The morning Union leader chides New Hampshire Governor John Lynch telling this to the Nashua Telegraph.

“I think rail would be an economic driver for this region. Ultimately, we would realize more money than we could even contemplate at this point.”

The UL goes on to quote a 2008 study pointing out that most of the rail traffic would be diverted from existing use, which makes sense even to environmental wackos–it’s why they want rail; to get people out of their cars.  So, as the UL points out, there is no ‘New” activity nor more money than we could ever contemplate.

That is exactly right.

Of course these are democrats so you need to translate what the Governor said into real concepts.  What he meant was that if we added commuter rail “there would be more spending than we could even contemplate at this point.”

You see spending to a democrat means more taxes, and taxes are more money–into the hands of bureaucrats–than we will ever want to part with.

One other point worth mentioning.  John Lynch is the same guy who signed off on high growth revenue projections during the “worst recession in history” and allowed all the excessive spending it was imagined to pay for.  He was also the guy who allowed all they accounting gimmicks to make the budget look balanced, and…permitted false claims about a surplus to circulate so he could get re-elected when even he had to know we were sitting on a 800 million to one billion dollar structural deficit of his making.

John Lynch is just a guy in a dark alley whispering, “Psst! Hey buddy.  Want to buy a train?”

The Financial Times is reporting (free sub. req.) that E-books have surpassed print books in total sales for the first time. 

Sales of e-books in February tripled over the previous year to $90.3m, the Association of American Publishers reported, exceeding adult paperback sales of $81.2m.

So e-books have surpassed tree-books.

This will make the tree huggers happy until they realize that their green messiah’s energy policy requires us to charge and run all our electric devices by burning wood and coal.

As an obligatory followup to this, here are the results from Merrimack’s Town Elections yesterday.

New fire station- no

Restore 3 public safety positions, no.

Upgrade wastewater facility, no.

Town budget, no.(default is 2 million less, more or less)

Reinstate 2 firefighters, no.

School budget, yes (it was less than last years).

Teachers collectivist bargaining agreement, yes;

Town council–Bill Boyd (new) and Finlay Rothhaus (incumbent), win.

School board– George Markwell.

Pay to throw, no thanks.

The yes votes resulted, if I recall, in less spending in the next year but not sure of the affects after that.  Overall,  any new or increased spending got killed.  That is the power of the “informed No voter.”

I’d like to report to you the complete results from Merrimack’s Town Election yesterday, but I’m having one of those “If a tree falls in the forest…” moments.  Neither the Union Leader nor the Nashua Telegraph had any mention of the event.  It is as if it never happened.

I do know that turnout was dismal, which is a vote all its own.  The issues were…what, spending and taxes?  Arguably, there was nothing controversial.  The budgets were mostly level or close to it.   The  Town Council thinking “Pay to Throw” was a good idea turned out to be a bad idea; the voters didn’t like it.  This despite signs all over town that said “lower taxes, vote no on 8.”  A yes vote was to revisit the idea–a message to the Council that we don’t want pay to throw.

At least two of the candidates I supported Won.  My good friend Bill Boyd is now one of my Town Councilors, and in the race for the one open School Board seat, George Markwell–the guy whose signs were not cropping up on the lawns of known Obama supporters–appears to have won as well.

No word on the finer questions, but I can tell you this.  I and many others were informed no voters, except for Town Article 8, pay to throw, which as written (an mentioned above) was a yes vote to tell the current council to trash the idea of pay to throw.

I’m sure the results are out there.  I bet I have readers who have them.  So feel free to share.  I have to go find some more coffee.

NH Journal is reporting more fear-mongering from the left, and from the usual suspects.  Teri “Billion Dollar Deficit” Norelli (D- scaring women and children), is promising us that the Republican Budget will ‘put peoples lives at risk.

The comments were made to 35 people at a Town Hall Meeting in Laconia, according to NH Journal, via The Laconia Daily Sun.  Thirty five, eh?  Was she selling accounting services as well?  She should write a book.  How to hide a billion dollar deficit using only accounting tricks, rigged revenue numbers, and compliant left wing rubes.

And what a scam.  She could have sold it from a large white Yacht, somewhere on lake Winnipesaukee, surrounded by beefcake…(like Tommy Vu)

“My name Terie “billion Dollar Deficit” Vu.  You think these lobbyist like me?  No, they like your money. I show you how to screw taxpayer for billions.  Spend money you don’t have on programs you didn’t know you need.  Why? So I can buy votes with campaign dollar from lobbyist, and public employee, and screw you some more.  And these programs not just any programs.  They need lots of state union worker–big pensions.  Lots of dues for me.  And everyone will be afraid to cut after we already spend money, so government just get bigger and bigger. And if they try to cut Terie Vu  say people will drop dead and children will starve. Women will kill selves with coat-hanger in cold dark alley.  Wheel chair stop working.  Crutches break.  Sick people will fall in big crack in earth and teachers will sell own blood and organs to buy pencils.  It guaranteed success!  You work for government, we love you long time.  Then we get ‘fair” tax.  Fair short for “fairly large and oppressive” but we shorten for marketing purposes.  Have more money than Soros.  Lobbyist love us, we stay elected forever.

That’s about it.  Screw the taxpayers.  Intimidate anyone who tries to defend them.  Scare everyone else with the idea that if the government does not do it no one can.   Then screw them some more. That’s what New Hampshire democrats do.  That what all democrats do.  Spend other peoples money.  So this is just Billion Dollar Deficit Norelli being Billion Dollar Deficit Norelli.

Thirty five people huh?  Who knew there were that many people who still thought she wasn’t some kind of grifter. 

No offense intended to Tommy Vu, by the way.