The recent debacle over Louisiana’s tax credits for vehicles that run on alternative fuels reminds me of a memorable scene from Casablanca. In the classic 1942 film, Capt. Louis Renault, the ethically malleable chief of the local gendarmes, loudly blows his police whistle and announces to an overflow crowd at Rick’s Cafe that he is closing the popular nightclub and casino.
When Rick, portrayed by Humphrey Bogart, demands to know why, Renault piously proclaims, “I’m shocked — shocked! — to find that gambling is going on in here!”
That scene perfectly sums up the hypocrisy on parade in Baton Rouge these days as relates to Act 469 of 2009. The act grants income tax credits up to $3,000 for those who buy vehicles that burn “alternative fuels.” The act defines such fuels broadly, including “compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, biofuel, biodiesel, methanol, ethanol and electricity.”
House Appropriations Chairman Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro, quickly took advantage and filed amended tax returns. Fannin, in fact, claimed two vehicles.
Then came news, via the Monroe News-Star, that the fiscal impact of the act had suddenly shot up from the $1 million projected in 2009 to $100 million this year — thanks to Bridges’ retroactive ruling.
At that point, Fannin and other lawmakers proclaimed themselves shocked — shocked! — to find that Bridges had expanded the application of the law so widely, notwithstanding its plain language. Fannin, doing his best impression of Capt. Renault, solemnly told the News-Star, “It could wreck us. … I just found out about it before the (legislative) session ended (June 4).”
See the rest of the piece here.
Shocked … Shocked!
by Clancy DuBos | June 26, 2012
06/26/2012 at 6:00 pm |
Play it again, Fannie!
06/26/2012 at 6:30 pm |
I am shocked..simply shocked….that no one ran against the idiot.
06/26/2012 at 6:57 pm |
Say it ain’t so Joe……..uh, Fannie! Politics has truly changed this small town Winn Parish native. Shocked…….just shocked, I say!
06/26/2012 at 7:27 pm |
Both Fannin and Alexander can be voted out. Neither seem to care about Jonesboro so they need to go, especially Alexander who is toeing the Reflubican line in Congress. They pull a string and the idoit speaks what they want him to say. He may even have tea bagging leanings.
06/26/2012 at 7:46 pm |
Having known Rodney Alexander personally for a number of years and visited with him at a number of functions in his official capacity as a congressman, I can say that he is still one of the humblest down-to-earth people I know and that he truly cares about Louisiana. In case you hadn’t noticed, Louisiana has become a Republican state because the Democrat coalition of gays, environmental flakes, Hollyweirdos, and elitist progressive liberals have absolutely nothing in common with Louisiana values. The likes of Nancy Pelosi, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, Maxine Waters, and Charles Rangel are as far removed from Louisiana as possible. Fannin is an out-of-touch, self-serving pol who needs to be retired at the earliest opportunity, but he is the polar opposite of Alexander.
06/26/2012 at 8:05 pm |
If you say so! Check his voting record in Congress.
06/27/2012 at 6:14 am |
I have. I’m a conservative and Rodney votes conservative. The problem with legislation now is that the powers that be bundle smaller bills into massive do-or-die packages that can be parsed by each side to portray its supporters as for or against anything. Being a legislator means one has to be willing to compromise. Sometimes these packages contain more of what you’re for than what you’re against. You are holding Rodney to an impossible standard given the current state of legislation.
06/27/2012 at 7:38 am |
you might just check and see how much influence has been used to help one particular “grant seeker” for the past few years and that only stopped after people started putting pressure on that issue. notice the “free money” button has been turned off lately? he is a republican in name only, he is a life long democrat that switched parties to get elected.
06/26/2012 at 7:37 pm |
Apparently a lot of Louisianians have Republican and “tea bag” leanings. That candidate got[ the most votes in the Republican presidential straw vote.
