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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>More than anything, it reminds me of the story of
Nero fiddling while Rome burned...</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>JW</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=thansen@moscow.com href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com">Tom Hansen</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=auntiestablishment@hotmail.com
href="mailto:auntiestablishment@hotmail.com">'Joan Opyr'</A> ; <A
title=vision2020@moscow.com href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">'Vision2020
Moscow'</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, January 14, 2005 5:48
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> RE: [Vision2020] Inauguration
costs or what else $40 million could buy</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV class=Section1>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">This all reflects
King Georges Let Them Eat Cake attitude toward the less
fortunate.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Tom
Hansen<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=navy size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: navy">We could learn a lot from crayons: some
are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull, some have weird names, and all are
different colors....but they all exist very nicely in the same box.
</SPAN></FONT><o:p></o:p></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><FONT
face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">
<HR tabIndex=-1 align=center width="100%" SIZE=3>
</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">From:</SPAN></FONT></B><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma"> <A
href="mailto:vision2020-bounces@moscow.com">vision2020-bounces@moscow.com</A>
[mailto:vision2020-bounces@moscow.com] <B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">On
Behalf Of </SPAN></B>Joan Opyr<BR><B><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Sent:</SPAN></B> Thursday, January 13, 2005 9:57
PM<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">To:</SPAN></B> Vision2020
Moscow<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Subject:</SPAN></B> [Vision2020]
Inauguration costs or what else $40 million could
buy</SPAN></FONT><o:p></o:p></P></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Dear
Visionaries:<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Here's a little something to
think about on the eve of Mr. Bush's second inauguration. Forwarding
from Salon.com: a list of some of the things $40 million might buy other
than glittering balls and champagne orgies. So what if it's private
money? I believe private money is what Jay Gatsby was spending while his
fellow citizens starved in the streets.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">As I read more of the Bush II
festivities, I'm reminded of Herbert Hoover's insistence on eating a
seven-course dinner every night during the height of the Great
Depression. He believed that if the poor and destitute
knew that the President kept to his regular opulent
dining habits, it would be good for the national morale.
And it was. The people finally got wise and voted for
FDR. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">--Joan Opyr/Auntie
Establishment<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV>
<P><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2005/01/13/cost/print.html<BR><BR><BR></SPAN></FONT><FONT
size=5><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt"><!-- Headline -->Some now question cost
of inauguration</SPAN></FONT><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"><BR></SPAN></FONT><FONT
color=#999999 size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: #999999">- - - - - -
- - - - - -</SPAN></FONT><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"><BR><B><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><!-- Byline -->By Will
Lester</SPAN></B><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"><A
href="http://salon.com/news/wire/2005/01/13/cost/print.html"
lid="http://images.salon.com/src/print_new.gif"><SPAN
style="TEXT-DECORATION: none"><IMG id=_x0000_i1025 height=21 alt=print
src="http://images.salon.com/src/print_new.gif" width=58
border=0></SPAN></A><A
href="http://salon.com/news/wire/2005/01/13/cost/email.html"
lid="http://images.salon.com/src/email_new.gif"><SPAN
style="TEXT-DECORATION: none"><IMG id=_x0000_i1026 height=21 alt=e-mail
src="http://images.salon.com/src/email_new.gif" width=57
border=0></SPAN></A><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Jan. 13, 2005 |
</SPAN></FONT><FONT face=Verdana size=1><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 7.5pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Washington -- </SPAN></FONT><!-- end default pre content -->President Bush's second
inauguration will cost tens of millions of dollars -- $40 million alone in
private donations for the balls, parade and other invitation-only parties.
With that kind of money, what could you buy? <o:p></o:p></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">--200
armored Humvees with the best armor for troops in <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">--Vaccinations and preventive health care for 22
million children in regions devastated by the tsunami.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">--A down
payment on the nation's deficit, which hit a record-breaking $412 billion last
year. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">--Two
years' salary for the Mets' new center fielder Carlos Beltran, or all of
pitcher Randy Johnson's contract extension with the New York Yankees.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Weeks
ago, the inauguration and its accompanying costs were considered a given, an
historic ceremony with all the pomp, pageantry and celebrations that the
nation had come to expect every four years. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">But a
recent confluence of events -- the tsunami natural disaster, Bush's warning
about Social Security finances and the $5 billion-a-month price tag for the
war in Iraq -- have many Americans now wondering why spend the money the
second time around. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">While the
Presidential Inaugural Committee hopes to raise $40 million in private
donations for the balls, parades and candlelight dinners for high-roller
donors, millions of government dollars will be spent on construction of the
platform and stands at the Capitol, police overtime, military personnel and
the tightest security for the first post-Sept. 11 inaugural.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">The
questions have come from Bush supporters and opponents: Do we need to spend
this money on what seems so extravagant? <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">New York
Rep. Anthony Weiner, a Democrat, suggested inaugural parties should be scaled
back, citing as a precedent Roosevelt's inauguration during World War II.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">"President Roosevelt held his 1945 inaugural at the
White House, making a short speech and serving guests cold chicken salad and
plain pound cake," according to a letter from Weiner and Rep. Jim McDermott,
D-Wash. "During World War I, President Wilson did not have any parties at his
1917 inaugural, saying that such festivities would be undignified."
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Lawmakers
representing the <st1:State w:st="on">Washington</st1:State> area have
complained to the White House about the <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">District of Columbia</st1:place></st1:State> not getting enough
federal help to cover the estimated $17.3 million security costs of the
inaugural. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Organizers of the inaugural defended the celebration.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">"The
inauguration of a <st1:country-region w:st="on">United
States</st1:country-region> president is one of <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s
greatest traditions, a tradition that transcends partisan politics," said
Tracey Schmitt, a spokeswoman for the Presidential Inaugural Committee. "Our
theme is celebrating freedom and honoring service."
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">She cited
the Commander in Chief inaugural ball that offers free tickets to service
members back from <st1:country-region
w:st="on">Afghanistan</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region> and their
family members. That ball is one of nine; the other eight require a ticket.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">"Every
inaugural there's a really good reason given why you should spend whatever
donors are sending in on something else," said Rich Galen, a veteran
Republican activist, saying many of the complaints come from the losers of the
election. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Billionaire Mark Cuban, owner of the National
Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks, voted for Bush -- twice. Cuban
knows a thing or two about big spending, once starring in ABC's reality TV
show, "The Benefactor," in which 16 contenders tried to pass his test for
success and win $1 million. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Cuban
questioned spending all that money on the inaugural.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">"As a
country, we face huge deficits. We face a declining economy We have service
people dying. We face responsibilities to help those suffering from the ...
devastation of the tsunamis," he wrote on his blog, a Web journal.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Cuban
challenged Bush to set an example: "Start by canceling your inauguration
parties and festivities." <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Verdana size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P></DIV></DIV><BR
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