And my friend said it's ok to share it with you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
The Oracle stutters...
In a TV speech delivered this Thursday,George Bush finally accepted the possibility that the Country was "going through some tough times" Mr. Duh strikes again! if George had been present when the Universe started with the Big Bang, he would have said, a long time later, that perhaps there had been a "bit of a 'pop' somewhere out there."
The economy has been headed South, by every sign, for a good long time. With the oil cartel holding the country (and the rest of humanity) to ransom, with the speculators on the New York Mercantile Exchange bidding up the Commodity Traded price of oil and minting billions in take-home profits right under our noses, with the federal Government paying out incentives for converting Wheat acreage to Corn to promote its Ethanol circus while driving up food costs nationwide, and what with the Treasury borrowing Billions every week from China so that China can export billions worth of shoddy goods to U.S. markets and finance the Endless War to Undefined Victory in Iraq, the American citizen doesn't stand a chance.
Recession?
What recession?
In a little less than ten months from now, George will retire to his collection of Horse manure in Crawford Texas, and visit his Presidential Library once a year to look at the book displayed on a polished shelf made from Texas Sage wood. He will look at the pictures and return the book to its shelf, so others can look at it and know what an avid reader he was. There will also come a time when he will begin to believe that he was America's Greatest president, but that a typo made a 92% approval rating look like 29%.by the end of his Eighth Year as the Leader of the Free Wire-Tapped World..
The likes of George Bush are sent to test us. He has a strictly faith-based economic Plan, faith in that the next President will somehow resolve the mess he created.
In its wisdom, Congress passed the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution some time after FDR. It limits the President to Two Terms. If they do nothing else for the next Ten Thousand Years, they will still have merited a Free Pass through the Pearly Gates for this one Act of Good Sense: can anyone even imagine what three Bush terms would feel like?
Try sitting down without pants on a nest of Amazon Fire Ants, for starters.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Religion sucks # 9
Top Saudi cleric calls for writers' deaths
REUTERS
Reuters US Online Report World News
Mar 15, 2008 09:35 EST
I read the above article and I started wondering about the Crusades, because I had heard that at least one or more of them involved pushing the Ottoman Turks (Muslims) out of Europe. So I go looking around for some basic information& I find...
How the Crusades Began:
For centuries, Jerusalem had been governed by Muslims, but they tolerated Christian pilgrims because they helped the economy. Then, in the 1070s, Turks (who were also Muslim) conquered these holy lands and mistreated Christians before realizing how useful their good will (and money) could be. The Turks also threatened the Byzantine Empire. Emperor Alexius asked the pope for assistance, and Urban II, seeing a way to harness the violent energy of Christian knights, made a speech calling for them to take back Jerusalem. Thousands responded, resulting in the First Crusade.
And the more I look, the more I realize that I know VERY little about the Crusades. So if I ever finish reading Collapse by Jared Diamond, I'll pick something shorter to read next time.
Maybe something like
The New Concise History of the Crusades (Hardcover)
by Thomas F. Madden (Author)
REUTERS
Reuters US Online Report World News
Mar 15, 2008 09:35 EST
I read the above article and I started wondering about the Crusades, because I had heard that at least one or more of them involved pushing the Ottoman Turks (Muslims) out of Europe. So I go looking around for some basic information& I find...
How the Crusades Began:
For centuries, Jerusalem had been governed by Muslims, but they tolerated Christian pilgrims because they helped the economy. Then, in the 1070s, Turks (who were also Muslim) conquered these holy lands and mistreated Christians before realizing how useful their good will (and money) could be. The Turks also threatened the Byzantine Empire. Emperor Alexius asked the pope for assistance, and Urban II, seeing a way to harness the violent energy of Christian knights, made a speech calling for them to take back Jerusalem. Thousands responded, resulting in the First Crusade.
And the more I look, the more I realize that I know VERY little about the Crusades. So if I ever finish reading Collapse by Jared Diamond, I'll pick something shorter to read next time.
Maybe something like
The New Concise History of the Crusades (Hardcover)
by Thomas F. Madden (Author)
Friday, March 14, 2008
R World enlightens us
and reminds me of how I came to have an intelligent child.
Fish tacos.
Yup, I was really poor when I was pregnant with my child, but I worked in a cafeteria so I could choose to eat well and my big splurge on payday every Friday was a fish taco at Cotija's in Chula Vista. Those guys got to where they would see my big blueberry ass waddling down the street (I had one comfortable shirt and it was purple) and have my fish taco ready for me.
The tacos must be good because Cotija's is still there, they still serve fish tacos, and the kid is in college.
Heh.
Fish tacos.
Yup, I was really poor when I was pregnant with my child, but I worked in a cafeteria so I could choose to eat well and my big splurge on payday every Friday was a fish taco at Cotija's in Chula Vista. Those guys got to where they would see my big blueberry ass waddling down the street (I had one comfortable shirt and it was purple) and have my fish taco ready for me.
