Note: As of 20080213 these blogs start at the top.
20090614
Bill Maher on Obama
I agree.
20090310
I sent this to whitehouse.gov
-------------------------------------------------
Medical reimbursement plans for individuals
Why don't you make the current medical reimbursement plans for
businesses part of an overall government plan instead. That way,
anyone who pays taxes can use the plan.
I've been looking at private dental plans. If a government plan like this
were in place, it would have similar benefits for what would cost
up to $150 a year for a private plan.
Good way to start universal health coverage.
-------------------------------------------------
It would be easy to do. Currently you have to be a business, almost
any size. Then you contact a company that can hold the money that
is deducted from your paycheck, pre taxed. And that company reimburses you.
Get rid of the tax laws around it and the government could simply
take over those services and use the companies that are currently doing it.
What is the difference?
The only difference is that anyone paying taxes would have access!
20081103 BARAK OMAMA!
I haven't written in a long time. Just in case
anyone is undecided and looking at this (chuckle), I'm voting for
Barak Obama. He's not perfect, but he's better than
anything we've seen for a long long time. I'm hopeful.
20080626 Please join this group on Barak Obama's website.
http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/SenatorObama-PleaseVoteAgainstFISA
Obama is allowing the new warrentless search bill that allow immunity to the telecoms to go forward. This link allows you to join a newly formed group on Obama's website. The group is asking Obama to vote against the bill. As far as I can tell, this group has grown to over 2200 members in 3 days starting on June 26th, 2008. The largest group is over 13,000.
If you support Obama as I do, please join this group to show your support and and try to change his mind.
I haven't look at the specifics of the current bill in congress. I for one would at the very least like to understand why Obama has changed his position on this issue.
From what I've gleened, the only good in the bill states that telecom immunity is dependent on showing that they got approval from the executive branch. I'm not sure if the bill gives this immunity to the executive branch. If it doesn't then maybe that is a good thing. But I don't see how the repubs would allow that to happen.
20080420 - I guess we specifically planned to torture! ABC news April 9th, 2008.
"At the time, the Principals Committee included Vice President Cheney, former National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as CIA Director George Tenet and Attorney General John Ashcroft."
When will the prosecutions begin?
20080309 I guess we just don't care if we torture . (New York Times)
I'm not sure how much farther Bush can sink. His reality is based on Jack Bauer, the fictional character in 24. Even John McCain, agrees that we should torture. I used to respect McCain, but I can not tolerate this blatant disregard of the Constitution and the Geneva Conventions.
What does it take to make these people realize that it is not only counter productive, but morally wrong!
20080221 Is Bush taking a que from Obama on foreign policy?
Tip of the hat to Informed Comment.
John McCain - after the Wisconsin Primary Feb. 19th, 2008.
"Will the next President have the experience, the judgment experience informs, and the strength of purpose to respond to each of these developments in ways that strengthen our security and advance the global progress of our ideals? Or will we risk the confused leadership of an inexperienced candidate who once suggested invading our ally, Pakistan, and sitting down without pre-conditions or clear purpose with enemies who support terrorists and are intent on destabilizing the world by acquiring nuclear weapons?"
... confused leadership of an inexperienced candidate who once suggested invading our ally, Pakistan ...
A small wack at Obama. On Aug. 1st, 2007, during a Democratic debate, Obama stated,
"If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won't act, we will."
"This stance is [now] US policy. In fact, George W. Bush implemented it with a Predator attack on an al-Qaeda leader in Pakistan just a couple of weeks ago, an attack that the Pakistani government declined to authorize." Informed Comment.
So an inexperienced upstart's stance is now foreign policy. Who da thought?
Wanna be Vice President, John? Maybe you could learn a thing or two.
20080220 Holes in the Wall
"Melissa del Bosque - February 18, 2008, The Texas Observer
As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security marches down the Texas border serving condemnation lawsuits to frightened landowners, Brownsville resident Eloisa Tamez, 72, has one simple question. She would like to know why her land is being targeted for destruction by a border wall, while a nearby golf course and resort remain untouched.
Tamez, a nursing director at the University of Texas at Brownsville, is one of the last of the Spanish land grant heirs in Cameron County. Her ancestors once owned 12,000 acres. In the 1930s, the federal government took more than half of her inherited land, without paying a cent, to build flood levees.
