearly.
Personally, I hope my Whisper Campaign is a success. It might keep me out of hot water for awhile.
Friday, November 12, 2004
The Internet's Role Has Grown in U. S. Politics
The presidential election of 2004 was especially noteworthy because of two events that transpired in cyberspace.
In ordinary times, there is no possible way for the governor of a tiny, out-of-the-way state to mount a credible campaign for the nation’s top office. This is especially true when the state in question is Vermont.
Vermonters have proven just how different they are from other Americans by previously electing a crackpot as their governor and a second, even more-incredible crackpot (Bernie Sanders-I) as their lone representative in Congress. The aforesaid governor who ran as a 2004 presidential candidate is Howard Dean, a creature conjured from Green Mountain sap by the bloggers.
Howard Dean became the darling of left-wing bloggers and that is how his campaign got noticed. It did not take him long to become a known entity in all 50 states. And with his notoriety came a substantial number of campaign contributions. At the beginning of the race, Howard Dean was not only raising millions but he was outpacing all of his competitors. As important, the Internet became his avenue to the grass roots of the nation’s cities and suburbs.
The second Internet event came when Dan Rather announced that he had in his possession actual copies of the Dead Sea Scrolls typewritten in English and verified by handwriting expert Marcel Matley. (I’m sorry; make that George Bush’s service records.) This time, the right-wing bloggers came into play. They quickly realized that Dan’s document expert sounded a little too Vichy. In the space of a few hours, Memogate became the front page story in the blog world. The Drudge Report even put up its flashing light as if to say, "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!"
These two events suggest dramatic changes in future elections. First of all, Howard Dean challenged the hierarchy of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in a frightening way. I am sure that Terry McAuliffe wanted no part of the uncontrollable Vermonter leading the Democratic ticket. When Howard "I have a scream" Dean threw an inevitable tantrum in Iowa, the DNC made sure that its friends in the media covered the outburst in excess.
The second phenomenon has to do with the blogs challenging the franchise of the mainstream media (MSM). Although the campaigns and the 527’s spent record amounts for advertising, the impact of those ads was minimal-just a net of eight electors changed color from 2000. Had Sen. Kerry challenged the Swifties head-on instead of letting them run negative ads for a month, then the Swifties ads would have been nothing more than an annoyance. The blogs were much more effective than the MSM in cultivating partisans.
It is fair to say that CBS News endorsed John Kerry and that Fox News endorsed George Bush. As Memogate developed, CBS and Fox were always a day behind the blogs in the news cycle. The blogs forced the networks to cover this story on a fast track, a position which they were not comfortable with. Then on Election Day, the networks were ever-so-cautious in declaring a state. The blogs again kept the pressure on-they went for the scoop.
The 2008 election will be open to all comers. Obviously, Dick Cheney won’t run. This leaves the door wide open for a complete unknown to capture the New Hampshire primary and still have plenty of cash (and the organization) to campaign in other early primaries. The DNC and RNC will undoubtedly counter this renegade scenario by choosing their leaders early on. Sen. Hillary Clinton and Gov. Jeb Bush might be their respective draft picks. But will the renegades start their own parties if squeezed out by the majors?
Consider what we’ve just seen. That Howard Dean could even mount a national campaign defies the laws of politics. In the span of a few hours, Dan Rather and CBS News were totally humiliated by a blogger with the most unlikely of pen names-LittleGreenFootballs.com. And George Soros spent millions of his own money for ads that produced no favorable results.
Make no mistake about it; the Internet will be the dynamic in 2008. As the grass roots turnout demonstrated this year, the Internet’s impact will only increase four years hence.
In ordinary times, there is no possible way for the governor of a tiny, out-of-the-way state to mount a credible campaign for the nation’s top office. This is especially true when the state in question is Vermont.
Vermonters have proven just how different they are from other Americans by previously electing a crackpot as their governor and a second, even more-incredible crackpot (Bernie Sanders-I) as their lone representative in Congress. The aforesaid governor who ran as a 2004 presidential candidate is Howard Dean, a creature conjured from Green Mountain sap by the bloggers.
