2fer: Church loses tax exemption in Italy. And *who* is on the Debates commission?!1

From now on, whenever I hear outrageous wingnut preachers politicking from the pulpit, I'll be hoping that they will someday be paying taxes.

And WHO are these debates bosses? Why, I had no idea some of them were still alive (MINNOW) or why some of them (DANFORTH, Alan SIMPSON) keep getting decision-making spots over our lives or why Caroline's having been a cute 3 year old should entitle her to demand to be named senator or this either.


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http://rt.com/news/italy-church-tax-exemption-339/

[font size=5]Catholic Church To Lose Historic Property Tax Exemption In Italy[/font]

Italy’s Catholic Church will be forced to pay taxes starting in 2013 after the EU pressured the country’s government to pass a controversial law stripping the Church of its historic property tax exemption.

­The Catholic Church in Italy is excluded from paying taxes on its land if at least a part of a Church property is used non-commercially – for instance, a chapel in a bed-and-breakfast.

"The regulatory framework will be definite by January 1, 2013 – the start of the fiscal year – and will fully respect the Community law," Italian premier Mario Monti's government said in a statement on Tuesday.

The move could net Italy revenues of 500 million to 2 billion euros annually across the country, municipal government associations said. The extra income from previously exempt properties in Rome alone – including hotels, restaurants and sports centers – could reach 25.5 million euros a year, La Repubblica daily newspaper reported.




http://people.howstuffworks.com/debate4.htm

[font size=5]The Commission on Presidential Debates[/font]

In 1984, the cooperation between the Republican and Democratic parties led to a joint veto of almost 100 proposed panelists for the first debate. The following election cycle saw more of a grab for control by the two major parties. ....

In disgust, the League of Women Voters exposed the memorandum and resigned as hosts of presidential debates, citing the "fraud on the American voter" being carried out by the two major parties (source: PBS). To fill the void left by the LWV, the Democrats and Republicans formed the joint nonprofit bipartisan organization the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD).

The CPD is the only organization allowed to host presidential debates. It schedules three to four debates, held after the nominating conventions, including at least one vice-presidential debate. Usually a year before the debates begin, the locations (including alternate locations) and the moderators are announced. ... ....

What's more, the formats of presidential debates under the CPD lent themselves to pat, rehearsed answers that offer little insight into the candidates' views of the issues. .... Despite any shallowness presidential debates took on after the CPD came to power, they're still meant for the consumption of the voting public. It's up to the voting public to choose a winner in a debate.



from Wikipedia:

The Commission is headed by [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]Frank Fahrenkopf, a former head of the Republican National Committee, and former White House press secretary Michael D. McCurry.[3] As of 2011,[4] the Board of directors consists of Howard Graham Buffett, John C. Danforth, John Griffen, Antonia Hernandez, Caroline Kennedy, Newton N. Minow, Richard D. Parsons, Dorothy Ridings, and Alan K. Simpson [/FONT].

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