The Children of Liberty  organization is hosting a political debate between Rich Iott and Jack Smith, Republican candidates for the 9th Congressional District seat.
“It’s our first sponsored debate,” said Scott Allegrini, founder of the Children of Liberty “We thought it was important to offer the public an opportunity to hear what these candidates have to say.”
Iott and Smith will face each other in the Republican primary May 4, as they both vie to unseat Marcy Kaptur.  The two men have not debated each other before, but have been at events where they’ve both spoken.
“I think it will give people the opportunity to see the difference in our styles. We’re both conservatives, but the difference is how we present it,” Smith said. “Our backgrounds and our experiences have an effect on how we view the world. He has more of a business background while I have more of a service background.”
Iott said he agrees the pair have different backgrounds and believes his business background is what government needs.
“I intend to share my experience from the business world. A business background is a key component of what we need in Washington,” Iott said. “We need to keep track of our income and expenses and not deficit spend. It’s a sound business principle that needs to be in the government as well.”
The debate will take place March 25 at the Fraternal Order of Eagles, 2301 Detroit Ave., and will last 90 minutes. Fred LeFebvre, of the WSPD 1370 AM program “Fred LeFebvre and the Morning News,” will moderate the debate.
“Just Blowing Smoke” political blogger Tim Higgins will serve on the question panel along with a reporter from Toledo Free Press.
The debate is free and open to the public. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the debate will start at 6:30 p.m.
The debate was planned after Iott switched from independent to running as a Republican and at the time there was only one Libertarian running. The two Libertarians up for election, Joseph Jaffe and Jeremy Swartz, are not part of the debate as a result, Allegrini said.
“At the Children of Liberty we’re excited that there are so many good candidates that came out to run against Kaptur,” Allegrini said. “Our goal is to educate the electorate on all options, including Libertarian and Republicans.”
For more information about the Children of Liberty and the March 25 debate, visit the group’s Web site, thechildrenofliberty.ning.com/.

The UT Rockets kicked off spring practice on March 17, and coach Tim Beckman could barely hide his giddiness.

“We’re back to the basics. We’re using this time to work on fundamentals,” Beckman said. “We’re excited about getting things kicked off, and we get to get back on the field and work on football fundamentals.”

The beginning of spring practice capped of the first full off season under Beckman, whose Rockets compiled a 5-7 overall record in his freshman season as head coach. It was an exciting one as well. The Rockets brought in the top recruiting class in the MAC according to Scout.com and Rivals.com, and will mix them with returning players like wide receiver Eric Page

Page, who had a breakout freshman campaign, is looking forward to spring ball as well. It will be Page’s first time participating in workouts.

“It is exciting time of year,” Page said. “We are working hard on getting better.”

Page, who is a hometown product, led the team in receptions (62) and receiving yards (1,159) last season. He garnered several accolades including a second team All MAC selection. With the graduation of Steven Williams, Page will be counted on to be a threat in the passing game for Toledo this upcoming season.

“I using this time to watch more film and talk with my coaches to see how I can get better and help this team,” Page said. “I know there will be expectations for me, but if I focus on the goal of getting better, you will match up to those expectations.”

Beckman is excited to see what Pages has in store for his second season at UT

“Eric has a lot of abilities that we haven’t even seen yet,” he said. “You could see him getting better each day during our winter workouts, and we can’t wait to see what he does this spring.”

Perhaps all eyes will be on the battle to be the successor to the now departed Aaron Opelt to take over as the team’s starting quarterback. Beckman has said that all four of the quarterbacks on the depth chart, sophomore Austin Dantin, junior Alex Pettee, sophomore David Pasquale and a redshirt freshman, Terrence Owens; all will have a chance to compete for the starting slot.

Dantin, Petee, and Pasquale all saw some playing time last fall, with the edge probably going to Dantin, who was listed as the second string quarterback last season. For his part, Dantin is ready to work hard and get back out on the football field.

“As much as I enjoyed winter conditioning, it is really exciting to get back out there and hit somebody,” he said. “I feel like this is my job, but I am ready to go out and prove myself to these coaches and this team again, and I am excited to get the opportunity.

Petee, who is entering his final season at UT, knows that this will be his last shot to be at the controls of the Rockets spread offense. He said his strategy to win the job would be going out and playing to his abilities.

“I am really happy to just hit the practice field again in pads, and there is going to be so much competition going on during the spring practices,” Petee said. “I am just going to go out there and give it all I have over the next five weeks.”