Howard Dean became the darling of left-wing bloggers and that is how his campaign got noticed. It did not take him long to become a known entity in all 50 states. And with his notoriety came a substantial number of campaign contributions. At the beginning of the race, Howard Dean was not only raising millions but he was outpacing all of his competitors. As important, the Internet became his avenue to the grass roots of the nation’s cities and suburbs.
The second Internet event came when Dan Rather announced that he had in his possession actual copies of the Dead Sea Scrolls typewritten in English and verified by handwriting expert Marcel Matley. (I’m sorry; make that George Bush’s service records.) This time, the right-wing bloggers came into play. They quickly realized that Dan’s document expert sounded a little too Vichy. In the space of a few hours, Memogate became the front page story in the blog world. The Drudge Report even put up its flashing light as if to say, "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!"
These two events suggest dramatic changes in future elections. First of all, Howard Dean challenged the hierarchy of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in a frightening way. I am sure that Terry McAuliffe wanted no part of the uncontrollable Vermonter leading the Democratic ticket. When Howard "I have a scream" Dean threw an inevitable tantrum in Iowa, the DNC made sure that its friends in the media covered the outburst in excess.
The second phenomenon has to do with the blogs challenging the franchise of the mainstream media (MSM). Although the campaigns and the 527’s spent record amounts for advertising, the impact of those ads was minimal-just a net of eight electors changed color from 2000. Had Sen. Kerry challenged the Swifties head-on instead of letting them run negative ads for a month, then the Swifties ads would have been nothing more than an annoyance. The blogs were much more effective than the MSM in cultivating partisans.
It is fair to say that CBS News endorsed John Kerry and that Fox News endorsed George Bush. As Memogate developed, CBS and Fox were always a day behind the blogs in the news cycle. The blogs forced the networks to cover this story on a fast track, a position which they were not comfortable with. Then on Election Day, the networks were ever-so-cautious in declaring a state. The blogs again kept the pressure on-they went for the scoop.
The 2008 election will be open to all comers. Obviously, Dick Cheney won’t run. This leaves the door wide open for a complete unknown to capture the New Hampshire primary and still have plenty of cash (and the organization) to campaign in other early primaries. The DNC and RNC will undoubtedly counter this renegade scenario by choosing their leaders early on. Sen. Hillary Clinton and Gov. Jeb Bush might be their respective draft picks. But will the renegades start their own parties if squeezed out by the majors?
Consider what we’ve just seen. That Howard Dean could even mount a national campaign defies the laws of politics. In the span of a few hours, Dan Rather and CBS News were totally humiliated by a blogger with the most unlikely of pen names-LittleGreenFootballs.com. And George Soros spent millions of his own money for ads that produced no favorable results.
Make no mistake about it; the Internet will be the dynamic in 2008. As the grass roots turnout demonstrated this year, the Internet’s impact will only increase four years hence.
Friday, October 15, 2004
Marketplace 'Elbows' Can Help Solve Energy Problem
Jay Leno recently displayed the new $50 bill to his "Tonight Show" audience. The fine print next to President Grant’s portrait said, "good for one barrel of oil". Jay got his laughs.
A few days later on October 7th, Robert Samuelson wrote in his Washington Post column that Americans suffer a fantasy about oil. Namely, that we believe we have a birthright to cheap fuel. He goes on in the style of Thomas Malthus and cites a "ground-breaking study" that concludes: "the world already uses about 12 billion more barrels a year than it finds."
I can’t believe he used the term "ground-breaking" to introduce his sky-is-falling, Malthusian conclusion about oil reserves.
Robert Samuelson is a journalist by education and by trade. He gets away with economic commentary in his articles because (I think) there is a genuine confusion among his readership with Paul Samuelson. Paul Samuelson, the Nobel economist, most probably wrote the economics textbook that you studied.
I will agree with one thing that Robert Samuelson wrote: "We need to face these realities; neither George Bush nor John Kerry does. Their energy plans are rival fantasies." In this regard, Paul Samuelson probably agrees because he once said, "Politicians like to tell people what they want to hear – and what they want to hear is what won't happen."
Robert Samuelson believes that our country needs a steep gasoline tax to solve our energy problems. He recommends a tax of $1 to $2 per gallon so that gasoline prices will stay high and radically change driving habits while encouraging a shift to hybrid-powered automobiles.
