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You really don't need to restate your position. It doesn't change my answer and I strongly disagree with you that taxes are "dues". Nobody asked me if I wanted to join the club, and congress sure doesn't listen if I scream that the dues are to high for me to pay! Now I can restate: Taxes should be not be used to redistribute wealth or for social programs period. Here's an example of spending gone mad in our society: For L.A. homeless: a gym, movies, and hair salon The city opens a $17 million shelter Monday amid controversy that funds would have been better spent on affordable housing. By Daniel B. Wood | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor LOS ANGELES – The modernist concrete-and-steel structure rises in the shadow of gleaming downtown skyscrapers, looking like a new museum or corporate headquarters. Yet its identity is given away by where it stands: in the heart of a 55-square block area of aging single-room-occupancy hotels, where homeless men, women, and children crouch in cardboard boxes, push shopping carts, or lean in doorways. Opening Monday and trumpeted proudly by city officials is the Midnight Mission - and one of the nation's plushest homeless shelters. The $17 million state-of-the-art facility boasts a full-sized gymnasium, library, playroom, hair salon, education center, and professional kitchen. The shelter is the city's latest effort to address one of its most visible and resistant social problems: the more than 6,000 people who live on the streets. But the fanfare surrounding the new mission also raises questions increasingly being faced by cities coast to coast. At the same time that some homeless advocates embrace such new facilities as the best way to attract homeless people into counseling and job-placement programs, others openly ask whether the money could have been better spent in finding more permanent solutions. "Since the late 1980s, America has built a mammoth infrastructure of shelters and the number of homeless has gone up, not down. It's a bit of the if-you-build-it-they-will-come phenomenon at work," says Nan Roman, president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness. As Ms. Roman and other national officials see it, the lack of affordable housing is what needs to be addressed. "That same $17 million could have gone a long way toward creating homes and jobs," says Bob Erlenbusch, vice president of the board for the National Coalition for the Homeless. "Affordable housing is what these people need, not a way to institutionalize their temporary status." Blue skies, Jim

Congrats! You'll start feeling better and better. Blue skies, Jim

Ummhhh....by creative accounting do you mean the Enron kind? It's easy. Create a business plan that shows an reasonable growth rate. Then project a huge increase due to the increased load capacity in going from a 182 to an Otter. Make sure it is a Super Otter so you can project 3-4 loads per hour at say 18 jumpers per load. That's reasonable. Just omit the fact that there are not enough jumpers in the area to support the projections. Then take it to your local banker who doesn't know your business, aircraft or jumpers! Should be a slam dunk! Blue skies, Jim

My apologies! I thought you were at a large public. But I even private schools get some type of funding or research grants from Uncle Sam. Would be interesting to know the percentage. Blue skies, Jim

You can have mine! Blue skies, Jim

Yep I do. No names, but the person wears Navy and Orange!!!! Blue skies, Jim

And that Professor is the real problem! The tax system should be used to run and defend the country. Not as a vehicle to redistribute wealth, impose political social programs or any of the other beltway BS by those who know better how to spend our dollars. Let communities take care of themselves. If there were less handouts to everyone, individuals and corporations, and tax exempts including colleges and universities, each would have to work for a living/source of income. Or does your University not take government loans and research grants. Seems to me your involved in feeding off the system to a greater extent that most of us! Blue skies, Jim

It happens to a lot of us! I flunked several levels. On one I did the same thing you did. Saw the pull signal but thought she was telling me "ok". The instructor was trying to get me to pull early since the spot was very long...wanted to save me the long walk back. Walked anyway and had to repeat the jump. On another I flipped on my back, sorta head down. I'd been there before and arching worked, but for some reason this time I thought it didn't. I see the intructor tracking down to me, I glance at the altimeter and see it's pull time, wave off and pull. As the pilot chute goes between my legs, I think "Holy shit! This may hur.........". Never saw an instructor smoking so fast as when I walked back into the manifest/video area. Years later I ran into her at Skydive Houston, got a big hug, and when she found out how many jumps I had she said "I never thought you would graduate!" Guess I almost got the bowling talk! My problem was I didn't want to screw up in front of the instructor. I wanted everything to be perfect every time, but couldn't fly good enough to keep stuff from happening. I put all the pressure on myself. Plus I knew Trent was slightly behind me in his lessons and I wanted to stay ahead of him. Silly stuff to be worried about when I should have been trying to relax and have a good time while learning what was being taught. Blue skies, Jim

I saw that, but I'll be in Perris for the 100 ways that weekend. Thanks everyone. Blue skies, Jim

QTPi from Aggieland is going. Blue skies, Jim

I've had so many different lives! Right now I'm a CPA doing consulting work for the Fortune 100/500 companies. Aleve for all the jumping aches and pains that an old guy gets! Blue skies, Jim

N/A

Will be in Bartlesville OK starting on May 1st for six months. Any DZs with Otters or King Airs within a reasonable driving distance of Tulsa? I see a lot of Cessna 182 DZs which are OK, but 13.5k in 12-20 min is a lot better. Don't mind driving 100-150 miles. Blue skies, Jim

Fly free forever... Jim MACV Team 46 68-69

Have you landed off and ridden back in the back of a pickup? I've been picked up by passersby who had a lot of stuff in the floor and bed of the truck. Battery acid would be possible in that situation. I saw another situation where someone spilled something in the packing room on a canopy that almost melted the fabric. Luckly it was notice before it was packed and the panel was replaced by PD. Sometime later a normal series of openings or a single hard openings could have stressed the weaken fabric and caused the failure. Blue skies, Jim

I'll be there with wmw999 (Wendy), Leah and Debbie G from Spaceland. I'll be going back to OK between BWC and Perris 100s and I think they are all going back to TX. Bill Von and Amy are usually there too. Blue skies, Jim

Ok, so our difference is that we define "the government" two different ways. I can buy that. I knew there would be some common ground somewhere that we could start from. Thanks Bill. See you at Perris. Blue skies, Jim

Most were closely held with a select group of friends and yes some were definitely unwise. Blue skies, Jim

Mouth knows everyone! Blue skies, Jim

See now we disagree about this too! Wendy allows me to jump with her once in a while. Blue skies, Jim

I have intentionally tried to stay out of SC. Although I disagree politically with a lot of things said on here, I do not personally dislike any of the individuals who have different views. In fact I have jumped on big ways with two of the people I seem to often disagree with and even said hello to them although they may have not known who I was. I will defend their right to disagree with me, just like I hope they would defend my rights. We are an open society that is politically freer than most and this can lead to some very stimulating, challenging conversations. Thanks to all for letting me particpate here! Blue skies, Jim

Yep, me too! I thought for a second I had not actually seen the post in the forum I had clicked. Oh well the reflexes slow down when you get old!!! Blue skies, Jim

Billvon's spreadsheet is here Now it makes sense. Couldn't figure out how the winds impacted the calcs in the abbreviated version. Thanks. Blue skies, Jim

No thanks, I think I'll stay here and fund the military, the police and firemen, EMT's, highway system and private schools; the church of my choice and a small amount for the running of the house and senate. Everyone else is on their own. No matching funds for political campaigns, no money for pork barrel politics, no money for the arts, etc., etc. It is not the federal governments job to spread the wealth, or meddle in local affairs. They should be limited to protecting the country. When this happens, maybe you will move! Blue skies, Jim

What's fair got to do with it. I should be able to keep what I earned and have the freedom to give it to who I want. I don't want to support abortion, gay rights, public transportation, save the snail darters, support political parties, pay farmers not to grow crops, or pay for some lazy bum to sit on his ass and live better than someone working, but only earning minimum wage. Blue skies, Jim