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Posted: 1:00 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2004

Today's Nuze: December 21, 2004 

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By Neal Boortz

Today's Nuze: December 21, 2004
Tuesday, December 21, 2004 - Winter Solstice

A SAD DAY AT ORLANDO'S WDBO

Our friends at Orlando's 580-WDBO have lost a colleague.  WDBO's Keith Altiero died this past Sunday after a courageous fight with cancer.  Please take just a minute or two and read this tribute to Keith:

Keith Altiero

September 18, 1953 - December 19, 2004

WDBO veteran reporter Keith Altiero died Sunday after a two-year fight with cancer. Our hearts are heavy with sadness.
Keith was a natural. His brilliance was not taught in journalism school, but rather gleaned from a life of experience as a writer, race car driver and pilot. That is what made him a great reporter and story teller. Hired by WDBO in 1999, he jumped head first right into presidential politics. In August, he broke the controversial story of Republicans working out of the elections office in Seminole County. It created quite a stir and he was subpoenaed to testify. Keith was squarely in the middle of the Bush/Gore controversy. And that's the way Keith liked it. Square in the middle of things.

Keith hated to take a routine assignment. In fact, if there was a seemingly "routine" story, Keith would make it extraordinary. He developed his own material and used his own experience and expertise to frame the story. Being a former race car driver, Keith covered the death of Dale Earnhardt from an "insiders" prospective and made us cry. He chilled us with his story of the Oklahoma bombing survivor who wanted to watch the Execution of her tormentor. He made us laugh when he rode the Kindergarten bus on the first day of school and had a first time Kindergartner tell his Mom he was OK over the air.

Keith defined award winning. In 2001 alone he won the lions share of the Newsroom awards - five from the Florida Associated Press and a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for his political reporting. There were many more awards in the years that followed.

Keith had heart. He fought his cancer with chemotherapy, surgery and work. During and in between the sessions, as soon as he could, he'd be back in the newsroom ready to go. Developing story lines, spouting ideas and formulating his plan for the next day's Central Florida's Morning News. He did that until he could do it no more.

We'll miss you.
In lieu of flowers, Keith's wishes were that donations be made the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute. 100% of the money donated will go to benefit the pediatric oncology at the institute. For donations, please call Kim Strong at the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute at 407-894-4034

CELL PHONES ON COMMERCIAL AIRLINERS?

Should there be a federal ban?  No.  Not unless it can be shown that there is a safety issue.  Does that mean I want to fly with a bunch of passengers yakking on cell phones?  No again.  For some reason people feel the need to raise their voices a few octaves when talking on a cell phone.  They haven't figured out that a cell phone is perfectly capable of picking up lower than normal conversational tones.  These people would become a hideous nuisance.  Nobody wants to hear some man five rows back trying to tell his secretary where to find a file or some teenager spewing forth a stream of "you know what I'm sayin's" and "you knows."  The solution, however, does not lie in federal law.  Let the airlines set the standards.  It's airline customers who are going to be bothered, not the federal government.  Why not take an interim step?  Approve wireless text messaging and see how that works.

By the way ... since the FCC seems poised to give the OK for these cell phones, does that mean I can start using one when I'm flying in a private aircraft?

SOCIAL SECURITY

Yesterday at his press conference, President Bush was asked by the media repeatedly about Social Security. The president intends to reform the program in his second term. All that is known about his plan is that 1.) he wants private investment accounts for younger workers and 2.) he won't raise taxes to do it. As one might expect, the left doesn't like #2 very much. To them, the only thing wrong with Social Security is that the evil and hated rich aren't putting enough money into their grand vote-buying Ponzi scheme.

Liberals take the view that Social Security really isn't all that broken. All we need to do is increase taxes or reduce benefits by the year 20 -something, and all will be well. This will be the mantra of the left and of special interest groups like the AARP for the next couple years. Business as usual.  Every problem has the same cure ... increase taxes.  So what's wrong with that? Plenty.

Those that advocate keeping the current system only want to talk about solvency. But what about the absolutely awful rate of return? If people were allowed to opt out of Social Security and put 15% of their wages in a 401k, over a working lifetime, they would be wealthy at retirement. Those that have paid into the current system all their lives will get a lousy check for a couple hundred bucks a month. That doesn't make for a very exciting retirement, now does it?

Oh, and by the way, do you know what happens too your Social Security "contributions" when you die? Yep....you guessed it. The government keeps it all. The rat hole closes as soon as your dirt nap commences. But if it is a private 401k, your heirs inherit the money.

Social Security is a disaster. Keeping it going doesn't even begin to fix the problem.



PERKY KATIE COURIC TO CBS?

According to Broadcasting and Cable magazine (they would know, right?) perky Katie Couric is at the top of the list to replace Dan Rather as the anchor of the CBS Evening news. She currently makes 15 million bucks a year on the Today show, and CBS would no doubt pay her more. Not a bad living.

