My fabulous Uncle Jon pointed out that I did not post the most current version of the bailout bill draft. SO I'll be taking another look at that puppy to see what I think about it...although I have a pretty good guess what I'm going to think about it but you can read it for yourself here: http://financialservices.house.gov/.
Here's a little somethin to watch in the meantime courtesy of my girl Emburrito.
PS
I am so happy that you are all offering additional information and dissenting opinions. That's what I want to see kids!! Of course I'm not always right, none of us are, but the dialogue makes my heart swell with joy n stuff.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Bailout Schmailout
Several of you have called or messaged me today asking me about the bailout and expressing concern about why it didn't pass. First let me say that in my PERSONAL opinion this POS should not pass under any circumstances. But alas it will pass because whenever we have a crisis we have to hurry up and throw something on the fire instead of taking the time to properly identify and correct issues. (AKA someone flew a plane into our towers so lets start a "War on Terror" in the wrong damn country. As long as it looks like we're doing something it's cool and pointing out that it's the wrong damn country and voting NO to the funding wouldn't be patriotic now would it?)
Nothing like a little knee jerk reaction our gianormous economic crisis.
Anyway, I have taken the time to go through a draft of the plan line by line and offer some comments about why certain (intelligent) members of congress may feel a little uneasy about voting for this bill. You will see some areas I have highlighted in blue because I think they are important and you will see my comments in red.
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Courtesy of The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/business/21draftcnd.html
LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL FOR TREASURY AUTHORITY
TO PURCHASE MORTGAGE-RELATED ASSETS
Section 1. Short Title. This Act may be cited as ____________________.
Sec. 2. Purchases of Mortgage-Related Assets.
(a) Authority to Purchase.--The Secretary is authorized to purchase, and to make and fund commitments to purchase, on such terms and conditions as determined by the Secretary, mortgage-related assets from any financial institution having its headquarters in the United States.
(b) Necessary Actions.--The Secretary is authorized to take such actions as the Secretary deems necessary to carry out the authorities in this Act, including, without limitation:
(1) appointing such employees as may be required to carry out the authorities in this Act and defining their duties;
(2) entering into contracts, including contracts for services authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, without regard to any other provision of law regarding public contracts;
The Secretary of the Treasury gets to do whatever he wants and hire whomever he wishes without approval from anyone when dealing with the purchase of bad debts. AND he gets to ignore previously written laws preventing this type of activity.
(3) designating financial institutions as financial agents of the Government, and they shall perform all such reasonable duties related to this Act as financial agents of the Government as may be required of them; Private banks that are awarded bailout funds are now financial agents of the Federal Government. Holy shit. So much for being a private bank.
(4) establishing vehicles that are authorized, subject to supervision by the Secretary, to purchase mortgage-related assets and issue obligations; and
I may be mis-reading the contractual language here but it appears to me that this says if a private party (vehicle) wishes to purchase mortgage related assets back from the government they must A) be invited and approved by the Sec of Treasury and B) Follow any and all management guidelines set for by the Sec of Treasury. Holy Socialism Batman.
(5) issuing such regulations and other guidance as may be necessary or appropriate to define terms or carry out the authorities of this Act.
Once again, do whatever he wants if he feels it will "get the job done".
Sec. 3. Considerations.
In exercising the authorities granted in this Act, the Secretary shall take into consideration means for--
(1) providing stability or preventing disruption to the financial markets or banking system; and
(2) protecting the taxpayer.
Pretty ambiguous. All he has to do is say he thought about it and decided he thought it was right.
Sec. 4. Reports to Congress.
Within three months of the first exercise of the authority granted in section 2(a), and semiannually thereafter, the Secretary shall report to the Committees on the Budget, Financial Services, and Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committees on the Budget, Finance, and Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate with respect to the authorities exercised under this Act and the considerations required by section 3.
No one has to report back to congress about what's goin down for three months and then after that, only twice a year. Nice oversight.
Sec. 5. Rights; Management; Sale of Mortgage-Related Assets.
(a) Exercise of Rights.--The Secretary may, at any time, exercise any rights received in connection with mortgage-related assets purchased under this Act. He can buy out any mortgages he wants, any time he wants, whether the bank asked him for help or not. SUPER SCARY!
(b) Management of Mortgage-Related Assets.--The Secretary shall have authority to manage mortgage-related assets purchased under this Act, including revenues and portfolio risks therefrom. The Sec of Treas is now effectively the CEO of every bank included in the bailout.
(c) Sale of Mortgage-Related Assets.--The Secretary may, at any time, upon terms and conditions and at prices determined by the Secretary, sell, or enter into securities loans, repurchase transactions or other financial transactions in regard to, any mortgage-related asset purchased under this Act. See above
(d) Application of Sunset to Mortgage-Related Assets.--The authority of the Secretary to hold any mortgage-related asset purchased under this Act before the termination date in section 9, or to purchase or fund the purchase of a mortgage-related asset under a commitment entered into before the termination date in section 9, is not subject to the provisions of section 9.
If the Sec of Treas decides to take over mortgage related assets from a bank, and commits to do so (I guess verbally or on paper because it doesn't specify), but doesn't get around to it right away, he may still do so after the two year deadline has passed because he said he was gonna. WTF?
Sec. 6. Maximum Amount of Authorized Purchases.
The Secretary’s authority to purchase mortgage-related assets under this Act shall be limited to $700,000,000,000 outstanding at any one time
Poor guy only gets a 7 Billion dollar budget.
Sec. 7. Funding.
For the purpose of the authorities granted in this Act, and for the costs of administering those authorities, the Secretary may use the proceeds of the sale of any securities issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code, and the purposes for which securities may be issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code, are extended to include actions authorized by this Act, including the payment of administrative expenses. Any funds expended for actions authorized by this Act, including the payment of administrative expenses, shall be deemed appropriated at the time of such expenditure.
Part of that 7 Bil will be used to pay bureaucrats to manage this mess but we don't know exactly how much of it will be used for that purpose and the ST doesn't have to clear it with anyone first. Way to put together a budget for your labor expenses. Hello business 101.