I do not know Paul Samuelson’s position on such a consumption tax. However, Paul Samuelson believes that David Ricardo’s famed treatise on comparative advantage is the one great truth in economics. Because of comparative advantage, we have a trade deficit in oil. In our favor is the fact that the US dollar is the currency of choice in the world. Because of this fact, Dr. Samuelson argues that we are better off to export the pieces of paper that Jay Leno makes fun of and import real goods-barrels of oil in this case.
But let’s put economic theory aside for a moment. If you paid a $2 tax per gallon of gas to the government, then what would the government spend it on? Does the government drill new oil wells? Does the government explore the subterranean world for pockets of oil? No. More likely, Congress would spend the tax on new highways or expensive subways to nowhere. Boston’s billion-dollar downtown expressway and L.A.’s subway are prime examples of what government spending buys.
On the other hand, if oil supplies tighten and consumers drive the price of gas from the current $2 to $4 per gallon, then ExxonMobil will hire every geologist on the planet. If there’s a pool of oil inside Mount Everest, they’ll find it and the higher price will make it worth extracting.
And amid this $4 gas bonanza, there will emerge a genius who invents a practical photovoltaic cell. Another genius will invent a practical hydrogen fuel cell. And a third genius will discover in the science lab how to genetically modify bacteria to convert organic matter directly into hydrocarbon fuel. If you doubt this, think of the Cuisinart attachment on the DeLorean in "Back to the Future, II."
In the end, David Ricardo’s treatise on comparative economic advantage will decide who makes what, where it’s made, and what it sells for. This was a hard sell back in 1972 when Richard Nixon opened trade with China. But look at how the world has changed. There are now just a handful of small nations that are run by die-hard communists or obtuse socialists. France qualifies as both.
The chances are probably good that we’ll pay $100 for a barrel of oil within the next decade. The changes we face will be painful in the short term. Paul Samuelson said it best: "The problem is no longer that with every pair of hands that comes into the world there comes a hungry stomach. Rather it is that, attached to those hands are sharp elbows."
We cannot now calculate the price at which oil peaks in the next few years. But it will peak and then it will recede. We will do what we always do. We will become more efficient, we will discover more oil, and we will invent alternatives. Provided, of course, we let the "sharp elbows" in the marketplace do their job.
A few days later on October 7th, Robert Samuelson wrote in his Washington Post column that Americans suffer a fantasy about oil. Namely, that we believe we have a birthright to cheap fuel. He goes on in the style of Thomas Malthus and cites a "ground-breaking study" that concludes: "the world already uses about 12 billion more barrels a year than it finds."
I can’t believe he used the term "ground-breaking" to introduce his sky-is-falling, Malthusian conclusion about oil reserves.
Robert Samuelson is a journalist by education and by trade. He gets away with economic commentary in his articles because (I think) there is a genuine confusion among his readership with Paul Samuelson. Paul Samuelson, the Nobel economist, most probably wrote the economics textbook that you studied.
I will agree with one thing that Robert Samuelson wrote: "We need to face these realities; neither George Bush nor John Kerry does. Their energy plans are rival fantasies." In this regard, Paul Samuelson probably agrees because he once said, "Politicians like to tell people what they want to hear – and what they want to hear is what won't happen."
Robert Samuelson believes that our country needs a steep gasoline tax to solve our energy problems. He recommends a tax of $1 to $2 per gallon so that gasoline prices will stay high and radically change driving habits while encouraging a shift to hybrid-powered automobiles.
I do not know Paul Samuelson’s position on such a consumption tax. However, Paul Samuelson believes that David Ricardo’s famed treatise on comparative advantage is the one great truth in economics. Because of comparative advantage, we have a trade deficit in oil. In our favor is the fact that the US dollar is the currency of choice in the world. Because of this fact, Dr. Samuelson argues that we are better off to export the pieces of paper that Jay Leno makes fun of and import real goods-barrels of oil in this case.
But let’s put economic theory aside for a moment. If you paid a $2 tax per gallon of gas to the government, then what would the government spend it on? Does the government drill new oil wells? Does the government explore the subterranean world for pockets of oil? No. More likely, Congress would spend the tax on new highways or expensive subways to nowhere. Boston’s billion-dollar downtown expressway and L.A.’s subway are prime examples of what government spending buys.