Page feels that either candidate would be a good choice.

“Both Austin (Dantin) and Alex (Petee) are great players,” he said. “I am confident no matter who coach Beckman picks that either will play great and help this team.”

Perhaps the greatest part of spring practice will be the use of the new Fetterman Training Center, which continues to draw rave reviews from all involved with UT football.

“I love this place,” Dantin said. “I saw many college campuses, and none of them had a facility like we have here. This is a first class facility all the way here.”

Beckman could not have agreed more.

“This has been a huge addition for our program,” Beckman said. “For our guys to be able to come out and throw a ball around or practice running routes is only going to help our team and that is all thanks to this facility.”

The Rockets spring game will be April 16 at 7:00 PM in the Glass Bowl. UT kicks off the 2010 season on September 3 at home against Arizona.

Despite a season-ending 72-57 loss to the University of Michigan (19-13) in the second round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament last week, the Toledo Lady Rockets are back.

Led by three-time all-Mid American Conference first teamer Tanika Mays (14.1 ppg, 7.2 rpg), the Rockets rolled to a 25-9 overall record and sat atop the conference’s West Division regular season standings at 12-4.

UT fell to perennial conference powerhouse and East Division champion Bowling Green 62-53 in the MAC tourney championship bout, giving the Falcons the automatic bid in the 2010 women’s NCAA Championship.

Destined to prove that they could have been an equal or better adversary for opponents in the Big Dance, the Rockets may have shown it with a 70-58 win over Pittsburgh in a WNIT opening round contest at Savage Arena on March 19.

“It’s disappointing that we didn’t get what we wanted, but it’s a great opportunity for the underclassmen to walk away with a good experience and know what’s like to be in the postseason not only for this year but for something to work for in the future,” said senior forward Allie Clifton (5.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg), prior to the victory.

“With this being a springboard, we want this to be something that every recruit who comes into our program wants to be a part of and wants to build with us,” second-year coach Tricia Cullop said.

A second-half collapse at Ann Arbor, in the tournament’s second round on March 21, may have stopped the Rockets from remaining the lone MAC team still lacing up the sneakers. BG fell in their opening round game of NCAA tourney 72-62 to Big Ten runner-up Michigan State.

While the Lady Falcons rule the MAC nest and have for six years under Curt Miller, UT has quickly realigned its firepower and taken direct aim at BG since Cullop’s arrival prior to the 2008-09 campaign.

A 66-63 home victory over the Falcons in January proved it. The MAC title game appearance offered reaffirmation that the Rockets are back in the thick of it.

“BG’s a great team but it really comes down to us knowing how to play and keep it going,” Clifton said.

Not only are the Lady Rockets returning to hardwood success, they’re getting things done in the campus classrooms as well. In three recorded semesters under Cullop, the cumulative team GPA is a 3.10.

Cullop’s results follow former coach Mark Ehlen, who compiled a 236-145 record at UT between 1995-08, including a 1996 NCAA tourney appearance that saw the Rockets advance to the round of 32. But Ehlen’s teams compiled five straight losing campaigns prior to his resignation.

Cullop has quickly restored the winning ways of the UT program, and the school’s trust in her has become evident. Cullop’s first season saw her garner 2009 MAC co-coach of the year after leading the Rockets to an 11-5 conference mark (18-13 overall). After the season ended, she received a two year contract extension through 2014-15.

Cullop’s players have obliged her.

“There’s definitely a great support here from the community and over the last couple of years we’ve definitely shown what we want to do here as a team,” said Clifton, “and I think our athletic department has supported us well.”

Cullop came to Toledo from the University of Evansville (Ind.) where she built one of the top programs in the Missouri Valley Conference over an eight-season period, going 73-48 in that span and earning MVC Coach of the Year honors in 2007-08. The Purple Aces also garnered an NIT berth under Cullop.

“A couple of years ago while at Evansville the girls got to experience this and I was very excited for them. You’ve got to take steps and this is a step,” Cullop said.

Mays, Clifton and Northview product Lisa Johnson depart, but Cullop has a talented returning list headed by sophomore MAC second-team Naama Shafir (14.3 ppg, 6.7 apg), junior guard Jessica Williams (7.9 ppg) and junior F Melissa Goodall (9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg) for next season. With the returning talent coupled with Cullop’s basketball knowledge, the future looks even brighter for the Rocket program.

