I know you can’t wait for this. Were you up all night following the returns from Marseilles as well? Anyway, a reader points out that I missed a couple of interesting facts. The new mayor of Paris is openly gay, which must make him the most powerful openly gay official in the world. Also: the right actually won a majority of the vote in Paris, but lost because of its distribution in various arrondissements. No Gore-style whining though. And no “chads pendants” either.
AGONY FOR ECSTASY: Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, along comes a proposal to make shipping and selling of Ecstasy punishable to the same extent as powder cocaine. What are those guys smoking? The penalty for selling 100 grams of MDMA may shortly be the same as that for selling 100 grams of heroin. What’s the rationale for this insanity? “The damage this drug can produce is significant and long-term,” Robert Mueller, acting assistant attorney-general, said. “We have an opportunity to stop this growing problem before it becomes an epidemic, and the proposal put forth by the commission would very much help.” There is no evidence that the damage this drug does is any worse than eating McDonalds french fries every day; no evidence that it is addictive; no evidence that it does anything very bad except allow people to have a great time. An epidemic? Could we please ban this metaphor for everything bar infectious diseases? Mueller, it turns out, was once chief homicide officer for the District of Columbia, so he’s no stranger to pursuing policies that seem to have no effect whatsoever. I guess that qualifies him to pursue the drug war as well as anyone else.
BIG BABIES: I’m no economist but I’m relieved that Greenspan didn’t panic and do what the markets want today. There’s nothing in the underlying state of the economy to warrant a huge interest rate cut. These stock-brokers who have never known anything but an incredible bull had their customary hissy-fit, but they really need to get over themselves. It’s not the role of the Fed to protect investors from a bubble; it’s the role of the Fed to keep inflation low. I’m glad Greenspan sees this. It’s good to have a grown-up around somewhere.
SPEAKING OF D.C. GOVERNMENT: I finally disposed of a three-year tax battle with what passes for the District’s revenue office. In 1998, I paid $19,000 of income tax to the District. For that, I got: a joke of a police force, the most expensive and worst public education system in the country, and streets that make downtown Lagos look smooth. But never mind. I’m used to the joys of living in a city controlled by one party for generations. Six months later, I got a letter from D.C. telling me that they weren’t sure, but had I paid my taxes last year? The envelope stated: THIS IS NOT A TAX BILL. I wrote back saying I had indeed paid my taxes, and wondered how an office could mislay a check for $19,000. A few months later, I got another letter saying that I had definitely not paid my taxes and that my bill was now around $22,000. I wrote back explaining that I had already paid them and written a letter to that effect. Six months later, I get another letter, telling me a lien was being placed on my house to recover $24,000 in unpaid taxes. I mailed them a copy of my bank-statement showing the $19,000 paid, the number of the check, the number of the account, my social security number and so on. No response. Six months later, I get a call from the D.C. office informing me that a lien had now been placed on my condo and that my credit record was being damaged, and that I owed close to $27,000. I blew a gasket. The lady on the phone had no records of any of the by-then three letters I had sent, or indeed any materials relevant to the case but her instructions to call me. She was nice enough, her calm demeanor suggesting that this was nothing new. I finally went in to my bank to ask them to fax a Xerox of the cashed check to the D.C. Treasurer’s office. The bank manager smiled. This was the second time that day he had had to do this. He does this dozens of times a month! The check, with a big stamp on the back showing it had been cashed by D.C. in December 1998, was faxed last Friday to the D.C. Treasurer. No word yet. And I’m supposed to be against a tax cut?
The Dish 