THE ROAD TO TAMPA: RON PAUL’S “STUNNING UPSET” IN COLORADO

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Reports the Denver Post:

Colorado Republicans are heading to their national convention with their most conservative delegation in years, as supporters for Ron Paul and Rick Santorum masterminded a stunning upset in electing delegates.

At the state convention in Denver today, Paul forces easily were the most vocal, adding their candidate’s name at almost every opportunity. When Republicans sang “Hey, hey, hey, good-bye” to President Barack Obama, Paul backers changed the words to “Hey, hey, hey, Ron Paul.”

The momentum was painful for Mitt Romney supporters, who had assumed when Santorum dropped out of the presidential race this week they’d have a much easier time in winning Colorado’s delegate and alternate seats to the Republican National Convention in Tampa in August…

“This is a revolution,” said Florence Sebern of Denver, an “unpledged” delegate who was wearing a Paul pin. She was part of the slate…

Matt Holdridge, the state director for Paul, read an e-mail from the candidate that began with “Wow!” in reference to the slate of supporters elected Friday…

Ron Paul Is getting Cheated out of GOP Nomination Again

Obama Seeks 28 Percent Corporate Tax Rate

By JIM KUHNHENN
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is proposing to cut the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 28 percent and wants an even lower effective rate for manufacturers, a senior administration official says, as the White House lays down an election-year marker in the debate over tax policy.

In turn, corporations would have to give up dozens of loopholes and subsidies that they now enjoy. Corporations with overseas operations would also face a minimum tax on their foreign earnings.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Wednesday was to detail aspects of Obama's proposed overhaul of the corporate tax system, a plan the president outlined in general terms in his State of the Union speech last month.

Chances of accomplishing such change in the tax system are slim in a year dominated mostly with presidential and congressional elections. But for Obama, the proposal is part of a larger tax plan that is central to his re-election strategy.

The corporate tax plan dovetails with Obama's call for raising taxes on millionaires and maintaining current rates on individuals making $200,000 or less.

The 35 percent nominal corporate tax rate is the highest in the world after Japan. But deductions, credits and exemptions allow many corporations to pay taxes at a much lower rate.

Under the framework proposed by the administration, the rate cuts, closed loopholes and the minimum tax on overseas earning would result in no increase to the deficit.

That means that many businesses that slip through loopholes or enjoy subsidies and pay an effective tax rate that is substantially less than the 35 percent corporate tax could end up paying more under Obama's plan. Others, however, would pay less while some would simply benefit from a more simplified system.

The official said the Obama plan aims to help U.S. businesses, especially manufacturers who face strong international competition. Obama's plan would lower the effective rate for manufacturers to 25 percent while emphasizing development of clean energy systems. The administration official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe what the administration will do.

The New York Times first reported details of the plan in its online edition early Wednesday.

Many members of both parties have said they favor overhauling the nation's individual and corporate tax systems, which they complain have rates that are too high and are riddled with too many deductions.

The corporate tax debate has made its way into the presidential contest. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has called for a 25 percent rate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., would cut the corporate tax rate to 12.5 percent, and former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., would exempt domestic manufacturers from the corporate tax and halve the top rate for other businesses.

While Obama has been promoting various aspects of his economic agenda in personal appearances and speeches, the decision to leave the corporate tax plan to the Treasury Department to unveil signaled its lower priority. What's more, the administration's framework leaves much for Congress to decide — a deliberate move by the administration to encourage negotiations but which also doesn't subject the plan to detailed scrutiny.

Obama's plan is not as ambitious as a House Republican proposal that would lower the corporate rate to 25 percent. Still, Obama has said corporate tax rates are too high and has proposed eliminating tax breaks for American companies that move jobs and profits overseas. He also has proposed giving tax breaks to U.S. manufacturers, to firms that return jobs to this country and to companies that relocate to some communities that have lost big employers.

Geithner told a House committee last week that the administration wants to create more incentives for corporations to invest in the United States.

"We want to bring down the rate, and we think we can, to a level that's closer to the average of that of our major competitors," Geithner told the House Ways and Means Committee.