Demetrius Nicodemus was a bartender for Connxtions Comedy Club when he was harassed into performing stand-up comedy.
“After the shows the staff and all the comedians would sit around, have cocktails and share stories. One day the headliner of the club, Billy Gardell, told me I was the funniest guy he’d met that isn’t paid,” Nicodemus said. “Then [Gardell] called me for 30 days straight until I went to my first amateur night. Literally, he harassed me.”
Nicodemus had doubts about standing onstage with all eyes watching, but once the lights hit his face, he knew comedy was for him.
“It was the best drug I’ve ever done. It was better than drinking, better than sex. It’s immediate gratification. You give to the audience and they give back to you,” he said excitedly. “I’d live on stage if I could, but I don’t think people would want to watch me shower.”
Despite more than 15 years performing stand-up, Nicodemus, who goes from dry and sarcastic to silly and animated, said he still gets nervous before he performs.

Demetrius Nicodemus

“Before the show I pace. I pace to the point where it’s distracting to the people around me,” he said. “People honestly think I have a bomb strapped to me. ‘Why is he so nervous? He doesn’t look Islam.’ I’m like, ‘it’s Muslim you dummy, it’s not Islam, that’s the religion.’ ”
The Toledo native insists the nerves are positive and the night he’s not nervous is the night he gives up comedy. Being nervous reinforces that he still cares about comedy and the performance he has to bring the audience, Nicodemus said.
On the advice of other comedians, Nicodemus played around with having a message in his act.
“They told me I needed to  have a message to my show, that somehow my comedy was supposed to better people’s life. Like start Scientology all over again,” he said mockingly.
After battling with the idea for a few months, Nicodemus decided his stand-up was to entertain, not deliver a message. His comedy is about making the audience forget about their crappy jobs or bills and have fun, he said.
Nicodemus’ show is never the same twice because he plays off the audience and is improvisational. He has no set list of jokes and rarely knows what he is going to start out with, he said.
“I’m very stream of consciousness. I  never really know what I’m going to start out with or where I’m going to end up. I usually let the audience take me where they want to go.”
The stand-up is “sometimes so ridiculous that you can’t believe you’re sitting there listening to it,” with comedy that  ranges from clean to  adult humored, Nicodemus said.
“I’m an adult, I do things and talk about things that I think are funny and sometimes that runs blue and sometime it runs clean,” he said. “I have a Dr. Seuss parody of ‘Green Eggs and Ham,’ that if you were a teacher you’d probably never read the story to your students again. I’m very proud of that.”
Nicodemus writes his best material while at the bar with a beer, commotion surrounding him, so he constructed the ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ parody  while out.
“I was writing this bit, and I’m going through the book trying to get the rhyme scheme and I have a notebook and a beer. This guy walks by me and he says to me ‘if you stop drinking you’d probably be able to get through that book without taking notes’, ” he said, almost disbelievingly. “You don’t even know me, but you feel I have a problem and I would take my remedial reading skills into a bar so I could be openly mocked.”
Nicodemus toured Ohio and Michigan, going as far as the Upper Peninsula,  before joining the “Andrew Z in the Morning” show on 92.5 KISS FM.
“Demetrius is there to entertain me,” Andrew “Z” Zepeda said. “He keeps it interesting. I never know what he’s going to say and it’s always funny.”
While Nicodemus is funny even though he has to be censored on the radio, he is amazing live, Zepeda said.
“It’s hilarious. He does a lot of relationship stuff, gives the male point of view. Women have it sugar-coated. Demetrius knows how men think and doesn’t mind sharing it,” he said. His show is R-rated; if someone is easily offended they shouldn’t go.”
Nicodemus has been part of the Andrew Z show for nearly two years.
“Being funny is easier being with people who are fun to be around. If I hated everyone I would suck on the show. I love everyone on the show, it’s not like going to work,” Nicodemus said. “It’s not a job. It’s like going out and hanging out with friends.”
Nicodemus is part of the morning show’s “Andrew Z’s Small Town Comedy Tour.” The Northwest Ohio tour consists of four comedians with Nicodemus as the headliner.
“He’s our Michael Phelps. Last one on the stage and goes the longest. He’s our anchor,” Zepeda said.
The tour was recently in Defiance and Nicodemus improvised with the audience for nearly an hour.
“I hear him on a daily basis, and to hear new stuff for 40 minutes, and  have the  audience erupting with laughter says what a talent he is,” Zepeda said.
Nicodemus will host comedy shows March 25 through March 28 at Fat Fish Blue home of the Funny Bone Comedy Club at Levis Commons in Perrysburg.  Shows are March 25 at 7 p.m., March 26 at 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., March 27 at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. and March 28 at 7 p.m. For more information, visit www.fatfishblue.com.
Nicodemus can also be seen during  “Andrew Z’s Small Town Comedy Tour.”   Upcoming shows are April 5  at The Clarion Suites in Fremont and April 12 at The Cla-Zel in Bowling Green. For more information about the tour, visit www.925kissfm.com.