Now Homeland Security wants to put an 18-foot steel and concrete wall through what remains.
While the border wall will go through her backyard and effectively destroy her home, it will stop at the edge of the River Bend Resort and golf course, a popular Winter Texan retreat two miles down the road. The wall starts up again on the other side of the resort.
“It has a golf course and all of the amenities,” Tamez says. “There are no plans to build a wall there. If the wall is so important for security, then why are we skipping parts?”
...
Just 69 miles north, Daniel Garza, 76, faces a similar situation with a neighbor who has political connections that reach the White House. In the small town of Granjeno, population 313, Garza points to a field across the street where a segment of the proposed 18-foot high border wall would abruptly end after passing through his brick home and a small, yellow house he gave his son. “All that land over there is owned by the Hunts,” he says, waving a hand toward the horizon. “The wall doesn’t go there.”
..."
So the stupid shit continues. Holes in the new security border between Texas and Mexico and holes in the heads of the people who think they are protecting this country.
20080213 Senate grants immunity to telecoms for breaking the law
The Senate has capitulated on Bush's request to allow immunity for the telecoms. The following DEMOCRATS allowed this to happen.
Conrad, Rockefeller, Baucus, Webb, Kohl, Whitehouse, Bayh, Johnson, Bill Nelson, Mikulski, McCaskill, Lincoln, Casey, Salazar, Inouye, Ben Nelson, Pryor, Carper, and Landrieu.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/02/12/amnesty_day/index.html
Please sign this petition to the House to make sure the US will remain a government of the US Constitution and the people.
http://action.firedoglake.com/page/petition/RestoreFISA
Supreme court justice Scalia says constitution does not ban torture.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/law_in_action/7238665.stm
This is a supreme court judge?
The 8th amendment states:
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive
fines imposed,
nor cruel and unusual punishments
inflicted
The 14th amendment states:
All persons born or naturalized in the United States,
and subject to
the jurisdiction thereof, are
citizens of the United States and of
the State wherein
they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of
citizens of
the United States; nor shall any State
deprive any person of life,
liberty, or property,
without due process of law; nor deny to any
person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the
laws.
Strict constitutionalist, my ass. Anyone under the jurisdiction of our goverment is afford the same rights we all our supposed to have.
It's nice to know the government in all branches are
trying to protect
us, but who is going to protect us from the government.
Note: Most blogs post at the top. Use Ctrl-End to get to the most recent blog.
20070821
I blogged the following message to the Clinton Website and the Obama Website.
Recently I went to www.americanfreedomcampaign.org to have
all the presidential candidates sign a pledge to uphold the
US Constitution.
This is the pledge.
"We are Americans, and in our America we do not
torture,
we do not imprison people without charge or
legal remedy,
we do not tap people’s phones and emails
without a court order,
and above all we do not give any
President unchecked power.
I pledge to fight to protect and defend the Constitution
from
assault by any President."
There is no reason for you, Senator Obama, to sign this
pledge,
because as a United States Senator, have
already pledged to
uphold the Constitution.
The 6th amendment states:
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy
the right
to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial
jury of the State
and district wherein the crime shall
have been committed, which
district shall have been
previously ascertained by law, and
to be informed of
the nature and cause of the accusation;
to be
confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory
process for obtaining witnesses in his favor,
and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.
The 8th amendment states:
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive
fines imposed,
nor cruel and unusual punishments
inflicted
The 14th amendment states:
All persons born or naturalized in the United States,
and subject to
the jurisdiction thereof, are
citizens of the United States and of
the State wherein
they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of
citizens of
the United States; nor shall any State
deprive any person of life,
liberty, or property,
without due process of law; nor deny to any
person
within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
On April 19th, 1995, two US citizens, Timothy McVeigh
and Terry Nichols
committed the worst terrorist act that
this country had every seen.
This bombing claimed 168
lives. Both were caught and convicted,
without
torture and were afforded a fair trial.
The US courts are not in
disarray due to the attack on 9/11.
The United States prosecuted a Japanese military
officer, Yukio Asano,
in 1947 for carrying out a form
of water boarding on a U.S. civilian during
World War
II. Yukio Asano received a sentence of 15 years of hard labor.
The charges of Violation of the Laws and Customs of War
against Asano also
included "beating using hands,
fists, club; kicking; burning using cigarettes;
strapping on a stretcher head downward."
http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~warcrime/Japan/Yokohama/Reviews/Yokohama_Review_Asano.htm
Sound familiar.
