Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Unions vs. Taxpayers – Part 1 of 2
From the NYT a few days ago: Across the nation, a rising irritation with public employee unions is palpable, as a wounded economy has blown gaping holes in state, city and town budgets, and revealed that some public pension funds dangle perilously close to bankruptcy. In California, New York, Michigan and New Jersey, states where…
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Illinois’ $13 Billion Deficit Took Years to Produce
The legislative session that began today as the House convened will take aim at a budget deficit of at least $13 billion, including a backlog of more than $6 billion in unpaid bills and almost $4 billion in missed payments to underfunded state pensions. The fiscal mess is largely of the lawmakers’ own making, and…
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Abu Dhabi Shares Profits From Parking Meters
In fact, a Chicago News Cooperative investigation has found that investment arms of the oil-rich Abu Dhabi government hold more than a 25 percent stake in the company that privatized the city’s 36,000 parking meters. German financial company Allianz also has a large minority interest, and the remaining 50.1 percent is held by partnerships assembled…
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Parking Meter Rates Going Up
The rates will soon go up for people parking in the city. Electric pay boxes will begin charging $5 an hour in the downtown area, up from $4.25.And it will cost $3 an hour to park on streets outside the downtown area. The rate increase will go into effect Jan. 1. As part of the…
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Your in Debt, Your Children are in Debt
Tribune ran a great story this week about how the city is hopelessly in debt. The story is worth reading and can be found here; but what’s really interesting is a chart (actually a series of charts) attached to the story. Here’s what you need to know: Chicago’s cash debt is about $6,87 Billion or…
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Yes Virgina, People Flee High Taxes
The results of the 2010 Census are coming in and show: First, the great engine of growth in America is not the Northeast Megalopolis, which was growing faster than average in the mid-20th century, or California, which grew lustily in the succeeding half-century. It is Texas. Its population grew 21 percent in the past decade,…
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U.S. Attorney’s Office Disclosure
[T]he entire annual $32 million budget of the Chicago U.S. attorney’s office [is covered by collections.] … The U.S. attorney’s office here collected from criminals and civil defendants three times as much money as it spent in taxpayer dollars this year, bringing in $99 million in settlements, fines, forfeitures and restitution in 2010. … About…
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Mendoza: Advertising on City Stickers
The flip-side of Chicago’s 1.25 million city stickers would carry advertising to generate $15 million-a-year — enough to hire 100 new police officers and give motorists a modest break — under a plan proposed by the frontrunner for city clerk. State Rep. Susana Mendoza (D-Chicago) wants to turn city stickers into money makers, much the…
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Meeks unsure who’s a “Minority”
Mayoral challenger James Meeks scrambled Thursday to put out a political fire touched off by his suggestion that only African Americans should be eligible for city contracts set aside for minorities and women. (Full story here.) Of course the Reverend knows what a minority is. It’s those who will vote for him. No one else…
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Aldcreature’s Son Get 100k+ job at Water
The son of former Ald. Bernie Hansen 44th has been promoted to a $103,632-a-year job in the city’s Department of Water Management — six months after he was put on unpaid leave for a DUI arrest that stripped him of the driver’s license he needed to do his job. Paul Hansen was a $97,760-a-year assistant…
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