11:30 p.m. The crowd outside the GameStop store on Monroe Street was small. Hardly a crowd at all, really. Six people, loosely arranged in to a line. But their size did not reflect their enthusiasm. One of the most anticipated games of 2010 was being released on this night. And that’s why they were here. So they could get it as soon as possible, and say that they were first.
The game was called “God of War III.” As one might surmise from the title, it is the third part in a trilogy of games that began in 2005. During the past five years, the game has become regarded as a modern classic in the action genre for both the frenetic pace of its gameplay and the gleefully over-the-top nature of its adult content. The games feature numerous mutilations and decapitations, hundreds of gallons of blood spilled, dozens and dozens of innocents slaughtered — and that’s all done by the hero.
11:35 p.m. The group began to grow. Now it was 10 or so. A member of the store’s staff stuck his head out and glanced around. He said he really thought there’d be more here by now — they had over 100 copies of the game reserved in the store, and that didn’t even count the tremendous walk-up business a blockbuster game like this usually gets.
The word “blockbuster” is used quite literally. To most PlayStation 3 owners, this release was the most important game to hit the system in months, maybe the most important game in its history. This would be the first game in the franchise to be released on the PS3, and most fans were excited to see the upgrade in graphics that the new hardware would bring. And the game’s makers had made it plain that this installment would be the final chapter of the story.
11:40 p.m. The crowd now stood at about 15. The most dedicated fans — the ones at the front of the line — had been there since about 11. Not even standing outside on a chilly, late-winter evening dampened their spirits.
The anticipation for the game was compounded by how important it is to its system. “God of War” is a Sony franchise, and its games only appear on PlayStation systems. Like Mario for Nintendo or Master Chief from “Halo” for Microsoft, “God of War’s” brutal star Kratos has become an iconic figure for the company. And his first adventure on the PlayStation 3 has arrived at a critical moment.
11:50 p.m. The GameStop employee once again emerged from the store and asked if anyone in line needed to pay for the game, so when midnight arrived, everyone would already be paid in full.
A few followed him inside to do so, but most stayed where they were. They had paid for their copy long ago.
The PlayStation 3 saw its fair share of issues in the marketplace during the three years that followed its release.
Its high price point at the outset made it unattractive to consumers, and a lack of a large number of great titles did little to draw in hardcore gamers. But things are changing for Sony’s console. A lot of acclaimed titles were released exclusively to the PS3 in the past two years.
A new, witty ad campaign began to create a buzz.
And, most crucially, a price drop made the console affordable to many more customers. Just in time for the company’s flagship action franchise to once again take center stage.
11:55 p.m. The line now stood 25 members strong. The wait was almost over. Customers were instructed to have their receipts and IDs ready, so they could be served as quickly as possible.
The early reviews for “God of War III” were enthusiastic. Critics praised the game’s action, scale, graphics and more. Fan response since the release has been equally strong. For such a pivotal game in the lifecycle of the PS3 system, “God of War III” has seemingly delivered. But is this really the final game in such an iconic franchise? Only time will tell.
12:05 a.m. I stood before the counter. I presented my receipt and ID. They handed me my copy of the game. The employee who served me had recognized me earlier — “Hey, don’t you write for Toledo Free Press?” I confirmed that I did. “You gonna write something about tonight?”
“I just might,” I said.

E-mail Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com.