On the other hand, if oil supplies tighten and consumers drive the price of gas from the current $2 to $4 per gallon, then ExxonMobil will hire every geologist on the planet. If there’s a pool of oil inside Mount Everest, they’ll find it and the higher price will make it worth extracting.
And amid this $4 gas bonanza, there will emerge a genius who invents a practical photovoltaic cell. Another genius will invent a practical hydrogen fuel cell. And a third genius will discover in the science lab how to genetically modify bacteria to convert organic matter directly into hydrocarbon fuel. If you doubt this, think of the Cuisinart attachment on the DeLorean in "Back to the Future, II."
In the end, David Ricardo’s treatise on comparative economic advantage will decide who makes what, where it’s made, and what it sells for. This was a hard sell back in 1972 when Richard Nixon opened trade with China. But look at how the world has changed. There are now just a handful of small nations that are run by die-hard communists or obtuse socialists. France qualifies as both.
The chances are probably good that we’ll pay $100 for a barrel of oil within the next decade. The changes we face will be painful in the short term. Paul Samuelson said it best: "The problem is no longer that with every pair of hands that comes into the world there comes a hungry stomach. Rather it is that, attached to those hands are sharp elbows."
We cannot now calculate the price at which oil peaks in the next few years. But it will peak and then it will recede. We will do what we always do. We will become more efficient, we will discover more oil, and we will invent alternatives. Provided, of course, we let the "sharp elbows" in the marketplace do their job.
Friday, September 17, 2004
What about Bob? He’ll need a job soon.
Treasurer John Perdue periodically advertises that his office might be holding money that belongs to us. It’s called "unclaimed property." To learn if your money is laying about in a file cabinet in Charleston, all you have to do is send a search request to Mr. Perdue’s staff and they will promptly take a look-see.
I recently did just that, and to my surprise, the Treasurer’s office informed me that they were holding money in my name. They promised a speedy remittance and the check arrived in the mail in timely fashion.
This is the honest to God truth-my windfall amounted to $3.75!
There has to be a cheaper, more efficient way to deliver checks written on the state’s bank account. Postage alone amounted to 30% of my claim. So I have been thinking, and thinking, and thinking. And here’s my recommendation.
Mankind has yet to invent a system as efficient for delivering government checks as our governor, Bob Wise. Give the man credit. The inside breast pocket of his suit coat has held thousands of checks written for all possible amounts and he has meticulously and perfectly dispensed said checks in a glorious fashion to every city, town, and community in the state. His clever prestidigitation once transformed a pocket-sized check into a replica the size of a sheet of plywood which he then presented to lottery winner Jack Whittaker during a live television broadcast. (Despite rumors to the contrary, no trick photography was involved.)
Why, then, doesn’t John Perdue offer the soon-to-be-unemployed Bob Wise the job of delivering checks? Checks could be delivered faster and cheaper than relying on the mail. This is a no-brainer!
Of course, there would have to be some gimmickry involved-steak just isn’t steak without the sizzle.
The Wise Fargo delivery concept would have Bob Wise, our ubiquitous teamster, drive a chuck wagon pulled by miniature horses. Or call it the Money Stampede. Regardless, what rural community wouldn’t love having its grant check delivered in a strongbox. If bandits are lurking in the hills and hollers, then Lynndie England could ride shotgun. She’d also be helpful in pointing at certain things along the way.
Or how about the FedEx concept? I got this idea after watching a FedEx truck float down Greenbrier Street during last year’s flood. Let’s paint a sternwheeler to look like a FedEx truck, but instead, call it State-Y’s. This would be a crafty way for Cap’n Bob to deliver checks to our riverfront towns.
There are times when blockbuster checks have to be delivered. The Cabela’s check comes to mind. The best way to deliver a check like Cabela’s is on a Porker Run. Let’s suit up Biker Bob in leather and studs and buy him a Harley. We’d all be in Hog Heaven when he roars into town!
Senator Byrd is always getting checks for our state. One derisive lobbying group calls these checks "Byrd Droppings." Despite that connotation, these checks have to be delivered. But sometimes, Sen. Byrd’s duties in the senate prevent him from coming home to hand them out. Couldn’t Bob Wise be of help? Why couldn’t he pilot Senator Byrd’s hot air balloon, the Guanosphere, and make these deliveries?