The tacos must be good because Cotija's is still there, they still serve fish tacos, and the kid is in college.
Heh.
Pleased as punch
to add Brady Bonk over at Ketchup is a Vegetable to the blogroll.
The Anti-Nannier has some interesting ideas also.
Also, I knew that as soon as he got his forensic economisty ducks in a row, that Greg Palast would have something to say about Eliot Spitzer and the connection to the sub-prime meltdown, and he does.
The Anti-Nannier has some interesting ideas also.
Also, I knew that as soon as he got his forensic economisty ducks in a row, that Greg Palast would have something to say about Eliot Spitzer and the connection to the sub-prime meltdown, and he does.
Religion sucks #8
Kidnapped Archbishop Found Dead in Iraq
BAGHDAD, March 13 -- The body of a senior Christian cleric was found Thursday in the northern city of Mosul, two weeks after gunmen abducted him there and killed three of his associates...
There are a lot of Iraqi Chaldeans in San Diego so this is probably a bummer for them. So, out of curiosity, I decided to do a Google search to see if any of the Muslim leadership had been treated this way in Iraq lately. Or anywhere.
Hmmmmmmmmmm.
No wait, here's one .Omigod, fool was preaching peace and non violence.
Iranians vote for new parliament
...Ahead of the vote, the Guardian Council, an unelected body of clerics and jurists, disqualified around 1,700 candidates, mostly reformists.
Those barred from running were judged "insufficiently loyal to Islam or the revolution"...
Finally, if you missed Scoobie Davis' priceless catch of a video of Sun Myung Moon's incoherent rant it's short, but stunning. Moon has power and influence in Washington and wow, just wow, you gotta see this guy to believe that someone would actually say what he said.
Oy.
BAGHDAD, March 13 -- The body of a senior Christian cleric was found Thursday in the northern city of Mosul, two weeks after gunmen abducted him there and killed three of his associates...
There are a lot of Iraqi Chaldeans in San Diego so this is probably a bummer for them. So, out of curiosity, I decided to do a Google search to see if any of the Muslim leadership had been treated this way in Iraq lately. Or anywhere.
Hmmmmmmmmmm.
No wait, here's one .Omigod, fool was preaching peace and non violence.
Iranians vote for new parliament
...Ahead of the vote, the Guardian Council, an unelected body of clerics and jurists, disqualified around 1,700 candidates, mostly reformists.
Those barred from running were judged "insufficiently loyal to Islam or the revolution"...
Finally, if you missed Scoobie Davis' priceless catch of a video of Sun Myung Moon's incoherent rant it's short, but stunning. Moon has power and influence in Washington and wow, just wow, you gotta see this guy to believe that someone would actually say what he said.
Oy.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Spitzer’s Shame Is Wall Street’s Gain
Posted on Mar 12, 2008
Wall St. traders watch Spitzer confession
AP photo / Richard Drew
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange watch New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s televised apology on Monday.
By Robert Scheer
...The media consensus from the opening salvo was that Spitzer must resign and he will be thrown to the dogs, which is unfortunate because, like Clinton, he has done much valuable work in the public interest, and the outrage over this personal dereliction, tawdry in the extreme, is excessive...
I agree Mr. Scheer, it's excessive. The media circus is over the top again. The Columbia Journalism Review checks in on the same side I'm on on this one:
Another Baseless Screed
As will most press-bias rants, Strassel’s piece is hollow
By Dean Starkman Thu 13 Mar 2008 05:27 PM
“Many reporters built careers on the prosecutor’s leaks intended to bully innocent people” - Kimberly A. Strassel, Wall Street Journal opinion piece, Wednesday.
Ah yes, she must mean those innocents over at Marsh & McLennan who demanded kickbacks...
What? Wall Street Journal opinion pieces are full of shit? Oh, now who'da thunk it?
Wall St. traders watch Spitzer confession
AP photo / Richard Drew
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange watch New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s televised apology on Monday.
By Robert Scheer
...The media consensus from the opening salvo was that Spitzer must resign and he will be thrown to the dogs, which is unfortunate because, like Clinton, he has done much valuable work in the public interest, and the outrage over this personal dereliction, tawdry in the extreme, is excessive...
I agree Mr. Scheer, it's excessive. The media circus is over the top again. The Columbia Journalism Review checks in on the same side I'm on on this one:
Another Baseless Screed
As will most press-bias rants, Strassel’s piece is hollow
By Dean Starkman Thu 13 Mar 2008 05:27 PM
“Many reporters built careers on the prosecutor’s leaks intended to bully innocent people” - Kimberly A. Strassel, Wall Street Journal opinion piece, Wednesday.
Ah yes, she must mean those innocents over at Marsh & McLennan who demanded kickbacks...
What? Wall Street Journal opinion pieces are full of shit? Oh, now who'da thunk it?