I expect that the next
President of the United states will right these
outrageous abuses of the US constitution. More than
that, I expect
the next President of the United States
will do everything in their
power to make sure these
abuses never happen again.
For some reason, the Clinton website gave me the following response when I tried to post the blog.
"Your post can not be published because it contains content that violates community standards."
I wonder what standards caused that? I have an email to the Clinton org and will let you know
when I found out.
[20080207 - I never got an answer to this question. Honestly I hope Obama is our Democratic canidate, but I'll vote for whoever is the Democratic nominee come next November. I'm an Independent, but voting Democratic for the forseeable future.]
Blogging to these websites is a waste of time as far as I'm concerned. Far to many daily blogs
for anyone to get a handle on a single blog.
20070825
I sent the following email to Robert Bates. His is a recurring blogger for Eric Alterman (see
politics page.)
He responded. Hopefully he will look at this issue. I think biodiesel should be implemented as
outlined in the communication. It would be nice to have an advocate with a larger voice in
the world.
No response from the Clinton campaign about rejecting my post.
20070828
Saw this on Altercation from a reader. It makes a good point the public bathroom scandal,
republican Senator Craig from Idaho is facing. I've read that Craig some gave some secret sign that
tipped the officer off.
Name: Jim Carlile
Hometown: Burbank,
California
Hi Eric,
As much as I would love to see Larry Craig nailed for hypocrisy over this restroom incident, there's something about this whole story that troubles me.
I guess the best way of putting it is, exactly what's legally culpable about gay men picking each other up with secret signals, footsies, or whatever? I mean, even if Craig were deliberately cruising for men, what did he specifically do wrong that's illegal? I see worse, more seductive signals every day between strange men and women in bars, waiting rooms, all sorts of public places.
I could understand it if the behavior had escalated into
physical lewd acts in public, but that didn't happen. So since when did mere gay
seduction become automatically illegal, just because of intent alone? Rather
than chortling over the Craig problem, I think gay men everywhere should ask
just why their pick-up attempts, however they work, are still being
criminalized.
20070830
I guess having oral sex between bathroom stalls could be construed as lewd public behavior.
I had a gay friend in Green Bay Wisconsin. I was headed to Madison one day with a friend
to apply for a police job. He forgot something, so I said drop me off at a rest stop south of GB while
he went back. Met my gay friend there trolling for sex. I guess rest stops on highways are another
place for anonymous gay sex interactions.
Excellent report on current investigations on corruption due to outsourcing of the military in Iraq.
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2007/08/alterman_outsourced_war.html
The United States government detained Donald Vance just outside Baghdad for 97 days. They hooded him, interrogated him ruthlessly, and blasted his cell with heavy metal music. He was accused of selling weapons to terrorists. His real crime appears to be telling the FBI about corrupt contracting practices in Iraq. Vance is among a select group of state enemies: whistleblowers.
We know this because of an Associated Press story that uncovered Vance’s ordeal. Vance, suspicious that the contractor . . .
20070901
Good blog by Jessica Hagy. She creates pictures on index cards. Her quote --
"This site is a little project that lets me make fun of some things and sense of others. I use it to think a little more relationally without resorting to doing actual math."
20070909
The
Supremacy of the Super-Citizen
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Excerpt
We are not all created equal, in fact. This inequality is not based on race, or sex, or religion, but upon the slow development of a body of laws that have created and empowered a breed of super-citizens which rule over every aspect of our lives, almost completely beyond the reach of justice. These super-citizens exist today under the familiar name "corporation."
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/063005X.shtml
Dare I say it. The military industrial complex.
20070910
From the Wall Street Journal - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118939335334222323.html?mod=politics_first_element_hs
The push also includes construction of fortified checkpoints on the major highways leading from the Iranian border to Baghdad and the installation of X-ray machines and explosives-detecting sensors at the only formal border crossing between Iran and Iraq.
The measures come as the U.S. high command in Iraq has begun to recalibrate the overall American mission in the country to focus less on ...
Just what we need; another impossibly untenable border fence. Think Mexico only 6500 miles away.