When “Karen” explains the lack of desire she feels for her husband, she tells a strikingly similar story to those that numerous clients have shared before her. She says she loves her husband very much, but she would not mind if their physical relationship ended. Forever. Then she exclaims, “Isn’t that a terrible thing to say about my own husband? He would be crushed if he heard me say that,” and sadly she looks down at her shoes.
Continuing, she says, “I feel resentful when he expresses physical interest in me. But I go through with it because I fear for our marriage otherwise.” Through heavy tears she looks me in the eye and says pointedly, “Other than this, we have a great relationship. I don’t want to lose him. I can’t. He is everything to me,” she says. “But I can’t keep living this way.”
It seems like one of life’s misfortunes that a couple who truly love and appreciate each other could feel their future is threatened due to serious trouble connecting physically. This issue is far more common than many people think, and there is significant reason for hope.
Why do so many couples just settle for less or, worse, breakup or divorce? Our culture subscribes to the following idea: If you fell in love to begin with, and if you are meant to be, then your intimacy should just work, automatically, for the long haul.
So when intimacy does not work, what does it mean? With respect to our cultural expectations, people are led to assume that something must be wrong with them (“I am a failure as a wife”) or that their relationship is a mismatch (“We are incompatible”). Of course, we would never expect athletes to keep winning or businesses to sustain profits over years without an ongoing commitment of focused energy.  So where did we get the idea that the heart of romantic relationship, the emotional and physical intimacy, should simply thrive endlessly all by itself?
Research about sexual desire has consistently focused on an individual rather than a relationship perspective, commonly citing “dysfunction” and “disorder” to explain relationship problems. To top it off, pharma companies advertise pills to fix the problem (implied: within you).
Here is the essence of the mistake: The dysfunction-based model encourages people to focus their attention on “fixing” themselves rather than determining what they each need to do to get in sync with each other.
How? First, we must identify the system error in a couple’s basic interactions that created the very real reasons for the intimacy breakdown in the first place. The work comes in here as we break down old, unhelpful patterns to replace them with new ones that work.
I asked Karen and her husband to follow a series of exercises through a highly structured model. I want to share with you two underpinnings from which those exercises are derived:
1.  Create intentional time together that you would look forward to 100 percent for you: focused time sharing feelings, fun going out, and non-sexual physical affection.
2.  Avoid any interaction in which you are participating due to guilt, obligation or fear of disappointing the other. Instead, do only what you genuinely enjoy.
That is just a quick snapshot, but I will be happy to share more detail in future articles if there is reader interest.
Karen and her husband did tremendous work, devoting hours each week to their exercises, and, therefore, their relationship. A month later, Karen said she was feeling more comfortable, happier and feeling small rumblings of desire. Her husband said, “What a big difference. Before she used to tolerate me. But now she wants to engage with me actively, and I love that. This process is a softer approach than I had envisioned, and we have more work ahead. But I now feel more intensely connected to her than I have for years.”
Couples like Karen and her husband are among the strongest individuals I know.  It takes guts to go to a therapist’s office to discuss intimacy difficulties. Even more, it is an act of love.

Lori Hollander is a dual-certified couples and sex therapist at the Center for Intimacy in Ann Arbor. E-mail her at star@toledofreepress.com.

Humor comics used to dominate the industry; not so much these days. But if you know where to look for a few laughs, quality crack-ups in comics — something the whole family can share — can be yours.
Jim Collins, “JC” of Toledo’s own JC’s Comic Stop, notes that today’s arrival of “Futurama Comics” No. 48 from Bongo is cause for celebration. Based on the animated show, Collins says the comic “can be as funny as the Fox series…until the series comes back [to TV], this is my fix. Bender is just as scheming, Fry as clueless, Leela as much glue trying to keep everything together and Zoidberg … well its Zoidberg.” For years, Bongo’s delivered funny books based on both “The Simpsons” and “Futurama” and have never really expanded beyond that. Why would they need to? Their comics are truly the closest thing to actually watching the shows themselves.
And yes, you can stop wondering: the Archie people still make Archie comics. Lots and lots of them.
Also waiting for you is last week’s “Groo: The Hogs of Horder” No. 4 from Dark Horse, another pick of Jim Collins’. Since 1982, famous “Mad” cartoonist Sergio Aragones and writer Mark Evanier have spun the saga of bumbling, simple-minded barbarian Groo and the wacky world he inhabits. Collins’ reasoning behind his pick is simple: “Groo makes me laugh out loud.”

