Little early in the process........

Empires rot from within. Everybody is in on the take. Once people realize they can get free money or power over their neighbors by voting for it then it only becomes a self-fulfilling act.  Soon in order to survive we all have to get in on the action. We need to have government rob our fellow citizens just to survive our old age, educate our kids, protect us from bad guys, fix the roads, etc..

But the biggest problem is Social Security money is taken from people who work. Same with military and other government checks. Our workers  don't produce  much any more to earn enough to support all the dependents on government largess. It seems to me that robbing our children is a sure fire loser.

Right now we are depending on borrowing from foreigners to pay all these trillions of handouts, promises and wild schemes. How long will that last? Maybe 2013? By your next birthday?

Who do we riot against? Will we be shot down in the streets begging for bread? Will the next generation decide to take over another small oil producing country?

Stay tuned!

Gerald Celente explains ‘Obamageddon’ forecast amid call for The Great American Renaissance

Well, Gerald, you can gladly add Barello to the aforementioned list. As a fellow paesano I am going to join you – and break the absurd rules of politic correctness – by asserting that Wall Street and Washington D.C. are being run by psychopathic serial criminals. For those that feel this declaration is overzealous, please read the recent commentary of Jim Kouri, vice president and public information officer at the National Association of Chiefs of Police, wherein he likens the personality traits of politicians to serial killers.

The mortgage market collapsed due to massive, unprecedented frauds. More people would realize this if mainstream media outlets properly exposed such crimes; granted, investigative journalism has been pushed aside, and in its place, we find an array of pseudo-celebrity, nonentity imbeciles like John and Kate Gosselin, desperate for their 15 minutes of shame. Either way, most mortgage frauds were facilitated by both lenders and borrowers – many of whom knowingly agreed to terms they could not afford. Through the process of securitization, these bad loans have been turned into hot potatoes for tossing, often with the help of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae; this has allowed lenders to deceitfully transfer risky loans to unsuspecting counterparties. Ratings agencies aided and abetted the racket by claiming these junk assets are safe; accordingly, corporations, municipalities, and a plethora of worldwide investment vehicles have purchased toxic garbage, and many risk collapsing under the weight of such. As this has happened, unregulated, over-the-counter derivatives have allowed the same criminals to secretly hedge bets against portfolios – knowing full well that many of them would indeed go sour – and when credit events occur, they collect truly absurd bounties. Accordingly, Gerald is no fan of derivatives. “They are ponzi schemes,” he said, before quipping that the term should really be “Madoffs” from now on. “Ponzi was a piker compared to Madoff, [which] is more appropriate, because they make off with all your money.”

My favorite theory about "Paranormal"

The Blogsquatcher: LIVING ANOMALY excerpt continues..