But hey this border is only 600 miles long instead of 1400 miles. It should be a lot easier, right.
From what I understand most of the foreign jihadists are coming from Saudi Arabia.
From the LA Times - http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-saudi15jul15,0,3132262.story?coll=la-home-center
Sunni extremists from Saudi Arabia make up half the foreign fighters in Iraq, many suicide bombers, a U.S. official says.
That would only add another 500 miles to the fence. But, hey, we don't have to worry about the Saudis, right. Only
15 of 19 hijackers were Saudi.
Update 20070926 - this story has been archived.
20070914
Pretty Funny - Scott Adam's Dilbert Blog. Link
Osama Placebo
Osama released a new video.
Analysts are wondering how his beard turned from grey to black. I guess his
healthy lifestyle is paying dividends.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20649227/site/newsweek/
I assume this new video is from the real Osama because a
fake would do a better job matching the beard. In other words, the real Osama
looks too fake to be an actual fake. This raises an interesting question: How
hard would it be for the CIA to create a fake Osama who looks more real than the
real one?
I don’t think it
would be hard. A Hollywood special effects team could pound one out in a week.
Then you just need to get the other intelligence agencies to say the voice is
authenticated. Bam.
The first
video of the fake Osama could be one of his typical wandering diatribes against
capitalism and infidels and blah, blah, blah. Once the public, especially the
terrorist cells with no direct contact back to the base cave, start to believe
he’s real, you can begin to sprinkle in new topics and nudge the terrorists in
whatever direction you like. Remember, there’s no such thing as a story too
ridiculous when you’re talking about people who believe suicide is a good way to
get laid.
By the third or
fourth video, Osama could be telling his followers to tattoo “Al Qaeda” on their
foreheads to show their devotion and lack of fear. He could explain that
martyrdom has many levels, with death being the best payoff in virgins, but lots
of opportunity for virgin action short of death. For example, you could just
wound yourself and still get hand action from one virgin.
Within a few weeks, all the
terrorists would end up in emergency rooms with tattoos on their foreheads and
semi-martyr erections. Then you just arrest them, handcuff them behind their
backs, and tell them the punch line, which goes like this: “By the way, that one
virgin was you. And you had your chance in the ambulance on the way over”
20070917
Since I'm
very devoted to restoring habeas corpus, I was interested to see how a recent
(today) Senate vote
on restoring habeas corpus for
detainees went.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s2007-340
(great web
site that tracks US legislation.)
This shows that both Wyden - D and Smith - R (Oregon
Senators) voted to uphold habeas corpus. (I'm thinking that
maybe Smith has come to his senses -- still undecided,
because he changed his tune so
quickly after the last
election.)
This was a cloture
vote, so it basically was asking the Senate to get 60 votes
to add this amendment to a bill. It missed by 4 votes.
Every Nay vote was a republican or
the war dog Lieberman.
Fucking
republicans.
20071011
The Supreme court let a lower court ruling stand that allows the US to torture non US citizens.
Link.
I'm quoting Eric Alterman's blog from 20071010.
What does
this mean in practice? It means the U.S. government can kidnap at will and
arrange for the torture of anyone in the world (though the status of U.S.
citizens in these instances remains unclear). Even to write those words makes
the idea sound outlandish, but the fact is, that's just what they do. They are
accessories in kidnapping and torture and, while I suppose they think they have
the best interests of the country at heart, they are so deluded, so incompetent,
so-self-righteous, and so extremist in their beliefs that they really do
constitute a danger to humankind. And now we learn there's nothing in our legal
system to stop them. And they don't even have to face and there's no prospect of
impeachment and hence, I'd say our political system has truly gone off its
rails. Once again, the genius is you can't keep up with all the scandals. You'd
have to be outraged, all the time, about almost everything. And who wants that?
20071031
Water boarding is Torture ... Period.
http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2007/10/waterboarding-is-torture-perio/
Read it and weep.
20071106
Interesting links.
Presidential Popularity since Roosevelt
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/popularity.php?pres=&sort=time&direct=ASC&Submit=DISPLAY
America War Paar Da! (You Tube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGZ-HxIzsWA
Despite Economic Growth, Share of Good Jobs Falls
http://www.cepr.net/content/view/1352/8/
So not for profit government energy cost less than for profit energy from private companies.
