Nobody will force you to go away from Medicare if you don't want to...

Medicare, with it's low administrative costs is the least expensive plan a senior can have. How does Paul Ryan expect to save money by providing private sector alternatives? Other than by cherry-picking off the healthiest seniors and leaving traditional Medicare to struggle?

Seriously -- how is this supposed to work?

Private insurers aren't covering only seniors. They pool the risk involved with senior coverage with the young, healthy people they cover to reduce costs.

Really, Cow Dung? Then why doesn't everyone in good health get the same premium? My only risk factor is that I'm 63, and I can't afford a private plan. Imagine when I'm 80?

If they want the business, they need to keep it affordable for the seniors. If they don't want the business or cannot keep costs low, then things remain the same as they are now and everyone stays with Medicare.

Dick, you must expect to pass away before 2020

1) Ryan is for big government?
2) Who are you calling "the ruling class"?
3) Who would be your choice?
4) Are you an Obama supporter? (I think I know the answer, but answers to the above questions will confirm it)

@Greg -

Not to speak for Kelly, but either the Rand Paul / Mike Lee / Jim DeMint budget, which balances in 5 years, or the Gary Johnson budget that would balance in two years or less, would be preferable over the Ryan budget to the true small government crowd.

But if Ryan is big government, what is Baldwin or Moore? OK, Moore is just an idiot, but....

Greg, I am definitely not an Obama supporter. I believe that government is too easily corruptible and should be kept small.

The ruling class would include all those able to influence those in office. Generally those wealthy enough or connected enough (through big corporations, labor, or government) to be able to influence.

Many politicians say one thing to their constituents but their actual voting record shows something else.

I see both parties driving this country off a cliff while the citizens are distracted by arguing for their red side or their blue side. Many do not see the bigger picture that we continually lose more of our freedoms, are overregulated, the value of our dollar is being stolen, and we are being grossly over taxed by all levels of government.

Kelly, I must say, I like where you are coming from.

More fear based political propaganda, Nick?

Ayn Rand was a moron. A selfish, deluded, hypocritical moron at that.

You're voting for Obama.

@Nick -

A dystopian government is what will eventually destroy the democratic republic!

If you feel that way about Paul Ryan, one can only wonder how you feel about Stossel, Rand/Ron Paul, Gary Johnson, etc.

Paul Ryan is BAD 4 Nick.

I support Paul Ryan

"There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs."

Hoffa has never read Rand and doesn't plan to!

I read Anthem, in which her 'hero' goes off into the wilderness to sulk after the collectivists won't let him invent the lightbulb, finds a completely preserved Frank Lloyd Wright house still standing after hundreds/thousands of years complete with a library and wardrobe of ladies' clothing for his girlfriend, settles in, and then happily expounds on the joys of self-sufficiency. In his defense, he does invent the electric fence to keep the evil Collectivists out. I hope he pees on it.

The woman was an idiot. A naive idiot.

Hey, it could happen...

Back in the late '70s I went camping at Mirror Lake State Park and found a not-so-perfectly preserved FLLW house surrounded by a cyclone fence with barb wire running along the top.

Close enough.

No it couldn't, McBride, not for hundreds or thousands of years with no maintenance. Trust me on this -- the flat roofs are the first to go, and his corner jointed glass picture windows bow outward after a few decades. Ever been to Taliesin? The windows in the garden room that used to be the port cochere are doing that after relatively few decades.

Very familiar with FLLW. I've stayed in the Schwartz house in Two Rivers and the Seth Peterson cottage (the one I mentioned) at Mirror Lake. Toured many others. Been to Taliesin a number of times. I'm well aware of the flat roof issues, the mitered windows, the leaky and non-functioning radiant floor heating, the sagging (and often head busting to anyone over 6' tall) cantilevers, the tippy furniture, etc, etc, etc - many times provided at 2-3 or more times the original cost estimate.

Unless the intent was to be as ironic as possible, the decision by Rand to have someone who despises collectives end up in a FLLW house just adds an extra element of stupidity to the tale.

Rand idolized Wright. She modeled her hero in The Fountainhead after him.