The state hands out millions of dollars for sewer grants every year. But the public never attends the ceremonies. Who wants to celebrate sewers? Well, the Rotoclogger routine could change attitudes. Bob Wise could come through the old sewer, pop open a manhole cover, and leap to the street where he’d clog his way to the grandstand and hand over the money. Not only does this routine have entertainment value but it also offers a subliminal message that the old sewer is unclogged.
And last but not least, the PROMISE scholarship fund keeps shrinking and eligibility standards will have to be further tightened. In just a few years, a student will need straight A’s to get one of these grants. Bob Wise likes to hand out PROMISE checks and what better way to emphasize the importance of earning straight A’s than by his wearing a Killer Bee costume?
John, thanks for sending me that check. I appreciate your finding my lost money. Now then, what about Bob?
I recently did just that, and to my surprise, the Treasurer’s office informed me that they were holding money in my name. They promised a speedy remittance and the check arrived in the mail in timely fashion.
This is the honest to God truth-my windfall amounted to $3.75!
There has to be a cheaper, more efficient way to deliver checks written on the state’s bank account. Postage alone amounted to 30% of my claim. So I have been thinking, and thinking, and thinking. And here’s my recommendation.
Mankind has yet to invent a system as efficient for delivering government checks as our governor, Bob Wise. Give the man credit. The inside breast pocket of his suit coat has held thousands of checks written for all possible amounts and he has meticulously and perfectly dispensed said checks in a glorious fashion to every city, town, and community in the state. His clever prestidigitation once transformed a pocket-sized check into a replica the size of a sheet of plywood which he then presented to lottery winner Jack Whittaker during a live television broadcast. (Despite rumors to the contrary, no trick photography was involved.)
Why, then, doesn’t John Perdue offer the soon-to-be-unemployed Bob Wise the job of delivering checks? Checks could be delivered faster and cheaper than relying on the mail. This is a no-brainer!
Of course, there would have to be some gimmickry involved-steak just isn’t steak without the sizzle.
The Wise Fargo delivery concept would have Bob Wise, our ubiquitous teamster, drive a chuck wagon pulled by miniature horses. Or call it the Money Stampede. Regardless, what rural community wouldn’t love having its grant check delivered in a strongbox. If bandits are lurking in the hills and hollers, then Lynndie England could ride shotgun. She’d also be helpful in pointing at certain things along the way.
Or how about the FedEx concept? I got this idea after watching a FedEx truck float down Greenbrier Street during last year’s flood. Let’s paint a sternwheeler to look like a FedEx truck, but instead, call it State-Y’s. This would be a crafty way for Cap’n Bob to deliver checks to our riverfront towns.
There are times when blockbuster checks have to be delivered. The Cabela’s check comes to mind. The best way to deliver a check like Cabela’s is on a Porker Run. Let’s suit up Biker Bob in leather and studs and buy him a Harley. We’d all be in Hog Heaven when he roars into town!
Senator Byrd is always getting checks for our state. One derisive lobbying group calls these checks "Byrd Droppings." Despite that connotation, these checks have to be delivered. But sometimes, Sen. Byrd’s duties in the senate prevent him from coming home to hand them out. Couldn’t Bob Wise be of help? Why couldn’t he pilot Senator Byrd’s hot air balloon, the Guanosphere, and make these deliveries?
The state hands out millions of dollars for sewer grants every year. But the public never attends the ceremonies. Who wants to celebrate sewers? Well, the Rotoclogger routine could change attitudes. Bob Wise could come through the old sewer, pop open a manhole cover, and leap to the street where he’d clog his way to the grandstand and hand over the money. Not only does this routine have entertainment value but it also offers a subliminal message that the old sewer is unclogged.
And last but not least, the PROMISE scholarship fund keeps shrinking and eligibility standards will have to be further tightened. In just a few years, a student will need straight A’s to get one of these grants. Bob Wise likes to hand out PROMISE checks and what better way to emphasize the importance of earning straight A’s than by his wearing a Killer Bee costume?
John, thanks for sending me that check. I appreciate your finding my lost money. Now then, what about Bob?