Who would have thought? Ah the miracle of government.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/06/business/06electric.html
20071112
The situation in Iraq is improving.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/111207H.shtml
but as far as anyone can tell, we will be in Iraq for 25 to 50 years. Isn't it wonderful GW's plan has worked so well.
20071121
There have been estimates of 600,000 to 1,000,000 deaths in Iraq since the war started. President Bush admitted to 30,000
deaths publicly in 2005.
A recent article by Mark Wiesbrot on Alternet discusses the "Holocaust Denial" of the actual number of dead.
http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/68568/
The 600,000 to 1 million dead are based on scientific sampling. Numbers cited for Darfur and even the actual
Holocaust are based on sampling. These numbers are widely accepted. I love this line in the article.
"As one observer succinctly put it: if you don't believe in random sampling, the next time your doctor orders a blood test, tell him that he needs to take all of it."
Is the media denying this holocaust? Are our leaders denying this holocaust?
I hate this war.
20071216 - UPDATE
An opposing view to these surveys.
http://www.iraqbodycount.org/analysis/beyond/reality-checks/
Actually a very good site. It's where Bush got his information on the actual dead from the Iraq war.
They base their counts on news reports.
Currently, their body count is between 78 and 85 thousand. They admit it is an undercount.
20071211
A little piece of obscure xmas tradition.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caganer
Happy Holidays everyone!
20071216
The Telecom companies should not be immune from breaking surveillance laws. Tell you mom, dad, sisters, brothers,
friends, local, state and US representatives that warrant less surveillance was and still is illegal. Bushco and the Telecom companies have been doing this since before 9/11.
From the New York Times - http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/16/washington/16nsa.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
In December 2000, agency officials wrote a transition report to the incoming Bush administration, saying the agency must become a “powerful, permanent presence” on the commercial communications network, a goal that they acknowledged would raise legal and privacy issues.
For an in depth look, please check Glenn Greenwald's assessment at Salon.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/12/16/telecoms/index.html
Senator Dodd will be trying to filibuster a current bill that would allow immunity to the Telecom industries.
Please add your comments.
This really makes you wonder why operation Falcon was so successful. This was a program that our great and
now retired Attorney General Alberto Gonzales help instigate with our US marshals.
http://www.usmarshals.gov/falcon/index.html
This is a summary of their operations.
|
Operation Statistics |
FALCON I
* |
FALCON
II |
FALCON
III |
FALCON
2007 |
Total |
|
Fugitives Arrested |
10,340 |
9,03 |
10,733 |
6,406 |
36,516 |
|
Warrants Cleared |
13,851 |
10,419 |
13,333 |
7,766 |
45,369 |
|
Sex Offenders Arrested |
553 |
1,102 |
1,659 |
566 |
3,880 |
|
Gang Members Arrested |
154 |
163 |
364 |
300 |
981 |
|
FALCON Team Members |
3,100 |
2,126 |
3,100 |
- |
- |
|
Federal Agencies |
25 |
25 |
30 |
22 |
- |
|
State Agencies |
206 |
120 |
103 |
70 |
- |
|
Local Agencies |
366 |
312 |
482 |
242 |
- |
|
County Agencies |
362 |
330 |
430 |
206 |
- |
36,516 fugitives arrested over a 7 week period. Good. Great.
How much of this surveillance program is being used to spy on normal citizens who oppose the war.
How much of this surveillance program is being used to spy on let's say operations in the Democratic
party. Jeez everybody, get a clue and oppose immunity. I know this shit has been going on since
time began but now it's like; OK, I'm not doing anything wrong, so it'll catch a lot of crooks. What happens
when it's illegal to be a non Christian. WAKE UP!
Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both.
Benjamin Franklin
This guy has been dead for over 227 years, but he and our other Founding Fathers had an idea. Don't let
it die.
Stop spying!
Stop torture!
Restore Habeas corpus!
Stop the gross incompetence that has pervaded our government and industry!
Update: 20071217
This is the best explanation I've ever seen about the uselessness of massive illegal wiretapping.
http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=113600&title=headlines-this-is-wire-tap
Four data points:
1. The presidential daily brief about "Bin Laden determined to attack the United States."
2. Terrorist were planning to use commercial planes as a weapon.
3. FBI knew terrorists were taking pilot lessons.
4. The World Trade center had previously been targeted.
These were know facts. How are trillion of data points going to make these known data points more clear.