The story goes that she might be tired of getting up in the middle of the night to do morning television, and might take the gig. The only question is why somebody would want to go from being on the #1 morning news show to dead-last on CBS.

Would it make a difference?  Perhaps, I guess, with some people.  I haven't watched a broadcast network news cast in six months ... maybe 12.  It's been so long I can't remember.  Personally, I'm afraid I am among those who don't think that Katie Couric is all that bright. That's OK though, 'cause she's perky, and she's a liberal.  That's about the extent of the list of needed attributes.

RETAILERS DISAPPOINTED, LIFE IS OVER

The latest story making the rounds in the media is that retailers aren't having such a hot Christmas. According to people who keep track, sales are down 3.3 percent over a year ago. This means, as the media implies, that the economy is not doing so well and that George Bush is to blame.

It's quite the opposite. By all indications, the economy is stronger than ever. Everything is right on target. Just because this store or that store isn't getting the sales they expected doesn't mean much of anything. Stores and malls are still jam-packed. 

Here's an idea.  Perhaps people have finally figured out that there may be something wrong with spending yourself into oblivion every Christmas just because that's what you've done all those years before.  I'm part of that school of thought which says you don't borrow money to give gifts.   One of the best examples of the strength of our economy is the fact that home ownership is at an all time high.  You don't get the funds to buy a house by maxing out on your credit cards.  Perhaps people are figuring out that meaningless purchases leading to high credit card debt isn't the way to go.

WEIGHT AND BALANCE LESSONS

Lesson 4:

READING ASSIGNMENTS

We'll put this at the head of today's reading assignments.  A memo from the Department of Justice declares that the 2nd Amendment actually recognizes the right of individual Americans to own guns.  'Bout time.

Two more reasons why Kofi needs to be kicked to the curb.  Rwanda and Bosnia.  Kofi doesn't really seem to have a problem with genocide.  Liberating millions of Iraqis is bad.  Genocide?  Yawn.

You have to feel sorry for this guy.  How would you like to discover that you're married to a woman who would kill another woman and rip a baby out of her womb.  

Now they're after Aleve.  Damn, is there any painkiller I can take any more?   Just before I read this story I took two Aleve.  The doctor gave me a super powerful painkiller after the knee surgery, but I haven't taken one.  I thought Aleve would be a better option.  Duhhhhh. Now how long will it be before the law offices of Joe Sokolov start start advertising for people who have taken Aleve to give them a call.  I can guarantee you that some lawyer out there is already trying to get his hands on 1-800-NO-ALEVE

Man bites dog.  This black minister says that blacks should turn their backs on this Kwanzaa stuff.  Jesse Lee Peterson is outraged that Christmas is being wiped out of public life while somehow Kwanzaa is being accepted as mainstream.

This new coffee container creates its own heat.  You buy the 10 ounce can of latte.  When you're ready to drink you push a button on the can and it heats up.  What are we going to need microwaves for when coffee can heat itself?

If Republicans are willing to overhaul Social Security, then why not overhaul the much worse income tax and consider the Fair Tax proposal?  Matt Towery says powerful special interests want to keep the status quo.  Good column.

The media is interviewing outraged families of soldiers killed in Iraq that are upset about how their condolence letters were signed.  But The Media Research Center found something else out...these supposedly random families are hardcore Bush-haters.

Here's another strain on the Social Security system that no one is much talking about: those who take early retirement at 62, guaranteeing 80% of benefits.  Bruce Bartlett explains that we might not be able to afford it.

Now that 2004 is almost over, here's a look at where we stand in the war on terror.  Ralph Peters says things are going pretty well in Iraq and Afghanistan, all things considered.

A judge has overturned a proposition in Arizona that would require proof of citizenship in order to vote and apply for state benefits.  The worst part?  This judge was appointed by George W. Bush.  Doug Bandow has more.

HIV/AIDS is spreading like wildfire, particularly in the minority population.  Star Parker says one way to combat the problem would be a return to family values.

The persecution of Christians continues...with all of the attempted banning of Christmas trees, Nativity Scenes and anything having to do with the birth of Christ, David Limbaugh says the left and the media are in bed on this one.

The Pope has warned of commercialism this holiday season....but Dennis Prager argues otherwise.  He defends commercialism, and says giving gifts is a good thing.  After all, what if nobody did?

Christmas Eve is coming up, and Jack Kemp wants people to remember a much more important Christmas Eve: the one in 1776, when Washington and his men were making incredible sacrifices.

Jenna Bush wants to teach grade school in Washington D.C., and Suzanne Fields gives an idea of what she'll face in that classroom.

WHAT THE HECK ARE THOSE POINTY HAND THINGS?
These are links to each individual story on the Nuze, p-links for the geeks out there. Plus, they work today and they'll work tomorrow. Now you can easily discuss/debate/rip apart the Nuze without worrying about the links going bad. Enjoy!

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