The Iowa Electronic Market began its 2004 Presidential Market yesterday. Right now, Bush is ahead of Kerry.
Wisconsin School Finance Reform Proposal
The Governor’s Task Force on Educational Excellence is evidently poised to suggest that the state fund schools by:
- Increase the state sales tax to 6% (from 5%) and reduce property taxes by 20% (I’ll believe that when I see it)
- Eliminate the QEO (Qualified Economic Offer)
- Increase Class size reduction funding to $2,500 per child
- Reimburse school districts at a higher rate for educating high-cost special education students.
Amy Hetzner summarizes the proposal.
I think that school funding should include:
- Sales tax reform (newspapers, advertising – are currently not taxed)
- Increase in annual vehicle fees, reflecting the cost of a auto and the fuel efficiency
- Increased Federal Funding via reform of the Social Security tax so that all wage income is taxed, not just the first $87,600.
The Promised Land: Las Vegas?
Dean E. Murphy writes about Seekers, Drawn to the Promised Land in Las Vegas.
Restore the Owens River?
Years ago, while living in San Francisco, I visited the Owens Valley (Eastern Sierra). The Valley, decimated by the LA Department of Water & Power may now see a flowing river, according to this article by Rene Sanchez.
The 70’s/early 80’s are back….
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Without question, the 70’s/early 80’s are back. This car, an early 1980’s Oldsmobile Cutlass, seen on a recent Saturday, morning confirms it.
Farmer’s Market Bounty
Gorgeous flowers from the Dane County Farmer’s Market.
Recent Restaurants
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A few restaurants that are worth the trip:
- Mataam Fez: Denver [Moroccan, well worth it]
- The Tropical Reef: Naples, FL [Seafood – small & quite good]
- Sa-Bai Thong: Madison [Thai]
- Wild Ginger: Denver [Thai]
National Identity: Making Pizza Delivery More Efficient (!Not)
This email is floating around: ordering pizza in 2015. Let’s hope it never comes to this. (You should support the Electronic Frontier Foundation)
A Wet Madison Marathon
The 2004 Mad City Marathon….. was wet:
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I summarized the event via a Quicktime Movie with 250+ images and the music of Sigur Ros… (28MB) Well worth it!
Madison Airport “Leaking Passengers”
I’ve written a bit about Madison’s air service. Marv Balousek writes today about Madison “leaking” passengers to Milwaukee and Chicago. Leaking means passengers driving to other airports in an effort to obain lower fares. Airport Director Brad Livingston cited one example, Orlando:
115,142 people flew to Orlando, Fla., last year from the Dane County Airport’s market area, just 59,024 or 51.3 percent flew from the Madison airport. Orlando was the airport’s most popular destination.
This is not a big surprise. Visit to travelocity.com and search a number of city pairs from Madison to Orlando, Austin, San Francisco, Boise, Denver and other major markets.
In some cases, fares are attractive from Madison, others they are not. (Madison to Minneapolis is a great example): on June 2, 2004 a typical business roundtrip (fly up at 7:00a.m. and return around 6:00p.m.> Northwest has a nonstop fare of $403 plus taxes and fees. Interestingly, on the same day, Southwest flies from Dallas to Houston (a similar distance) for a roundtrip fare of $197.20 (planning ahead will save money).
There are a couple of reasons for this discrepency: Northwest has no competition on Madison-Minneapolis flights; while Southwest does from Dallas to Houston. There’s also a philosophical difference between Northwest’s business approach (charge the highest prices possible) and Southwest’s (let’s grow traffic by charging low, friendly fares).
Finally, the only time major airlines reduce fares and increase frequency is when they are faced with low fare competition.
Southwest is the only game changer for Madison…