Sec. 8. Review.
Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency. NO COURT OF LAW CAN REVIEW THESE DECISIONS??????? Well that's putting an awful lot of trust in a guy who works in the Bush administration. This is the craziest line of the whole damn thing if you ask me. No consequences.
Sec. 9. Termination of Authority.
The authorities under this Act, with the exception of authorities granted in sections 2(b)(5), 5 and 7, shall terminate two years from the date of enactment of this Act.
You got two years (and 7 Billion) to buy everything up.
Sec. 10. Increase in Statutory Limit on the Public Debt.
Subsection (b) of section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking out the dollar limitation contained in such subsection and inserting in lieu thereof $11,315,000,000,000.
We hereby acknowledge we are accumulating more national debt.
Sec. 11. Credit Reform.
The costs of purchases of mortgage-related assets made under section 2(a) of this Act shall be determined as provided under the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990, as applicable.
Guidelines from that document will help the ST decide how much each mortgage is worth when he is buying the debt.
Sec. 12. Definitions.
For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) Mortgage-Related Assets.--The term “mortgage-related assets” means residential or commercial mortgages and any securities, obligations, or other instruments that are based on or related to such mortgages, that in each case was originated or issued on or before September 17, 2008. Your house, my house, the hardware store, Albertsons, etc etc. If your bank is in the bailout, the Federal Government owns the debt. That simply blows my mind. I don't know what else to say about it.
(2) Secretary.--The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Treasury. AKA "The man"
(3) United States.--The term “United States” means the States, territories, and possessions of the United States and the District of Columbia. AKA: Us
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Ok, we've reached the end. Did you see anything missing? Here are some things I never saw when I read this document:
1) Uh if we're bailing you guys out you are gonna have to pay this back cuz shit ain't free.
2) There will be super strict oversight into every transaction that goes down so the American people do not have to be confused about the state of the state if you get what I'm sayin.
3) Before we go offering you a bailout you need to prove that you sought alternative investments or loans for yourselves because we are the Federal Government, not a friggin ATM machine.
4) If you defrauded your mortgage holders and investors out of a ton of money you're not allowed to go back to your downtown Manhattan apartment. You're goin to jail for fraudulent banking practices.
5). Attention executive level bank employees: you don't get to keep your jobs
If I were your US Congresswoman I would not sign this bill without seeing all of that stuff first because THAT would be putting the nation first. Unfortunately I could never get elected because I am rude and won't pander to one party.
What I do see is a bill that says "hey rich buddies and campaign contributors, sorry about your troubles, I have all this taxpayer money I am just itchin to spend, why don't you let me get your ass out of trouble. That way, you'll still be around when I'm trying to get re-elected and we'll let all these other people pay for your screw up. Don't worry, no questions asked. Just don't let it happen again *wink wink*"
The bailout will pass but if you think that marks the end of our troubles, you got another thing comin and I have a bridge I'd like to sell you. Stay tuned.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
People, I realize that it's a bummer that you can't cast your vote every November by sending a text message or logging on to a website but honestly, it is ONE day a year. There is absolutely no excuse not to excerise your right to vote. By doing so you are not only surrendering your freedom, you are condoning the behavior of politicians who know they don't have to be accountable to you.
Now I hear some of you out there saying "I don't like either one of these people so I'm not going to vote". The issue with this argument is that it creates a circular problem. You don't vote because you don't like either of the guys, politicians assume that you (middle and lower class America) for the most part won't vote so they run the same guy (or someone similar) in the next election and once again, you don't like the choices so you don't vote. Think about it what might happen if it worked this way;
1) We ALL turn out to vote
2) One person wins
3) If we like what this person does then we ALL turn out to vote for them again and keep them in office.
4) If we don't like what this person does we ALL turn out and vote them out after ONE term and put someone else in office.
5) Repeat process every year.
Eventually the message is sent that nonsense will not be tolerated if a person wants to hold office for longer than one term and the quality of the candidates improves. Now this is going to take some time since we have become so disengaged, but honestly and truly I swear to you that if we want to take back our government that is how it is done. In the 2004 Presidential election, about 60% of the population turned out to vote. In 2006 only 46% of the population turned out to vote in a major congressional election. Let me ask you something, who do you think comes up with most of the laws and decides how to spend most of our money? The Legislative branch my friends. The Prez can sign on the line or send stuff back. He can even introduce some legislative ideas of his own, but a big bulk of the work gets done by guys (and gals) who only 46% of turned out to vote for. Then we can't figure out why the government isn't doing what's in our best interest. Why would they when they know that half of the 46% of the population that bothers to vote will be made up of their corporate buddies? Ok maybe not half but you get the idea right?
So here's the bottom line in ten points:
1. You need to register to vote IMMEDIATELY if you have not done so already. Deadlines are nearing in a lot of states.
This site is non-partisan and will help you with that: http://www.justvote.org/
2. Call your friends up and peer pressure them into doing the same thing.
3.. Pick a Presidential Candidate. You may not think either of them are great, you may not agree entirely with either one (I certainly don't) but like it or not, one of them is going to be the man for the next 4 years so you may as well get it on it.
Read about them here: http://origin.barackobama.com/issues/
and here: http://www.johnmccain.com/Undecided/WhyMcCain.htm
Watch the debates and read the news. You can also try out one of the quizzes but I personally find them somewhat ineffective because they remove personality and general leadership approach from the equation: http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com/
4. Call your friends up and peer pressure them into doing the same thing.
5. Read the ballot for your state and find out what other seats are up on the ballot so you can read up on who is running in your State/City/County.
Once again, this site will point you in the right direction: http://justvote.org/voterguides
6. Call your friends up and........You know what to do.
7. Take the friggin time to walk, run, drive, or drag your ass to wherever it is you gotta be to vote on election day OR request an absentee ballot and mail that bad boy in on time. Even better, offer to walk, run, drive, or drag your friends and neighbors to the polling place with you.
