Semi-random thoughts

• It's always interesting to see people from my past in the news. I worked on my college newspaper, the Daily Cardinal, and now Rena Steinzor, one of the editors-in-chief under whom I served, was quoted in an article about the Obama administration's efforts to review government regulations. She is now the president of the Center for Progressive Reform.
• My Powernet Global long distance phone bill came. It showed a 20 minute call to Israel. Cost: 98 cents. That's only 1 cent a minute more than my U.S. out-of-state calls. And I think it's less than my in-state calls (there weren't any on this month's bill). But less than half of my $8.00 total bill was usage charges. The rest was taxes (25 cents) and government fees.
• I was wondering why taxes aren't due until April 18 this year. The explanation: DC holiday delays federal tax filing deadline (Thank you, President Lincoln.)