Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • How Mitt Wins

    Yesterday I read something over at Hillbuzz that got me thinking: Today I want to think about just who are the people who will be voting for Obama in November and see how that compares to the people who voted for him in 2008. I don’t believe anyone who DIDN’T vote for him last time…

  • Chicago Teachers Union: It’s About Children Greed

    According to the Chicago Tribune key issues separating Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union: SALARIES AND BENEFITS. The district offered 16 percent increase over four years and “modified step increases that both reward experience and provide better incentives for mid-career teachers.” The union said it’s closer on pay but is still concerned about…

  • Obama’s Unemployment Chart

    Remember when we were promised that if we spent $2 billion of money we didn’t have all would be well? Let’s compare promised to actual: It’s also important to keep in mind that this chart does not reflect the millions of people who simply are no longer included in the workforce.  As of August, only…

  • The Unemployment Farce: Only 42% of People Working

    Worst news ever!! The number of Americans whom the U.S. Department of Labor counted as “not in the civilian labor force” in August hit a record high of 88,921,000.  … In July, there were 155,013,000 in the U.S. civilian labor force. In August that dropped to 154,645,000—meaning that on net 368,000 people simply dropped out…

  • Who Pays What Income Taxes?

    At the DNC there was a lot of talk about “Everyone has to pay their fair share.”  That seems to be at introduction into a philosophical discussion about what a particular group should pay.  What is everyone’s “fair share?” In Tax Year 2009: Top 1%   paid 36.73% of the total tax bill; Top 5%  …

  • Fioretti: 35 Member Council & Term Limits

    Alderman Robert Fioretti (2nd Ward) believes Chicago would do fine with just 35 aldermen instead of 50 — especially now that workers are handling garbage pickup and street cleaning on a system of ten “grids” instead of 50 wards.  … Besides a smaller City Council, Fioretti is calling for term limits. “Just look at the…

  • Race at DNC – Button Says it Plainly

  • You’re Being Watched by Your Government

    Back in July I wrote about how your government was utilizing all kinds of technology to spy on you.  At the time it appeared to just be speculation; now we know it to be true. Part I The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is suing the Justice Department for details of last month’s ruling by a…

  • IL Pension Hole Analysis

    I wrote this a few weeks ago as a comment on a retired teacher’s blog.  The post there was about how we need to “tax the rich” in order to fund the teachers’ pensions.  I was asked to comment on the post by a retired teacher I know.  Analysis follows: There is no one sided…

  • Taliban Behead People for Music (CAIR Silent)

    The news out of Afghanistan is that the Taliban beheaded 17 men and women who had gathered for a mixed-gender social event with music and dancing. via Business Insider. Some parts of the world are simply 1,500 years behind the times.  We need to leave them be.  It’s not worth the American lives and money…

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