06/26/2012 at 8:12 pm |
The word is “Reflubican” as in flubbing everything up. Like have a meeting on the day our President was sworn in to design a plan to get him out of office after one term. Like agreeing to something and then voting against it. Like the Flip Flopper not giving an answer to any question that he is asked. Like the Flip Flopper no giving the American public an inkling as to what his grand plan is? No, it’s just blame Obama. Like the Flip Flopper being beholding to the billionaires that are backing his candidacy. Do you, for one moment, believe that they are not expecting something in return for those billions they donate, like tax cuts and deregulation on everything? Do you, for one moment, believe that the oil from Canada on the XL pipeline is destined for the US? No, SFB. It is going on the world market where we (the US) will have to buy it if we want to use it. The word in Reflubican!!!!
06/26/2012 at 10:56 pm |
The word is demo-whiner-whine because you don’t have enough freebies, whine because someone has worked all their life and made a decent living and you want to make them give it to the whining sloths……no, don’t ever doubt all the billions that the communist have donated will expect nothing in return. The exact same scenario, blame everyone but yourself…….demo whiner-free health care, free meals, free cell phones, by the way who manufactures those free cell phones, do they come from Communist China or Cuba or a Muslim country?
06/27/2012 at 10:06 am |
U R A Demowhiner, I find your “whining” laughable. The Reflubicans want to give tax breaks to the filthy rich so that they “can create jobs” for us poor people. Why aren’t they using their money, right now, to create jobs? Answer me! It is not taking money from the workers to give to the non-workers. It is not redistribution of wealth. It is, plain and simple, leveling the playing field. Why should the President and the Flip Flopper pay a lesser percentage on their taxes than I do? (president [16%], Flip Flopper [13%], and me [28%]). I am not one of the top 1% – my total income comes from social security, army retirement, teacher retirement – a little over $35,000. Another laughable comment of yours is about the “communist”. Can you name the two communist countries that exist in the world today? China is not one of them as they are becoming more and more capitalistic by the day. I have only heard you and that idiot from Florida, Allen West, talk about communist. He said that there are 78-81 communist in our Congress and that he has a higher security clearance than the President. Those comments must have come from his ass for they stink. Can you say Joe Macarthy?Oh, by the way, I am a Democrat – a liberal one for sure.
06/27/2012 at 2:32 pm |
China, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and Vietnam are all communist countries! Can you name these supposed tax breaks that you claim Republicans are offering to the wealthy? You are drinking the Kool-Aid and parroting back everything the Democrat Party is putting out without bothering to check the facts. Republicans passed a law to allow wealthy individuals like Warren Buffet to pay addition taxes if they so choose, and not one wealthy whiner has taken advantage of it. I am an independent conservative, not a Republican, and the only portion of Congress refusing to pass bills is the Democrat-controlled Senate. Republicans have argued for comprehensive tax reform, but Obama wants to continue supporting failed solar companies like Solyndra. The Democrats are the champions of tax loopholes and crony capitalism, not the Republicans. Toss the Kool-Aid and wake up!
06/27/2012 at 2:52 pm |
When a piece of proposed legislation goes before the senate, the votes are usually 51-55 for and the rest against. Because of the stupid rule that requires 60 votes to avoid filabustering, the legislation fails. That’s not the Democrats fault. They got a majority vote but . . . . Please give me the HR number of the bill that allowed the rich to pay more if they wanted to. It doesn’t exist. I pay extra taxes throughout the year so that I will not come up short on 15 Apr; the rich can do the same thing. The Reflubicans want to lower the tax rate for the wealthy and make the Bush (now there was a loser if there ever was one) tax cuts permanent. they want deregulation on everything so we can go back to what caused this mess we are in. I hope that you vote so I can cancel your vote with mine this coming November. Oh, yeh. North Korea and Cuba are communist countries. I sense, as an independent conservative, that you are a Ron Paul man. Loser.
