Rundstrom story takes new turn

Written by Joel Klaassen Tuesday, 21 April 2009 13:32

This past June, I wrote about the plane crash at the Hillsboro airport in June 1978 that took the lives of three businessmen from this area. Little did I know that it would lead to an ongoing conversation with Paul Rund­strom’s son, Eric, who was just a month old when Paul was killed.

Several months ago, I received an e-mail from Eric, who had found my column on the Internet. He was interested in meeting me or just having a conversation with someone who knew his dad at that time.

We have e-mailed and talked on the phone several times in the past few months, and I am eagerly looking forward to meeting Eric, now 31 years later.

He is coming to town with some of his relatives and his uncle Bernie to play in the 30th annual Paul...

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Unforeseen result for new tax law

Written by Joel Klaassen Tuesday, 14 April 2009 13:56

I learned of unintended consequences for a law that grants tax breaks for using alternative fuels with taxable fuels.

Seems that paper manufacturers come up with a byproduct from making paper that is a sludge that burns very well for supplying heat all by itself. A law passed in 2005 allows for tax credits when alternative fuels are mixed with taxable fuels.

So, instead of using the byproduct like they’ve done in the past, the paper companies can add diesel to it and reap millions and billions in tax refunds.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could add gasoline to the water in the toilet bowl and get a tax refund on every gallon you flush down the drain?

The TARP law that was passed recently even extended the tax break through the end...

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Will tax on smokers hurt kids?

Written by Joel Klaassen Tuesday, 07 April 2009 14:11

Taxes on tobacco products just skyrocketed April 1. The money is going to be used to buy health insurance for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Somehow, it seems outlandish to fund health insurance in this way. Wouldn’t it then be good if more people smoked so more money could be raised to pay for health insurance?

But if someone quits smoking, does it mean that person doesn’t like children, or would it be because the tax is too high?

I think you get my drift.

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It might be a move to put the tobacco industry out of business. Never in history has there been such a large tax increase on any one industry. Increases in taxes are from 150 to 6,000 percent, depending on the category.

As one who used to smoke when a...

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It's not all funny on April Fool's

Written by Joel Klaassen Tuesday, 31 March 2009 14:23

When April Fools’ Day rolls around, many newspapers are tempted to play around with headlines and phony news. While some of them are funny, some can have painful consequences like what happened in Romania in 2000.

Imagine reading that your husband or brother who has been held in a squalid Romanian prison for years is finally going to be released. You make the long journey to the prison and stand outside the prison gates, waiting desperately for the moment you’ll be reunited with your loved one, only to hear, “April Fools! No one’s being released!”

This experience happened to 60 people in April 2000 who read in the Opinia newspaper that their loved ones were going to be released from the Baia Mare prison in Romania. They made...

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