Fighting Global Warming on the Fly
Home » ..Spin of the Day » Mar 11, 2008
Fighting Global Warming on the Fly
Topics: environment | global warming | politics
Source: Los Angeles Times, March 7, 2008
Less than a year ago, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was being lauded as the cover boy for NewsWeek's issue about how to battle global warming. But critics are calling attention to the governator's daily commute -- Sacramento to Los Angeles and back -- by airplane. "The governor's Gulfstream jet does nearly as much damage to the environment in one hour as a small car does in a year...
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Almost two years ago I knew the shit was gonna hit the fan
How?
Cause the shit was splattered on me before I knew it was shit. I lasted four days as a temp at JP Morgan. I had never seen a mortgage file before and they did not want me learning anything about mortgage files. Especially these files. They were loans that never should have been given, were being called in because of these god awful balloon payments and the homes were incredibly overpriced little shit boxes sold to minorities who didn't know any better, or perhaps were red lined out of better housing. Now keep in mind that that is the opinion of someone who had never seen a mortgage file before. Evah. They also didn't want anything other than a slimy little hamster on a wheel working there. That's what worked there, & that's not what they got with me. I acted like I didn't get it because I got it the first day and I hated every second of it once I did get it. Some snippity little schmuck that worked there got in my face and said to me "Well it's not rocket science!" and I snarled back "There aren't any rocket scientists here, especially not the person who plans your fire drills!"
You see, big corporate culture isn't exactly where I fit in. Works quietly in her cubicle while taking it up the ass by working for nine bucks an hour (in a city where 18.00 bucks an hour barely gets by) isn't exactly on my resume.
7:39 PM 3/17/2008
Jersey Cynic over at Blondsense posted this music video today, & it reminded me of this post of mine, so I added it.
Cause the shit was splattered on me before I knew it was shit. I lasted four days as a temp at JP Morgan. I had never seen a mortgage file before and they did not want me learning anything about mortgage files. Especially these files. They were loans that never should have been given, were being called in because of these god awful balloon payments and the homes were incredibly overpriced little shit boxes sold to minorities who didn't know any better, or perhaps were red lined out of better housing. Now keep in mind that that is the opinion of someone who had never seen a mortgage file before. Evah. They also didn't want anything other than a slimy little hamster on a wheel working there. That's what worked there, & that's not what they got with me. I acted like I didn't get it because I got it the first day and I hated every second of it once I did get it. Some snippity little schmuck that worked there got in my face and said to me "Well it's not rocket science!" and I snarled back "There aren't any rocket scientists here, especially not the person who plans your fire drills!"
You see, big corporate culture isn't exactly where I fit in. Works quietly in her cubicle while taking it up the ass by working for nine bucks an hour (in a city where 18.00 bucks an hour barely gets by) isn't exactly on my resume.
7:39 PM 3/17/2008
Jersey Cynic over at Blondsense posted this music video today, & it reminded me of this post of mine, so I added it.
Randi gives one hell of a speech a year ago today
Yeah, it's worth watching again.
I like it :) and here's some other interesting stuff I found today:
Spitzer's Sex Life Is Weapon of Mass Distraction for Bunch of Bad News for Bush
10 Mar 2008
Yeah, that's what I thought.
And this article is only a month old, how quickly we forget how many powerful people Spitzer pissed off. You think maybe powerful people wanted him gone? Fucking duh.
Predatory Lenders' Partner in Crime
How the Bush Administration Stopped the States From Stepping In to Help Consumers
By Eliot Spitzer
Thursday, February 14, 2008; Page A25
And then there's the attack on him by the religious nutjobs (You have to hear these Catholic whack-jobs to believe them. What is it with these fucking retards? The population on this planet has more than doubled in my lifetime)
I like it :) and here's some other interesting stuff I found today:
Spitzer's Sex Life Is Weapon of Mass Distraction for Bunch of Bad News for Bush
10 Mar 2008
Yeah, that's what I thought.
And this article is only a month old, how quickly we forget how many powerful people Spitzer pissed off. You think maybe powerful people wanted him gone? Fucking duh.
Predatory Lenders' Partner in Crime
How the Bush Administration Stopped the States From Stepping In to Help Consumers
By Eliot Spitzer
Thursday, February 14, 2008; Page A25
And then there's the attack on him by the religious nutjobs (You have to hear these Catholic whack-jobs to believe them. What is it with these fucking retards? The population on this planet has more than doubled in my lifetime)
Global Warming to Affect Transport
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID AP Science Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - Flooded roads and subways, deformed railroad tracks and weakened bridges may be the wave of the future with continuing global warming, a new study says...
...The report cites five major areas of growing threat:
- More heat waves, requiring load limits at hot-weather or high-altitude airports and causing thermal expansion of bridge joints and rail track deformities.
- Rising sea levels and storm surges flooding coastal roadways, forcing evacuations, inundating airports and rail lines, flooding tunnels and eroding bridge bases.
- More rainstorms, delaying air and ground traffic, flooding tunnels and railways, and eroding road, bridge and pipeline supports.