Why do I get better information from The Daily Show then I do from the main stream media?
Update: 20071219
An excellent summary of what lead up to and what happened this Monday on the Senate floor.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/12/18/victory/index.html
20071220 The sub prime, financial liquidity crisis.
I recently saw this at The Big Picture.
It's a video of Paul Krugman speaking at Google.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XhvG_fD0HA
He does an excellent job of explaining the current sub prime, financial liquidity crisis.
I've sent the following to Ron Paul based on what I saw in the video.
Actually it's an answer from Ron Paul campaign. I'm impressed that it was personal. I sent an email to the Clinton campaign as addressed earlier in this blog on 20070821 and never got an answer. At least Ron Paul responds.
----
Mark,
Thank you for your comments. I assure you that they
will be passed on to the proper person in the campaign and be taken into
consideration.
Brandon
Volunteer-Ron Paul for President 2008
Subject: Lending Laws
Hi Ron,
We've recently had a housing bubble, partly due to predatory lending practices.
As a Republican, how do you feel about national lending laws like the following?
1. You can't borrow unless you have an income to pay the loan accounting for cost of living expenses (plus at
least a 30% plus margin of error.)
2. Pre-payment penalties should be illegal. (This should be for all and any loans made.)
3. Sub prime loans should account for future income. (You should be able to pay for future increases.)
4. Cap all and any loans at 15%. (Put whatever % you want here. Honestly, I think 15% is high, certainly no
more than 20%.)
Would these be bad national laws to enforce. Can our government under the US constitution try to
enforce simple laws like these at a national level?
It seems to me if the above had been followed at a national level, this housing bubble would have
never happened. You know this would be a cheap program to enforce at a national level compared to
the collective damage this has done
Or is it all just caveat emptor?
Later,
Mark Hessel
----
I posted this on The Big Picture.
Hey,
Great post Barry. Some of it's all just a ponzi scheme, isn't it.
I sent this to the Ron Paul campaign. I said Republican
instead of Libertarian and cleaned it
up a bit, maybe
added a little while I was listening but I thought it was pertinent.
Hi Ron,
We've recently had a housing bubble, partly due to predatory lending practices.
As a Libertarian, how do you feel about national lending laws like the following?
1. You can't borrow unless you have an income to pay for
the loan accounting for cost of living expenses (plus at
least a 50% margin of error.)
2.
Pre-payment penalties should be illegal. (This should be for all and any loans
made.)
3. Sub prime loans should account for future
income. (You should be able to pay for future increases based on the
formula listed in #4.)
4. Cap all
and any loans at 15%. (Put whatever % you want here. Honestly, I think 15% is
high, certainly no
more than 20%.)
I've always followed 1. and 2. The most I've paid for a
house loan is 10 1/2%.
I've always tried to limit my
housing cost to 1/3 of my income. Caveat emptor.
Can our government under the US constitution try to enforce simple laws like these at a national level?
If the above had been followed at a national level, this
housing bubble would have never happened.
You know this
would be a cheap program to enforce at a national level compared to the
collective damage
this has already done. And it ain't
over yet.
Or is it all just caveat emptor?
Later,
Mark Hessel
I personally think a recession has a 100% chance of
happening within the next 6 seconds. I guess
I disagree
with Krugman there. I honestly didn't believe him when he said 50% and I don't
hold
it against him for saying a 50% chance. I've
struggled on that guess all the time.
Otherwise he was perfectly lucid.
Look, as far as I can tell, the current housing bubble is
less than the Savings and Loan problem in the 80's
compared to GDP, but that was bad. This is pretty close.
Since this isn't as bad as that problem, I don't
think
we are headed for the Great Depression. But, why do we continue with letting it
slide.
How hard can it be at a national level to
enforce the 4 above rules.
Better yet. How hard
would it be to have the President of the United States say "Hell,
Iraq is a democracy. They should have a national election,
with purple thumbs in the air,
decide yes or no, 51%,
Whether the United States should stay or go."
10 minutes. An election in Iraq would probably happen if GW said that on TV.
I honestly think that if George Bush said that, it's effect
would be close to following the above
4 lending rules
for the next 10 years.
10 minutes, 10 years. Isn't life amazing.
20080115
Who Do you Trust?
