Rural School District transport costs.

Knowing the already existing troubles for the school districts in the area, fuel cost increases will play havoc with spread out districts. One of consolidation's truism's is that economies of scale will provide greater opportunities for children. Does the data support this? One of the few studies examining this shows it does not work for rural districts because transport costs do not allow the economy of scale solution to the problem; transport costs eat up the supposed savings. To quote from this study:"As the number of children per school multiplied five-fold between 1930 and 1996, the per pupil transportation cost actually doubled". What does this mean for our districts in the time of near 100% fuel price increases, both for transport and heating? What will the solution be for this area, already hit by other problems?

An old table. Yes, I know my tiny readership just ran or fell asleep. But being a scientist, I like numbers, for they tell us something. This is from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service from two years ago, with fuel around 2.50 a gallon. I use it for one reason, to show average rural miles driven. Then there is this:

It is an average fuel price graph from August 2007 to June of this year, courtesy of AAA. Rural area's simply have to use more fuel. This is especially important for our area's school districts, rural residents or lower income people. The important thing is the budget percentage transportation takes up as costs go up. Most are still in a daze over the increases, but are either changing behavior( smaller cars, driving less), or have simply absorbed the cost. But my worry is for institutions such as already struggling school districts, hospitals or government services. In many ways, these costs are fixed, and at what point does the child per mile transport cost overwhelm our school districts? It is in the next budget rounds this will take hold, and I do not envy anyone trying to solve it...I will look at home heating oil next....

And this is victory? ( No, just a little less violent)

One of the news themes yesterday, via administration and military spokesman(also called mouthpieces for propaganda) was " victory is within sight", with qualifications of course. So first to Juan Cole for a small but realistic run down of the latest daily violence in Iraq, where " bombings, assassinations and kidnappings (still)occur daily", oft ignored if no Americans are involved ( only Americans are human of course). An ignored piece about an ignored country was in the New York Times Magazine, former U.S. Afghan narcotics official Tom Schweich opines on Afghanistan's production of Heroin..,probably now the world's largest producer, and how the U.S. and other government's are ignoring it.

And this is success?

The great Cracker is destroyed:

For those of you not in the know, the great Eucharist cracker destruction is over. Observe the rusty nail through the wafer. P.Z. Myers has destroyed the body of Christ. The comments from religious loons are the scariest...read on here

I went biking tonight down the Mesabi Trail on the backside of Hibbing, hoping to find single track ( I prefer Mountain Biking). I did find some places, but not as much as I had hoped for. I did see some great views and alot of people riding though; Here is a shot of one view:

A gutsy column from Dennis Anderson in the Strib today. What he is referring to, is the LCCMR Conservation Plan; This will be overall guidance document for conservation in Minnesota. Unless you are a policy geek or interested in resources, do not try to read it. As a guidance document, it will speak of targeting resources, etc...etc... All kinds of vague pronouncements. From this agency policies, proposals and grant dollars will be targeted. But as Dennis Anderson points out, it fails in concrete action, and maintains much of the status quo. Having been a partial participant in the process, I can state that amazingly obvious items are left out. One is energy, which ultimately rules our lives; the vast majority is often wasted on such things as left on appliances, light bulbs and a million automobiles stuck in traffic, or people commuting 50 miles. There is much about biofuel goals, but nothing about the fundamental problem: reducing the inefficient miles driven by individuals in 4000 pound vehicles. Instead, we will subsidize our way to a destroyed landscape and bare soils to keep the cars going. Politics can also play a role. Taxpayer funded subsidies to such things as Excelsior energy, when simple, proven conservation measures such as insulation, LED or fluorescent bulbs, public transport and community design would nullify the need for an unproven, expensive and dirty gift to certain local elites via the public coffers. Forcing developers and planners to account for energy and transportation impacts ( oh my, the end of rampant subsidized suburbanization and strip malls). Or, realistically assessing the community impacts of extraction industries. Why the last one? Because extraction industries are temporary, but the effects on people and the environment aren't. If anyone understands this, it is us in the north. Our communities suffer at the whims of the world economy while the landscape is destroyed, and we are left holding the bill and the bag, the bag being overburden piles, pollution, a disturbed landscape and communities that suffer from the social implosion when it is all upended. Our cities, out townships and our rural places suffer. Very few of us can afford the lake places to escape to as do outsiders as prices go through the roof . Why is this important? Because what we allow now will decide what we have later. The cost plus boom of the 60's and 70's left us with over built communities, no resources and local officials suffering the delusion that all would be alright forever. In 1982, we paid for it, and we still pay for it now. And now, as we sell off lakeshore, fill wetlands, build roads to nowhere or handout millions to pie in the sky schemes (Excelsior) in an attempt to bolster communities built for one purpose: extraction. It is, ultimately, a political document, built to make goals and not offend those wanting cash and quick profits. It does not say, however, that we must state what the limits of space and behavior are, and that is the fundamental problem. If we continue to extract, fill, cut,drain, or plow over our best farm soils, or build our communities on unsustainable resources, we are left with what we have now: Horrifying suburbs like Coon Rapids; wasted, polluted landscapes like Redore outside of Hibbing, or devastated communities like rural St. Louis County suffering an economic depression with the end of logging. Only outsiders or businesses supplying tourists and cabin owners are able to reap the benefits, and those are minimal at best, with jobs that pay little, offering nothing for human development other than servitude to the arrogant wealthy. ( I have been a janitor, a nurses aide and a maintenance man so I know this well). Blaming environmentalists and others is blaming the weatherman for a tornado warning. The warning is not just about biodiversity or species, but about communities and what actually works,. When you sell your soul for 16 an hour and an atv, you will be chained to needing that forever, and is that minuscule payoff worth a a destroyed landscape where no one wants to live and community implosions when everything shuts down? That is what this document fails to address; nowhere does it say no. To anyone. It will direct grants to encourage natural shorelines, but nowhere will it say " shoreline alteration for development and access for pontoon boats will now be regulated", or " Wetland alteration other than fundamentally needed development will not be allowed."
It is statements like that which are needed.