8. Go back to step two or three (accordingly) and repeat process every year until you are dead or have no mental capacity with which to make personal decisions. Verbally berate your friends who didn't vote. Well don't go that far. Let's just say "voice your concerns" to your friends about their inappropriate behavior :)
9. TEACH YOUR CHILDREN ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF ELECTIONS AND VOTING! (Please) It is not a coincidence that I was excited about watching the Republican National Convention in 6th grade and now I'm a concerned citizen as an adult. You don't have to turn your kid into a nerd but it is up to you to make sure that your children are civically minded.
10. No one will do this for us America. The right to representation was the reason the Revolutionary war was fought. People have given their lives so that we could go stick our piece of paper in a box once a year. Some people would give their lives to have that opportunity for their nation right now. If you don't give a shit about history or the rest of the universe then maybe your sagging bank account is motivation enough for you to realize it's time to get involved. Don't be scared. YOU CAN DO IT!
Now I hear some of you out there saying "I don't like either one of these people so I'm not going to vote". The issue with this argument is that it creates a circular problem. You don't vote because you don't like either of the guys, politicians assume that you (middle and lower class America) for the most part won't vote so they run the same guy (or someone similar) in the next election and once again, you don't like the choices so you don't vote. Think about it what might happen if it worked this way;
1) We ALL turn out to vote
2) One person wins
3) If we like what this person does then we ALL turn out to vote for them again and keep them in office.
4) If we don't like what this person does we ALL turn out and vote them out after ONE term and put someone else in office.
5) Repeat process every year.
Eventually the message is sent that nonsense will not be tolerated if a person wants to hold office for longer than one term and the quality of the candidates improves. Now this is going to take some time since we have become so disengaged, but honestly and truly I swear to you that if we want to take back our government that is how it is done. In the 2004 Presidential election, about 60% of the population turned out to vote. In 2006 only 46% of the population turned out to vote in a major congressional election. Let me ask you something, who do you think comes up with most of the laws and decides how to spend most of our money? The Legislative branch my friends. The Prez can sign on the line or send stuff back. He can even introduce some legislative ideas of his own, but a big bulk of the work gets done by guys (and gals) who only 46% of turned out to vote for. Then we can't figure out why the government isn't doing what's in our best interest. Why would they when they know that half of the 46% of the population that bothers to vote will be made up of their corporate buddies? Ok maybe not half but you get the idea right?
So here's the bottom line in ten points:
1. You need to register to vote IMMEDIATELY if you have not done so already. Deadlines are nearing in a lot of states.
This site is non-partisan and will help you with that: http://www.justvote.org/
2. Call your friends up and peer pressure them into doing the same thing.
3.. Pick a Presidential Candidate. You may not think either of them are great, you may not agree entirely with either one (I certainly don't) but like it or not, one of them is going to be the man for the next 4 years so you may as well get it on it.
Read about them here: http://origin.barackobama.com/issues/
and here: http://www.johnmccain.com/Undecided/WhyMcCain.htm
Watch the debates and read the news. You can also try out one of the quizzes but I personally find them somewhat ineffective because they remove personality and general leadership approach from the equation: http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com/
4. Call your friends up and peer pressure them into doing the same thing.
5. Read the ballot for your state and find out what other seats are up on the ballot so you can read up on who is running in your State/City/County.
Once again, this site will point you in the right direction: http://justvote.org/voterguides
6. Call your friends up and........You know what to do.
7. Take the friggin time to walk, run, drive, or drag your ass to wherever it is you gotta be to vote on election day OR request an absentee ballot and mail that bad boy in on time. Even better, offer to walk, run, drive, or drag your friends and neighbors to the polling place with you.
8. Go back to step two or three (accordingly) and repeat process every year until you are dead or have no mental capacity with which to make personal decisions. Verbally berate your friends who didn't vote. Well don't go that far. Let's just say "voice your concerns" to your friends about their inappropriate behavior :)
9. TEACH YOUR CHILDREN ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF ELECTIONS AND VOTING! (Please) It is not a coincidence that I was excited about watching the Republican National Convention in 6th grade and now I'm a concerned citizen as an adult. You don't have to turn your kid into a nerd but it is up to you to make sure that your children are civically minded.
10. No one will do this for us America. The right to representation was the reason the Revolutionary war was fought. People have given their lives so that we could go stick our piece of paper in a box once a year. Some people would give their lives to have that opportunity for their nation right now. If you don't give a shit about history or the rest of the universe then maybe your sagging bank account is motivation enough for you to realize it's time to get involved. Don't be scared. YOU CAN DO IT!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Hey Hey Tina Fey
Oh lordy. Hilarious.
Watch the real one first:
the SNL version:
http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/couric-palin-open/704042/
It's official. I definitely have girl love for Tina Fey.
Watch the real one first:
the SNL version:
http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/couric-palin-open/704042/
It's official. I definitely have girl love for Tina Fey.
To Whom It May Concern
I used to write a lot of letters. Letters to the editor, letters of complaint, letters of congratulations, letters to my friends and lovers. I haven't done much letter writing lately so I thought I would take some time today to write a few brief letters and get some things off my chest.
Dear WaMu,
I'm sorry I did not have the opportunity to personally respond to your offer as it just arrived in the mail yesterday. Had I been given more time I would have advised you that I have no job and no longer even go by the last name Caudill so perhaps sending me a credit card offer is not the best possible business practice. But then I guess you know that now.
Dear King (of America) George,
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Dear John McCain,
Dear WaMu,
I'm sorry I did not have the opportunity to personally respond to your offer as it just arrived in the mail yesterday. Had I been given more time I would have advised you that I have no job and no longer even go by the last name Caudill so perhaps sending me a credit card offer is not the best possible business practice. But then I guess you know that now.
Sincerely,
Me
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Me
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Dear King (of America) George,
Don't touch anything, don't do anything, and don't say anything. Just go kick back at the ranch and wait this out and we'll deal with it later. It's best if you don't screw anything else up for now.
Go away.