This was my response to the question poised at The Big Picture.
-----------------------------
20080105
Interesting question.
In my most cynical moods,
the song "Everbody Know's" by Leonard Cohen
would sum
it up.
http://www.oddball.net/lyrics.cfm?dsl=327&Title=Everybody_Knows&Band=Leonard_Cohen&Album=I'm_Your_Man
[ Here’s the lyrics so you don’t have to look it up.
Everybody knows that the dice are
loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows that the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died
Everybody talking to their
pockets
Everybody wants a box of chocolates
And a long stem rose
Everybody
knows
Everybody knows
that you love me baby
Everybody knows that you really
do
Everybody knows that you've been faithful
Ah give or take a night or two
Everybody knows you've been discreet
But there were so many people you just had to meet
Without your clothes
And everybody
knows
Everybody knows,
everybody knows
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
Everybody knows, everybody knows
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
And everybody knows that
it's now or never
Everybody knows that it's me or you
And everybody knows that you live forever
Ah when you've done a line or two
Everybody knows the deal is rotten
Old Black Joe's still pickin' cotton
For your ribbons and bows
And
everybody knows
And
everybody knows that the Plague is coming
Everybody
knows that it's moving fast
Everybody knows that the
naked man and woman
Are just a shining artifact of the
past
Everybody knows the scene is dead
But there's gonna be a meter on your bed
That will disclose
What everybody
knows
And everybody
knows that you're in trouble
Everybody knows what
you've been through
From the bloody cross on top of
Calvary
To the beach of Malibu
Everybody knows it's coming apart
Take one last look at this Sacred Heart
Before it blows
And everybody
knows
Everybody knows,
everybody knows
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
Oh everybody knows, everybody knows
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
Everybody
knows ]
Musically the best version, I've heard is by Concrete Blond
on "Still in Hollywood". [Great album, by the way!]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaJAxdGeZ4E
[The video is so so. but
it’s worth a listen.]
Leonard truly sucks as a vocalist -- hope he doesn't mind
that comment.
But, in general, I trust humanity. I don't think
there would be 6 billion
people on this planet if this
was not the case.
When I
get in my car, I pretty much trust that another car will not
careen into my lane. I guess that means I trust the
human survival
instinct. I still drive
defensively, though, because I also believe
in the never
ending human propensity for stupidity.
In the end, real trust is earned at every level.
I trust my immediate family
and close friends at almost all levels.
I barely know him but, I trust my car mechanic for car
repair.
Beyond that, I don't know.
I have to trust the IRS.
(I'm just talking about the IRS and not the US
government in general. The IRS haven't screwed me
yet. I'm keeping my fingers
crossed on this one. I
can recall a few times that I've screwed them -- I guess
that means I've screwed everyone in the US. Oh well. Can't
trust me, ay.)
I trust
Addison Avenue Credit Union. I've been keeping track of every
penny for years and out of all the mistakes that I've
found, I'm the
one that has f**ked up -- not really sure
why I bother to keep track
anymore.
I trust real science.
How's it's applied is another matter.
I trust Google. I've been hesitant to use Gmail as my
main email because
they have explicit access to
it. But honestly, I've come to the view point
it
really doesn't matter because any chosen ISP has total access to your email.
Google has been very good to me -- most excellent starting
point for information
of any kind.
I also trust Wikipedia as a
starting point for information.
I trust transparency. In the end, I think
transparency in business and
government would solve most
of our current problems.
20080206 - Authors@google
Google brings in authors to speak to their employees. My guess is most of them are currently on YouTube.
If you want to see the list simply type authors@google in the search box and viola, a list of lectures appear.
Currently there are 235 lectures listed.
Good stuff! Tip of the hat to The Big Picture on this one. Thanks Barry.
Two interesting lectures I've seen recently are
Paul Krugman New York Times Columnist and Economist
Clear description of the Sub Prime - Financial Market mess.
Michael Shermer The Mind of the Market
Describes how primitive societies and even current studies in primates relate to current human strategies.
The lectures are all over the map. I plan to visit regularly.
20080207 Jennifer Aniston and three-minute showers
A while back, it was stated that Jennifer Aniston said she only takes three-minute showers to save water.
Bravo for her. She says she brushes her teeth while showering, too.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/environment/archives/117769.asp
I would imagine that she would get more bang for her buck by peeing while showering.
