Harry P.

Typo...

Ed, Herman's Hermits were part of the "British invasion," along with the Beatles, Stones, Yardbirds, Kinks, Animals, Dave Clark Five, Hollies, etc. They were definitely not "bubblegum."

I love Draggin' the Line!

It's based on your own browser history. We have nothing to do wit it.

I loved that song when it came out. Here's another great performance of one of their classics, taken from the same show at The Bitter End that they did "Crimson and Clover"...

I don't think that TJ and the Shondells would fall under the "Bubblegum" umbrella. That was for the Archies, 1910 Fruitgum Company, Bobby Sherman, Tommy Roe, Ohio Express, etc. Acts whose music was aimed squarely at kids. I think the Shondells were a legitimate pop/rock band.

If State Farm refuses to insure a Mustang GT, I wonder if they offer coverage to owners of Camaros and Challengers? Anyone out there with either of those cars insured by State Farm?

Some of you guys may know that I love spending time on youtube, playing some of the favorite songs of my childhood. I love that late '60s-early '70s music! When I was a little kid back in the late '60s, one of my favorite bands was Tommy James and the Shondells. So how cool is it that I came across this video of Tommy doing one of the band's biggest hits ever, live, a few years ago. Nice to see that TJ is still going strong in the 21st century...

Nice job, Tommy. JoHan?

Her's an interesting story regarding auto insurance. I got a call from Allstate (or was it State Farm?)... one of those two. Anyway, they wanted to give me a quote on auto insurance. So I said fire away! But you aren't going to beat the rate that Geico is charging me. And here's the weird part... they asked me what car I was insuring. So I told them, 2007 Mustang GT. And here's the really weird part: they told me that they do not insure my car! Yep, they flat out refused to offer me insurance based on the car I own. Needless to say, I was pretty shocked. If my car is some sort of "high risk" car, you'd think they would jump at the chance to insure me and stick me with some outrageous premium! But no... they just said that insurance for my car was not available.

Yeah, there are so many variables. Your age, your driving record, heck, even where you park your car at night (in a garage vs. on the street). So there is no "one size fits all" answer. That's why I get a quote from everyone. In my case, based on my specific factors (age, location, record, car, miles driven per year, etc.), it just so happened that Geico had the best rates for me and my specific situation. For someone else, it could just as well be Farmers... or Progressive... or whoever. The point is, shop around!

Very nicely done Falcon.

I agree that every citizen who has kids in the system should be paying for that system. And I'll agree with you on the point that property owners (like me) are getting screwed. Especially compared with renters, as I pointed out. Completely unfair.

We are all citizens of this country, whether we have children or not. So we are all responsible for the cost of our own protection (the military). I have no quarrel with that. But subsidizing some other guy's kid's education is something I'm not comfortable with.

And hey... what if you rent? What if you are a renter and have six kids in the public school system? You pay zero for their education... the cost is passed on to property owners, who may or may not have kids in the system. How is that fair?

Well, that's very noble of you, Bill... but I have to disagree. People who have kids in the public school system ought to pay for that via taxes, no question. But people who don't use the school system shouldn't have to pay for the school system. Or to put it another way... if you don't have a car and depend on public transportation, or cabs, or your own two feet for transportation, you don't subsidize road repair/upkeep via gas tax, right? Or should you be sent a "road upkeep" bill in the mail, regardless?

Yes, of course. Especially here in "Crook" County.

As far as car insurance goes, I now get quotes from everybody at regular intervals. No sense paying more than you have to. And I always get direct "apples to apples" quotes, based on my exact current coverages/limits. For many years I was a State Farm guy. Then one day I decided to get some quotes from the others, and I became an Allstate guy. And then, last year, in another one of my "get a quote from everyone" phase, I found that Geico offers me the exact same coverage I was getting from Allstate at literally half the price. HALF the price! You can guess who I use for auto insurance now. He's cute, and he's green. I'm not pushing Geico, or any other insurance company, because everyone's particular situation is different, and "your results may vary." But my point is... shop around! Get quotes! It costs you nothing... and could save you a lot.

Michael... that is so cool! Sometimes the old ways are still the best ways...

Tell me what city doesn't have property taxes and I'm there.

Rich, I agree with you. I have three kids... they are all adults now, but when they were kids they all went to public school, which was paid for via my property taxes. And I had absolutely no problem with that. But once your kids are no longer in school, why do you still have to pay the part of property tax that goes toward schools? Or what if you are single, or a couple, and don't have any kids at all? Is it fair for those people to pay for schools? I think that property owners who have kids in public schools should pay for those schools, but people who don't have kids in the system shouldn't have to subsidize those who do.

My property tax bill irked me today. It's amazing how in a world where home values are generally falling, property taxes are rising!

That's pretty impressive! Very nice work.

Ok, boss... But seriously... yeah, I see that. You are correctamundo, sir!