I've been in a few Wright houses, including one that's not open to the public, and I live in what I call a 'third generation' Prairie/Usonian house (designed by my father who was heavily influenced by John Lautner, a former Wright apprentice). Wright was a genius with space, so putting up with all the nonsense of roof leaks and bumped heads is worth it. But face it -- those houses do not hold up to weather without constant maintenance. The roof would have fallen in and turned the library to mold withing fifty years.

Which house was that, Randy?

It belonged to a family by the name of Greenburg out in Dousman. They were the parents of a schoolmate of mine. This was back in 1970 and i didn't know as much about architecture as I do now, but I still was very impressed.

Greenburg was on one of the "Wright and Like" tours about 10 years back I think it was. It was one of 3 actual Wright homes on the tour at the time (the fourth one - in Jefferson - on the tour was canceled due to remodeling, I think). They never actually finished the house and, even at that late date, still had the pile of bricks for the final section tucked away off to the side. It is a very neat house. Some parts of it are similar to Fallingwater. I remember the approach to it from the front being pretty impressive as well.

If you got inside the Greenburg house, did you see the guest bathroom/laundry room off the kitchen? All those low ceilings and then, wham -- a narrow room that goes up more than ten feet. Using that bathroom was like a religious experience. LOL

Wright played with space and dimensions to delight the human mind.

I kind of remember the docent pointing that out at the time and can kind of picture it, but he used that effect in a lot of different situations, so the mental picture I have of it could be a composite of many of those. When you enter the kitchen in the Schwartz house, you get that same effect. Low ceilings in the dining area and then the kitchen opens up all the way to through the second floor to the roof. Similarly, when you enter the house you're in a large lower foyer that opens up into a two story great room that makes up most of the living area. It does kind of knock you back when you see it. That and his ability make small spaces seem large, through the placement of windows and glass walls (bringing the outside in and extending the inside out) and creating openings between interior spaces that draw the eye past the walls that define the spaces, set him apart from others who worked in the same styles. Even those who worked closely with him or emulated his style closely never seem to be able to achieve what he could in those areas.

I just remember the really low ceiling in the master bedroom and Mrs. Greenburg complaining that whenever she pulled on a sweater she barked her knuckles on the ceiling. Wright has a saying: "Anyone over five foot six is a weed." Not surprisingly, he was five foot six.

In the communal dining room at Taliesin, he designed a window so that a beam of light would fall on him during dinner, as a blessing from On High.

My father was a good architect -- best when he did private homes -- but he never quite achieved that feeling of utter peace you find in Wright houses.

Wright did magnificent work - no doubt about it! Hoffa's a HUGE fan.

Hoffa is also appreciative of the architecture used in many of the old Kirkbride facilities.

The Chemosphere out in LA, as featured in De Palma's Body Double (1984) is another personal favorite.

Roy Mason, designer of the Xanadu houses, with one previously located in the Wisconsin Dells, was an interesting novelty, but is also well known for the Star Castle in New Fairfield, CT.

Hoffa enjoys architecture!

This gentleman's houses have been included on many of the "Wright and Like" tours over the years and, within the last 10-15 years, they've come to be recognized as truly being near Wright-like in quality.

http://www.pwp2.com/jrm/

We met him at a tour back in '98. He came up from FLA, where he was living at the time, specifically for the tour in Racine that year. Ran into him again a couple years later at a tour in the North Shore area. He seemed to be enjoying the attention he was getting after being nearly forgotten for years. Very personable guy who seemed to charm everyone he talked to.

Here's a house of his currently on the market in Tosa:

http://www.firstweber.com/homes/1228165_METRO-2580_N_100th_St-Wauwatosa-WI-53226-1642

Back in his heyday, he got a significant amount of business from people who contacted Wright and who were either dismissed by him for whatever reason or who received a proposal from him that was way over their budget. He was able to provide homes of a similar quality and design for much less than was Wright by utilizing more readily available materials.

As usual, with this style of architecture, it's hard to really get a feel for it from the pictures. I've been in a number of his homes as well, and he comes closer to the feeling Wright was able to create w/o outright copying him than any other architect working in that style that I'm aware of. He passed away in 2003.

