I am most displeased that mental health parity had to get attached to this nightmare of a Bad Idea Dinosaur-fest. Parity needs to get passed but I fear the eternal stain of the bailout.

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Guess if you add enough pork to anything you can get it down.

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Heck yeah! Bacon makes it better!

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This is the sort of crap you'd expect out of the Italian Parliament.

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All that's left is for the House to throw in a provision that everyone gets a free puppy, and it will be as good as law.

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Yay puppies

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Ugh. God, I hate puppies.

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Ive never eaten a whole one!

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That does sound intriguing, but how are they carved?

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amd why not kittens?

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SEC. 503. EXEMPTION FROM EXCISE TAX FOR CERTAIN WOODEN ARROWS DESIGNED FOR USE BY CHILDREN.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2) of section 4161(b) is amended by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub-paragraph (C) and by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new subparagraph:

(B) EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN WOODEN ARROW SHAFTS.—Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to any shaft consisting of all natural wood with no laminations or artificial means of enhancing the spine of such shaft (whether sold separately or incorporated as part of a finished or unfinished product) of a type used in the manufacture of any arrow which after its assembly
"(i) measures 5⁄16 of an inch or less in diameter, and
"(ii) is not suitable for use with a bow described in paragraph (1)(A)."

(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this section shall apply to shafts first sold after the date of enactment of this Act.

--

Boy, that Congress we elected is really awesome.

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I'm usually pretty good at reading this kind of thing, and yet it took me a few tries to actually comprehend it this time. WTF.

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Does anyone know who makes wooden arrows out of all natural, unlaminated or enhanced, wood that's less than 5/16th of an inch in diameter and not suitable for use with a bow?

This has to be targeting a particular manufacturer. Who?

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I do! I do! I do! Eagerly raises hand & squirms in seat to to get attention

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aKd0vyGN8L2k
"Senators attached a provision repealing a 39-cent excise tax on wooden arrows designed for children to an historic $700 billion financial-markets rescue that passed tonight by a vote of 74-25. The provision, originally proposed by Oregon senators Ron Wyden and Gordon Smith, will save manufacturers such as Rose City Archery in Myrtle Point, Oregon, about $200,000 a year."

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Saving $200,000 on children's wooden arrows? That's one hell of a niche industry.

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I'm glad we've repealed this absurd $0.39 regulation on deadly weapons for kids. This will pump up the health care system in preparation for the boomers' retirement.

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You get a gold star, Vincent.

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The law this is overriding is I think almost more ridiculous: US Code, Title 26, Subtitle D, CHAPTER 32, Subchapter D, PART I, § 4161.

I'm so glad that we have a 10% (but not to exceed $10) tax on fishing poles, but an 11% tax on bows and bow accessories, along with that critical 39-cent tax on arrows.

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Is this their clever way of "giving us the shaft" albeit without a thirty nine cent tax on it?

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I almost think we'd be better off with China running things for a while.

Almost.

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Where do you think the 700 billion's coming from? The taxpayers? Nah, that'd require a budget surplus. Ain't seen one of them since Clinton.

But yeah, when I heard this new version was 400 pages long I wondered what the hell kinda stuff did they try to sneak in here. I was admittedly expecting something much more malign than subsidies for the Puerto-Rican film industry.

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or about 350bn in bonds.

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You seem to be under the justifiable misconception that the Chinese sovereign wealth fund still thinks, or is likely to think again any time soon, that the US is a good investment.

I work (in IT) in the mortgage business. Here's a hint: China doesn't think that, and they won't any time soon.

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I can't make out what they're chanting, save for what sounds like "You broke it; you bought it" to the tune of Jam on it.

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"you broke it; you bought it. the bailout; is bullshit"

it's kind of catchy

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I thought they were remarkably in tune for an angry mob.

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Best. Comment. Ever.

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I've never understood this weird-assed "rider" bullshit the American congress seems to abuse constantly... AFAIK this isn't allowed at all in Canadian parliament, bills are about one thing and one thing only.

Note that I'm not claiming our politicians are any less corrupt or stupid, etc.

Where did the "rider" stuff come from and why is it allowed?

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It's an abuse of the process of amending a bill that just hasn't been outlawed because it is so popular for funding pet projects and repaying supporters, and because relatively few bills pass. We even have a figure of speech for a drawn-out and uncertain undertaking that "takes an act of Congress" to achieve.

AFAIK, it's been in place since the general rules for the committee system of Congress were put into place a couple centuries back. It has survived even incredible abuses like staffers employed to correct grammar and punctuation being bribed by private industry to insert substantial changes that weren't discovered until after being voted into law.

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Part of it is also so they can get around the (as I understand it relatively complicated) scheduling rules, in order to rush "important" legislation. The bill they voted on yesterday was the senate vote to approve HR1424, the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act that passed the House back in March, but with the 400-odd pages of bailout provisions amended. The house bill that was voted down on Monday (HR3997) was originally a simple affair to give tax relief to first responders and Peace Corps volunteers, but with the 100-odd pages of bailout text amended.

I don't know how long it would take (or how many committee visits) to get a totally new bailout-only bill to the floor of either chamber of Congress, but probably a long time.

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That is fucking absurd. Thank you for blowing my mind.

Do you know of anybody who blogs about this sort of thing -- the "how sausage is made" washington insider blog?

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Technically, riders are allowed in Canada, but it's more about the party system and deals made to have things passed. I think riders are more effective for reining in your own party and elements in the other party. With strict cabinet and party solidarity, there's no need for riders.

/politics geek-out

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At least we got tax credits for purchases of plug-in hybrid vehicles worth $2,500 plus $417 for each kilowatt-hour of battery capacity over 4 kilowatt-hours, up to $7,500 for cars under 10,000 pounds, or more for larger vehicles. (Division B, Title II, Section 205, page 190.)

Yay.

Assuming that the best lithium sulfur batteries are about 350 watt-hours per kilogram and liter (helpfully indicating that they weigh as much as water not counting shielding) that would mean you'd need to make those for about $139 a kilogram, including with extra shielding, which seems doable. I mean, sulfur is a waste product, and lithium and sulfur are both more common than zinc.

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