LUMBERJACK DAYS 
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July 22-25, 2004 Stillwater, MN http://www.lumberjackdays.com 651-430-2306 Lumberjack Days is Stillwater's annual summer celebration, held in Lowell Park adjacent to the beautiful St. Croix River in historic downtown Stillwater. National-act concerts and lumberjack shows along with one of the largest musically choreographed fireworks shows in the United States are just a sample of the free entertainment waiting for you at Lumberjack Days 2004.

JULY

18 (Sun) Ft. Myers, “5-Star Preservation Run,” Sponsored by all Five ABATE Chapters. For run info check with your local ABATE Chapter. All runs ending at the Shell Factory in N. Ft. Myers. Vendors, Drawings, Food, Live Entertainment & Bike Show. Call Frankie at (239) 772-3320 or Kevin at (239) 289-2445. For Vendor Inquires call: Tammy at (239) 289-2647.

How many hours of your life have you lost looking for your keys on your way out the door? Having one fail safe storage spot and never yielding to the temptation to put keys somewhere else is an easy cure for the common condition of keylessness. The closest use for keys is near the door or the car, so depending on your setup, your key spot should be the front hall or by the garage door. A drawer in the hall table or key rack on the wall provides the place; you provide the willpower to put your keys in the drawer or on the rack.For more information like this, get a copy of Organizing For Dummies, by Eileen Roth.

An American tourist in London decides to skip his tour group and explore the city on his own. He wanders around, seeing the sights, and occasionally stopping at a quaint pub to soak up the local culture, chat with the lads and have a pint of Guinness. After a while, he finds himself in a very high class neighborhood. big, stately residences...no pubs, no stores, no restaurants and worst of all... NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS.

He really, really has to go, after all those Guinness's. He finds a narrow side street, with high walls surrounding the adjacent buildings and decides to use the wall to solve his problem.

As he is unzipping, he is tapped on the shoulder by a London Bobbie, who says, "I say, sir, you simply cannot do that here, you know." "I'm very sorry, officer," replies the American, "but I really, really HAVE TO GO, and I just can't find a public restroom."

"Ah, yes," said the Bobbie..."Just follow me". He leads him to a back "delivery alley," then along a wall to a gate, which he opens.

"In there," points the Bobbie. "Whiz away, anywhere you want."

The fellow enters and finds himself in the most beautiful garden he has ever seen. Manicured grass lawns, statuary, fountains, sculptured hedges, and huge beds of gorgeous flowers, all in perfect bloom.

Since he has the Bobbie's blessing, he zips down, unburdens himself, and is greatly relieved.

As he goes back thru the gate, he says to the Bobbie "That was really decent of you ... is that 'British Hospitality ?"

"No," replied the Bobbie, with a satisfied smile on his face, "that is the French Embassy."
Thanks Tom

IRS notice sparks VoIP taxation fears By Declan McCullagh CNET News.com July 8, 2004, 1:04 PM PT URL: http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-5261200.html 

An IRS notice affecting a longstanding telecommunications tax drew fire from a senior Republican on Capitol Hill, amid concerns that changes might affect emerging Internet phone services. 

Rep. Chris Cox, R-Calif., sent a letter Wednesday to President Bush asking him to "direct the IRS immediately to affirm that this 100-year-old tax does not apply to the Internet, but only to traditional analog voice services." 

"If IRS analysis suggests that (affirming) this will prevent Washington from raising new revenue from this tax, that would be very good news for American consumers--and more than 100 years overdue," wrote Cox, the fourth-most-senior Republican in the House of Representatives. 

In an "advance notice of proposed rule-making" published Friday, the IRS and Treasury Department said they are considering whether the 3 percent federal excise tax should be reinterpreted "to reflect changes in technology" used in "telephonic or telephonic quality communications." After reviewing the notice, providers of voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology said they were alarmed that they could be targeted. 

Congress has been trying to eliminate the excise tax, which was first enacted in 1898 to pay for the Spanish American War. The House voted 420-2 to repeal it four years ago, but the Senate never acted.

"When it comes to consumer excise taxes, only alcohol and tobacco are taxed more heavily at the federal level than phone service," Cox wrote in his letter to Bush. "Telephone customers are then hit with state and local tax rates that can run up to three times the rates paid on other goods. That is why the House has voted to liberate consumers from this regressive tax." 

Greg Jenner, acting assistant secretary for tax policy at the Treasury Department, tried to quell alarm over the notice--which asked for comments from the public--in a telephone interview late Wednesday. 

"We are not considering taxing VoIP," Jenner said. "It simply is a request for comment. We can't conclude whether we're going to issue new regulations until we know what the industry has to say." 

"We're tax lawyers," Jenner said. "As tax lawyers, we don't know technology. We know that the telephone industry has changed a lot. We don't know how, in all ways, shapes and forms. All we're doing is merely asking the industry to come in and talk to us...We have to understand the world, the industry, in order to interpret the law correctly, (especially) when you've got satellite phones and cell phones and all that." 

Jenner, who is the Bush administration's top tax lawyer, added: "We know VoIP is out there. It's a nascent industry. It's not even clear that it's telecommunications. We can't make up the law. We have to take the law as it is and see what the world is and see how the two mesh. Does the statutory definition fit? I don't know...We're just simply asking to find out what the world is." 

