It took years in Ventura County to make even the simplest modifications to the campground we ran. For example, it took 7 separate permits from the County (each requiring a substantial payment) just to remove a wooden deck that the County inspector had condemned. In order to allow us to temporarily park a small concession trailer in the parking lot, we had to (among other steps) take a soil sample of the dirt under the asphalt of the parking lot. It took 3 years to permit a simple 500 gallon fuel tank with CARB and the County equivalent. The entire campground desperately needed a major renovation but the smallest change would have triggered millions of dollars of new facility requirements from the County that we simply could not afford.
David Cameron’s Britain
Where the foxes caper unmolested, the government packs your school lunch and ye all surf at her Majesty’s pleasure;
But the [porn filters] have led to internet users being denied access to a wide range of organisations including child protection charities, women’s charities and gay rights groups. Among institutions that have found themselves subject to the blocks are the British Library and the National Library of Scotland.
The opt-in filters also deny access to the Parliament and Government websites and the sites of politicians, including Claire Perry, the MP who has campaigned prominently for the introduction of filters.
h/t AK
The ‘C’ Word
The Green Police
In 2008 Logan City, Utah decided to install a micro-hydro project in its culinary water system. The city’s assistant engineer recognized the opportunity to generate clean, low-cost electricity for the city by installing a turbine in the city’s culinary water pipeline.
Logan City’s project would power 185 homes, and would not require any new construction. At the same time, it would also help reduce excess water pressure in the system. Because the project was so small, and would not affect anything outside of an existing pipeline, city officials thought the permitting process would be a breeze. […]
As project managers in Logan City learned firsthand, a complex regulatory nexus surrounds all hydropower projects, no matter how small. As far as regulatory requirements are concerned, it didn’t matter that the project would have little to no environmental impacts.
The city still had to go through an intensive permitting process overseen by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Logan City’s project began in 2008. By 2012 the city’s project had finally been completed after four years of delays and almost 3 million dollars of total costs.
h/t Larry
O, Sweet Saint Of San Andreas
Renegade Regulator
….we note that the CSA’s Model publication pointedly adds that “All rights [are] reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without the prior permission of the publisher.” That’s a gutsy line, given that CSA doesn’t own what they’re trying to restrict.
David Cameron’s Britain
Where the foxes caper unmolested, the government packs your school lunch, and the nannystate has acquired her obstetrician license;
A pregnant woman has had her baby forcibly removed by caesarean section by social workers.
Essex social services obtained a High Court order against the woman that allowed her to be forcibly sedated and her child to be taken from her womb.
The council said it was acting in the best interests of the woman, an Italian who was in Britain on a work trip, because she had suffered a mental breakdown.
h/t mid island mike
MADD With Power
The NDP is proposing a bill that would allow cops to test drivers’ alcohol levels without having any reasonable grounds.
Great Moments In Socialism
h/t Dave S
O, Sweet Saint Of San Andreas
How’s That Hopey Changey Thing Working Out For Ya?
The Affordable Care Act contains provisions for “death panels,” which decide which critically-ill patients receive care and which won’t, according to Mark Halperin, senior political analyst for Time magazine.
“It’s built into the plan. It’s not like a guess or like a judgement. That’s going to be part of how costs are controlled,”
The World Is Being Run By Crazy People
General Motors Corp. (GM) is recalling 18,941 Chevy Camaros (model years 2013 and 2014) for violating Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208–Occupant Crash Protection.
Defective seat belts? Air bag malfunction? Brake failure?
Nope.
Related! “Instead of delegating power to a would-be president-for-life, we delegate it to a bureaucracy-without-death.”
The World Is Being Run By Crazy People
The City of Brotherly Love and communities across the U.S. face the specter of hundreds of millions of dollars in useless hydrants after a surprise ruling last month by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that requires fireplugs put in after Jan. 4 meet stricter standards for lead content, said Tom Curtis of the American Water Works Association in Denver. That means cities must scrap or retrofit inventory or buy hydrants and parts that some vendors aren’t even making yet.
The Children Are Our Future
With the battle to eliminate “math” and “grades” behind them…
On Wednesday, Campeau — along with [Saskatchewan] Education minister Don Morgan — released the report which included a number of recommendations that the province plans to implement. Changes to education policy will supposedly make for a more consistent reaction from teachers when it comes to bullying. They also plan to “support” students in improving online behaviour and consult with them to build better bullying solutions.
But perhaps the most tangible recommendation is to build an “online tool” that allows students to report bullying online anonymously.
What could possibly go wrong?
The relentless “anti-bullying” drumbeat of the industrial media complex is no spontaneous development. Somewhere out there, PR firms have been hired to make it happen.
Peak Pill
A high-ranking official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared in an interview with PBS that the age of antibiotics has come to an end.
‘For a long time, there have been newspaper stories and covers of magazines that talked about “The end of antibiotics, question mark?”‘ said Dr Arjun Srinivasan. ‘Well, now I would say you can change the title to “The end of antibiotics, period.”‘
I say close the FDA and see what happens.
War On Women
The Disappeared.
O, Sweet Saint Of San Andreas
We just got rid of the registry.
Why on earth would PMSH think we need another?
CALGARY — The feds say they’re also examining possible further uses for DNA, as Calgary’s top cop pushes for permission to collect DNA samples upon suspects’ arrests.
On Wednesday, Calgary Police Chief Rick Hanson said he’d like to see legislation amended to allow police to collect DNA samples upon a person’s arrest in order to clear cases faster.
Worlds Smallest Violin
“I had never considered leaving federal service,” she told The Huffington Post. “But I have student loans to pay back. I want to buy a house. I want a life that doesn’t include biannual panic attacks over arbitrarily losing my job. So you asked if I’m considering leaving public service. In this climate, I ask you: How could I consider staying?”
The Decline And Fall Of The American Empire
In sharp contrast to all of the fear mongering, “I want parents to be equipped with facts so that they can form decisions about whether they want to allow their kid to play football or not,” Flynn tells me. “I think right now they’re being guilt-tripped out of signing their kid up for football because of this national hysteria.”