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February 19, 2002
Vol. 5 No. 8
In this issue:
1. News You Can Lose
2. Veteran of the Psychic Wars
3. Big VAT of Goo
4. Quick Hits
5. Looking Out For Number One - and other highlights from Reason Online
6. From Reason's print edition.
7. Reason News
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Consistent with the money-is-the-root-of-all-evil theme of the campaign finance debate, let's follow all the money. Further, let's assume that money corrupts all that it touches-which isn't much of a stretch, to judge from some of the speeches and editorials in support of purging cash from the political system.
In this light, it's interesting to note that big daily newspapers, suffering from what may be the worst advertising slump since the Great Depression, have a strong financial interest in the "reform" they've been pushing.
The campaign finance bill approved by the House would ban electronic campaign advertising 60 days before a general election and 30 days before a primary. Campaigns could still do direct mail, but that takes time to set up and execute. Phone banks would still be allowed, but those typically work well only with a relatively small target audience and would be insanely expensive on a grand scale.
That leaves daily newspapers as the one avenue to big chunks of the electorate. Full-page "Vote Quimby" ads would bring newspapers anywhere from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars in ad revenue, money that otherwise would go to local TV stations.
If money is such a bad thing, let's see some of the front-line newspaper conglomerates-Gannett, Knight Ridder, The New York Times-step up and swear off cashing in on any law that makes newspapers the only game in town.
2. Veteran of the Psychic Wars
The state of Florida is determined to save the world from Miss Cleo. The late-night infomercial psychic queen may not really be a Jamaican shaman, the state warns.
The state attorney general's office has subpoenaed Miss Cleo's birth certificate and other records in an effort to show whom she works for and where she has lived. The idea seems to be that Miss Cleo-a.k.a. Youree Harris, a 39-year-old Broward County resident-cannot document her claims of psychic powers and hence is guilty of fraud.
But that charge assumes Miss Cleo's customers really believe she's psychic. Surely at least some of them do not, viewing a Miss Cleo "reading" as no more than a lark.
The state appears to be on more solid ground regarding the strong-arm collection tactics of Miss Cleo's firm, accused of harassing people who don't even owe it money. Such tactics are particularly effective against less educated, lower-income segments of society.
With that in mind, perhaps Florida's investigators will turn their attention to the marketing of state lotteries, an altogether fraudulent, bait-and-switch enterprise if there ever was one.
http://www.sunsentinal.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-cleo0214.story?coll=sfla%2Dhome%2Dheadlines
European Union value-added taxes (VAT) may soon gum up Internet purchases for non-E.U. companies and their customers. E.U. bureaucrats fear outside companies are escaping VAT on digital products such as music and software downloads. The E.U. plans to insist that non-E.U. firms determine the locale of each buyer, calculating, charging, and remitting any applicable VAT back to the E.U.
E.U. companies charge tax based on the location of their headquarters, a simpler compliance scheme that means a single VAT rate can be applied to all transactions. U.S. companies would have to make a separate determination for each purchase.
U.S. companies view that arrangement as unfair. It is also the sort of thing Treasury Department officials can complain about at international tax conferences. At the extreme, should the E.U. enact the policy, the U.S. might feel the need to retaliate.
Such conflicts can only hurt consumers who are just trying to get the stuff they want without provoking an international incident.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/perl/story/16370.html
Quote of the Week
"You have been charged with violating the rules: causing disturbing noises through loud laughter." - an eviction notice Juergen Olschewski of Berlin received from his government landlord
http://news.excite.com/article/id/181927|oddlyenough|02-15-2002::14:06|reuters.html
War on Rugs
South American nations say that, rather than more aid to fight the War on Drugs, they'd much prefer a renewed Andean Trade Preferences Act, opposed by the powerful U.S. textile industry.
http://www.washtimes.com/business/20020213-92340299.htm
Whip it Good
An S&M conference at a Chicago hotel concerns the Concerned Women for America. But local police say "three days of deviant sex acts in a dungeon" is a private event that violates no laws.
Sex Change-Up
Josh Godbold, a 14-year-old North Carolina eighth-grader, claims he is a victim of sexual discrimination because he was denied an opportunity to try out for his school's all-girl softball team. Allowing boys to play softball-there is no baseball team at the school-would take team spots away from girls, school officials say.
http://www.newsobserver.com/friday/news/Story/910493p-907927c.html
Abu Who
U.S. special forces and Filipino marines continue counter-terrorism work on an island in the southern Philippines. A 160-strong special forces training unit has been dispatched to help root out the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group.
http://webcenter.newssearch.netscape.com/aolns_display.adp?key=200202171514000150418_aolns.src
and much more.
Coming in the April issue of Reason:
Leaping the Abyss
Stephen Hawking on black holes, unified field theory, and Marilyn Monroe. By Gregory Benford
Finance on the Fringe
America's check cashers don't exploit the poor; they serve them. By Michael Lynch
Asthma Attack
When zero tolerance collides with children's health. By Catherine Seipp
And much more.
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