For a good portion of the populace -- well, that is, of those who are even aware of bigfoot at all -- the creature in question must either be a large primate, fully flesh and blood, or it doesn’t exist. But there are as many different explanations for bigfoot as there are people willing to explain it. I have gathered a few theories for our perusal here, each considering the question from a different point of view, and only one of which requires bigfoot to be a simple animal.
These different viewpoints are largely philosophical, and to really examine them would send us down a rabbit hole from which we might never emerge, and even if we did, we’d not be much wiser than we are now -- indeed, we’d be much more puzzled. Such is the nature of philosophy. But, speaking broadly, the four categories of explanation for bigfoot in which I am interested are psychological, flesh and blood, paranormal, and trans-dimensional.
The psychological explanation is most often offered in passing, usually in skeptical articles and publications, but it does not seem to be a well developed theory within bigfoot research. It certainly does not seem to have a champion. Note that the psychological explanation does not posit that bigfoot experiencers are crazy, only that the experience is not what it seems to be.
Briefly outlined, the psychological theory holds that humans have a need to believe in large hairy primates, and that this need will cause them to, in some cases, misinterpret encounters with ordinary animals, and in other cases, imagine the encounters entirely. This explanation has the advantage of explaining just why bigfoot-like creatures are seen the world over. Wherever people are found, there is bigfoot too. But it does not deal very well with physical evidence, nor with certain other features in bigfoot accounts. If it’s all in the head, then why do we find footprints, hair, scat, and other physical signs? The usual rebuttal is that such evidence as is found, and admittedly it is not much, is faked. I do not think this rebuttal is very persuasive. But it’s a serious objection and it must be met. In meeting it, I think of researchers like Peter Byrne (I had him playing the villain earlier so I’ll have him as hero here), who tells the story of going, on a whim, up high in a mountain range and finding footprints there. Since he had not planned to go, and no one could have guessed that he would go there, if they were faked, the footprints cannot have been faked for his benefit. Someone would have had to have gone there, very far in the wilderness and very high up, and planted the prints, without leaving any other evidence of their fakery, and without being sure that anyone would ever find them. This is but one example of many I could use.
It would seem the existence of physical evidence would be pretty much fatal to the psychological theory. This is true for the sense in which the psychological explanation is usually offered. I can imagine a line of reasoning that descends from Jungian archetypes that would dispose of the “evidence” objection, because the namesake of that theory, famed psychologist Carl Jung, proposed that archetypes are real things that can actually interact with our reality.
There is some evidence that something like Jung's system of archetypes really does exist somewhere in our minds, and that we all share similar symbols, even in the forms of animals, or half man, half animal beings. I'm talking about the effect brought on by certain drugs and substances, such as DMT or Ayahuasca, as has been described in books like Rick Strassman's DMT: The Spirit Molecule, or Graham Hancock's Supernatural. Since the experience with these drugs also includes encounters with strange creatures, it is not a stretch to suppose, or at least speculate, that bigfoot experiences, which often have markers of "high strangeness" anyway, might be a result of altered states of consciousness, where our minds call forth an archetypal image, in much the way that fortean researcher John Keel used to theorize. They are here for fleeting moments, and then gone, called forth somehow by our own minds, and having their reality mostly inside it, but somehow also participating in the physical, however briefly.
This is an interesting diversion, but I really see this as little different, in a practical sense, from the trans-dimensional theory, so I will not include any of this Jungian business in my designation of the psychological explanation. And it must be said that the people who usually offer the psychological explanation would not have any traffic with Jungian theories anyway. Without something akin to Jung’s collective unconscious, however, I see little hope for the psychological theory in the face of physical evidence. Proponents will no doubt see the fact that such physical evidence as is found is remarkably weak as enough to keep their theory alive.
The most popular theory among enthusiasts for bigfoot’s existence would be, of course, that bigfoot is a living, flesh and blood creature with quite ordinary characteristics. An animal like any other animal. There are difficulties with this theory too. It does nothing to explain some of the odder characteristics of bigfoot encounters. Recently bigfoot researchers have found that adding a capacity for bigfoot to use infrasound can cover many of these. (We will discuss this in more detail in just a moment.) But infrasound will not help in all cases. For one thing, it probably does not account for the self-luminous eyes that bigfoot is commonly reported to have, and it has no answer for how a bigfoot can leave a line of footprints that stop in the middle of nowhere, with no sign of how the creature progressed from that spot, and many other anomalous features of many bigfoot reports. The theory likewise has no easy explanation for why we should not have convincing evidence of bigfoot’s existence by now. As was noted, we have had more than fifty years of searching and have very little to show for our pains. So that is our second category, and in drawing it up please note that I have been silent on whether bigfoot would be an ape or more closely related to humans. That's an interesting question, but we're not close to being able to answer it yet.
A small but not insignificant number of bigfoot researchers believe that bigfoot is a paranormal creature. They hold that bigfoot has magical properties that allow it to appear and disappear at will, to read our thoughts and speak to us telepathically, and to change physical form. This belief descends from folk beliefs the world over, but is particularly reflected in Native American beliefs about bigfoot. If the paranormal theory is true, this would suggest to me that the universe is not actual, but simulated, like a vast video game. As crazy as that sounds, there are theories in physics that postulate that this could indeed be the case. But those who hold to the paranormal theory do not, in general, go so far as to construct a theory of how the world could allow such things. They simply believe there are creatures with god-like magical abilities, without attempting to explain how that would be possible.
Those who hold that bigfoot is a trans-dimensional creature have slightly firmer theoretical grounds to stand on, at least in terms of accepted science. This is not surprising, as the trans-dimensional theory is essentially the paranormal theory with the added benefit of a scientific explanation. As Clarke’s third law postulates, “Any sufficiently advanced technology would be indistinguishable from magic.” I find that Michio Kaku's book Parallel Worlds has a concise illustration of the "extra dimensional" theory and it's implications. (Before we get to Dr. Kaku’s elucidation of the theory, we should recall that the current form of string theory, called "M Theory," posits that reality must have 10 or 11 dimensions, not just the 3 plus time that we experience right now. String theory may not be correct at all, but I think at least it shows that scientists take multidimensionality seriously.)
Kaku begins his discussion by recalling the famous HG Wells novel, The Invisible Man. In it, Wells shows that having access to the 4th dimension would allow one to become invisible. And Kaku goes on to say: MORE

"Wartime president" wins the Nobel.....

