Author Archives: floegel

Set of Priorities

4/13/2006 – 10:23 am

A quarter century ago, when I began purchasing cigarettes and gasoline in significant quantities, a pack of smokes and a gallon of gas went for about the same price – 65 or 70 cents. Last week, a gallon gas was selling for about $2.65 in Vermont and while I was filling up, I noticed a […]

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The Rutland Resolution

4/6/2006 – 10:36 am

Grim though the evening news may be these days, perhaps we are turning a corner. Perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel. Not in Iraq or the federal budget or the trade deficit, but in the streets. On March 25, Los Angeles played host to the “Gran Marcha,” the largest street protest […]

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Lesson Learned

3/30/2006 – 12:05 pm

Vermont is the most progressive state in the union, which is a sad commentary on the state of America’s progressives. Spain, which endured four decades of fascist dictatorship in the 20th century, has a national law permitting same-sex marriage, in many parts of America; same-sex marriage is seen as a portent of the apocalypse. Vermont […]

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Privatization, Inc.

3/23/2006 – 11:45 am

When George W. Bush announced his intention to be president, the U.S. had a budget surplus, thanks to Bill Clinton. Mr. Bush said if he was elected, he’d cut taxes, to give that money back to citizens. Mr. Bush was elected and did cut taxes. He didn’t cut spending and soon the surplus was gone […]

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Crunch Time

3/16/2006 – 12:28 pm

Tuesday is the vernal equinox, which in Iran is celebrated as the new year. The Iranian government was hoping to kick the year off with the opening of a new oil bourse, or market. Currently, there are two oil markets in the world, the New York Mercantile Exchange and the ICE Futures Exchange in London. […]

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Home of the Brave?

3/9/2006 – 10:46 am

Greetings from Vermont, home of the B-2 bomber. That’s right: hippy-dippy Vermont; bluest of the blue states, manufactures B-2 bombers. So does gay-friendly Massachusetts. So does California, the host of Hollywood. Somewhere near you is home of the B-2 bomber, too, if you’re reading this in the U.S. In fact, parts of the B-2 bomber […]

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South of the Border

3/2/2006 – 3:31 pm

Oaxaca, Mexico – Mornings are warm here in the capital city of the southern Mexican state of the same name. Mid-day is hot, driving the gringos to seek cool drinks in the shade, hydrating frut juice if they´re smart – most drink beer. Oaxaca (pronounced wa-HA-ca) is 5,000 feet above sea level, yet it is […]

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