Goathead roundup

Local news:
Someone in the Boise metro area has won $1 million on a Powerball ticket; the Lottery Commission is still sorting out who the rightful owner is.

The State Legislature is close to passing a bill making English the "official" language of Idaho. Governor Butch says he’ll support it.

Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is in Boise tonight for a $1000-a-plate fundraiser dinner. "The people in this country want a person of faith to run this country," Romney said.
I thought that was George W’s line…

It seems that the local Tour Train, which takes tourists through downtown Boise and through neighborhoods with historic homes, has been running illegally for almost 30 years, according to the Idaho Transportation Department. The train has been "mistakenly licensed" by ITD all this time. So, the new Tour Train owner has taken his case to the State Legislature in hopes of reprieve.

Idaho is ranked at the bottom nationally in day care standards. But the Legislature rejected a bill to encourage stronger educational standards. They also rejected a bill requiring more stringent day care regulations. "What can we do to keep mom at home?" said Iona Republican Rep. Tom Loertscher as part of this debate. Yet, our august legislators slashed state Medicaid funding for low income single parents with children, and have required "welfare mothers" to get a job to keep their benefits.

This same learned body also decided that local communities don’t have the right to vote on local option taxes to fund, for example, mass transit.

The jackpot for Wednesday’s lottery drawing is $165 million. Think I’ll go buy a few tickets.

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The imbecility of men is always inviting the impudence of power.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal.
~Emma Goldman

Politicians are like diapers. They both need changing regularly and for the same reason.
~Author Unknown