Why not? the moron carter got it for going to Israel. Look what a success that is.

Obama Accepts Nobel Peace Prize as 'Call to Action' - WSJ.com

President Barack Obama said Friday that he is honored to win the Nobel Peace Prize and will accept it as a "call to action" to work with other nations to solve the world's most pressing problems.

Appearing in the Rose Garden, Mr. Obama acknowledged he was "both surprised and deeply humbled" to win the award. In a surprise pick, the Norwegian Nobel Committee cited the president's creation of a "new climate in international politics" and his work on nuclear disarmament.

Mr. Obama said he doesn't view the award "as a recognition of my own accomplishments," but rather as a recognition of goals he has set for the U.S. and the world. Mr. Obama said, "I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many transformative figures that have been honored by this prize."

But, he said, "I will accept this award as a call to action, a call for all nations to confront the challenges of the 21st century.''

The Nobel decision makes Mr. Obama, 48 years old, the third U.S. president to win the prize while in office, after Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson. Mr. Obama's win comes 45 years after the prize was awarded to Martin Luther King Jr., the last African-American to win it

This is for my brother Al.....

And you thought the Depression was bad!

'2012' Trailer HD

Told you so.....

It's not much of a danger of stealing your money but your id. Most people can't live without their credit.

Of course if you have lousy credit use any browser you want, heh heh.

Paypal SSL Certificate Hole | Technibble

Paypal SSL Certificate Hole
Your Blogmaster is:

Lee

Lee is a computer enthusiast and technology writer.

Paypal users are being advised to switch browsers if they are using either Internet Explorer, Chrome, or Safari. They should use Mozilla’s Firefox instead to protect themselves from an SSL Certificate vulnerability.

The bug was reported nine weeks ago but Microsoft has not fixed the problem yet. The hole exists in CryptoAPI. The article at The Register notes that a tool called SSLSniff can cause all of the three browsers to display spoofed pages.

“We’re working to see if there are any technical workarounds on the PayPal side which can be put into place,” said a Paypal spokeswoman.

I'm using Windows seven today.....

Kind of weird after using Linux Mint for so long. But since i found a free download to try, I couldn't resist. I'm still trying to figure out why anyone with a internet connection or a library card would ever waste money on this junk. Plenty of operating systems out there for free. Linux being the most well known.

Other than new people in computing, most people realize they can do anything on the computer for free. It used to be that you couldn't play games without Windows but now it's cheaper and easier to buy a PlayStation and go at it. Everything else (play music, browse the web, office stuff, printing, etc.) is available.

Maybe they just need viruses and spy ware to keep computer techs busy? I haven't had this problem in quite a while since I prefer to use non window systems to use on the internet. In other words, to browse websites , especially banks, is asking for it.

Something called Identity theft, if I remember correctly.

But in order to run Magic Jack for our home phone I need to leave windows running on Patti's computer until they port it to Linux.

Oh well,  how's the Oba mama's recovery working for you?

No!!! Didn't I tell you so?..

Heh heh.

Putting the car industry on welfare sure is working. Next thing you know our insurance industry will get it.In the Roman world this was usually referred to as  "Cui Bono", who benefits. 

In other words, who gets the payback for bailing out these political favorites. Why else would the gang who runs our Empire go through all this bullshit.

In order to keep their cushy jobs (and cradle to grave insurance coverage) and a guaranteed position in life for their children they sell you and me down the river.

Of course we need to make continuous war and have constant crisis to keep it going. Eventually the rot sets in and they get murdered and a new gang takes over.

Nothing new here. Just politics as usual.



