Alert: Hospital parking lot now has coin operated parking....10% surcharge on change provided at the office.
Yes, if you take a real good look at things you'll notice how there is a tax on many things, but they use another name for it. Instead of tax they call it user fee, parking fee ( both on state or federal land provided to you by out Constitution) and even the state, county or city does it. Toll Roads built long ago and already covered by taxes. Look at airports and flying- new taxes on everything they can squeeze out of you and occasionally they clearly violate the constitution, but no one says STOP! I've had enough!"
We lived up here in Alaska for nearly 40 years, depending on whether its Mona or I- I've got two years on her. But she was from Oregon and on the wild side and I'm a city boy bred in the sift side of cityville Southern California. So I tend to give her the two years. She had to teach me how to use a chain saw, enough said.
But up here we experience a freedom few citizens you people of the Lower 48 do. No don't use this article as a reason to move up here, I don't want to be responsible for you being mauled or consumed by a bear or stomped by that one moose who is fed up with picture taking. Plus we have the largest mosquitoes in the world, 8 feet from tip to tip, able to drain a man in a single fly over.
But with all that said, we learn quickly how to behave around our critters, unless we is a hunting them and plan to have them a hanging in our freezers. As to the mosquitoes we lasso them and once you get 10 of them and prove to them you is the boss, you can get a one way trip to Hawaii for two. Once there, the silly bugs tend to fly off for an active volcano and begin their own vacations. Japanese love them, if caught using them for one of their new monster movies or some carrier service between the outer islands back home. Appears they'll work for cow blood and less hassle.
But here we do not have a state tax, no toll road ( that I know of), we do have city and borough (county) taxes, but no state sales tax and currently we have our Permanent Dividend Fund, where once a year the state gives its legal citizens a share of the oil revenue. This is normally a check for $1200 to 2,000 and it comes in handy. Alaskans support the 2nd Amendment strongly, with no Concealed Carry Law- you can carry, accept in locations prohibited, such as schools, state and federal building, banks and businesses where they have signs posted. But we also have strong law to cover misuse of firearms.
We believe in a person's freedom up here, but gradually the Federal government is closing in on us. Back in 1994 when I left working for the State of Alaska, The FBI office in Anchorage had two agent and Fairbanks had 1. It is a lot different now, plus the other federal regulatory offices have quadrupled or better in size and far more than the population has grown.
Not only the Feds, Mother Nature is changing the Alaskan landscape as our harsh winters become only a whisper of what was. Here it is the latter part of February and my home here would be seeing heavy snow, my land frozen with 6 inches of hard thick ice under the packed snow, and break-up not expected until mid-April. But outside I have more crispy frozen grass showing than patches of ice, along with the many helpings out dogs have left us. Need to train those hounds to use a cat box.
Mt driveway is clear of ice and the only snow is where it was piled up. Temperatures have been in upper 30s and even low 40s, but today its overcast and temp dropped to low 20s, but no snow. My stream out front, which is always frozen this time of year, is running deep and fast. This is melt from the mountain above us and goes across our property, out in to Trail Lake. Eventually the water traveling north, reaches the icy waters of Portage Lake and I'm not sure of this, but it could then blend with the often violent tides of Turnagain Arm; the northern waters of the Pacific Ocean. Now if it does all this and I have no proof of this, except for some small maps following the tributaries as they leave the larger bodies of water, than this is quite a circuitous (spelling) route this H20 makes. With a really traumatic mega earthquake the Kenai Peninsula could find itself literally cut away-separated from the Alaskan mainland. Using waterways as the points of separation, if indeed the fault lines follow along these waterways. As to one location, a small fault line follows the valley floor between the massive mountains that guard the communities of Crown Point and Moose Pass.
NOTE: Interesting revelation- During a statewide "State of Emergency Drill" the Moose Pass School contacted the early form of FEMA and inquired what was the best thing the students of the elementary students of the school could do in a state of emeergency- such as Anchorage being hit with a nuclear bomb. They didn't receive an answer for three weeks and when they did the people of Moose Pass were astonished. They were told that after tests were conducted it was concluded the that people of Moose Pass should stay right where they were in the event of a nuclear blast on Anchorage. 3 mountain passes intersect at Moose Pass which bring about a total air exchange every 4 hours. ( now its been awhile since I've heard this, possibly 15 years and it could've been 8 hours instead of 4). Yes, Moose Pass was one of the safest places in Alaska in the event of a nuke being dropped on Anchorage and still within the 100 to 150 mile kill range.