@Bob McBride -- Very nice. I had wondered if my father knew him, but no. That house in Tosa looks like mine would if money had been no object. The interiors are very Wrightian in feeling. My father built ours in 1951, literally with his own hands, for $20K in materials, so we're a little more spartan, but over the years I've added some detail. It's a work in progress that I hope to have perfect by the time I die and they tear it down. LOL

Here's one of his on the western side of Lower Nemahbin, similar to the Wright hemicycles. You can see some of it from the road. Can't remember the name of the road, but it's an elongated squared off U shape that comes out on to Sawyer in two places, one near the southern most part of the lake. Link also has one or two pics of the Greenburg house as well.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/googieagog/2846652192/in/photostream/

$499,500 actually isn't all that bad an asking price, but $1030/month just for the privilege of living in Tosa?!?! The property taxes alone make it a prohibitive and difficult sell. Maybe Hoffa is just too spoiled with a $71/month property tax burden, but $1k month seems a bit steep on a $.5M property!

The Robie House in Chicago and the Annunciation Greek Temple on 91st Street in Milwaukee are my favorite Wright buildings. While the ceilings in the Robie House are a bit low for modern taste there are so many transformative elements. The Greek temple plays on the Byzantian floating dome concept but in a very modern way.

I appreciate and share Ayn Rand's enthusiasm for Frank Lloyd Wright. But she committed a literary crime when she attempted to blur the lines of his life story with her poorly crafted promotion of Objectivism (nee Existentialism, sorry that name was taken!) in The Fountainhead.

Storyline: An unbelievably talented, arrogant, and naive young architect struggles with working his way through the traditional ranks. He meets a female who is equally arrogant and naive. Their "my way or the highway" approach isn't appreciated.

Ayn Rand was a passport bride, admitted adulteress and atheist. She is also required reading by every Paul Ryan staffer.

If Mitt Romney chooses Ryan as his running mate, I would wait to see if Obama-supporting Super PACs would focus on Ayn Rand. A number of right-wing christian acquaintances struggle with Romney's Mormonism. Having an atheist/adulteress-fueled running mate won't help at all. And then there's the little matter of turning Medicare into a voucher program.

@Bren -

Just because Ryan thinks a certain book is a good read doesn't mean that he supports every aspect conveyed in the book, does it?

Is every highschool teacher that includes Nabokov's Lolita on the required reading list embracing and attempting to promoting pedophilia in their students?

Come on!

But you're right - Obama is the dirtiest campaigner in modern history, so he probably would accuse Ryan of being "an atheist/adulteress-fueled running mate," just because of a book he happens to like, and you'd be right there cheerleading Obama's tactics on.

That's pretty low Bren - don't you think?

@Bob McBride... The JRM-Wolf house on Ravine and the JRM-Armour house on Bradley were both for sale in 10/11, the HES-Schroeder on Regent sold in 07, and you are still in WFB?

Yes I am, Jay. I can only afford to window shop at this point, particularly when it comes to homes with flat roofs and other non-WI friendly features. I've got enough trouble keeping the small bungalow I'm in now warm and dry. Toured the one on Bradley about a year or so ago (that was on Wright and Like then). The one on Ravine I've probably seen but it's not ringing a bell for me at the moment. There's also one in Bayside (is that the one? I didn't think Ravine was the road but it might be I guess...) that was restored/remodeled by a young man who was part of the Clark Oil family that I think sold not too long ago.

HES? I'm not putting the name to that.

@Bob McBride -- Lovely pictures! I was in the Greenburg house in January, at night, so the existence of that balcony overlooking the moraine passed me right by. I recall the living room and where the balcony would have been if there had been any thought of going outside.

I see there was also a Russell Barr Williamson house in those pics. The highlight of my career at the decorative glass business was designing and executing a series of five panels to screen off either a kitchen or a wet bar from a sun room in a Williamson house somewhere on the east side. They were to replace a set of shoji screens that looked dated and the owner wanted something appropriate to the house. There was an intaglio copper frieze running around the room as a crown moulding, and I took the circle motif from it to make a suitable 'Prairie' design all circles and straight lines. I never got to see it in place, and I often wonder if it's still there.

