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Tom Miller

Coon Rapids, MN
Commenter for
4 years 21 weeks

Recent Comments

Posted on 01/15/10 at 10:41 am in response to Ranked-choice voting can break Minnesota's cycle of plurality winners

The truly important part of IRV is the idea that the winning candidate for an elected office should received greater than 50% of votes cast. "Instant" or "ranked choice" is not necessary to guarantee that winners receive a majority.

The idea that IRV will foster a greater diversity of political parties is well-intentioned; but again, "instant" or "ranked choice" is not necessary to achieve political diversity.

IRV is also not necessary to prevent costly second elections....

Posted on 12/03/09 at 07:37 pm in response to A creative new way to help health care speed backward

This is exactly how Minnesota's big three HMOs operate. It is nothing new. And I seriously doubt that the dues are going to your physician.

Posted on 11/25/09 at 03:00 pm in response to KSTP report underscores problem with state's absentee-ballot counting

Remember that the Minnesota Supreme Court, in a per curiam decision, found that the election and recount were conducted fairly and cleanly. That was the end of it. Let go.

Posted on 11/18/09 at 08:50 am in response to What's with the odd outrage over Obama's bow in Japan?

Bowing in Japan is like a handshake in America. You just do it as a simple sign of respect when you meet someone.

And in the times of H1N1, it might be healthier that a handshake, too.

Posted on 10/22/09 at 11:44 am in response to Learning the lessons of the Patriot Act

Matt Ehling mentioned the last-second middle-of-the-night changes in the Patriot Act. At the time, I learned from a pretty direct source, that while the legislation was being developed, the Justice Department, who was writing the bill, sent streams of memos to Congress outlining the Patriot Act's provisions. Under pressure to pass the act quickly and demonstrate American solidarity, Congress passed the act without members having read the bill (also noted in by Ehling). It turned out that...

Posted on 10/06/09 at 09:47 pm in response to Schools to pay millions to cover governor's IOU

"How much is enough?"
Gov. Pawlenty commissioned a blue ribbon panel of education experts to answer this question. Whey the panel's investigations pointed to the obvious answer "more than we're spending now," the governor disbanded the panel before its work was complete. Children won't learn when the adults keep their head in the sand.

"I may not have all the facts, Joe, but I have more than enough to know that the public education system is broken beyond repair."
Here...

Posted on 09/03/09 at 09:38 am in response to Death of senator from Minnesota still shrouded in mystery

Didn't the Nazi invasion of Poland take place on September 1, 1939, one year before Lundeen's death?

Posted on 08/05/09 at 08:32 pm in response to America is well served by Mayo Clinic's thoughtful health-reform critique

One serious frustration in the Mayo platform is linking physician income to patient behavior. Unfortunately, this is becoming a pretty common practice. It has at least one serious flaw: The doctor takes the hit for another person's behavior. If, despite the doctor's best efforts to provide treatment, advice and assistance, a patient continues to smoke two packs a day, the doctor should not have income reduced because of bad patient outcomes. This sets the physician to be the patient's...

Posted on 08/04/09 at 12:15 pm in response to The bitter fruit of 'shrinking government'

When governments tax, they spend into the local economy. The multiplier effect of spending in the local economy helps it to thrive. The money stays at home, city within city, county within county, state within Minnesota, U.S within the U.S. Governments don't take money out of the economy.

When businesses receive tax breaks, their obligation is to maintain and enhance their own capital by increasing profits. This excess money in large corporations will chase the cheapest cost of...

Posted on 06/24/09 at 12:28 pm in response to Suburban Rep. Laura Brod could be intriguing GOP candidate for governor

The notion that health care for the poor should be turned over to the private sector is frightening - at least for the poor. Insurance company owners will drive down costs and raise profits by denying service on the one hand, and forcing provider pay cuts on the other. The owners win; society loses.