- More frequent strong hurricanes, disrupting air and shipping service, blowing debris onto roads and damaging buildings.
- Rising arctic temperatures thawing permafrost, resulting in road, railway and airport runway subsidence and potential pipeline failures...
CEI: Fixing Climate Change Will Cause ‘Death On A Massive Scale’ In The Developing World
3/11/2008
So big big changes are presenting big challenges for us here, especially in San Diego. How we going to deal with them?
How More Money Would Be Won for Firefighting
By WILL CARLESS Voice Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 5, 2008 As San Diego's city and county governments congregate to discuss, again, how to fix the region's wildfire preparedness problems, a key concern overshadows every move they make: How the region will scratch together the cash to better prepare itself for the next massive wildfire...
...The bill, the wording of which has not yet been finalized, would call for an amendment to the California Constitution to change the percentage of votes needed from 66 percent to 55 percent. Kehoe said she's introducing the bill because the last two catastrophic wildfires in 2003 and 2007 showed that the state is poorly prepared for wildfires, and that local governments are inadequately funded to properly defend themselves from firestorms....
Oh fer fuck's sake, here we go. Not one God damned thing is going to change in this city. The fucking developers own and operate this county and they're not changing. Why should they? They get the money for the housing they build and they don't have any responsibility beyond that. They come in, build with illegal and disposable labor, and bail. Then the government is scrambling to provide the residents of these overpriced crappily built places with schools, fire and police protection and oh yeah, water. You want public transportation with that? Bwwaaa ha ha ha ha ha.
and Michael Klare checks in over at Tomdispatch:
posted March 11, 2008 09:53 am Tomgram: Michael Klare, The Permanent Energy Crisis Hits Home
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID AP Science Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - Flooded roads and subways, deformed railroad tracks and weakened bridges may be the wave of the future with continuing global warming, a new study says...
...The report cites five major areas of growing threat:
- More heat waves, requiring load limits at hot-weather or high-altitude airports and causing thermal expansion of bridge joints and rail track deformities.
- Rising sea levels and storm surges flooding coastal roadways, forcing evacuations, inundating airports and rail lines, flooding tunnels and eroding bridge bases.
- More rainstorms, delaying air and ground traffic, flooding tunnels and railways, and eroding road, bridge and pipeline supports.
- More frequent strong hurricanes, disrupting air and shipping service, blowing debris onto roads and damaging buildings.
- Rising arctic temperatures thawing permafrost, resulting in road, railway and airport runway subsidence and potential pipeline failures...
CEI: Fixing Climate Change Will Cause ‘Death On A Massive Scale’ In The Developing World
3/11/2008
So big big changes are presenting big challenges for us here, especially in San Diego. How we going to deal with them?
How More Money Would Be Won for Firefighting
By WILL CARLESS Voice Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 5, 2008 As San Diego's city and county governments congregate to discuss, again, how to fix the region's wildfire preparedness problems, a key concern overshadows every move they make: How the region will scratch together the cash to better prepare itself for the next massive wildfire...
...The bill, the wording of which has not yet been finalized, would call for an amendment to the California Constitution to change the percentage of votes needed from 66 percent to 55 percent. Kehoe said she's introducing the bill because the last two catastrophic wildfires in 2003 and 2007 showed that the state is poorly prepared for wildfires, and that local governments are inadequately funded to properly defend themselves from firestorms....
Oh fer fuck's sake, here we go. Not one God damned thing is going to change in this city. The fucking developers own and operate this county and they're not changing. Why should they? They get the money for the housing they build and they don't have any responsibility beyond that. They come in, build with illegal and disposable labor, and bail. Then the government is scrambling to provide the residents of these overpriced crappily built places with schools, fire and police protection and oh yeah, water. You want public transportation with that? Bwwaaa ha ha ha ha ha.
and Michael Klare checks in over at Tomdispatch:
posted March 11, 2008 09:53 am Tomgram: Michael Klare, The Permanent Energy Crisis Hits Home
Monday, March 10, 2008
Bad news
Oil prices gush to new highs
3/10/2008
9 hours ago
...New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, soared over 107 dollars a barrel for the first time and then crossed 108 dollars, striking an all-time high of 108.21 dollars...
Economic woes lead to retail retrenchment
3/10/2008
Amid belt-tightening, many chain stores are struggling
Spitzer scandal stuns Wall Street
By Nick Godt, MarketWatch
Last update: 5:51 p.m. EDT March 10, 2008
One question hanging is governor's involvement in bond-insurer bailout
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Many on Wall Street were stunned and some apparently were pleased by a Monday report linking New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer to prostitution, while stocks showed little immediate reaction.
Oh puhleeeeeze, if they were stunned why is this the first sentence in the article?
"Lots of people on Wall Street didn't like him because he went after certain people -- heads of firms, analysts and [former New York Stock Exchange chief Richard] Grasso," said Donald Selkin, head of equity at Joseph Stephens.
Anybody see Juno? When she goes into labor she sputters "Fuckity Fuckity Fuckity!"