@JRH -- I agree with you that those property taxes are steep. You live out in the boonies now, but in forty years or so the urban sprawl will have reached you, and suddenly the tax assessor will be telling you that your four acres are worth $100K per because a nearby lot sold for that. That's what happened to us.

I hope you're not attached to your home the way I am, because the logical thing to do is to sell and move further out. That is, if there's a 'further out' left.

@Bob McBride... Yes, Ravine is the one in Bayside.

Howard E Schroeder, it was his own home. Nicely integrated into a sloped lot, very Wrightian. I knew the second owner. Schroeder is mostly known for commercial Architecture. His firm designed the arched roof Kohl's food stores.

I spent many of my younger years in a Fritz VonGrossman, he designed Nicolet High School, too. My dad used to accuse my mom of having an ongoing affair with the roofer ;-).

Randy, quite a few RBW homes on the East Side and in Shorewood and WFB. Also in Tosa and the parts of Milwaukee just adjacent to Tosa.

If it was an ornate Prairie style house, could it have been this one on Newberry?...

http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/wisconsin/milwaukee/williamson/bours.html

Jay, I wasn't really familiar with either architect. I just googled Von Grossman and see he also did the Concrete Demo house on Cumberland just north of Hampton which sort of looks like a modified International Style building. I couldn't find on Schroeder other than a mention of a firm he belonged to (?) I think, that was a dead link. Thanks for the names though. Something to do some digging around on at some point..

@Randy1949 -

I don't think that Hoffa has to worry about the urban sprawl hitting his neck of the woods in his lifetime.

The largest population center 15 miles out in any direction is a mere 3,900 people. To get to a population center of 10,000 or more, you have to travel about 40 miles to either the east or west. There's literally nothing to the direct north or south for hundreds of miles in each direction!

Tonight on 'On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren,' Donald Trump announced that he was asked to play a very major role at the RNC convention in Tampa Bay but said that he was sworn to secrecy as to what that role would be. Do you think that Romney could possibly go for a surprise personality like Trump to shake up the race a little and generate a lot of publicity?

Um . . . no. Just no. Trump is a buffoon. Keynote speaker would be bad enough, but nothing more.

"Tonight on 'On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren,' Donald Trump announced that he was asked to play a very major role at the RNC convention in Tampa Bay but said that he was sworn to secrecy as to what that role would be."

Trump has proven himself to be a publicity hound. He likely feels it's good for his business interests - and perhaps it is. Nonetheless, such publicity statements have often appeared to be empty.

"Do you think that Romney could possibly go for a surprise personality like Trump to shake up the race a little and generate a lot of publicity?"

Not likely. Romney is too cautious to "shake up the race a little." He even appears to be too cautious to "remove the gloves" against Obama.

I don't know, people were saying the same thing about McCain around this time - remember?

He needs someone on the ticket that will excite the uncommitted independents. Not very many names on his suspected list really accomplish such a feat.

Unfortunately, McCain's gloves never came off against any opponent.

Sure, he took a chance on Palin in that she was relatively unknown and a "fresh face" - nothing compared to the "love him or hate him" Trump persona.

However, in a rush to find a running mate in place of his bud Lieberman, Palin was not likely fully vetted before her selection.

Many would argue that, only after her selection, did the selection truly shake up the race - especially for McCain.

Trumps involvement will be limited to a 30 second appearance where he strolls out in Apprentice fashion to tell Obama "You're fired!"...

Hoffa ended up with Vince McMahon as his #1 choice - what is it with Hoffa and the professional wrestling business? Hoffa doesn't even like professional wrestling that much!

#2 is Donald Trump.

#3 is Sarah Palin.

Yeah baby - Hoffa rocks because only he could come up with results that aren't even available in the survey tool ;-)

Actually Hoffa's picks according to the survey tool ended up being:
Pawlenty, Portman, Rubio

OK, the second time I took the survey using different focus areas, I got these results:
Jindal, Portman, Pawlenty

Personally, if Hoffa were restricted to picking from the list and it was his choice, Hoffa would go with Jindal!