In honor of KSTP's taxpayer protection happy funtime charade, I am going to remind them and everyone else of the rest of the state's help to good old Eagan, Minnesota( Northwest's Headquarters and our governor's hometown...oh my) a few years ago. Let's talk subsidies:

1989 MARCH: Gary Wilson and Al Checchi approach NWA about acquiring the company. Other investors make bids.

1989 JUNE: NWA agrees to sell to a group of investors including Wilson, Checchi, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and others for $3.65 billion.

1989 SEPTEMBER: NWA's CEO, Steve Rothmeier and several others resign and are replaced by Checchi and his team.

1991 MAY: Minnesota Governor Arne Carlson and Al Checchi announce a tentative agreement for the construction of two NWA maintenance bases in the state. Legislation passes authorizing public subsidies for NWA.

1991 DECEMBER: The Legislative Commission on Planning and Fiscal Policy approves, by a vote of 11-7, an $838 million financial assistance package for Northwest. The package consists of a loan of $270 million from the Metropolitan Airports Commission and more than $500 million in construction financing for maintenance bases in Duluth and Hibbing. The construction bonds are delayed by a lawsuit.

1992 MARCH: State officials sign a $761 million public financing package for NWA. The original $838 million figure is reduced for a number of reasons.

1992 APRIL: NWA receives the loan from the Metropolitan Airports Commission and gives half of the $270 million to Bankers Trust, its primary lender.

1992 NOVEMBER: NWA's six unions agree in principle to accept $900 million in employee concessions over the next 3 years. NWA seeks a $300 million loan. KLM Royal Dutch Airline, a part owner of NWA, and Bankers Trust, pledge $100 million if other lenders will commit to the rest.

1992 DECEMBER: NWA executives announce the final approval of a tentative $2.2 billion restructuring plan that includes a $250 million emergency loan, $340 million in debt deferral, and cancellation of $3.5 billion in orders for new aircraft. Industry experts say that cancellation of orders for new aircraft threatens the plans for construction of the maintenance bases.

1993 JANUARY: The final piece of the $2.2 billion financial restructuring plan is the concessions agreement with the unions. In return for concessions, NWA unions demand 80 percent equity in the company. More than 1000 NWA employees are laid off.

1993 SPRING: Concessions discussions continue between Northwest and the various unions.

1993 JUNE: NWA warns unions that it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection within two or three weeks if contract concessions are not promptly approved.

And, this was all about debt from a purchase; a shell game. Their troubles came from the debt from the purchase. Nothing else.

I will not add the rest of the almost two decades of subsidies the south metro has received from Minnesota taxpayers, or the U.S tax payers in the 2001 bailout.

Perhaps they can be quiet now.

This is rather funny...faith healing and cursing exist elsewhere than this continent. So hop on over to Rationalist International and see some fun and scary stuff. Two of them are challenges to people with supposed magic powers, a hypnotist and a tantra. Others show the dark side..threats, murders committed to satisfy bizarre and insane beliefs, attacks for religious reasons, all the usual craziness when mass irrationality exists.