Friday, August 13, 2004
When It Comes to Power, Reliability Matters Most
IBM consultant Jeff Pratt was working in Detroit on August 14th, 2003. He was on a conference call to New York and Toronto when, at 4:11 pm, the lights and telephones went out in all three cities. Some ten minutes later, he and his colleagues reestablished contact using their cell phones. That’s when the trio discovered what we in West Virginia already knew-the northeast power grid had inexplicably shut down.
With his workday over, Mr. Pratt called home to Doddridge County and asked his wife to search the internet for the cities nearest to Detroit that still had power. Using his vehicle’s onboard navigation computer, he quickly calculated that he did not have enough fuel to drive out of the blackout zone. With no electricity to run the pumps, buying gas was hopeless. The trip home to his Doddridge County farm would have to wait.
---------------------------------------------
Twenty-five years ago, James Burke introduced his award-winning series, Connections, by holding up the failed relay that caused the 1975 New York City blackout. He began episode one, "The Trigger Effect", by listing all of the technologies that failed when the power went out. Mr. Burke needed only the next five minutes to take his viewers some 7,000 years backwards in time to the invention of agriculture in the Nile Valley. This was his starting point for the series--the logical conclusion of not having electricity and the technologies that we have come to rely on.
During the ten episodes of Connections, Mr. Burke illustrates the thousands of observations, inventions, and coincidences that it has taken to build our modern civilization. Here in West Virginia, we take steam-generated power for granted. But Mr. Burke points out that our first knowledge of the physics of steam came from Scotch whiskey distillers, not scientists. Following those discoveries, it was only by coincidence in 1763 that Scotsman James Watt was given the task of modifying one of Thomas Newcomen’s steam engines. Watt’s improvements ushered in the age of steam power.
Just think--it took well over 6,000 years from the invention of agriculture to the invention of steam-powered threshing machines. From James Watt’s invention, it then took another 200 years to build "Big Allis", Con Ed’s 1,000-megawatt steam turbine. As the wily James Burke shows us, we really are just 5 minutes away from the beginning of time.
On first reading, this may seem a convoluted segue to the topic of electric power deregulation. But first, I wanted to emphasize just how dependent we are on electricity. So I challenge you to name one job that does not rely on electricity, either directly or indirectly. And please, don’t answer "Learnéd Hippie" or "Amish Farmer."
Seven years ago, the Public Service Commission appointed a task force to study electric restructuring (deregulation.) The task force generally approved of restructuring and listed several benefits to consumers. But the report also contains several nagging questions, not the least of which was how to compensate AEP and Allegheny Power for $1.5 billion in stranded costs.
My take on this report is that the task force talks out of both sides of its mouth. At one point they say that we should deregulate the existing electric industry because it is beneficial to consumers. Then they whisper hints that we will likely need to implement a whole new set of regulations in order to guarantee adequate supply and fair pricing once the industry has been "restructured." Deregulation, indeed!
We’ll never know where all of this was headed because the California power crisis and Enron changed everyone’s mind about deregulated electric service. We should thank Gray Davis for diving on the grenade or, in the alternative, Ken Lay for lobbing it in his direction.
As you know, I am a crusader for free and open markets. In the case of the electricity market, I must confess that I have never understood any of the arguments in favor of deregulating the electric industry. But then again, I’m an idiot. I go from room to room during a power outage flipping light switches and have to remind myself each time why the lights don’t come on.
And this is my point. The price of electricity means little. Reliability means everything. If you doubt me, then ask Jeff Pratt. He’s a consultant.
With his workday over, Mr. Pratt called home to Doddridge County and asked his wife to search the internet for the cities nearest to Detroit that still had power. Using his vehicle’s onboard navigation computer, he quickly calculated that he did not have enough fuel to drive out of the blackout zone. With no electricity to run the pumps, buying gas was hopeless. The trip home to his Doddridge County farm would have to wait.
---------------------------------------------
 |
| NASA Image |
Twenty-five years ago, James Burke introduced his award-winning series, Connections, by holding up the failed relay that caused the 1975 New York City blackout. He began episode one, "The Trigger Effect", by listing all of the technologies that failed when the power went out. Mr. Burke needed only the next five minutes to take his viewers some 7,000 years backwards in time to the invention of agriculture in the Nile Valley. This was his starting point for the series--the logical conclusion of not having electricity and the technologies that we have come to rely on.