Sincerely,
-Me (and a whole bunch of other people)
-Me (and a whole bunch of other people)
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Dear Corrupt Corporate White Guys,
I know a lot of you feel that welfare is for lazy people who want to steal from the American taxpayer. Perhaps you are right. Enjoy your welfare uh I mean bailout.
Screw you,
Me
Me
P.S.
Stop crying, the tears might cause water damage to the the interior of your yacht.
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Dear Skeezy Guys in the Club,
My friends and I just wanted to come out and dance and have a good time. We're all married now and if we wanted you to come grind on us we would invite you over or at least make eye contact with you. Go find some young college girl to molest and let us old ladies have some fun.
Sincerely,
Me
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Dear Chester Dog,
I feed you every day and I give you plenty of snacks. Why are you constantly embarrassing me by licking the kitchen floor?
Love,
The Pretty Lady who bosses you around
The Pretty Lady who bosses you around
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Dear Almost everyone Rick and I have met and will meet in Texas,
No we do not have children. It is none of your god damn business why we don't have any kids. I know this may come as a shock to you but not everyone has kids these days. The Colonial era has ended. You don't see me asking you why you can't seem to stop having kids do you? You're nice enough but mind your business.
Thanks,
-Me
P.S.
P.S.
Do you really need to bring all your kids to Walmart with you? It's really screwing up my shopping experience.
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Dear people who say if a Democrat gets elected President we will become Socialist,
Do you even actually know what real socialism is? If we want to use your vague interpretation, we are already socialist and have tons of ridiculous government programs with a Republican in office so I don't know what you're so worked up about. If you are actually worried about real socialism, allow me to remind you that we have a Congress, a Senate, and a Supreme Court who are all supposed to have a say about the laws of the land and the Constitutionality of the programs we offer. This is not a Dictatorship. We have checks and balances to avoid a total disruption of our democracy. The President isn't supposed to be able to do anything and everything that strikes him like oh say, declare war without asking anyone's permission first. We have three branches of government for a reason.
-Me
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Dear Barack Obama,
Don't worry about Pakistan and Afghanistan right now. I know you are trying to look tough so that the American people don't think you are a pussy but Osama Bin Laden is the last of our concerns right now so just don't go there. Also, why did you have to pick Joe Biden?
Much Love,
Me
P.S.
If you get elected, please don't turn into Jimmy Carter ok?
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Dear Joe Biden,
I know I've spent a lot of time ripping on Sarah Palin but just so we're clear, I don't like you either. In fact, I kind of think you're a jackass. Actually, I DO think you're a jackass.
No Love,
Me
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Dear Democrats who think John McCain is the devil,
I know he's old and for the last 8 years he's been pandering to the Evangelicals but he really isn't that bad. In fact he's a pretty good guy all around and in the past has been pretty moderate. Of course he has his head up his party's ass right now, he's trying to get elected. If he gets the job the nation will not be destroyed. Now if he dies in office you may want to plan your exit strategy but otherwise don't sweat it.
Sincerely,
Me
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Dear John McCain,
If you get elected will the real you come back? Boy I sure hope so. My magic 8 ball said "Outlook not good" but it's only right about 50% of the time.
Love,
Me
P.S.
I don't know what moron you let talk you into picking Sarah but you should fire that guy.
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Dear Sarah,
When you are practicing your foreign policy experience by "keeping an eye" on Russia do you use binoculars or do you just stand at the border and look out over the water?
Sincerely,
Me
P.S.
What???? What in the hell are you talking about? Is this why they don't let you talk much?
When you are practicing your foreign policy experience by "keeping an eye" on Russia do you use binoculars or do you just stand at the border and look out over the water?
Sincerely,
Me
P.S.
What???? What in the hell are you talking about? Is this why they don't let you talk much?
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Musical Motivation
Here it is, my 2008 election Political Playlist.
Keep on rockin in the free world my friends!
Keep on rockin in the free world my friends!
It Actually IS the Economy Stupid!
As promised, it's well prior to 2 AM and the homework is done so I'm back!This blog is lonnnnnggggggggg but hang in there with me ok?
I've recently discussed with some of you the parallels between our current economy and that of the late 1920's and 1930's (in case you don't know dates that is the era of the market crash and the Great Depression. I thought I would give you a brief history lesson on the depression so that you might take some time to really think about our nation's economy and our own personal spending (and why I'm annoyed that Joe Biden doesn't know this stuff).
First I want you to brace yourself. Assuming that you were even paying attention in high school, your history teacher did not give you the whole truth about the Great Depression. The stock market crash of 1929 did not cause the depression. This may come as a surprise to you but trust me, there are plenty of things our history teachers failed to mention because they found it too complicated to explain. The crash of 29 was a symptom of an already fragile and failing economy. The average Joe in 1929 did not have tons of money invested in the stock market...just as I'm sure most of you don't (although I'm awfully worried about my retirement fund right now). So what did cause the great depression? I'm so glad you asked. Some would suggest that it was BUYING ON CREDIT! That's right, you heard me correctly, at the end of the 20's the average urban American had badly burdened themselves with debt. In the roaring 20's the industrial era was in full bloom. Ford and GM were turning out cars, GE was cranking out the first refrigerators, homes were being built from cookie cutter patterns in sprawling suburbs...and the fine citizens of this nation borrowed money to buy those things.
Now there comes a point when a person has used up all of the available credit they have and when that time arrives people stop buying things. When people stop buying things, factories and retailers have a surplus, when there is a surplus of goods, factories lay off workers to cut costs and retailers mark products down causing related stock to lose value. So, the people can't buy anymore stuff, they are in debt up to their eyeballs, they lose their job at the factory and then have no income but bills to pay and WALA we have a recession (or a slight economic downturn if you are operating on retarded George Bush logic). Sound familiar??
Now the other funny thing that was going on during the time period leading up to the 1929 market crash was a little something called "buying on margin". Here is an example of buying on margin that I found on the web that will help you understand how this works:
"Suppose you want to buy 100 shares of a stock that cost $50 per share. Normally, you would need $5,000 (plus commission) to purchase the stock. If you want to buy the stock on margin though you can borrow up to $2,500 (50%) of the purchase price and pay the remaining $2,500 yourself. If the stock goes up to $75 and you sell it, you would be able to pay the $2,500 (plus interest) and keep roughly $5,000 (a 100% gain)."