This country is imploding, & most of the world is doing the golf clap.
Why?
Maybe we don't know enough of our own history?
Sorrows of Empire
Killing Hope
The Shock Doctrine
American Theocracy
Or maybe we just had our turn, eh?
3/10/2008
9 hours ago
...New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, soared over 107 dollars a barrel for the first time and then crossed 108 dollars, striking an all-time high of 108.21 dollars...
Economic woes lead to retail retrenchment
3/10/2008
Amid belt-tightening, many chain stores are struggling
Spitzer scandal stuns Wall Street
By Nick Godt, MarketWatch
Last update: 5:51 p.m. EDT March 10, 2008
One question hanging is governor's involvement in bond-insurer bailout
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Many on Wall Street were stunned and some apparently were pleased by a Monday report linking New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer to prostitution, while stocks showed little immediate reaction.
Oh puhleeeeeze, if they were stunned why is this the first sentence in the article?
"Lots of people on Wall Street didn't like him because he went after certain people -- heads of firms, analysts and [former New York Stock Exchange chief Richard] Grasso," said Donald Selkin, head of equity at Joseph Stephens.
Anybody see Juno? When she goes into labor she sputters "Fuckity Fuckity Fuckity!"
This country is imploding, & most of the world is doing the golf clap.
Why?
Maybe we don't know enough of our own history?
Sorrows of Empire
Killing Hope
The Shock Doctrine
American Theocracy
Or maybe we just had our turn, eh?
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Gonna catch some heat for this one
Posted this in the online class last night. I'm going to catch shit from the Republicans in the class for this one, I can see it coming. I don't give a shit, these people need to know a little bit about who they're voting for instead of just voting for the candidate with the R by the name, which is what the brainwashed doofs do. It's like they can't think, they just cling to a daddy figure and do what daddy told them to do.
[Note; to open link in new window use R click]
If one cannot specify precisely who or what constitutes an “elite” why do political scientists use the term?
In a word; Power. It refers to those who rule. The term ruling elites is commonly used. and commonly understood to mean the people who really have the power as any quick Google search will turn up.
I believe that is what political scientists are referring to when they use the term “elites.” They mean the ruling classes. According to this documentary there is The American Ruling Class. I haven't seen the documentary. This evening, however, I was a bit alarmed to find out that Presidential hopeful John McCain comes from a family that might be termed the military elite and he is endorsed by Rapture-seeking elite leader Pastor John Hagee. Despite his media created image, McCain is no maverick.
Page 93 (Roskin/Berry) in the text states that “Political scientists call the top or most influential people in a political system its “elites,” the people with real political clout. Also that “Much of political life consists of struggles, often out of public sight, among and within elites to control the country’s direction. Typically, the masses then follow.”
The restructuring following the collapse of the State Socialist system in the former Soviet Union is being studied and reported on by the IPSA Research Committee on Political Elites because of the major changes in International Political relations that this has spurred.Friday, March 07, 2008
Tracking CEO Compensation (watch with RealPlayer)
Tracking CEO Compensation
Today
">Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) chairs a House Oversight & Government Reform Cmte. hearing on CEO compensation. The Cmte. examines benefits and retirement packages granted by three companies involved in the current mortgage crisis.
House of Representatives MEMORANDUM March 6,2008 pdf
On Friday, March 7,2008, at 10 a.m. in room 2154 of the Rayburn House Office
Building, the Oversight Committee will hold a hearing to examine the compensation and
retirement packages awarded to the CEOs of three companies implicated in the mortgage crisis:
Angelo Mozilo of Countrywide Financial Corporation, E. Stanley O'Neal of Merrill Lynch, and Charles Prince of Citigroup.
Compensation Consultants?
For companies that fail?
Holy Fuck.
I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
Lookin' at some spiffy golf tans here.
Except for Chris Cannon (R. Utah).
"Cannon was named Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law at the beginning of the 108th Congress in January of 2003. As chairman he oversees legislation involving bankruptcy reform, privacy, interstate compacts and tort reform. He also serves on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property."
Yeah, he looked a little pale as I was watching him earlier online on CSPAN. He wasn't too happy when the freeze rate bill thingy happened:
"Most Republicans said the bill would harm the market and called for Congress to show restraint. "What we're doing is putting a sledgehammer in the hands of borrowers," Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah."
Hey, Señor Cannon?
Theese eez for ju.
Today
">Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) chairs a House Oversight & Government Reform Cmte. hearing on CEO compensation. The Cmte. examines benefits and retirement packages granted by three companies involved in the current mortgage crisis.
House of Representatives MEMORANDUM March 6,2008 pdf
On Friday, March 7,2008, at 10 a.m. in room 2154 of the Rayburn House Office
Building, the Oversight Committee will hold a hearing to examine the compensation and
retirement packages awarded to the CEOs of three companies implicated in the mortgage crisis:
Angelo Mozilo of Countrywide Financial Corporation, E. Stanley O'Neal of Merrill Lynch, and Charles Prince of Citigroup.
