Charging for content will be a huge failure for the media

More and more news sites are thinking about charging for content. The newspaper industry is looking at dwindling circulation and assuming that their growing online readership will provide the path to profitability. They might be right, but they are heading in the wrong direction.

Online news sites benefit from type-in traffic and links from sites like Yahoo, Google, and the Drudge Report. Once sites require subscriptions, those links will disappear, along with the resulting traffic. What they’ll be left with is a small group of loyal readers willing to pay a reasonable fee for news that they could readily read at one of several free web sites. Let’s also remember that those links provided by news aggregators brought in visitors who clicked ads. When the traffic goes down, the ad revenue will probably follow. After all, do you want to advertise on a site that isn’t viewed much in comparison to its peers? » read more

I thought we didn’t need another stimulus

Maybe I’m wrong, but I thought the economic stimulus bill signed by Barack Obama was sufficient. Months after it passed, it received criticism from many conservatives as the unemployment rate rose. The Obama Administration and other liberals stated that this criticism was incorrect, since much of the money hadn’t been spent. We were assured by these liberals that the stimulus was indeed successful, and may have rescued us from the brink of depression. What has changed?

Despite the alleged success of the first $787 billion stimulus, we might be looking at yet another round of excessive government spending. This plan would be financed by TARP money that is being paid back by banks and a new financial transactions tax which could raise $150 billion per year. » read more

U.S. Senator Max Baucus nominates girlfriend for U.S. Attorney

Senate Finance Committee chairman Max Baucus was dating staffer Melodee Hanes after he and his wife separated. She stepped down and was later nominated by Baucus to be the U.S. Attorney from Montana. Shortly after her nomination, hanes remove her name from consideration, and is now working in the Justice Department.

Max Baucus has defended his decision to nominate Hanes by focusing on her credentials. I have no reason to doubt Melodee Hanes’ credentials, and I wouldn’t be surprised if her qualifications met or exceeded those of other nominees. With that said, the nomination was inappropriate, to say the least. » read more

New York Representative Maurice Hinchey is delusional

New York Representative Maurice Hinchey has an unusually idiotic conspiracy theory. He believes that George W. Bush intentionally prevented U.S. soldiers from capturing Osama Bin Laden in December, 2001. Here is Congressman Hinchey’s twisted logic:

“Look what happened with regard to our invasion into Afghanistan, how we apparently intentionally let bin Laden get away,” Hinchey said during an interview on MSNBC.

“That was done by the previous administration because they knew very well that if they would capture al Qaeda, there would be no justification for an invasion in Iraq,” the Democratic congressman continued. “There’s no question that the leader of the military operations of the U.S. called back our military, called them back from going after the head of al Qaeda.”

When host David Shuster followed up to ask if Hinchey really thought Bush “deliberately let Osama bin Laden get away,” the congressman responded: “Yes, I do.” » read more

Warning signs should have prevented the murder of four police officers

Four Lakewood, WA police officers were murdered in a coffee shop while preparing to begin their shift. The suspect, Maurice Clemmons, walked in and allegedly shot all four officers and left. Police are currently searching for Clemmons.

When violent crimes of this nature occur locally, I normally check out the suspect’s criminal record. More often than not, there is a list of previous offenses with lengthy sentences that were never served. Unfortunately, this case is no different. Clemmons has a long criminal history in both Arkansas and Washington. Clemmons was recently released on bail for a pending charge of child rape, and he is also facing another 7 felony accounts. In addition to these charges, he had a lengthy criminal history in Arkansas. Here’s a summary: » read more

Pay-by-the-mile auto insurance sounds good to me

I don’t drive much, and being a frugal guy, I am always looking for ways to save money. When shopping for auto insurance, I always wished I could find a plan that rewarded me for not driving much. Think about it: All else being equal, a person who drives 1,000 miles per year is less likely to get into a car accident than someone who drives 15,000 miles per year. This business model makes sense, but is nonexistent.

Auto insurance is based on risk. The riskier a driver is, the more they pay. Insurance companies look at a myriad of demographic factors such as age, marital status, and place of residence. They also consider credit reports, driving history, and the type of car you drive. If they are going to consider all these facts, then why not take the amount of miles driven into account? Again, fewer miles would mean fewer accidents and fewer claims. » read more