Now here comes the problem. The banks are using the liquid cash (your money) to loan out for people to buy A). all the stuff we just talked about and B). stocks on margin. As people begin to not repay their loans, the bank becomes worried that they don't have enough cash on hand and they start calling in the margin loans for payment. People make the connection that banks must be low on cash because they are calling in the loans and people then rush the bank to try to get their money out. Pretty soon the bank has no money coming in and all the money going out and they shut the doors. Sound familiar???
Don't totally freak yet, not everything is exactly the same. Buying on margin doesn't happen anymore (although who knows what kind of shady shit goes down on wall street these days). As a result of this disaster there were a number of laws put in place to try to prevent something like this from happening again. For instance, we now have FDIC which protects your money (up to $100,000) if the bank closes down. This is why if for some crazy ass reason you have more than $100,000 lying around you should not keep it all in one bank. Laws were also created that would allow one institution to buy out another in order to keep it from closing its doors. The reason the JP Morgan acquisition of Bear Stearns a few months ago was such a big deal was that it was the first time since it's inception in the 30's that this law was actually applied. It was also the first time I said "oh shit, it is not good if we are applying depression era laws drawn up to keep us from losing all of our money". A lot of the time I am just being paranoid but apparently my concerns were well founded because now we have reached a whole new level of "oh shitness".
That brings me to this buyout business. This is something that would be unlike anything ever done in the history of this country. It is so socialist that even Democrats do not want to do it (that's scary). The proposed plan would allow the Federal Government to use funds (yours and mine) through taxpayer dollars, to assume the debts of privately funded banks. So basically we are not only paying for our car, our house, and our credit cards, but we are also paying for each others car, house, and credit cards along with any other stupid investments people made because the bank is broke. THIS IS INSANE. (That's just my opinion.)
The bottom line is this: We need to stop borrowing so much god damned money. Rick Jones says that this is the fault of banks who practiced predatory lending. I say bullshit. If I offer to sell you a bridge in New York and you are stupid enough to write me a check, that's on you babe. If you want to buy a house you better be god damned sure you have enough money to make the payments and that you understand the terms of the loan. It's this crazy little thing called personal responsibility. Nuts I know. We do not need 5 big screen t.v's and 3 SUV's and a $400,000 house on $65,000 a year income. No one did this to us, we did it to ourselves in our quest for "stuff". We no longer try to earn anything in this country, we just expect to have everything because we are America, the beacon of hope and prosperity where the streets are paved with gold. Well I hate to break it to you America but if you keep going back to the golden goose...pretty soon there won't be anymore eggs. Sarah Palin said today that we could face another depression in this country and you know what? She is right. Oh my god I can't be live I had to say that.Don't kid yourself, the only things that are certain are death and taxes and everything you know to be the American way could be gone in an instant. Nations rise and fall, it is the way the world works. I'm not saying that we are all going to wake up tomorrow and be homeless, I'm just saying that people need to acknowledge the reality of the situation WE, (all of us little folk), perpetuated. I'm not suggesting that business and government hold no responsibility for this situation but I am saying that what we do in our own homes and with our own bank accounts actually does impact the greater good. As does our decision to be apathetic and turn inward instead of participating in the process and getting off our ass to go vote someone out of office who makes stupid decisions with serious economic ramifications (ahem, $556,969,770,951 war). Instead of waiting for the government to bring America back to it's former glory, perhaps we should get our heads in the game and bring America back for ourselves by raising our personal awareness level. It's that or be prepared to accept the consequences of ignorant bliss.
End of today's lecture. The beatings will continue until moral (correction MORALE) improves.
I've recently discussed with some of you the parallels between our current economy and that of the late 1920's and 1930's (in case you don't know dates that is the era of the market crash and the Great Depression. I thought I would give you a brief history lesson on the depression so that you might take some time to really think about our nation's economy and our own personal spending (and why I'm annoyed that Joe Biden doesn't know this stuff).
First I want you to brace yourself. Assuming that you were even paying attention in high school, your history teacher did not give you the whole truth about the Great Depression. The stock market crash of 1929 did not cause the depression. This may come as a surprise to you but trust me, there are plenty of things our history teachers failed to mention because they found it too complicated to explain. The crash of 29 was a symptom of an already fragile and failing economy. The average Joe in 1929 did not have tons of money invested in the stock market...just as I'm sure most of you don't (although I'm awfully worried about my retirement fund right now). So what did cause the great depression? I'm so glad you asked. Some would suggest that it was BUYING ON CREDIT! That's right, you heard me correctly, at the end of the 20's the average urban American had badly burdened themselves with debt. In the roaring 20's the industrial era was in full bloom. Ford and GM were turning out cars, GE was cranking out the first refrigerators, homes were being built from cookie cutter patterns in sprawling suburbs...and the fine citizens of this nation borrowed money to buy those things.
Now there comes a point when a person has used up all of the available credit they have and when that time arrives people stop buying things. When people stop buying things, factories and retailers have a surplus, when there is a surplus of goods, factories lay off workers to cut costs and retailers mark products down causing related stock to lose value. So, the people can't buy anymore stuff, they are in debt up to their eyeballs, they lose their job at the factory and then have no income but bills to pay and WALA we have a recession (or a slight economic downturn if you are operating on retarded George Bush logic). Sound familiar??
Now the other funny thing that was going on during the time period leading up to the 1929 market crash was a little something called "buying on margin". Here is an example of buying on margin that I found on the web that will help you understand how this works:
"Suppose you want to buy 100 shares of a stock that cost $50 per share. Normally, you would need $5,000 (plus commission) to purchase the stock. If you want to buy the stock on margin though you can borrow up to $2,500 (50%) of the purchase price and pay the remaining $2,500 yourself. If the stock goes up to $75 and you sell it, you would be able to pay the $2,500 (plus interest) and keep roughly $5,000 (a 100% gain)."