White House economic adviser Gene Sperling has advocated a minimum tax on global profits. Currently many corporations do not invest overseas profits in the United States to avoid the 35 percent tax rate.

___ Associated Press writer Alan Fram contributed to this report.

Opinion-BAY: The Problem That Is Destroying America

  I am disgusted with the {profane}morals of one of America's most known Websites, a true icon for the whole online auction industry.  It inspired the creation of Amazon, WeBidz, Overstock, and the list goes on.  However, there is something new the bay has introduced, called "BUYER PROTECTION (BP)."
To a lot of you out there that's great!  But where is the Seller's Protection?

My Entrepreneurial self couldn't process the worst business principle I have ever heard, "Our buyers' opinion matters more than the facts, because it helps future buyer's from having a negative experience with that seller."  - Words from YAB-E representative during a phone call I placed after having my account suspended.  How did my Account get suspended?  They said I had too many Negative Feedback Ratings.

This is where the story gets mind-boggling, but try to understand as much of this as possible, because this virus-like characteristic is spreading quickly from State to State, and that's only if this disease doesn't swim, otherwise it's damn near global by now.  I was starting off as a new Seller on YAB-E, and through the first month and a half, I sold 9 items.  Out of these nine sales, five of them came back negative.  The first two I received were on the first two items I sold.  Well, let's just say I learned to calculate what the cost to ship it will be, before posting it for sale.

I had no idea, a Wakeboard would be $90 dollars to ship using USPS. Wow, I only charged the buyer $35 USD.  After e-mailing the buyer to notify him of my mistake and asked if he would reimburse me the difference if I mailed him a copy of the receipt with the product?  He said no, because he shouldn't have to pay for my mistake.  So I refunded him 100 percent of his money, and canceled the transaction.  His emotions stained my reputation.  Why would a customer become upset after receiving a full refund of their money? They must be {profane} morons.  When they're the one who refused to pay the necessary amount to have it shipped.  That was the first complaint against my Account.  My second sale that resulted in negative feedback was also due to a error with estimated shipping cost, as I was unaware that Hawaii isn't included if it says free shipping to U.S.?

The first two were followed by 3 consecutive Positive Ratings which helped extend my income for a little while. Thanks to these blessed people I was able to pay a third of one month's mortgage payment.

(+)        (+)        (+)

A third negative feedback was posted on my profile when I sold an old siemens cellular phone and charger for $3.99, plus $3 for shipping.  It was stolen by a now ex-customer.  Stressing out about what to do, I decided to explain to the Buyer that I couldn't find it, so I will give him a full refund, which was a few days after the auction ended.  --Feedback--(NEG) "Seller is BS, wasted my time and gave me a refund days later."

The fact: After a refund, No transaction has occured.  
The Opinion: The Buyer felt that he was cheated out of his time.

why would a buyer's opinion, be any sort of basis on which a business is permitted to sell?  YAB-E wants to ensure that their customers have a great buying experience.  Did they forget that it is the sellers that are covering all of their overhead?  This could be the reason they are steadily losing legit Sellers and profits, causing their stock value to plummet.  This is the wrong way for Meg Whitman's legacy to fall, being overprotected to the point you are unable to Compete in any fashion.  Not to mention Meg, but 225 Million dollars on Advertising, and not a penny contributed to the State of California.  Wouldn't that have helped us lower the deficit that we were and still are facing?

Sorry for rambling there, do you see the opinions develop more often than the facts.  How is this?  Aren't the facts the story, and opinions feelings about the story?

"FEELINGS DON'T EXIST!"

Now for the fourth negative mark to my feedback had to do with "Lobby Cards."  Apparently I was misinformed by the lobby card collecter who sold them to me, because they were 8x10 photos from the set.  I gave her a full refund after she returned the item to me by mail.  Her opinion of the non-existant transaction is that I obviously don't know what Lobby cards are.  The fact was I handled an unsatisfied customer the same way I was taught, the customer is always right. Right? When did the businesses start losing credibility for serving the needs and wants of their customers?