Compensation Consultants?
For companies that fail?
Holy Fuck.
I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
Lookin' at some spiffy golf tans here.
Except for Chris Cannon (R. Utah).
"Cannon was named Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law at the beginning of the 108th Congress in January of 2003. As chairman he oversees legislation involving bankruptcy reform, privacy, interstate compacts and tort reform. He also serves on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property."
Yeah, he looked a little pale as I was watching him earlier online on CSPAN. He wasn't too happy when the freeze rate bill thingy happened:
"Most Republicans said the bill would harm the market and called for Congress to show restraint. "What we're doing is putting a sledgehammer in the hands of borrowers," Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah."
Hey, Señor Cannon?
Theese eez for ju.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
revenge for the deaths of nearly 130 Palestinians since Feb. 27.
I'm so sick of the way what's going on in Israel is reported to Americans.
Don’t Blame The Inmates Of The Lunatic Asylum
Don’t Blame The Inmates Of The Lunatic Asylum
Cosby Makes Challenge to Black Community
I've heard before that Cosby has been the target of criticism inside the black community. I'm not qualified to say anything about that simply because of my skin color.
I can say I've been a Cosby fan since I was a little kid in the 60's. I can tell you that when I found it almost impossible to communicate with my teenaged daughter that this video helped us laugh together. I will give credit to Mr. Cosby's work for helping me save my relationship with her. We wore that video out. When I had to evacuate because of the fires last October I made sure that I grabbed that DVD.
Cosby is on Oprah today.
Update 4:59 PM 3/6/2008 Okaybee Mr. Cosby, I listened to what you had to say and I gotta tell you that that shit wouldn't have worked with my kid. I tried it and it drove me AND the kid crazy and accomplished nothing productive. She didn't need me all up in her business any more. Maybe the difference is I already had confidence that I had a good egg, who was going through a bad time, and she would figure it out on her own. And she did. Every kid is different.
I can say I've been a Cosby fan since I was a little kid in the 60's. I can tell you that when I found it almost impossible to communicate with my teenaged daughter that this video helped us laugh together. I will give credit to Mr. Cosby's work for helping me save my relationship with her. We wore that video out. When I had to evacuate because of the fires last October I made sure that I grabbed that DVD.
Cosby is on Oprah today.
Update 4:59 PM 3/6/2008 Okaybee Mr. Cosby, I listened to what you had to say and I gotta tell you that that shit wouldn't have worked with my kid. I tried it and it drove me AND the kid crazy and accomplished nothing productive. She didn't need me all up in her business any more. Maybe the difference is I already had confidence that I had a good egg, who was going through a bad time, and she would figure it out on her own. And she did. Every kid is different.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Bankruptcy Makes Gift Cards Worthless
By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO AP Business Writer
As more retailers file for bankruptcy or go out of business, more than $75 million in gift cards are at risk of becoming worthless pieces of plastic this year...
Completely unrelated, but speaking of worthless, you smell a sting here too?
Peeeee-yeeeeew.
Red state brainiacs fail and renewable energy tax incentive bill passes anyway
| Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008 | ||
| 02/27/2008 House Roll Call No. 84 110th Congress, 2nd Session Passed: 236-182 (see complete tally) | ||
| The House passed H.R. 5351, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide tax incentives for the production of renewable energy and energy conservation, by a yea-and-nay vote of 236 yeas to 182 nays, Roll No. 84. | ||
| Vote Map: House Roll Call No. 84 |
| 236 |
| ||
| 182 |
| ||
| 11 |
|
My congresswhore voted against it. Yeah, the one who's only response to e-mails is "Mailbox Unattended." Fucking RepugnantThuglican tool.
The Three Trillion Dollar War --authors interviewed on Democracy Now
Ill say it again. Democracy Now shows up the complete failure of the MainStream Media to report anything of importance to the American people. What I mean is that the msm doesn't help us to become an informed constituency.
Tomgram: William Hartung, The Cost of a Week in Hell
posted March 04, 2008 11:44 am
Monday, March 03, 2008
Diebold Stock Soars After $3 Billion Takeover Bid by Defense Contractor Conglomerate United Technologies
BLOGGED BY Brad Friedman ON 3/3/2008 12:17PM
UTC Chairman Says Irresponsible Republican Voting Machine Company an 'Excellent Fit', in Letter Explaining Hostile Offer, Twice Rejected by Diebold...
Election Integrity Advodcates Bristle at 'Disastrous', 'Surreal' News...
(click on pic to see what this is)
I'm wondering if the MIC is going to zap us with this fucker if we protest that the vote was stolen by the machines, or if they'll just cut to the chase and zap the people they don't want voting anyway?