06/27/2012 at 4:28 pm |
wow……China is progressing in the way of capitalism…..wow…….that does not indicate that they have changed the way they govern the people, they are a Communist Country and a I don’t care how many Free Communist cell phones they make and ship to this country so the Demowhiners like you can take advantage of the hard working people that have made an honest living by blood sweat and tears, not a big fat palm facing upward whining “you owe me because you have more than I do”. Your poor me liberal mantra is the exact reason the jobs have gone elsewhere, people have a desire to WORK, that is a word that the Demowhiners have forgotten, it’s so much easier to Whine and beg and demand, just because they have no skill set, no work ethic or anything positive other than the ability to W H I N E and constantly SAY: YOU OWE ME. I could care less whether you are a liberal or a conservative, I do care that I work and pay my taxes and I am so sick and fed up with beggars………..go get a job and shut up. I don’t owe you or yours a red copper cent and whether you like it or not our Country was founded on Godly Principles and our Money still has in GOD WE TRUST, not in Obama we trust or in Grants we trust or Demowhiners we trust. Then you allow the ILLEGALS to register to vote so you can have more power, but your freebies have broken our Country, free education, free health care, you cannot see the forest for the trees, you have a live for today mentality and that is why you always have a palm turned up whining, you spend what you have without thinking ahead. Demo-whiner, why don’t you go start your own country , but that wouldn’t work, because you wouldn’t have any working people to whine to and demand part of their rewards for working.
06/27/2012 at 5:41 pm |
I stand by my comment: “Loser!”
06/28/2012 at 12:45 pm |
Liberal democrat around the little village of Saline? Wow! I would think everyone there had conservative views since they are a very small country village and country villagers are thought of to be very docile and conservative, quiet people. Maybe you are a transplant from somewhere else.
06/28/2012 at 4:46 pm |
Have you ever heard of the Saline Lake off Highway 84 between Winnfield and Clarence? I like having a small place on the lake where I can enjoy my fishing and just sitting around irritating Reflubicans. I am from Jonesboro and just come down here for a week or so at a time.
06/29/2012 at 4:51 pm |
Yes, now I know that area to which you refer. At first I thought it was around Saline, but now I know it’s Saline Lake.
I am acquainted with some of the people there…..or, those that are left after the biggest landowner there cleaned the place up. So, maybe I can pinpoint who you are.
06/28/2012 at 12:37 pm |
The word is democrap, period!!!!
06/26/2012 at 9:18 pm |
Vote them all out from the police jurors to the president of the usa
06/27/2012 at 10:27 am |
If people would vote, it might help a lot. 18% turnout is not going to get it done. People are getting the government they deserve.
06/27/2012 at 10:31 am |
The best part of this scene from Casablanca, is the casino employee walking up with Louis Renault’s casino winnings immediately after his announcement of closure, and Louis thanking him as he accepts them. Exactly like Louisiana!
Earl Long said once: “One of these days people in Louisiana are going to get good government, and they ain’t gonna like it!” People gripe about gobvernment but they are not dissatisfied enough to vote, and they will not vote for anyone they think might cut off the goodies.
We are exactly like any other parasite: we will continue to feed off the host until we kill it, knowing all the time that is the end result and that we are going to die after the host does.
06/27/2012 at 11:04 am |
Please stop all this belly aching.
Your complaints are not changing the situation.
Just sit on back, sip on your cold sweet ice tea and relax.
All is well…repeat after me…All is well
Jonesboro is going to be okay.
So what if the town goes bankrupt and the lights are shut off…
We will still be okay…..What is all this messy fussing about?
Put your peace in the Lord!
06/27/2012 at 1:01 pm |
Read elsewhere that the CTIC Thompson reads these posts and at the meetings makes fun of what we say even though it may be true. Well, Mr. CTIC, it is my opinion, one that is shared by a large marjority of Jonesboro citizens that you are one stupid dude. You haven’t the ability to manage a town the size of Jonesboro and you have no understanding of the governmental process. From what I have heard coming from your own mouth, my guess is that your educational level is below that of a high school graduate and your IQ barely above a late autumn temperature in Jonesboro. Do us all a favor and quit and disappear before the town of Jonesboro goes completely under because of your mismanagement. You are not qualified for the job. Here is a great suggestion – at the next town meeting step aside and let Renee run things. She seems to have a mind of her own and can assess the situation and see what the town needs RIGHT F***ING NOW! Then the town can call a special election and put her in office and then we can watch things start to return to the positive for Jonesboro. Mr. CTIC, if you can’t read this maybe your man the Dildo can read it for you or messy and his friends (Smith and Wesson). Hey, once out of office you can hang around on Leon Drive with the other dudes. Happy Reading.