James R Hoffa was my #1

@Steve ® -

Well then, the survey tool obviously worked the best for you ;-)

1) Rubio
2) Jindal
3) Ryan
That thing is amazing...Now I'm going to try it using Bren's answers. :*)

13 yo girls use twitter

Steve, every sector of the population uses Twitter and other social media, perhaps even your own employees! ; )

@Steve

Jason Easley ‏@politicususa

Mitt Romney Violated Twitter's Terms of Service by Buying Fake Followers http://www.politicususa.com/mitt-romney-violated-twitters-terms-service-buying-fake-followers.html via @politicususa #connecttheleft

....Here is what we now know about Romney’s Twitter new followers from July 21-26:

The number of Romney’s followers increased 17% (or 116,922) on a single day Jul 21, 2012, going from 673,002 to 789,924.

25% of these followers are less than 3 weeks old (created after July 17th 2012), 80% of them are less than 3 months old.

23% or about 1/4 of these followers have no tweet.

10% of these account has already been suspended by Twitter.

Based on the above distinguishable features, we believe most of these recent followers of Romney are not from a general Twitter population but most likely from a paid Twitter follower service.....

Most twitter followers = winning president?

No one cares.

Paid Twitter follower service?

I think we now know morninmist's occupation...

Sen. John Lehman's tweet:
The tweet, which the campaign deleted early Friday, read: "@tamratellsit: 'Rookie Blogger' is that how we say moronic fool nowadays? #wiright #p2"

Hey Bren, I think he is making light of the mentally handicapped.

@morninmist -

You can't defend Barack's record with any sort of credence or credibility, so you instead attack Romney's Twitter account???

Rack up another issue-less and utterly idiotic post from misty!

This is interesting. But I doubt Mitt Romney knows anything about this.

@morninmist -

And Obama visited millionaires George Clooney and friends. I guess that makes Obama pretty out-of-touch as well, right? Oh wait, I forgot everyone and their brother hangs out with Hollywood stars on a regular basis - silly Hoffa, he should have known that!

How do you feel about Obama having a multimillion dollar Alice in Wonderland party at the White House, wherein he hired Tim Burton to decorate and Johnny Depp to appear, amongst others, all on the taxpayer's dime?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/08/obamas-alice-in-wonderland-white-house-party_n_1192884.html

Oh that's right, silly Hoffa should have realized that all ordinary average Americans hire Tim Burton and Johnny Depp to throw parties for them - especially during the greatest economic recession since the Great Depression!

Your boy Obama is so out-of-touch, and he's doing it on our dime!

However Romney wants to spend his own money and time is Romney's personal business!

Get a life already and start holding Obama accountable to the people for the extravagant lifestyle that he and his family have been living at our expense!

Hoffa you ain't seen nothing yet. Give Obama a second term and watch those credit cards smoke.

Hoffa just found a buyer for the Brooklyn Bridge!

Thank you Ed Schultz!

@Shirley -

I'm curious - how do you feel about Obama spending millions of our taxpayer dollars to throw an Alice in Wonderland party staged by Tim Burton and Johnny Depp at the White House while millions of Americans are out-of-work and suffering through 'the Great Recession?'

" to find out why over 58,000 young U.S. Solders died in IRAQ"
Where the flock did you get that from??? This is the type of BS that is spewed throughout THE DARK SIDE, but Shirley laps it up like a dog on its vomit.

@Shirley -

So in other words, you don't care if Obama is wasting our money on luxurious extravagances because hell, he's Obama and can do no wrong! How many Americans went without a Halloween party the last four years because they couldn't afford one? And yet this clown hires Tim Burton and Johnny Depp - in the middle of the great recession! And that doesn't upset you at all. Simply incredible!

Trust me, I'm reading the comments, but all I see are a bunch of unfounded and unsubstantiated class warfare conspiracy theories.

Bush and Cheney have been out of the game for a while now - time to move on already!

$92 trillion...
HA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
That is some bridge. Shirley you are a complete idiot.