Now here comes the problem. The banks are using the liquid cash (your money) to loan out for people to buy A). all the stuff we just talked about and B). stocks on margin. As people begin to not repay their loans, the bank becomes worried that they don't have enough cash on hand and they start calling in the margin loans for payment. People make the connection that banks must be low on cash because they are calling in the loans and people then rush the bank to try to get their money out. Pretty soon the bank has no money coming in and all the money going out and they shut the doors. Sound familiar???
Don't totally freak yet, not everything is exactly the same. Buying on margin doesn't happen anymore (although who knows what kind of shady shit goes down on wall street these days). As a result of this disaster there were a number of laws put in place to try to prevent something like this from happening again. For instance, we now have FDIC which protects your money (up to $100,000) if the bank closes down. This is why if for some crazy ass reason you have more than $100,000 lying around you should not keep it all in one bank. Laws were also created that would allow one institution to buy out another in order to keep it from closing its doors. The reason the JP Morgan acquisition of Bear Stearns a few months ago was such a big deal was that it was the first time since it's inception in the 30's that this law was actually applied. It was also the first time I said "oh shit, it is not good if we are applying depression era laws drawn up to keep us from losing all of our money". A lot of the time I am just being paranoid but apparently my concerns were well founded because now we have reached a whole new level of "oh shitness".
That brings me to this buyout business. This is something that would be unlike anything ever done in the history of this country. It is so socialist that even Democrats do not want to do it (that's scary). The proposed plan would allow the Federal Government to use funds (yours and mine) through taxpayer dollars, to assume the debts of privately funded banks. So basically we are not only paying for our car, our house, and our credit cards, but we are also paying for each others car, house, and credit cards along with any other stupid investments people made because the bank is broke. THIS IS INSANE. (That's just my opinion.)
The bottom line is this: We need to stop borrowing so much god damned money. Rick Jones says that this is the fault of banks who practiced predatory lending. I say bullshit. If I offer to sell you a bridge in New York and you are stupid enough to write me a check, that's on you babe. If you want to buy a house you better be god damned sure you have enough money to make the payments and that you understand the terms of the loan. It's this crazy little thing called personal responsibility. Nuts I know. We do not need 5 big screen t.v's and 3 SUV's and a $400,000 house on $65,000 a year income. No one did this to us, we did it to ourselves in our quest for "stuff". We no longer try to earn anything in this country, we just expect to have everything because we are America, the beacon of hope and prosperity where the streets are paved with gold. Well I hate to break it to you America but if you keep going back to the golden goose...pretty soon there won't be anymore eggs. Sarah Palin said today that we could face another depression in this country and you know what? She is right. Oh my god I can't be live I had to say that.Don't kid yourself, the only things that are certain are death and taxes and everything you know to be the American way could be gone in an instant. Nations rise and fall, it is the way the world works. I'm not saying that we are all going to wake up tomorrow and be homeless, I'm just saying that people need to acknowledge the reality of the situation WE, (all of us little folk), perpetuated. I'm not suggesting that business and government hold no responsibility for this situation but I am saying that what we do in our own homes and with our own bank accounts actually does impact the greater good. As does our decision to be apathetic and turn inward instead of participating in the process and getting off our ass to go vote someone out of office who makes stupid decisions with serious economic ramifications (ahem, $556,969,770,951 war). Instead of waiting for the government to bring America back to it's former glory, perhaps we should get our heads in the game and bring America back for ourselves by raising our personal awareness level. It's that or be prepared to accept the consequences of ignorant bliss.
End of today's lecture. The beatings will continue until moral (correction MORALE) improves.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
KNOW YOUR HISTORY!
Most of you know that I am supporting Senator Obama in the upcoming election but I am an equal opportunity criticizer and this particularly concerned me so I thought I best make note of it here. VP candidate Joe Biden made a big boo boo the other night when talking about the last time our country faced and enormous economic crisis:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_el_pr/biden_mistaken_history_7
This may seem like a simple blunder but if I manage to get my homework done before 2 AM I'll be sure to come back and tell you why all 4 candidates should study up on this period of our nation's history before they go running off at the mouth about what's happening with our economy. Alas, those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
More to come!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_el_pr/biden_mistaken_history_7
This may seem like a simple blunder but if I manage to get my homework done before 2 AM I'll be sure to come back and tell you why all 4 candidates should study up on this period of our nation's history before they go running off at the mouth about what's happening with our economy. Alas, those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
More to come!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Nettie's Got a Gun
Well I went to the gun range today to continue my search for a revolver and boy did I have a completely different experience from yesterday. When I got there the guy let me look around and did not jump right in my face. I told him I wanted to look at some small revolvers and he got a couple out for me and handed them right to me to try out for myself. Then he said "what you need is a shotgun" so I explained that I didn't know how to handle one and they felt too big. "Well try this" he said and pulled a small one down off the wall.
As soon as I had it in my hands I knew it was the right thing for me "but I don't know how to use it" I said. He then took the time to show me how to work it and load it so I decided to buy it. About this time two guys come in on their lunch break. "You buyin that?" one of them says pointing to my newly acquired firearm. I nodded yes. "awesome" he said. "You ever shot one before?" he asks, the other guy nudges him, "back off, she probably knows more about guns than we do". At this point I am grinning ear to ear. "No" I say "I'm going to practice before I leave". "Well if you would like some help for your first time I will be happy to come back with you" the first guy says. I tell him yes and I then I tell all three of them how much I appreciate being treated with so much respect. "My daughter is in law enforcement" the shop owner says. "All women should be comfortable with guns" one of the other guys says. So the guy goes back and helps me out with my stance and gives me some great pointers. The first two shots were high but then I got the hang of it. "She didn't need me" he tells the other guys as we come out of the firing range. "She'll knock an intruder on his ass!". So today I am a strong, confident, shotgun owning, Texan. I love America.