06/28/2012 at 6:47 am |
To Around Saline Lake: Sir, please refrain from personal attacks in your comments. Resorting to personal attacks against other commentators indicates you have no evidence to support your positions and are attempting to bully others into accepting your position. First, I do NOT support Ron Paul. Second, you asked for names of two communist countries and I provided five. Third, Harry Reid has refused to even allow any legislation passed by the House to be considered by the Senate, and the filibuster votes are to stop Reid’s Senate legislation to hike taxes. Fourth, the legislation for voluntary tax contributions was H.R. 5783, the “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is” Act! I have rebutted numerous points in your comments, but it is obvious that you are not open-minded and are only interested in pushing the progressive liberal agenda. I am an independent conservative interested in the truth, not a political ideology. Progressive liberals are attempting to implement failed Keynesian economic policies that call for massive tax hikes and massive government spending that have failed every time they’ve been implemented and will not work! Sir, there is simply not enough money to pay for the amount government is currently spending. The top 1% of American earners pay about 40% of all federal taxes, while the top 10% pay about 71%. The rich are already paying way more than their “fair share” when you consider that the bottom 50% pay only about 3% of federal taxes. Predictably, none of this will mean anything to you and you will retort with some snarky comment about how it’s all Bush’s fault and how great Obama is. Stop drinking the Kool-Aid and start thinking!
06/28/2012 at 11:59 am |
My “attacks” are singularly directed toward the CTIC Thompson, the two term ineffectual mayor of my hometown. You are real good at expression yourself, so why don’t you just educate me on his accomplishments. I am not attempting to sway anyone or to bully anyone into accepting my position. I am a liberal Democrat who is worried about the direction the Reflubicans wish to take our country. As I said before, and I truly mean it, you are great at expressing yourself so why don’t you take a moment and explain what the Flip Flopper intends to do as president. To my knowledge he has made no statement of policy, just a rant about how Obama can’t lead and doesn’t understand the people, etc. You certainly sound like a Ron Paul man, except for the fact that you haven’t said do away with foreign aid, something that I would like to see done (don’t go calling me an isolationist but I will accept being called a “let’s take care of America first” person. Maybe Rush Limbaugh is more to your liking. I don’t know. Glenn Beck? I don’t know. As for HR 5783 it was introduced on the floor of the House, initially, on April 14, 2008 during the 110th Congress and it died in committee. It was reintroduced on January 6, 2009 as HR 87 and again it died in committee. Now I will acknowledge that those two efforts took place when the Democrats controlled the House, but on April 14, 2011 it was reintroduced as HR 1514 and is now in committee. This House is controlled by the Reflubicans so why haven’t they voted it out of committe and had an up or down vote on the floor of the House? But the status of the bill or its origins have nothing to do with whether or not a citizen (and maybe even a non-citizen) can send money to the treasury and say “Here is a bit of money. Go use it as you see fit.” Again, I congratulate you on your ability to put your thoughts so eloquently on paper and I would like to know why it is alright for millionaries and corporations to pay no taxes at all. I don’t have the number at hand but it’s approaching one million, I do belive. I don’t blame Dubya for all of the problems but he did come into office to find that Slick Willy had left him a surplus, a surplus that Dubya spent and eight years later left Obama with a huge debt. I agree with economist who state that the recession began during Dubya’s term and that slowly we are recovering during Obama’s term. Bush went after Osama Bin Laden but gave up the hunt to go into Irag (uncessarily) in search of imaginary WMD’s and the cost of two wars (in dollars and lives) helped with the slid into economic crisis. There was a sign in Dallas a couple of years ago with Dubya’s picture on it asking “Do you miss me now.” Hell no! I tell you what – I’ll stay away from the Kool Aid if you will promise to watch your step in the barn.
06/28/2012 at 1:06 pm |
My what tit for tat between Cowhand and Around Saline Lake! But, I totally agree with Cowhand. Guess that makes me a Reflublican.
06/28/2012 at 4:36 pm |
me too sunnie! And darn proud of it!