No Cash for American Clunkers « LewRockwell.com Blog

No Cash for American Clunkers
Posted by Karen De Coster on October 1, 2009 08:20 PM

Apropos my article on Cash for Clunkers from yesterday, here’s some follow-up to support my points. September sales for GM were down 45% and for Chrysler the number was 42%. When the government stopped subsidizing the purchase of cars, people stopped purchasing them—a point made very clear in my article. I also pointed out the distortion in the used car market. Yesterday the Wall Street Journal reported on the rise in prices of used automobiles—that is, the ones left over that weren’t destroyed by government decree:

One widely followed measure of used-car prices, the 14-year-old Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index, will likely hit a record when data for September are released in early October, says Thomas Webb, chief economist for Manheim Consulting, a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc.

Best investment for the working stiff?.......

Still is a cupboard full of food. Only a dozen or so corporations control the worlds food. They are controlled by various governments like Chavez in Venezuela, the U.S., Russia, China, Australia, Canada and the OPEC gang. And who do you think owns them?

Make you feel more secure?

Most people are unaware of how thin the food supply chain is. Archer Daniel Midland,Walmart , Food lion and a few others control most of the distribution in the U.S. A hand full of trucking companies and two railroads own the rest.

Ever get the idea that you have very little control over our lives? Not that these guys are particularly evil, but that every time they don't get their way, you and I have to pay.

Health care cost for these companies , for instance, is in the billions. Yep, a hand full of companies control that too. And who controls them? The politicians who take their "campaign contributions", of course. Do you really think that a government that has trillions to spend  really gives a rats ass about  me or you and our problems?

How much money did you give these assholes?

Until we can compete with the money we don't have a voice. After all what major difference do you see between Bush's policy and Obamama's ?

Any?

Of course! Abortion! Deficits! National Security!

Bullshit!!!

Check this out and see what you think.

oftwominds: "Peak Food": Agriculture Cartels, Oil, and Seed Patents

Further to your work on the proportion of our spending that goes to the big corporations (cartels):

I just did a quick analysis of the corporate take in my area of expertise: Farming.

Wheat in a 'high rainfall' area of Australia costs on average $323 per hectare to produce. (This makes a benchmark yield of 3.5 ton of grain) Of that cost of production:

$111 goes to fertilizer. We have a choice of 2 companies.

$66 goes to chemicals. We have a choice of 8 companies but only 4 would hold most of the patents for most of the chemicals. (bayer, syngenta, Dow, dupont)

$65 goes to fuels. We have a choice of 4 companies.

$9 goes to insurance. We have a choice of about 4.

$8 goes to machinery. We have a choice of about 4.

$23 goes to seed (which could be bought from one of about 4 companies producing new varieties and holding plant breeder rights, or it could be on-farm seed from a free variety that is still produced using 80% corporate inputs)

Monsanto and syngenta are getting scary in this field. They are the leaders in plant breeder rights and see the infinite profit potential in owning the bulk of the world's food genome. Scarier than Peak Oil in my opinion. If they are able to saturate the market with their crop varieties you can be sure there will be built in 'self destruct sequence' that means you MUST buy their seed or have a crop that reverts to weedy grass.

This is the case with many hybrid vegetable varieties already. The seed they produce will not produce good marketable produce the following year ... it throws back to a highly variable plant of different sizes, grades and maturation times, making it difficult to manage and market.

So $259 to $282 or 80% to 87% of costs of wheat production go to multinational companies! The other 13% to 20% goes to small service providers who could probably break their costs down in the same way.

When you consider that chemicals and fertilizers use huge amounts of fuels to produce you can sense that the share of total money flowing in the agricultural sector that stays within the major corporations is very, very high indeed.

Thank you, Bart, for a very enlightening peek into agricultural cartels.

Just think about what the last 40 years have done......

You can't support a family on the average wage. Even at 16$ an hour. Of course I don't know many people making this much by themselves I can still make the case that it takes both people in the household to make it.

Which by itself is pitiful. back in the 70's 4$ an hour seemed like real money. Wtf it was!

Now that at least one person is unemployed in most households what's going to happen to the rest of the economy? How many cars can we buy? Houses? TV's.

 Be awhile for a real recovery, don't you think.

oftwominds: "Safe" Investments Can Still Lose Purchasing Power

For example: many analysts have noted that the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has returned to its September 1999 level in nominal terms. The standard commentary notes "we've gone nowhere in 10 years."