During the ten episodes of Connections, Mr. Burke illustrates the thousands of observations, inventions, and coincidences that it has taken to build our modern civilization. Here in West Virginia, we take steam-generated power for granted. But Mr. Burke points out that our first knowledge of the physics of steam came from Scotch whiskey distillers, not scientists. Following those discoveries, it was only by coincidence in 1763 that Scotsman James Watt was given the task of modifying one of Thomas Newcomen’s steam engines. Watt’s improvements ushered in the age of steam power.
Just think--it took well over 6,000 years from the invention of agriculture to the invention of steam-powered threshing machines. From James Watt’s invention, it then took another 200 years to build "Big Allis", Con Ed’s 1,000-megawatt steam turbine. As the wily James Burke shows us, we really are just 5 minutes away from the beginning of time.
On first reading, this may seem a convoluted segue to the topic of electric power deregulation. But first, I wanted to emphasize just how dependent we are on electricity. So I challenge you to name one job that does not rely on electricity, either directly or indirectly. And please, don’t answer "Learnéd Hippie" or "Amish Farmer."
Seven years ago, the Public Service Commission appointed a task force to study electric restructuring (deregulation.) The task force generally approved of restructuring and listed several benefits to consumers. But the report also contains several nagging questions, not the least of which was how to compensate AEP and Allegheny Power for $1.5 billion in stranded costs.
My take on this report is that the task force talks out of both sides of its mouth. At one point they say that we should deregulate the existing electric industry because it is beneficial to consumers. Then they whisper hints that we will likely need to implement a whole new set of regulations in order to guarantee adequate supply and fair pricing once the industry has been "restructured." Deregulation, indeed!
We’ll never know where all of this was headed because the California power crisis and Enron changed everyone’s mind about deregulated electric service. We should thank Gray Davis for diving on the grenade or, in the alternative, Ken Lay for lobbing it in his direction.
As you know, I am a crusader for free and open markets. In the case of the electricity market, I must confess that I have never understood any of the arguments in favor of deregulating the electric industry. But then again, I’m an idiot. I go from room to room during a power outage flipping light switches and have to remind myself each time why the lights don’t come on.
And this is my point. The price of electricity means little. Reliability means everything. If you doubt me, then ask Jeff Pratt. He’s a consultant.
Friday, July 16, 2004
What We Have Here Is A Failure To Communicate
If you’ve read your local newspaper lately, then you are aware that the Budget Digest is out in print. The Budget Digest is a popular way for a select group of legislators to micromanage every department of government. Because the Budget Digest recommends a spending plan to the Executive branch rather than direct it, the Digest is able to skirt the constitution’s budgeting and spending requirements.
Although the Digest is the most unrestrained form of government spending that we have, none of the line items are particularly large when compared to line items in the state budget. In fact, most Digest grants seem trivial, ranging from $500 to $10,000. But as long as checks are written, the money has to be accounted for.
In the July 1 edition of The Exponent Telegram, staff writer Jennifer Biller reports on Budget Digest allocations for Harrison County schools. Here is an excerpt:
"Robert C. Byrd High was awarded $10,000 in Budget Digest funds. But it’s unclear how the funds will be used. Neither [Harrison County Schools Superintendent] Friebel nor Principal Leon Pilewski requested the money and are not aware of who did."
This transaction defines micromanagement better than Webster’s.
mic-ro-man-age: verb, to control or direct every aspect or detail of a situation
The school system has extensive management. From the State School Superintendent at the top and all of the way down to each school’s Principal, there exists a sophisticated management structure. The professional administrators that we pay to run the system also receive extensive public input.
The parents and teachers who form each school’s PTO are invaluable. Their wisdom comes from being in the trenches. The publicly-elected county Board of Education was conceived to balance the taxpayer’s interests with the school system’s wish list, and while these Boards have lost much of their original authority, their oversight is still important for the community as a whole.
With this structure in place, you would think that the entire budgeting system for public schools would start at the Principals’ offices rather than in a committee room in the capitol building. Unfortunately, the Budget Digest tells us different story. Although the Digest is just an asterisk to the budget bill, that asterisk looms large and highlights who really makes spending decisions, both large and small.