In the wake of the recent passing of health care reform legislation by Congress, after considerable debate, we’d like to take some time this week to examine the role that government plays in our lives, particularly as it relates to finance.
During the course of an average American’s working life, they will pay in excess of $600,000 to the United States government for income tax alone. Keep in mind that number does not include sales tax, property taxes, or capital gains tax, not to mention Social Security and the other costs (e.g.: driver’s license, license plates, hunting license).
The question I would pose to readers is this: Do you think that you receive enough benefit for your money?
Obviously, our interest in this subject hints immediately at our own bias; but at a time of political turmoil, with such emotionally charged public debate, it’s important that Americans educate themselves on issues they face.
Tax revenue in the United States historically averages more than a quarter of our country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). From personal income tax to corporate payroll taxes, the US government collects approximately $2 trillion per year to fund its current programs and provide for the national defense.
Unfortunately for us, many of these programs do not work, or they fall apart with time. The history of the United States is plagued with failures both large and small.

• Medicare: Broke
• Medicaid: Broke
• FDIC: Insolvent (Fancy word for broke)
• Social Security: Broke
• U.S. Postal Service: Broke
• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Broke
• Mustang Ranch brothel: Broke

Thankfully, failures such as these constantly serve as reminders to our elected officials that they should stop trying to do things better than the private sector, and they stick to what they do best: talking.
While it sure would be nice if that were true, we’re not so lucky.
Instead of keeping their noses out of business, politicians remain absolutely convinced that they know how to run your life better than you do. They continue to believe that they know what’s best for you and your family, and that for every problem there is a solution that will make everyone happy.
And so, every time a government program fails, the debate resumes, not on whether or not to abandon the cause and leave it to those more capable people who can run a business, but how best to overhaul a failed program. In other words, let’s put 20-inch spinners on a ’97 Daewoo Lanos.
For those of you who may not recognize the Mustang Ranch cited above, it was a brothel outside Las Vegas that was seized by the federal government in the 1990s as part of a tax evasion case. The government, thanks to a little known line in the IRS handbook, was required to continue running the ‘business’ to try to recoup its lost tax revenue.
Pretty sweet deal, right? The U.S. government running a bar and brothel just outside Las Vegas, that must have made them back all their losses pretty quick!
This was hardly the case. In fact, the governments running of the Mustang Ranch was a total failure, and the government had to abandon its efforts after a few short years to auction off assets held by the Nevada brothel.
Lesson learned: The government has failed in its attempts at running Medicare/Medicaid, Social Security, banks, and a brothel outside Las Vegas.
What makes anyone think that they can effectively oversee U.S. health care, which accounts for more than 15 percent of our nation’s GDP?

Dock David Treece is a stockbroker licensed with FINRA. He works for Treece Financial Services Corp. (www.TreeceInvestmnets.com) and also serves as editor of the financial news site Green Faucet (www.GreenFaucet.com) and as a business commentator for Toledo Free Press. The above information is the express opinion of Dock David Treece and should not be construed as investment advice or used without outside verification.

In the wake of the recent passing of health care reform legislation by Congress, after considerable debate, we’d like to take some time this week to examine the role that government plays in our lives, particularly as it relates to finance.
During the course of an average American’s working life, they will pay in excess of $600,000 to the United States government for income tax alone. Keep in mind that number does not include sales tax, property taxes, or capital gains tax, not to mention Social Security and the other costs (e.g.: driver’s license, license plates, hunting license).
The question I would pose to readers is this: Do you think that you receive enough benefit for your money?
Obviously, our interest in this subject hints immediately at our own bias; but at a time of political turmoil, with such emotionally charged public debate, it’s important that Americans educate themselves on issues they face.
Tax revenue in the United States historically averages more than a quarter of our country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). From personal income tax to corporate payroll taxes, the US government collects approximately $2 trillion per year to fund its current programs and provide for the national defense.
Unfortunately for us, many of these programs do not work, or they fall apart with time. The history of the United States is plagued with failures both large and small.

• Medicare: Broke
• Medicaid: Broke
• FDIC: Insolvent (Fancy word for broke)
• Social Security: Broke
• U.S. Postal Service: Broke
• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Broke
• Mustang Ranch brothel: Broke

