Coffee time! Some things to ponder while you sip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The city of New Haven, CT - making people who don't even live there pay tax because they scanned their car license plates......

 

 

How the System Works

Automated plate readers feed a database, and a private contractor earns a commission of 38% of the tax when a vehicle lands on the tax roll. 

 

".....New Haven hired Municipal Tax Services (MTS) to find vehicles the city believes are taxable there but registered elsewhere. MTS vehicles carry automatic license-plate readers that record plate images, GPS coordinates, dates, and times, then cross-reference that data against ownership and tax records, according to NBC Connecticut.

The City of New Haven stated that "Municipal Tax Services was retained by the city to ensure that individuals residing in New Haven pay their car tax to New Haven," according to NBC Connecticut.

The compensation structure warrants close attention. MTS earns a 38% commission for each vehicle successfully added to the city's tax roll. Owners also face a separate $50 per-vehicle fee.

New Haven says MTS recovered nearly $24 million between 2024 and 2025. That would place the contractor's estimated share at approximately $9.1 million, a figure that has not been independently audited. "

What the Law Actually Requires

"....Presence in a city and being principally garaged there are not the same thing under Connecticut law.

Connecticut taxes motor vehicles based on where they are principally garaged: where a vehicle most frequently departs from, returns to, or remains. Repeated sightings in a city can prompt an investigation, but they do not automatically satisfy that legal standard.

A car driven to school, work, a hospital, or a family member's home will appear in a plate reader's log. That alone does not establish residency or primary garaging.

MTS flagged nearly 1,350 vehicles in New Haven in 2025, producing approximately $10 million in additional assessed value. Assessed value and taxes collected are not the same figure.
The Accountability Gap

The contractor detects vehicles, communicates with owners, and earns a commission; the taxpayer navigates the space between a private company and a public office.

A contractor paid on recovered revenue has a direct financial interest in adding vehicles to the tax roll."

 

Pondering over coffee..... So, just WHY are we at war with Iran anyway? I thought this was a condensed, good way of stating some facts.

 

 

  

From ABC affiliate WISN 

https://www.wisn.com/article/why-us-at-war-with-iran/70899601

 

 

University of South Florida professor Arman Mahmoudian, born in Tehran, says the current war stems from Iran's struggle for regional power, tracing back most recently to the country's role in the deadly Hamas attack on Israel.

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas militants, a terrorist group backed and funded by Iran, launched their surprise attack, becoming a major inflection point for stability in the Middle East.
 
"The attack inflicted the second largest Jewish casualty next to the Holocaust," Mahmoudian said. "This changed the whole paradigm for the Israelis."

Since then, Israel has returned fire, fighting not just Hamas, but a network of militant groups backed by Iran across the region.

Mahmoudian says Iran has often used proxy groups, like Hamas or Hezbollah, to maintain power.

"Basically, you have others fight your fight in other countries with other people," Mahmoudian said. "So, Iran moved towards funding militias everywhere that can fight its enemies."

It's not just proxy groups. Iran's continued pursuit of nuclear power has also raised alarms among Western countries, including the U.S.

President Donald Trump has listed that as one of many reasons for the U.S.' recent escalation with Iran.

But, the President has also named other reasons, including regime change, peace, and U.S. national security among several others, for launching strikes on Iran beginning February 28th.

Experts also suggest another motive: Iran's vast oil reserves. Impacted supply could cut off adversaries like China that rely on the oil. It could also help the U.S. secure its dominance on the world stage.

"Regime change in Iran would be considered pro-U.S.," Mahmoudian said. "That would narrow down the flow of energy to China."

With years of mounting tensions now spilling into war, Mahmoudian says the fate of the Middle East and the fight over global power may rest on the war's outcome.

"It depends on how it ends," Mahmoudian said.

Timing may also explain why the war started. With protests happening inside Iran and instability surrounding the country in the Middle East, President Trump has said the US' strikes on Iran were the "last best chance" to take out its missile and nuclear programs. 

I didn't dwell on it, but I wondered; what they did screw up in Christa Pike's failed execution? Now, I finally read something that shines a light.... it's just the coffee talking

We might have an answer....

 

 

The doctor who participated in Christa Pike's failed execution in Tennessee says an improperly placed IV sent lethal drugs into the tissue of her arms instead of her bloodstream — and acknowledged the execution team should have stopped when the death row inmate complained of pain.

Dr. Mark Fowler, who served as the physician during Pike's Sept. 30 execution attempt, offered a rare firsthand account of what went wrong in an interview with New York Magazine published Friday.