I've often wondered if people took these winds in mind when they built there homes here. A recent building of a cabin on a hillside to the south sure looks pretty and who eve buys it will have quite a view. But when the wind storm hit, I expect to come out one morning and see the hillside clear of a cabin and I'll wonder if the poor occupant will wake up in some far off land, atop a wicked witch and weird looking little people dancing about. I always thought there should have been wardning signs for "Beware of Flying Monkeys"
A Wee Bit of News: According to Gateway News Service- A 2014 Hate Crimes Report put together by the FBI to show the statistics there were 1,140 such hate crimes (reported). Of these crimes 56% were anti-Jewish in Basis, while 16.1 % were shown to be anti-Muslim basis. Yet, on December 15, 2015, the U.S. Congress, put forward House Bill 569, which provided additional consideration for Muslim's rights to exceed those rights promised to every citizen in the 1st Amendment. This bill was sent to House Committee on the Judiciary. This bill, unlike the 1st Amendment seems to identify only with Muslims, appearing to identify with Sharia Law. Is this an attempt to blend Muslim Sharia Law into our Constitution, where Muslims, like Hindi, Christians, Jews, Baha'i and so many other religions already have protection??? ( I suggest you go to Gateway News and read the entire article- it stinks.)
France is displaying open hostility to the Jewish State of Israel- showing complicity with anti-Jewish State through its acts of anti-Antisemitism. France now has approximately 6 million Muslims, rapid increase since the refugee rush from the Syria War. This gives the Muslims 10% of the French population. Some feel this provides a major politico problem or factor and there is a fear of Muslim or refugee riots in riots if France fails to take a hard Anti-Israel stance.
Still with Gatestone: United Nations asserts that Saudi-led coalition forces have committed war crimes in Yemen, but reportedly failed to send a UN investigative team into Yemen and relied on Hearsay evidence and analysis of photographs.
United Nations reportedly displays a "Pattern of unsubstantiated allegations of war crimes against the armed forces of sovereign states. Without any military expertise, and never having visited Gaza, the UN Commission convicted the Israeli Defense Force of deliberately targeting Palestinian civilians in the 2014 Conflict." The UN Report was reject by the US Military and an Independent Commission. ( The UN Secretary General has of late openly displayed his favor for a Palestinian State and rebuffed Israel for continuing to build on their land on the West Bank. Meanwhile, the Palestinian leader praises his young terrorists who cross the border and stab/kill innocent civilians.)
Jerusalem Online: Stabbing Attack - Israel: Supermarket in the West Bank, two terrorists murdered one civilian and wounded another.
Side Story: Russia reportedly shipping S-300 Missiles to IRAN. ( Our Loan seems to be being wisely used- right Mr. President?)
Latest news on my computer: Hard Drive is dying, but I've been able to back it up, including my phone contacts and I'm not sure who was my first kiss. I still get hard drive warnings every 10 minutes. However, I moved back down to the living room, somewhat nosier, but I can hear my music on Pandora and closer to the kitchen. I made my cookies yesterday- okay.
Got a question for my readers. I'm thinking about writing a different series of stories. I have been a major Heinlein fan since Mona taught me how to read and I really liked his series of stories that are now referred to as youth books. But every fan adult or teen loves these books, from the Rolling Stones to Starman Jones. So, I'm thinking of writing some teen books, sci-fi in nature. Now I've done my 3 books of A Coming Storm, but the center book wasn't well received and mostly that was due to the cover and for some the number of pages for an unknown writer. I had hoped the prequel and sequel would be published, they're good sci-fi. If you'd like to see those books you need to notify my publisher, Alaska Publishing and tell him.
Anyhow, I could use some help in this in wha you people think about this idea and possibly some story idea of what you'd like to see. I've also written a fable about St. George and the Dragon and one involving the hauntings of an Alaskan town, so I need something else. I have a lot of ideas noted down, but I'm always looking for more. All I can promise you is a mentioning in the front as a dedication for your assist if I use your idea. If the book is used for a movie, I really don't know who you are.....
This has been a long one, but its good to be typing again. I plan to hit the "Geronimo" now and see what my new chapter gives birth to. That's the best part of writing, the creation of happenings, people, emotions and beauty.
God Bless everyone. BILL