Not true: owners of the Dow have lost 23% in the past 10 years as the dollar--the currency the Dow is priced in--has declined by 23% in the past 10 years of "low inflation." Priced in gold, the Dow has lost 3/4 of its value.

WTF???.......

I guess we need this to run over ALqaeda or something. This is what makes me proud to support the nitwits that run our government . Next thing you know they'll take over the health care system!

Hey wait a minute!!!

Hey, Children, Want Some Candy? « LewRockwell.com Blog

Posted by Lew Rockwell on September 21, 2009 07:24 PM

Writes a teacher:

Here is a notice from our high school bulletin for today. I don’t know about you, but I will sleep better knowing the Air Force has this in their arsenal.

Attention Students: Thursday during lunch, the Orange County Choppers and the US Air Force will be showing off the custom motorcycle $150,000 “Air Force Bike.” The motorcycle is ten feet long and is modeled after the F-22 Raptor, complete with Air Force symbol rims, riveted gas tank, Raptor exhausts and rear-view mirrors in the shape of jets. To see the motorcycle and learn more about the Air Force, please come to the Career Center.

This is going to get ugly in about 10 years......

Government is only good for stealing from the working stiffs and giving to anyone who bribes the politicians. Just wait until the lawyers get done with the Dem's over suggesting that maybe some restrictions should be placed on the greedy bastards.

Guy at work had his wife involved in a discrimination lawsuit agains Walmart. She won. Lawyers got 3 million, she got $25 .

Got a start buying some Dem's, I guess.

Anyways, over the next ten years we have a lot of shit coming down. Such as Charles Smith has been saying over at"Oftwominds".

The housing crash is just beginning!

Why not?

As for "health insurance". Think any politicians, let alone any media owners, are going to stick to the insurance companies?

Look at all those commercials and lobbying money. Good luck on "reform".

And we think UFO's are incredible, Heh heh.

Yet Another Washington Flop in the Making by Deroy Murdock on National Review Online

Social Security, the New Deal’s cornerstone, is as cutting edge as a 78 RPM record. In 2016, barely six years away, it will begin paying more in pension checks than it collects in payroll taxes. Congress then will be unable to use Social Security’s surplus like a ShamWow to absorb red ink. Social Security’s unfunded obligations equal $17.5 trillion — again not financed by anything but congressional speeches.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: These two government options in the home-mortgage arena are widely considered the twin jet engines that flew the economy into a hillside. These were supposed to be money-making, quasi-private companies, with no federal involvement beyond an implicit guarantee that government would cover their losses. Emboldened by this cozy federal safety net, these enterprises embarked upon financial acrobatics they otherwise might have avoided. Rather than generate profits between 2009 and 2019, the Congressional Budget Office estimates, Fannie and Freddie will cost taxpayers $389 billion.

The Hope for Homeowners program began last October 1. Congress gave it a hefty $300 billion to help some 400,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure. According to an August 10 Newsday editorial, “It has produced exactly one refinanced loan.” One down, 399,999 to go.

“UPS and FedEx are doing just fine, right?” Obama asked in August. “It’s the Post Office that’s always having problems.” Yes, indeed. Its two-year fiscal deficit approaches $8 billion. It has pried some 60,000 mailboxes off of America’s streets, the Lexington Institute reports. It also is weighing the cancellation of Saturday services. Even as e-mail, digitally attached documents, and online banking decrease demand for first-class snail mail, the Post Office keeps hiking the cost of stamps. What sort of business actually raises prices while customers walk away?

The Internal Revenue Code is like John Donne’s poetry: It means something different to everyone. Perhaps flummoxed by its 67,000 pages, even IRS advisers offer conflicting answers to identical questions. But today’s U.S. Tax Code will be a triumph of window-like clarity compared with the U.S. Health Code that Obamacare would trigger. Just wait until every medical lobby — from the American Stethoscope Council to the National Tongue Depressor League — hikes up Capitol Hill to demand exemptions, loopholes, and subsidies.

Ok......

Maybe a hoax. Like the guy owns a lowland mountain gorilla.
That's what I think it is.

Latest speculation is that it's a crow taking off caught on camera.