Sunday, March 02, 2008
I'm starting to hate school
2. How did Lenin's approach to world politics change after he assumed power in
“Lenin was born Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov April 22, 1870 in the city of Simbirsk His father was the director of public education for the province of and during Lenin’s childhood, and his service to the state earned him the title of hereditary nobleman. While Lenin was finishing school in Simbirsk in 1887, his older brother, Aleksandr, was arrested and executed in
Lenin became radicalized after loss of his father and brother within a year of each other and the banishment of his sister to the family estate. While living on his mother’s estate in Kokushkino after being kicked out of
Lenin dreamed of a proletarian revolution that would spread throughout the world, starting in industrialized
The pressure of dealing with the Russian_Revolution_of_1917 and the civil war , and WWI may have led to the increase in number and usage of the gulag system inside
Thus began the Red Terror, which helped win the civil war for the Bolsheviks and defined the nature of Communist power.”
Mr. Remnick interviews “Dmitri Likhachev, an eminent scholar of medieval Russian literature and an embodiment of the tragic history of his city. (The city was called
These internal pressures were intensified when “on March 3, 1918, the German and Soviet Governments signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in which the Soviet government ceded to Germany a vast amount of Russian territory, containing about one-third of Russia’s population, one-third of its cultivated land, and one-half of its industry. Although Lenin was convinced that these harsh terms must be accepted in order to end
In the 1920s, as the new Soviet state temporarily retreated from the revolutionary path to socialism, the party also adopted a less ideological approach in its relations with the rest of the world. Lenin, ever the practical leader, having become convinced that socialist revolution would not break out in other countries in the near future, realized that his government required normal relations with the Western world for it to survive. Not only were good relations important to national security, but the economy also required trade with the industrial countries. Blocking Soviet attainment of these objectives were lingering suspicions about communism on the part of the Western powers and concern over foreign debts incurred by the tsarist government, which the Soviet government had unilaterally repudiated. In April 1922, the Soviet commissar of foreign affairs, Georgiy Chicherin, circumvented these difficulties by achieving an understanding with
Toward the non-Western world, the Soviet leadership limited its revolutionary activity to promoting opposition among the indigenous populations against "imperialist exploitation." The Soviet Union did pursue an active policy in
“According to Soviet theorists, the basic character of Soviet foreign policy was set forth in Vladimir I. Lenin's Decree on Peace, adopted by the Second Congress of Soviets in November 1917. It set forth the dual nature of Soviet foreign policy, which encompasses both proletarian internationalism and peaceful coexistence. On the one hand, proletarian internationalism refers to the common cause of the working classes of all countries in struggling to overthrow the bourgeoisie and to establish communist regimes. Peaceful coexistence, on the other hand, refers to measures to ensure relatively peaceful government-to-government relations with capitalist states. Both policies can be pursued simultaneously: "Peaceful coexistence does not rule out but presupposes determined opposition to imperialist aggression and support for peoples defending their revolutionary gains or fighting foreign oppression."[1]
The general foreign policy goals of the
Collections of Lenin’s writings are archived here .
Poke me with a fork, I'm so done. I am no Condoleezza Rice, that's fer sure. Sick of Russian history? Yeah, me too, how about some Russian current events?
Friday, February 29, 2008
I've been staring at this assignment for two days straight. I've read the chapter in the textbook, & the book is quite colorful now because I've managed to use 5 different highlighters in it.
Essay and Discussion Questions
1. How does geography structure Russia's history and security
policies? How does this differ from those of the U.S.?
2. How did Lenin's approach to world politics change after he
assumed power in Russia?
(Update at 10:41 PM 3/2/2008. The question above is the lucky question winner, & here's what I turned in. Fucker's due in 20 minutes and I don't have time to fix it if it's wrong. Of course I feel like a complete idiot right now, because I just discovered these nice blogs, one of them being on Russian history, via ROTUS
3. In general, does a country's foreign policy tend to be
ideological or pragmatic?
4. What were Stalin's foreign policy blunders?
5. Could the 1945 Yalta meeting have resulted in an appreciably
different outcome for East and Central Europe?
I can't think of anything less interesting to answer than any of these 5 questions right now. Bleh.
Could be also that I'm distracted by the asshole next door's music pounding on the wall directly behind my computer.
Essay and Discussion Questions
1. How does geography structure Russia's history and security
policies? How does this differ from those of the U.S.?
2. How did Lenin's approach to world politics change after he
assumed power in Russia?
(Update at 10:41 PM 3/2/2008. The question above is the lucky question winner, & here's what I turned in. Fucker's due in 20 minutes and I don't have time to fix it if it's wrong. Of course I feel like a complete idiot right now, because I just discovered these nice blogs, one of them being on Russian history, via ROTUS
3. In general, does a country's foreign policy tend to be
ideological or pragmatic?
4. What were Stalin's foreign policy blunders?
5. Could the 1945 Yalta meeting have resulted in an appreciably
different outcome for East and Central Europe?
I can't think of anything less interesting to answer than any of these 5 questions right now. Bleh.
Could be also that I'm distracted by the asshole next door's music pounding on the wall directly behind my computer.