Thankfully, failures such as these constantly serve as reminders to our elected officials that they should stop trying to do things better than the private sector, and they stick to what they do best: talking.
While it sure would be nice if that were true, we’re not so lucky.
Instead of keeping their noses out of business, politicians remain absolutely convinced that they know how to run your life better than you do. They continue to believe that they know what’s best for you and your family, and that for every problem there is a solution that will make everyone happy.
And so, every time a government program fails, the debate resumes, not on whether or not to abandon the cause and leave it to those more capable people who can run a business, but how best to overhaul a failed program. In other words, let’s put 20-inch spinners on a ’97 Daewoo Lanos.
For those of you who may not recognize the Mustang Ranch cited above, it was a brothel outside Las Vegas that was seized by the federal government in the 1990s as part of a tax evasion case. The government, thanks to a little known line in the IRS handbook, was required to continue running the ‘business’ to try to recoup its lost tax revenue.
Pretty sweet deal, right? The U.S. government running a bar and brothel just outside Las Vegas, that must have made them back all their losses pretty quick!
This was hardly the case. In fact, the governments running of the Mustang Ranch was a total failure, and the government had to abandon its efforts after a few short years to auction off assets held by the Nevada brothel.
Lesson learned: The government has failed in its attempts at running Medicare/Medicaid, Social Security, banks, and a brothel outside Las Vegas.
What makes anyone think that they can effectively oversee U.S. health care, which accounts for more than 15 percent of our nation’s GDP?

Dock David Treece is a stockbroker licensed with FINRA. He works for Treece Financial Services Corp. (www.TreeceInvestmnets.com) and also serves as editor of the financial news site Green Faucet (www.GreenFaucet.com) and as a business commentator for Toledo Free Press. The above information is the express opinion of Dock David Treece and should not be construed as investment advice or used without outside verification.

For Zach MacQueen, it’s true the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
As assistant operation manager for MacQueen Orchard, Inc., MacQueen, 23, is the fourth generation to work for the family business. The Holland orchard, which began in 1936 as 10-acres of apple trees planted by great-grandparents Hugh and Martha MacQueen, has grown to 180 acres and supplies apples for local companies like the Andersons, Churchill’s and Monnette’s Market as well as national chains like Wal-Mart and Save-A-Lot.

Zach MacQueen

After graduating from St. John’s Jesuit in 2005, MacQueen set his sights on majoring in construction management at the Ohio State University but later changed his mind.
“I had a couple good internships but those really made me feel that I didn’t want to do construction,” MacQueen said. “But I was so far into my major though, that there was really no turning back.”
Like most soon-to-be college graduates, MacQueen searched for jobs within his major. He graduated in June of 2009 with a bachelor of science in agriculture, with a focus on construction management, and a minor in business. But after a less-than-successful job hunt and no desire to relocate, MacQueen said he re-evaluated his goals.
“I sat down with my parents and told them I thought I’d be a good fit here,” MacQueen said. “At first they were hesitant and said they didn’t want me spinning my tires working here if it wasn’t what I really wanted to do. Now that I am here, I think they’re happy.”
Since beginning to work full time at the orchard, MacQueen said he’s learned there’s more to the family business than just growing apples. He has also realized that his degree is more useful than he initially thought. Many of his college courses, such as scheduling and operation management, go “hand in hand with what goes on in this building everyday,” he said.
Daily tasks include everything from product packaging to making the occasional batch of cider. MacQueen said he typically works forty-hour weeks but that number doubles from August to November during the harvesting. But MacQueen said the workload hasn’t bothered him, not even before he was receiving paychecks for his labor.
MacQueen said, “Even in high school when I didn’t work here, I would come home and drive through just to say hi to my dad and he’d say ‘Hey why don’t you give me a hand…’ and because it’s your family you’re immediately put to work and would be stuck for another couple hours.”
His early involvement is what MacQueen said fostered his love for the orchard and working outdoors. Some of his earliest memories, he said, include the orchard and involve him riding in a tractor alongside his father or falling off his bike in the market’s parking lot.
“I never thought anything of it but I guess it is kinda cool,” MacQueen said. “Growing up here was awesome; I think that’s why I’m so attached to the place. I’ve always been an outdoor kid and here I’m outside all the time.”
MacQueen said he doesn’t plan on returning to school to study horticulture because everything he’ll need to know in the future can be learned through hands on experience at the orchard. He said seeing his family all-day every day hasn’t bothered him and he still finds time to hang out with friends on the weekends.
Though he won’t gain complete control for quite some time, as both his grandfather, Robert, and father, Jeff, are still heavily involved in the orchard’s operation, MacQueen said he looks forward to learning more and being able to continue the work his family initiated.
“I’d like to move forward with my dad’s high density planting and every year increase our yield and be able to sell more product,” MacQueen said. “I’ll be working here for as long as I enjoy it. Before, everything I was doing felt like work and here it doesn’t.”