Not that it matters
Some wonder if mysterious image in picture is Big Foot - WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY |

Bigfoot Kentucky Backyard Strange Creatures Sasquatch SkunkApes 2012 Nibiru Aliens Creepy Videos

On vacation......

Laid around and played with my computer. Going fishing for bass. Can't beat it. Of course, the lakes get stocked next week while I'm working, but what do you expect from the government.

I got magic jack working. Can't beat home phone service for $20 bucks a year. Just have to buy a wireless phone that doesn't use 2.5 mH, as it interfers with your conversations. Works fine though. Even has call forwarding.

Looks like Obamama has his hands full firing a few weirdos like Van Jones , and bankrupting the wealthy class, (somebody has to pay for all his wild schemes) that not much else will get done.

The economy is running on borrowed money and borrowed time. Could get interesting when Washington puts everyone on welfare. No one has ever seen trillion dollar deficits stack up year after year.

Until we run out of suckers to borrow from. Still the best investment. Patti's Ira is making money because she invested it in government bonds. Didn't lose a dime.

Ought to tell you something. Right?

Anyone for National Healthcare?...........

Just ask a vet. Got to love those VA hospitals. After all they are one version of National Health care we have. Even the one in Washington was a major scandal!

Peter Roskam on Walter Reed Scandal

Check out one guys experience with it........

National Medical Malpractice -- The Government's Plan to Socialize Medicine

Ever have a Charlie Brown moment? Aggggggh! That perfectly describes my reaction to the arrogant, elitist, political response to the Town Hall forums currently being held throughout the country to discuss the proposed National Health Care program. “How dare you question OUR decisions?” The TV coverage shows politicians caught as though they were deer in headlights. They don’t know what to make of the resistance, so they once-again blame right-wing extremists.

Aren’t we the folks who at a ratio of 90 to 10 told our so-called Representatives to vote against the Bail-Out Bill? Aren’t we the folks who have responded on an 85 to 14 basis telling our Representatives we want “In God We Trust” to remain on our currency? Aren’t we the folks who said we didn’t want the likes of Chrysler, GM, AIG, Fannie and Freddie rescued? Notice how well they listen?

National Health Care as proposed by the Government will be an absolute disaster. I can make that statement from personal experience. While traveling throughout Europe in 1974, I broke my ankle. I then had the “pleasure” of partaking in the English version of Socialized Health Care. You might find the following helpful in your understanding what is being proposed.

About three hours after arriving at the hospital in Newcastle, England. a doctor looked at my foot (from behind his desk mind you, and not up close and personal as you would expect) and said he didn’t think it was broken but that I should still get an X-ray. I would have to come back the next day for the X-ray, however, because the Radiologists were on strike that day. That is when I began to learn about socialized medicine first hand. In the meantime, a nurse gave me a temporary strap-on splint to support my ankle.

The next day, I sat in the waiting room at the hospital from 8 AM until five minutes after twelve Noon. The Radiologists were still on strike and at least 100 patients had now gathered along with me waiting for something to happen. Finally, the hospital brought in one technician on an “emergency” basis. She reviewed the files of the 100 or so people all of whom were waiting for an X-ray and then called five names. I was name number five. The rest were sent home and told to try again the next day. I actually felt guilty as an outsider having displaced someone local getting proper medical treatment.

My X-ray showed that I had indeed broken my ankle, and the doctor said I’d need a “plaster” on my foot. However, I would have to come back tomorrow because the plaster technicians were also out on strike. Swell. I then checked with a few private doctors but they all told me they could only refer me back to the hospital. That is when I began to think of the hospital as the end-result of my grand tour.

I did, indeed, get my plaster the next day, and so to make amends, they added the walking heel pivot at the same time. Highly unusual, I was told. However, I now had to stay off the plaster cast for a minimum of three days to let the plaster cure. I had hoped for a small plaster cast but wound-up with one that extended from my toes to just below my knee. Then the pressing matter was to learn to ride a pair of crutches.

I did learn to use the crutches and I did keep my weight off the plaster for the three days as stipulated before resuming my tour. Within the first day back on the road, the plaster started to crack and I was again experiencing severe pain.

