Coral Gables Environment, Politics and Government
October 15, 2010 Leave a comment
The program does not help homeowners whose drywall came from companies other than Knauf. Some of those Chinese firms have ignored U.S. lawsuits.
To be eligible, a home must have had virtually all of its defective drywall made by Knauf. Many of the affected homes in Florida contain a blend of Chinese drywall from Knauf and other companies, said Kerry Miller, a lawyer for Knauf.
October 15, 2010 Leave a comment
Find here a summary of the results of the ruling of a Florida judge on the health care reform bill claims. You will see many issues that were dismissed. As a novice this doesn’t sound as negative as it is portrayed in the news.
Here is the bottom line:
(1) the individual mandate and concomitant penalty exceed Congressional authority under the Commerce Clause and violate the Ninth and Tenth Amendments; NOT DISMISSED
(2) the individual mandate and penalty violate substantive due process under the Fifth Amendment; DISMISSED
(3) if the penalty imposed for failing to comply with the individual mandate is found to be a tax, it is an unconstitutional unapportioned capitation or direct tax in violation of U.S. Const. art. I, § 9, cl. 4, and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments; DISMISSED AS MOOT
(4) the Act coerces and commandeers the states with respect to Medicaid by altering and expanding the program in violation of Article I and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments; NOT DISMISSED
(5) it coerces and commandeers with respect to the health benefit exchanges in violation of Article I and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments; DISMISSED
(6) the employer mandate interferes with the states’ sovereignty as large employers and in the performance of government functions in violation of Article I and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments; DISMISSED
Thus, the case will proceed on the issue of whether the individual mandate is in excess of Congress’ commerce power in contravention of the Tenth Amendment and on the issue of whether the Medicaid changes are in excess of Congress’ Article I power and in contravention of the Tenth Amendment.
October 11, 2010 Leave a comment
It is not self-evident that the quality of teaching and teachers are mainly responsible for our education slipping backward? I think that experience in running complex enterprises is that in some cities and schools it is the teaching that is to blame, in others, it is school management, teaching methods and materials, community culture of education and bad (or good) school boards.
I would place enormous weight on school boards and the community that sets the priorities for education. Teachers will gravitate to places where teachers are trusted and respected.
I am very suspicious of single approaches to solving big problems.
It’s time for all of the adults — superintendents, educators, elected officials, labor unions and parents alike — to start acting like we are responsible for the future of our children. Because right now, across the country, kids are stuck in failing schools, just waiting for us to do something.
So, where do we start? With the basics. As President Obama has emphasized, the single most important factor determining whether students succeed in school is not the color of their skin or their ZIP code or even their parents’ income — it is the quality of their teacher.
via How to fix our schools: A manifesto by Joel Klein, Michelle Rhee and other education leaders.
October 10, 2010 Leave a comment
This problem of the essential fairness (instead of corruption) of the US foreclosure system was well known for years to those involved in the system. The huge number of companies and lawyers involved in this out-of-control system is a mirror of the system that helped us take out the failed mortgages.
Florida has evolved a system of fast foreclosure process that again favors banks, developers, real estate agents and associated industry that wants to rush through the foreclosures to clean out the bad debt, rather than finding a fair and permanent solution to the underlying problem. See my earlier post, Florida’s High-Speed Answer to a Foreclosure Mess – NYTimes.com.
The only solution to the problem is a scheme of national debt foregiveness (cancellation) of mortgage debt on a large scale. This will keep people in their houses, will protect the social foundations of our towns and cities, and help people who can, under no circumstances, move on to rental units. This will also keep house prices from falling even further (this is the big benefit of the system for people who have kept up their payments).
Consumer advocates and lawyers warned federal officials in recent years that the U.S. foreclosure system was designed to seize people’s homes as fast as possible, often without regard to the rights of homeowners.
…
As momentum builds for a national moratorium, the administration has begun assessing the potential impact, examining the threat it could pose for the ailing housing market and the wider financial system.
via Government had been warned for months about troubles in mortgage servicer industry.
Coral Gables Watch 