06/29/2012 at 6:40 pm |
Yeah, it looks like Cowhand makes logical points while Around Saline Lake exhibits the usual Democrat nonsensical rants. Cowhand: give it up. Around Saline Lake is an idiot and everyone here thinks you’ve made your points well. He’s not worth arguing with.
06/29/2012 at 6:41 pm |
That about sums it up for me TEA_Party_Voter.
06/29/2012 at 6:52 pm |
Where are you in the tea bagging chain?
06/29/2012 at 6:50 pm |
The only point that he has made is his pointed head. Tea Bagger, get back to your bulls***ing tea bagging buddies.
07/03/2012 at 6:06 pm |
“Around Saline Lake”: Look, we all are blogging about one specific point. NOT ONE of us likes what is going on with the esteemed mayor but the one and only “Messy” and a very few others who will support the mayor……no matter what he does.
So, does what is happening in Jonesboro make you so ANGRY that you resort to using foul language on your blogs even though you do not support the highly anointed one?
We, the refublicans,…..in your words……..and Tea Party people, conservatives, & moderates can get our messages across without such ugly speech. Will you please refrain?
07/04/2012 at 5:42 pm |
You know, you’re right. Profanity often is out of place but not in this instance, Crap deserves crap and I feel that the CTIC is crap and I dish it out in large doses. I will not relent until that piece of crap is out of office. I was told that he reads these blogs and then makes fun of them at the meetings. Well, I am just making sure that he knows how how I feel. Basically, I have stopped using “reflubican” because of the attitude express by the do-nothing repugnicants (and Alexander is included in this mob beause he votes as he is told by the leadership) over losing the battle on health care. And our governor is going to refuse to implement the part about medicade, letting his citizens suffer and that dead beat from Kentucky says that 30,000,000 people without insurance is not an issue. Enough said. I have stayed off this blog for a while and I’ll just go back to f***ing read it from time to time and making comments ever now and then. See Ya, you tea bagging, conservative Repugnicant!
06/29/2012 at 7:45 am |
Well, I don’t live anywhere near Jonesboro, and I’m thankful for that. Thompson is your problem and you are welcome to him. No point arguing with you as you fulfilled my prophecy of blaming Bush and praising Obama. I don’t guess it would do any good to restate that I’m not a Ron Paul supporter. In fact, I can’t stand the guy and I think he’s dangerous. He peddles a bunch of nonsense to his followers through a paid subscription. You are a progressive liberal and that makes it pretty obvious that your mind is made up, so more power to you.
06/29/2012 at 10:00 am |
Dubya is not the cause of all problems but he certainly had his hand in a lot of things that were bad for this country. My personal view is that he, the Dickster, and Rummie are war criminals for the torture they inflicted upon the detainees. We signed the convention, promising not to do those things (waterboarding, etc) yet his craphead AG said (to please Dubya) that it was alright to use them. Dubya ain’t missed but his mistakes linger on. Answer me this, and this is my last time on this page, “Why weren’t any people from the Bush administration called before the committee that held Holder in contempt?” Why weren’t agents from the Arizona office called? I asked someone this AM this question “wouldn’t it be poetic justice if one of the weapons found NEAR Terry’s body were from the Wide Receiver Program run by Dubya and his criminals? As for Rodney, if you know his so well, what happened in 1979?
06/29/2012 at 12:27 pm |
If you absolutely promise this will be your last time on this page, I’ll provide an answer. No Bush Administration officials were called because the committee is investigating Eric Holder’s assertions to the committee that no one had any knowledge of the Fast & Furious scandal, which they later had to walk back due to new evidence coming to light. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed on Holder’s watch with guns allowed to fall into criminal hands through a program greatly expanded by Holder’s people despite warnings from experienced agents. Read the contempt resolution for yourself at: http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/6-19-12-Fast-and-Furious-Contempt-Report.pdf. Now you have promised not to post here again, so try not to live up to all my expectations of progressive liberals.
06/29/2012 at 3:04 pm |
I’ve changed my mind (a tactic well known to Repuginants, especially the Flip Flopper) and have decided to continue to post on this site just to piss off people like you. You didn’t answer my question about what happened with Rodney in 1979.
06/29/2012 at 3:34 pm |
Chappaquiddick incident????