8x8, a small VoIP carrier based in Santa Clara, Calif., has been collecting the excise tax for several months based on advice from its attorneys, said 8x8 CEO Bryan Martin. The 3 percent fee averages an extra 65 cents per bill, which "is not a big deal," he said, adding that several other VoIP providers are doing the same thing. 

Martin said that while the economic effect on a bill might be relatively small at present, the percentage carriers must pay can be increased to damaging amounts, like the 10 percent increase imposed during the Vietnam War. 

"Three percent is no big deal," Martin said. "But 10 percent could be a real, real pain for a lot of people." The excise tax zoomed even higher, to 25 percent, during the height of World War II. 

The IRS and Treasury Department announcement comes as Congress is taking a serious look at VoIP regulation and taxation for the first time. A bill introduced Tuesday would submit Internet phone providers to many of the same rules that apply to traditional voice carriers, and a hearing on Wednesday showed that some Democratic members of a key House panel favor that approach. 

About 2.8 million people make phone calls over their broadband connection, a figure that includes about 2.2 million cable customers using circuit-switched technology and about 600,000 VoIP subscribers. Corporations are gravitating toward VoIP even faster than consumers. It's estimated that as many as one in 10 business calls are now being completed entirely over the Internet. 

Current law permits the IRS to levy 3 percent taxes on "communications services," including local telephone service and toll telephone service. Friday's announcement states that "questions have arisen concerning the application of (that law) to certain communications services that were not available" when the law was revised in 
1965. 

KELOWNA - Two members of the Hells Angels from the Lower Mainland have pleaded guilty in a Kelowna court to drug and assault charges.

Ronnie Sinclair admitted to one count of possessing marijuana for the purpose of trafficking while Bryan Bell pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm.

The court heard the two men are from the White Rock chapter of the motorcycle club.

They were arrested two years ago after a man tending a marijuana grow operation in Kelowna was severely beaten.

Police also seized a pickup truck loaded with freshly harvested marijuana.

The 42-year-old Sinclair and 44-year-old Bell will be sentenced in September when details of their crimes will be made public.

The Crown stayed charges against two other people arrested in the investigation.

EMP curator rides off to the the Harley-Davidson Motor Co.

Jim Fricke, the last of the original curators at Seattle's Experience Music Project, has taken a new position at the Harley-Davidson Motor Co. outside Milwaukee.

Fricke, who helped create many of EMP's major exhibits as senior curator and more recently as curatorial manager, begins July 19 as Harley-Davidson's new curatorial director.

Fricke, who doesn't ride motorcycles and doesn't own a Harley, will help develop the company's new museum in Milwaukee. "They have an incredible archive," said Fricke. "I knew they'd have all sorts of cool stuff, but I wasn't prepared for how great their staff is and what they've got in storage. It puts most museums to shame."

The new facility, to be completed in a couple of years, will include the museum as well as retail space, banquet facilities, offices and a new home for the archives. "I'm really grateful for the experience I've had at EMP," he said. "I never would have been in a position to get the new job at Harley if it weren't for everything I've done here."

Doing the Duffer's Dance on Heather 

You'll find far more top-notch courses in Scotland than you'll have time to play. Here are a few of the great ones.

* The Old Course. Arguably the most famous golf course in the world, all the greats have played here, including Mary Queen of Scots. It offers two famously difficult holes: the "Sea" hole (11th) and the "Road" hole (17th) — perhaps the only hole you'll ever find where you must play off the road.

* Gleneagles Kings. One of the most exhilarating places in the world to golf, Gleneagles is world famous for testing the skills of the best players. Much effort went into the course's creation and layout, and the spot is as beautiful as it is challenging.

* Machrihanish. The conditions here are unmatched. Huge greens and unique fairways make this a challenge for high and low handicappers alike. The first hole is famously known for offering an opportunity — when the tide is in — to drive out over the Atlantic Ocean.

* Dunbar Course. This stunning natural links course follows the contours of the shoreline and offers unforgettable views across the sea. The most challenging holes are around the turn — the 9th to the 12th — with no let-up on the closing stretch, because even a mild slice will end up on the beach.

* Gullane. This is the best course near Edinburgh (only 20 minutes away), and it's regularly a qualifying course for the British Open. Course #1 is the best and most challenging; if your handicap isn't low enough, you can play one of the other two courses.

* Western Gailes. With its unique layout of greens tucked away in hollows, the course requires finesse, accuracy, and precision. This natural course is one of the best in Scotland and easily the best in the Glasgow area.

* Crail Balcomie Links Course. This excellent course follows a magnificent coastline, with every hole in sight of the water. The clubhouse offers panoramic views of the North Sea. With continual improvements and modifications, the course is gaining a great reputation for being one of the most challenging in the country.

* Glasgow Gailes. A compact, demanding, and well-groomed course, Glasgow Gailes can be fierce, especially if you're trying to drive in a southwest wind. The flanking heather at nearly every hole makes for a uniquely Scottish (and wonderfully fragrant) hazard.

Plan a rousing romp through Scotland with help from Scotland For Dummies, 2nd Edition, by David G. Allan. 

Always reheat cooked food on half power in the microwave – that’s what the reheat setting does. This reheats food evenly without frying the edges while leaving the center cold.