Starbucks wants to help businesses, not government

Starbucks has been in the political news quite a bit in recent months. CEO Howard Shultz announced he would no longer donate funds to political campaigns until Washington got its act together and urged his fellow CEO's to follow suit. Most recently he announced an initiative to collaborate with a non-profit organization on a project called "Jobs for USA". The project seeks to provide loans to small businesses.

I am not certain of the specifics of this project but there is one admirable aspect - less reliance on the federal government for funding and expanding small business and job growth. The government does not create jobs. The only thing it can do to help create jobs is create a healthy environment for businesses to thrive.

Bluegrass Beacon gains national attention

A recent column by Bluegrass Beacon columnist Jim Waters is gaining national attention.

The column involves an assault by Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway on private business. , who filed a lawsuit against FedEx claiming the non-union company is avoiding paying taxes by using independent contractors. It's a ludicrous charge, but it helps Conway politically with FedEx's unionized competitors.

The outcome of the lawsuit could affect every Kentucky company that employs independent contractors.

RedState.com recently linked to the column on its front page.

Redstate.com, which has been online since July 2004, is one of the most widely read right-of-center blogs on Capitol Hill and is considered one of the most influential voices of the grassroots on the right.