 |
Strike The Root |
|
There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. |
|
|
|
|
Strike The Root |
|
There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. |
|
|
|
|
Federal
Register Watch by Mike Powers November
11-15, 2002 What
freedoms have you lost this week? The
Federal Register is the official daily publication for Rules, Proposed
Rules, and Notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as
Executive Orders and other Presidential Documents.
This column attempts to summarize the highlights (or lowlights)
of the Federal Register during the preceding week. Thanks to the Veteran’s Day holiday, we were not subjected to any new intrusive and burdensome federal regulations for an entire day! Hooray! The
Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements – Import
restrictions on foreign goods The
federal government establishes limits on textile imports from fifteen
different countries for 2003. This
is how the Bush administration chooses to stimulate the sluggish economy
– by preventing American consumers from purchasing the goods and
services of their choice at the best available price.
Protectionist policies such as this do far more harm than good
– yet it’s unlikely that American textile manufacturers or the labor
unions are complaining. Energy
Department – Orders
granting energy companies the authority to import and export natural gas Energy companies must receive approval from the Office of Fossil Energy in order to import or export natural gas. So much for free trade. http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2002/02-28895.htm
Federal
Communications Commission – Implementation of the Satellite Home Viewers Improvement Act of 1999 This notice revises regulations adopted by the FCC to implement the Satellite Home Viewers Improvement Act (SHVIA), which aims to place satellite carriers on “equal footing” with cable TV operators – by imposing additional rules and regulations. Instead of allowing the marketplace to determine the winners and losers in the subscriber television market, the FCC insists on intervening in the process. http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2002/02-28894.htm Presidential
Documents – The
President declares On
These
are the words of the President who has orchestrated possibly the
greatest expansion of government and restriction of freedoms in a
generation. The legacy of
George W. Bush so far includes the largest federal budget in history,
the threat of an expensive and never-ending “War on Terror,”
creation of massive new government agencies (Transportation Security
Administration and the Office of Homeland Security), federalization of
thousands of private security screeners, tariffs on steel and lumber
imports, billions in airline subsidies, restrictions of civil liberties
through passage of the USA Patriot Act and other legislation, and
colossal expansion of the federal role in government-run public
education. http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2002/02-29124.htm Employment
Standards Administration – Minimum
wages for federally assisted construction projects General
wage determinations issued by the Secretary of Labor mandate that
contractors on federally assisted construction projects must pay
laborers and mechanics the “prevailing rates” in accordance with the
Davis-Bacon Act. Prevailing
rates are minimum wage and fringe benefits based upon those received by
laborers and mechanics employed on construction projects of a similar
character in the specified localities. A
relic of the Depression era and the burgeoning labor movement, the
Davis-Bacon Act was approved in 1931 with the intent of favoring white
workers who belonged to white-only unions over non-unionized black
workers. The act continues
to have discriminatory effects today by favoring mostly white, skilled
and unionized construction workers over disproportionately black,
unskilled and non-unionized construction workers. http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2002/02-28933.htm Fish
and Wildlife Service – Proposed
designation of critical habitat for the endangered The
Fish and Wildlife Service, a branch of the Department of the Interior,
is proposing to designate 99,433 acres in the Based
on the agency’s description, critical habitat “receives protection
from destruction or adverse modification through required consultation
under section 7 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) with regard to
actions carried out, funded, or authorized by a Federal agency.” In
other words, private property rights become non-existent.
Any land use of private property within the critical habitat area
will require government approval, and most uses will be ruled out. According to the study, the direct costs for establishing the habitat will cost from $1.2 million to $1.9 million over a 10-year period. Even worse, indirect costs are estimated to approach $500 million! http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2002/02-29049.htm |
