Hank Kalet

A day at the beach can do wonders for the psyche. After reading and reporting on so much violence and deceit (i.e., the Middle East, American politics, etc.), it was nice to just hang out in Long Beach Island, wade into the ocean up to my waist (the temperature was a frigid 57 degrees yesterday) and ignore the world/

Too bad, the world refuses to be ignored. Waking up to the newspapers today, I — like the rest of the world — faced the prospect of World War III (this, this, this and this, and then later in the day, this and this).

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

This should not have been a surprise:

Seven million Americans enrolled in the new Medicare drug plan are facing a massive gap in benefits that will force them to pay out of pocket for pricey prescriptions, a state advocacy group said Wednesday.

Here is what I wrote way back when:

Overall, the drug plan is rather complicated. Seniors will pay about $420 a year for drug coverage and have to meet a $250 deductible, after which the plan pays 75 percent of the next $2,000, up to total drug costs of $2,250. Once they hit that magic number, seniors must pay all of their next $1,350 in prescription costs out of their own pockets. After spending $3,600 for the year, the new insurance would again kick in, picking up 95 percent of the rest.

All told, seniors will be asked to pay $2,100 of the first $3,600 in prescription costs themselves, not including the premium — a rather large nut for seniors to crack.

So now, for most seniors, they are entering the doughnut hole — more accurately described as the black hole — and they will be forced to remain there the rest of the year. I wonder what Tom Kean and the rest of his party have to say about that.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

Here’s a road map the state can follow, if it is truly serious about fixing its finances and reforming its tax structure.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

The New York Times puts it pretty straight in an editorial that will run tomorrow on a congressional pay increase — pushed forward by the GOP-led House even as it balks at raising the federal minimum wage:

(I)t is hard to have patience with a body that allows its own pay to rise automatically while systematically stonewalling any increase in the national minimum wage. The private-sector workers who need a pay raise the most have been waiting nine years and counting for some kind of increase to offset the rising cost of living. But there has been no sign of mercy yet from the Republican leaders.

It is, to put it bluntly, unconscionable.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

I’m not sure what this means, ultimately, but the governor seems willing to put everything on the table. As I’ve written on more than one occasion, that is exactly what needs to happen. There are too many towns, too many school districts (some without schools), too many fire districts — too many taxing entities.

Will it be easy? No, as State Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex) told The Star-Ledger:

“The only problem with putting everything on the table,” said Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex), “is that it would be pretty radical. There would be big winners and big losers, and, believe me, the big losers would not be happy.”

But, the governor seems to know this (also from the Ledger):

The governor said he was prepared to endure the political fallout from opening up the discussion, because the special session presented such a rare chance to affect change.

“I hope we use this opportunity to really go at trying to get a more efficient way, a more productive way, to deliver the fundamental services that people want from government,” Corzine said.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press