As soon as I had it in my hands I knew it was the right thing for me "but I don't know how to use it" I said. He then took the time to show me how to work it and load it so I decided to buy it. About this time two guys come in on their lunch break. "You buyin that?" one of them says pointing to my newly acquired firearm. I nodded yes. "awesome" he said. "You ever shot one before?" he asks, the other guy nudges him, "back off, she probably knows more about guns than we do". At this point I am grinning ear to ear. "No" I say "I'm going to practice before I leave". "Well if you would like some help for your first time I will be happy to come back with you" the first guy says. I tell him yes and I then I tell all three of them how much I appreciate being treated with so much respect. "My daughter is in law enforcement" the shop owner says. "All women should be comfortable with guns" one of the other guys says. So the guy goes back and helps me out with my stance and gives me some great pointers. The first two shots were high but then I got the hang of it. "She didn't need me" he tells the other guys as we come out of the firing range. "She'll knock an intruder on his ass!". So today I am a strong, confident, shotgun owning, Texan. I love America.
Monday, September 22, 2008
I Lied
Not only am I not able to get over the steaming anger from Bill Gates and his minions destroying my beautiful blog post, I also have other (much shorter) thoughts to share with you instead.
I've never considered myself to be a feminist but lately my feminist button has been getting the hell pushed out of it. I worked in a male dominated world and I'm used to the "sweetie" and "honey" and being passed over because I'm not "tough enough" for a job and I've been able to swallow that and put my head down and move forward without much complaint. But let me tell you something....two things have happened lately that make me want to strangle the hell out of a man with my feminist rage. First is this Palin business. Rick says he still can't figure out what it is that I'm so mad about so hopefully I can successfully articulate it here. Some of you have seen my new T-shirts that say "A woman candidate is not the same thing as a woman's candidate" and "I vote with my brain not my gender" (which I purchased in a feminine rage) and they pretty well sum up what I'm so pissed about. How DARE you GOP, my former friends and political allies. HOW DARE you pick some random woman that you can push around and stick her up on a stage and think that because I have a vagina I will magically vote for you. Kiss my ass. That insults not only my gender but my intelligence as well. And then women fall for it. Oh my god. I can hardly stand to think about it. Hearing Palin going on and on about the glass ceiling pisses me off too. The only glass ceiling she has ever seen was in Alaskan politics. Does she have even the slightest inkling of what it's going to be like for a woman in the whitehouse? I doubt it. There are women in the Republican party who DO know about the glass ceiling and are infinitely more qualified but god forbid we pick someone as a running mate who has enough clout (an information) to think for herself. Screw you GOP.
The second thing that pushed my button happened today and it is somewhat more personal in nature although I'm sure I'm not the first woman to experience it. I decided today that I was going to buy a small handgun. We keep two guns in the house but one is too large for me to confidently handle and the other is a shotgun which I do not yet know how to use. Now I didn't just wake up today and decide "I need a gun" nor am I planning to kill Richard upon his return from Houston. There have been several home invasions and car break ins and a rape in our area recently. Also, someone attempted to let themselves in my front door Thursday morning and I have felt pretty uneasy ever since. Plus I figured "when in Texas....buy a gun". So I go to Cabelas and I first stop and visit with my buddy in the fishing department and for purposes of this blog will be called "Pal". I tell Pal about Rick being in Houston and how I don't get to fish now and about the person trying to come in the door and my decision to purchase a firearm. Well wait. First I tell him about Rick and the fish and then I say "I'm going to buy a handgun" to which he replies "WHAT IN THE WORLD do you need a handgun for??" and then I tell him about the person coming in the door....after which I realized that I don't need to justify to anyone what I want a damn handgun for. So Hal tells me that I don't need a handgun I need a shotgun because I won't ever have to actually use a shotgun, I can just pump it and the intruder will run away screaming like a girl when he hears that sound(not his exact words). I explain that I'm seriously not in the market for a shotgun and he replies "well we will get you a junior sized one". I stare at him blankly. Pal then gets very serious and says "Now listen, if you're going to buy a gun you need to be prepared to use it to kill someone". (No shit) "Plus you need to realize that when you start shooting a gun in the house you'll have bullets in the walls and in the neighbors walls..." I cut Pal off. "Listen, if there is a guy in my house the last thing I care about is bullets in my walls ok?". "Well I'm just telling you" he says. Pal then leads me over to the gun dept and introduces me to a guy working there who is a former police officer and for purposes of this blog we will call "Officer P". Pal has a private conversation with Officer P while I stand there staring at the two of them and then goes back to the fishing department, leaving me in Officer P's good care. "So you absolutely don't want to buy a shotgun? You know you'll never actually need to use it?"."NO I want a handgun" I tell him. "Well if you absolutely won't consider it then what you need is a revolver" he tells me. "I was thinking a .38 I reply" and I tell him about the 9mm we have and how it is too big for me. So he gets a small smith and wesson .38 out of the glass case and puts it on the counter to show me. "You know" he says, "if you're going to buy a gun you better be prepared to kill someone with it". It is at this point that something in my brain lights on fire. If Ted Smith came in to Cabelas to buy a handgun for home defense do you think he would have gotten two lectures on "being prepared to shoot and kill someone"? I bite my lip for a second so I can collect my thoughts and remain nice "I completely understand" I say. I stop short of telling him that there is almost nothing I would rather do than shoot a rapist right square in the chest and that sometimes I daydream about it. I also decide not to mention that there are women in the military and that lots of women know how to handle a weapon. Needless to say that I was starting to get pissed and I decided I was not going to buy the .38 from Officer P on this day...although I'm sure I'll get the same reaction wherever I head next. Just one time I would like to stand in the kitchenware section at walmart and chastise every man that comes in there to buy pots and pans by saying "Now you realize that taking care of cookware is a pretty big responsibility right?"
When it comes down to it maybe the problem isn't that I'm a woman, it's that I just cannot stand being patronized for any reason...particularly because I have a va jay jay.
Girl power (and whatnot)!