I mean a flush is a flush. How much water can a toothbrush hold?
Seriously, though, I do applaud her for taking a
quick showers. It's a resource
that needs to be
saved. Every little bit helps.
The big guys - Al Gore, John Edwards, Warren
Buffet and Bill Gates to name a few
and all like minded
millionaires could save energy by installing a system in there
extremely large residences that would only heat parts of
the house that are being used.
Sure it would cost, but
if every multi millionaire did that, then a mansion 10
or 20 times the size of a normal home would only consume
the energy
needed for 1 normal home. It all adds
up. A million millionaires could be saving
the
current energy used for 10 to 20 million homes. While they are installing a
system like that for a couple more bucks they could have a
stereo system
in every room that responds to voice
command to play music. Hell I'd
do it, if I had
the jack. (You could probably do this, too, Jennifer.)
Me, I'm just a lowly little schlep, so what can I do.
Well for starters . . .
I leave the curtains open during the day in the
winter to soak up the sun.
I leave them closed during
the day in the summer time to keep the house cool. I use a fan at night to
cool the house.
I've replaced most of my incandescent
lights with florescent lights.
I recycle.
If your community doesn't do it, get involved and have them start it.
I alternate between two towels for two weeks for showers
(or if they start smelling. Which ever comes first.)
I
wear a shirt or pants more than one day if they are not dirty.
I've lived close to where I work. (I should use a
bicycle more often!)
I don't bag my grass clippings.
I have a simple 8 foot circle, four feet high wire compost
in my yard. (I've rarely used my yard debris bin in years.)
I reuse my water bottles. From what I understand, the standards for tap water are better than the standards for bottled water.
It takes energy to make those bottles. Also, a half a cent to refill a bottle is less then a dollar to buy a new one.
Eat less meat. It takes a lot of energy to
produce meat. I'm currently trying to limit my meat intake to
just chicken and fish. Per pound, it takes less
energy to produce poultry than beef or pork.
Buy a $30 programmable thermostat. Shut the heat
down at night. Also, if you keep it at 70 degrees, set
it at 68 degrees or as low as you can stand. I've
started to set my thermostat at 63 degrees.
That may
seem a little extreme but I'm out of a job at the moment. Wear warm clothes. Set
it to a normal
temperature when friends come over (or
your extremely old parents.) Jack up the heat before you go to bed
and then shut it down before you go to sleep. Buy an
electric blanket.
If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down.
What the hell, pee in the shower.
I tried using one toilet paper square per wipe,
like Sheryl Crow suggested, but it was just a little to messy.
(I'm kidding, btw, just like Sheryl was.)
These are just a few things I do. If you have other ideas, email me.
And Jennifer, if you are ever in town, I'd
gladly share a 3 minute shower with you -- maybe only two
minutes if you jump in the shower cold. Loved your
grizzly bear documentary. XXX OOO
20080211
The Deputy Secretary of State, John Negroponte admitted that the US used waterboarding.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/108719?from=rss
"The debate over what to say or not say continued until last week, when Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte casually let drop, in an interview with National Journal, that "waterboarding had not been used in years. It wasn't used when I was director of national intelligence, nor even for a few years before that," he said. (Negroponte became the first to hold the newly created DNI post in 2005 and served in that capacity until January 2007.)"
The cats out of the bag. So Negroponte says it has
not been done in years, but still during the Bush administration.
The US waterboards. Bush says it’s legal, so it’s
legal.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004168963_ndig07.html
Our new Attorney General says he won’t investigate -- the adminstration's answer to "I haven't got a clue" Alberto Gonzales.
They are not even trying to cover it up.
This should be national news!
We are probably going to have a democrat in the Whitehouse for the next 8 years, but what’s to stop these jerks from doing it again? The right wing spew machine will make sure any problems that occur over the next 8 years will be monumental. My answer is to put Bush and Cheney in jail in 2009. Nixon should have went to jail. The country could handle it. If there is no penalty for abandoning the constitution, then it will happen again.
As far as I’m concerned, the next dem president should do just that. It’s the only way to fix this problem. I know it’s not exactly building bridges, but some bridges have to be torn down. This is one of them.
The bridge to totalitarianism.
Please click on this link to voice your concern to your US senators.
Thanks
Comments: Email me