There is a great story that gives credence to the notion of running public education from the bottom up rather than from the top down. Homer Hickam tells it in Rocket Boys, his best-selling book about growing up in Coalwood.
In case you haven’t read Rocket Boys, here’s a synopsis. Homer and his friends-Sherman, O'Dell, Sonny, Quentin, and Roy Lee-started building model rockets. They kept improving with each model. But then the team, known as the Big Creek Missile Agency, came to the point where they could progress no further. The rocket boys needed to learn calculus, a course not offered at Big Creek High.
Because a teacher, Miss Riley, and her principal lobbied on their behalf, the calculus course was taught. The rockets got better and flew higher once the boys learned this new kind of math. And in the end, Homer took their model rocket to the 1960 National Science Fair where it was awarded the top prize.
When you read the Budget Digest to learn if its largesse benefits your school, I hope you will remember the rocket boys. Then ask yourself how the Miss Rileys of today can inspire and teach the next generation of rocket boys when even the most trivial of spending decisions are made behind closed doors in Charleston. Just who would Miss Riley lobby to request a calculus class if she were teaching in today’s environment? Apparently not her principal or county superintendent.
The legislature should concern itself with solving big problems like paying off the $5 billion pension debt. The debt is, after all, the cumulative result of past legislatures trying to micromanage the state.
Although the Digest is the most unrestrained form of government spending that we have, none of the line items are particularly large when compared to line items in the state budget. In fact, most Digest grants seem trivial, ranging from $500 to $10,000. But as long as checks are written, the money has to be accounted for.
In the July 1 edition of The Exponent Telegram, staff writer Jennifer Biller reports on Budget Digest allocations for Harrison County schools. Here is an excerpt:
"Robert C. Byrd High was awarded $10,000 in Budget Digest funds. But it’s unclear how the funds will be used. Neither [Harrison County Schools Superintendent] Friebel nor Principal Leon Pilewski requested the money and are not aware of who did."
This transaction defines micromanagement better than Webster’s.
mic-ro-man-age: verb, to control or direct every aspect or detail of a situation
The school system has extensive management. From the State School Superintendent at the top and all of the way down to each school’s Principal, there exists a sophisticated management structure. The professional administrators that we pay to run the system also receive extensive public input.
The parents and teachers who form each school’s PTO are invaluable. Their wisdom comes from being in the trenches. The publicly-elected county Board of Education was conceived to balance the taxpayer’s interests with the school system’s wish list, and while these Boards have lost much of their original authority, their oversight is still important for the community as a whole.
With this structure in place, you would think that the entire budgeting system for public schools would start at the Principals’ offices rather than in a committee room in the capitol building. Unfortunately, the Budget Digest tells us different story. Although the Digest is just an asterisk to the budget bill, that asterisk looms large and highlights who really makes spending decisions, both large and small.
There is a great story that gives credence to the notion of running public education from the bottom up rather than from the top down. Homer Hickam tells it in Rocket Boys, his best-selling book about growing up in Coalwood.
In case you haven’t read Rocket Boys, here’s a synopsis. Homer and his friends-Sherman, O'Dell, Sonny, Quentin, and Roy Lee-started building model rockets. They kept improving with each model. But then the team, known as the Big Creek Missile Agency, came to the point where they could progress no further. The rocket boys needed to learn calculus, a course not offered at Big Creek High.
Because a teacher, Miss Riley, and her principal lobbied on their behalf, the calculus course was taught. The rockets got better and flew higher once the boys learned this new kind of math. And in the end, Homer took their model rocket to the 1960 National Science Fair where it was awarded the top prize.
When you read the Budget Digest to learn if its largesse benefits your school, I hope you will remember the rocket boys. Then ask yourself how the Miss Rileys of today can inspire and teach the next generation of rocket boys when even the most trivial of spending decisions are made behind closed doors in Charleston. Just who would Miss Riley lobby to request a calculus class if she were teaching in today’s environment? Apparently not her principal or county superintendent.
The legislature should concern itself with solving big problems like paying off the $5 billion pension debt. The debt is, after all, the cumulative result of past legislatures trying to micromanage the state.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)