I thought I’d better have my ankle re-checked. By that time plaster was badly cracked on the bottom, and I was experiencing sharp pains shooting up my right leg every 15 to 20 seconds. I went to a Hospital in London and told them what had happened and what was now happening to my ankle. They acknowledged that I should have my ankle re-examined but the Radiologists were still on strike. When I did finally get to see a Radiologist, the tech had to take at least 5 separate X-rays due to her incorrect settings during the first four tries. Surprise, my ankle was still broken.

The doctors at St. Thomas Hospital in London elected to remove the original plaster and replace it with a new design. However the plaster technicians were still on strike. When I finally did get to see a plaster tech, he cut-off the old plaster and replaced it with a new one. Instead of a heel walking pivot, he simply reinforced the bottom of the new plaster cast and then gave me an oversized boot to wear over the plaster. The boot had a curved bottom and I found I could walk almost normally. The boot also served to camouflage the more obvious plaster. Now, I simply looked like I had a deformed right foot. However, the new plaster meant that I’d have to spend a couple more days waiting for the plaster to cure. In the meantime, I had become a pro with the crutches.

I was supposed to keep the plaster cast on my leg for at least six weeks. By the fifth week, the plaster was again disintegrating and was now cutting into my Achilles tendon. Rather than chance blood poisoning or permanent injury, I got out my handy Swiss Army pocket knife and removed the plaster. Thus ended my personal socialized medicine experience.

I was a relatively young man and a broken ankle was not exactly a life-threatening situation. What if it had been life-threatening? Care to guess how many folks I’ve spoken with over the years that have had much more harrowing experiences with socialized medicine? Their stories are really frightening. Yet that is exactly what we have to look forward to if this nonsense is put into law in the United States. Can you say “rationing?” Can you accept “No” when you believe you need an operation and a government bureaucrat refuses to authorize your procedure? Can you accept the fact that you will be forbidden from seeking medical assistance elsewhere?

This is just another case of the “Government Do Something” mentality instead of truly correcting the problem. If the problem is correctly identified – that health care costs are too high – then why not simply correct the way health care providers are paid? How, you ask, might we do that? I’m glad you asked.

If you consider how health care professionals are currently paid, you’ll quickly realize that the sicker you become, the more they make. Doesn’t sound like a win-win to me. How about you? Wouldn’t we all be better-off if the medicos were paid more on the basis of keeping us healthy rather than keeping us sick? I for one would gladly pay more to remain healthy than to be treated for sickness. Of course the “designer” drug companies wouldn’t be very happy. Their full page ads for the latest drug they’re pushing would probably disappear making the newspapers and magazines unhappy, too. But when you walked into a doctor’s office, you wouldn’t have to wait that extra half-hour while the doctor schmoozed with the drug company representative in the back office. Some win, some loose. I prefer that the patient win. By the way, I consider my self to be a customer; not a patient. I’m not patient and I don’t like the thought of being a guinea pig. I want professional treatment based on proven methodologies.

One way to accomplish this turn-around would be for every individual to take control of his/her medical costs and treatments. Instead of an HMO deciding what costs they will pay, you would decide directly. This system already exists in the form of Medical Savings Plans, MSPs. You get immediate treatment and the doctor gets immediate payment. No forms to send to the HMO or Medicare nor a wait for months to then get reimbursed. Cash and carry works.

But wait, you say. “I don’t know enough about medicine to be able to make my own decisions.” Then I suggest you learn. And the very, very sad fact is that very few in the medical profession “know” either, but that’s a topic for another article. Suffice it to say that when competence is demanded by the customer, the medicos that survive the scrutiny will become the best choices for medical services. No one is instant-smart and there will be a learning curve, but the effort will be well worth time allocated.

Recently, I read an in-depth article describing the treatments and costs-of-treatments between the cities of McAllen, TX and El Paso. The McAllen costs were virtually double those of El Paso yet the patient (read customer) results were almost identical. If the results were comparable, why spend twice the money for the same results? Again I submit that government mandated single-payer programs will double the costs even though they initially claim they will reduce costs. Can you say Post Office? Can you say Medicare? Can you say any government program in competition with a privately-run program?

Every article I write seems to be based on having to refute the claim that capitalism has failed. Private medicine has “failed” so now big government has to step-in and make it work is the basic message now being promoted. Nothing could be further from the truth. As I continue to maintain, we’ve never even had pure capitalism so how would we know whether or not it’s failed? Big government has had their sticky hands in every facet of our lives with rules upon restrictions upon laws upon mandates that contradict common sense. I would argue that no one has a higher interest in your health and well-being than you, no matter how sincerely others try. That being the case, why don’t you just trust your instincts and take charge of your health?