I've never considered myself to be a feminist but lately my feminist button has been getting the hell pushed out of it. I worked in a male dominated world and I'm used to the "sweetie" and "honey" and being passed over because I'm not "tough enough" for a job and I've been able to swallow that and put my head down and move forward without much complaint. But let me tell you something....two things have happened lately that make me want to strangle the hell out of a man with my feminist rage. First is this Palin business. Rick says he still can't figure out what it is that I'm so mad about so hopefully I can successfully articulate it here. Some of you have seen my new T-shirts that say "A woman candidate is not the same thing as a woman's candidate" and "I vote with my brain not my gender" (which I purchased in a feminine rage) and they pretty well sum up what I'm so pissed about. How DARE you GOP, my former friends and political allies. HOW DARE you pick some random woman that you can push around and stick her up on a stage and think that because I have a vagina I will magically vote for you. Kiss my ass. That insults not only my gender but my intelligence as well. And then women fall for it. Oh my god. I can hardly stand to think about it. Hearing Palin going on and on about the glass ceiling pisses me off too. The only glass ceiling she has ever seen was in Alaskan politics. Does she have even the slightest inkling of what it's going to be like for a woman in the whitehouse? I doubt it. There are women in the Republican party who DO know about the glass ceiling and are infinitely more qualified but god forbid we pick someone as a running mate who has enough clout (an information) to think for herself. Screw you GOP.
The second thing that pushed my button happened today and it is somewhat more personal in nature although I'm sure I'm not the first woman to experience it. I decided today that I was going to buy a small handgun. We keep two guns in the house but one is too large for me to confidently handle and the other is a shotgun which I do not yet know how to use. Now I didn't just wake up today and decide "I need a gun" nor am I planning to kill Richard upon his return from Houston. There have been several home invasions and car break ins and a rape in our area recently. Also, someone attempted to let themselves in my front door Thursday morning and I have felt pretty uneasy ever since. Plus I figured "when in Texas....buy a gun". So I go to Cabelas and I first stop and visit with my buddy in the fishing department and for purposes of this blog will be called "Pal". I tell Pal about Rick being in Houston and how I don't get to fish now and about the person trying to come in the door and my decision to purchase a firearm. Well wait. First I tell him about Rick and the fish and then I say "I'm going to buy a handgun" to which he replies "WHAT IN THE WORLD do you need a handgun for??" and then I tell him about the person coming in the door....after which I realized that I don't need to justify to anyone what I want a damn handgun for. So Hal tells me that I don't need a handgun I need a shotgun because I won't ever have to actually use a shotgun, I can just pump it and the intruder will run away screaming like a girl when he hears that sound(not his exact words). I explain that I'm seriously not in the market for a shotgun and he replies "well we will get you a junior sized one". I stare at him blankly. Pal then gets very serious and says "Now listen, if you're going to buy a gun you need to be prepared to use it to kill someone". (No shit) "Plus you need to realize that when you start shooting a gun in the house you'll have bullets in the walls and in the neighbors walls..." I cut Pal off. "Listen, if there is a guy in my house the last thing I care about is bullets in my walls ok?". "Well I'm just telling you" he says. Pal then leads me over to the gun dept and introduces me to a guy working there who is a former police officer and for purposes of this blog we will call "Officer P". Pal has a private conversation with Officer P while I stand there staring at the two of them and then goes back to the fishing department, leaving me in Officer P's good care. "So you absolutely don't want to buy a shotgun? You know you'll never actually need to use it?"."NO I want a handgun" I tell him. "Well if you absolutely won't consider it then what you need is a revolver" he tells me. "I was thinking a .38 I reply" and I tell him about the 9mm we have and how it is too big for me. So he gets a small smith and wesson .38 out of the glass case and puts it on the counter to show me. "You know" he says, "if you're going to buy a gun you better be prepared to kill someone with it". It is at this point that something in my brain lights on fire. If Ted Smith came in to Cabelas to buy a handgun for home defense do you think he would have gotten two lectures on "being prepared to shoot and kill someone"? I bite my lip for a second so I can collect my thoughts and remain nice "I completely understand" I say. I stop short of telling him that there is almost nothing I would rather do than shoot a rapist right square in the chest and that sometimes I daydream about it. I also decide not to mention that there are women in the military and that lots of women know how to handle a weapon. Needless to say that I was starting to get pissed and I decided I was not going to buy the .38 from Officer P on this day...although I'm sure I'll get the same reaction wherever I head next. Just one time I would like to stand in the kitchenware section at walmart and chastise every man that comes in there to buy pots and pans by saying "Now you realize that taking care of cookware is a pretty big responsibility right?"
When it comes down to it maybe the problem isn't that I'm a woman, it's that I just cannot stand being patronized for any reason...particularly because I have a va jay jay.
Girl power (and whatnot)!
Well
I had this really detailed and informative blog written for everyone and then the computer just shut down. I guess it was tired I dunno. I do know that I need to eat and do homework so we'll be saving todays exciting material for tomrrow.
Sorry kids.
Sorry kids.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
New and Improved
I decided it was about time that I started an actual blog in a place where non-myspace friends could actually read it so here we are. Here you are anyway....who knows where I am. It is an election year so that being said you can pretty much expect this blog to be about civics, politics, history, news, and whatever else grabs me.
In keeping with current events I'll start by posting a repeat of my myspace blog. If you've already been there you may now feel free to exit here...or stick around and read the new and improved version. Just do whatever makes you feel happy.
It has recently been mentioned to me that I'm starting to look a lot like Tina Fey.
Frankly I idolize Tina Fey. What girl wouldn't want to be wicked smart, hot, and funny? So that all seemed pretty super duper to me until I realized that it also means I have some resemblance to my least favorite female candidate, you guessed it, Sarah Palin. My hair is no where near as enormous but you get the idea:
At least I have the good sense to know you're supposed to wear an elephant pin when you're a member of the GOP. As a result of this recent realization I hereby declare my intention to openly and viciously mock Sarah Palin this Halloween by appearing as "America's Hottest Governor" or "The GOP's token female" or "Slutty Sarah" at any and every party to which I am invited.
So let it be written, so let it be done.
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