Leap Year
Thirty days hath September, April, June and November;
All the rest have thirty-one,
Save February, she alone hath eight days and a score
Til leap year gives her one day more.
Completely unrelated to leap year, I haven't read any of James Risen's books, but I know who he is & I know who Sibel Edmonds is and I HATE the Bush Administration's "Justice Department" & just watch it, it's only a 4 1/2 minute video
All the rest have thirty-one,
Save February, she alone hath eight days and a score
Til leap year gives her one day more.
Completely unrelated to leap year, I haven't read any of James Risen's books, but I know who he is & I know who Sibel Edmonds is and I HATE the Bush Administration's "Justice Department" & just watch it, it's only a 4 1/2 minute video
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Moving Tax Breaks From Oil to Sun and Wind?
February 28, 2008, 11:46 am
By Andrew C. Revkin
Senator Pete V. Domenici has opposed any effort to end incentives for oil and gas. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
If oil lost its subsidies, and solar power and similar options got them, would the world be better off? The political debate continues.
Oil ends at new high of $102.59; natural gas surges
Oil up on Nigeria, weak dollar; natural-gas inventories down for 14th week
By Polya Lesova & Moming Zhou, MarketWatch
Last update: 3:56 p.m. EST Feb. 28, 2008
Exxon suxx. McCain duxx.
Published February 27th, 2008 in Articles, Podcasts
Exxon Mobil appeals $2.5 bln Valdez oil spill award
Wed Feb 27, 2008 3:12pm EST
...the huge Texas-based oil company reported the highest-ever quarterly profit for a U.S. company of $11.7 billion...
By Andrew C. Revkin
If oil lost its subsidies, and solar power and similar options got them, would the world be better off? The political debate continues.
Oil ends at new high of $102.59; natural gas surges
Oil up on Nigeria, weak dollar; natural-gas inventories down for 14th week
By Polya Lesova & Moming Zhou, MarketWatch
Last update: 3:56 p.m. EST Feb. 28, 2008
Exxon suxx. McCain duxx.
Published February 27th, 2008 in Articles, Podcasts
Exxon Mobil appeals $2.5 bln Valdez oil spill award
Wed Feb 27, 2008 3:12pm EST
...the huge Texas-based oil company reported the highest-ever quarterly profit for a U.S. company of $11.7 billion...
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Oscars
Whoa. I am not a movie buff. I've probably only seen a third of the "Best Picture" films from the last 80 years. I own three of them, & only two of those was my idea, and one of those was an impulse buy. Did I mention I'm not a movie buff? Most movies aren't worth suffering through once, let alone purchasing. I'm not a thirteen year old boy and that's who a lot of the crap out there is written for. The only reason I watch the Oscars is so that someone else sifts through the incredible amount of crappy movies out there for me. The only nominated film this year that I have seen is Ratatouille .
Four looked interesting to me after watching the Oscars:
1. Taxi to the Dark Side
Because Alex Gibnney's dad was a military interrogator and was infuriated by the story.
2. Michael Clayton
I like George Clooney, OK?
3. There Will be Blood
"A story about family, greed, religion, and oil, centered around a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business."
Greed and oil, what a frickin surprise, eh?
4. Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Because who but Johnny Depp could pull off a horror musical on the big screen?
Four looked interesting to me after watching the Oscars:
1. Taxi to the Dark Side
Because Alex Gibnney's dad was a military interrogator and was infuriated by the story.
2. Michael Clayton
I like George Clooney, OK?
3. There Will be Blood
"A story about family, greed, religion, and oil, centered around a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business."
Greed and oil, what a frickin surprise, eh?
4. Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Because who but Johnny Depp could pull off a horror musical on the big screen?
Saturday, February 23, 2008
More than you want to know about water in the US
There's a storm coming in.
It's going to hit San Diego, but it's not going to be enough, even with the snow pack in the Sierra Nevadas to solve the water problems, like running out , that we have here.
Of course all over the country there is the looming sinkhole crisis from crumbling infrastructure problems. Who us? Waste water? Read my lips, No New Taxes.
But the prize for all around stupidity has to be that US has been MINING WATER and lowering the Ogallala Aquifer for decades now, for taxpayer subsidized crops, some of it making Cargill piggies fatter off of poor people in Mexico.
I watched Bill Moyers' show on earmarks last night. I never knew that the original meaning for earmarks was a mark on the ears of livestock.
It's going to hit San Diego, but it's not going to be enough, even with the snow pack in the Sierra Nevadas to solve the water problems, like running out , that we have here.
Of course all over the country there is the looming sinkhole crisis from crumbling infrastructure problems. Who us? Waste water? Read my lips, No New Taxes.
But the prize for all around stupidity has to be that US has been MINING WATER and lowering the Ogallala Aquifer for decades now, for taxpayer subsidized crops, some of it making Cargill piggies fatter off of poor people in Mexico.
I watched Bill Moyers' show on earmarks last night. I never knew that the original meaning for earmarks was a mark on the ears of livestock.
Friday, February 22, 2008
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