Regards,
Tex Norton

September 8, 2009

Kennedy dead?

Ok

How can you tell?

Early yet.....And he sounds excited all ready.......

What are these guys going to say in a year or so when the stimulus generates so much debt we have to start taxing anything that moves?

Need to hunker down and wait and see, I guess.

Obama's Spending Spree Budget Numbers "Have All Gone Mad" Analyst Says: Tech Ticker, Yahoo! Finance

When retail expert and all-around economy watcher Howard Davidowitz appeared on Tech Ticker in February declaring the worst was yet to come for the U.S. economy and that Americans' standard of living has changed permanently, our comment boards lit up.

But surely with the latest rally off the March lows, bearish Davidowitz is more bullish, right? Not a chance. Look at your financial history books.

Two of the biggest rallies of more than 40 percent occurred during the Great Depression, says Davidowitz of Davidowitz & Associates,a retail consulting and investment banking firm. "People were sucked in and ultimately were destroyed," he says. It's a warning to today's investors, who are hoping to extend the rally.

Don't get Davidowitz started on the economy or fundamentals. "Barack Obama's numbers have all gone mad," Davidowitz says. The Obama administration recently announced the U.S. budget deficit will be $9 trillion during the next decade; $2 trillion higher than the original forecast.

And, the proposed price tag for health-care reform? "Minimum $3 trillion," Davidowitz says. "One trillion? Are you kidding?"

Stimulus binges? Roller coaster equity performance over years? Stubborn consumers holding out for sales as deflationary pressures loom over the recovery? Sounds like the U.S. economy is turning Japanese, Davidowitz says.

Back on the net full time.......

I bought a new computer for Patti and Finally hooked it up Verizon dsl. Don't need a phone to use it. But I did I hook up magicjack which works like a champ.

So, for 30 bucks a month I have a home phone  and Hi speed Internet running.

Oh, yea, free long distance is included.

I still need a new hd tv to use on it to record and play. I figure a 26" will  work for what room I have.

Even though Obamama will probably put everyone on the unemployment line I'm still hoping for a "cash for old appliances " program. Heh heh.

The world turns....

Got a new computer yesterday and now need a new tv to hook it up to since I didn't buy a new monitor. Still need to find an internet service that doesn't cost a fortune. I can get on at my son's house or the library for free but I would still like a hook up at home.

Still think the governments lying about the recovery. People still losing jobs even with government handouts. Bail outs seem to be a joke

And what about gas going nuts again. Watch out for food prices this winter. I'm still stocking up for the mess we are in for after all this debt and handouts reach full bore.

Stay tuned.

How's the recovery working for you?.....

The collapse is only beginning. We run out of foreigners to borrow from and poof. But it will be awhile.

We have to retire all the broke dicks in my generation first.

Another day........

I'm waiting for Oba mama to throw in the towel on health care ala Canada. He should have gradually reformed Medicare and stuck all non-vets into it. Let's say every year reduce the age of eligibility by 5 year, (60, then 55, then 50 etc.)

Something wrong when you have Congress and the Presidency and can't do jack shit.

Heh ehe.

Recovery?

Tear down all these houses and start over.. Great for jobs. I'm sure we'll find enough foreigners to lend us the money.

After all, we now have a black president and they all think he's cool. Whoops! My bad! Not supposed to say that, sorry. (NOT.)

I made 20 bucks on my retirement this year. Walmart, though, gave me $400. I'm going whoring. (Heh heh)  At this rate we'll be gardening and fishing to eat.

Along with a million or so other broke dicks.

In July, Tampa officials bought the home from Bay Holdings Inc. for $28,800, roughly $110,000 less than the previous owner paid for it three years ago, and sent in the bulldozers.

The demolition marked the beginning of Tampa's new program to buy foreclosed and abandoned homes in neighborhoods hardest hit by the nationwide mortgage crisis.

Eventually, a single-family home will be built on the property.

Money to buy the properties is coming from Tampa's $13.6 million share of funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's $3.92 billion Neighborhood Stabilization Program, an emergency response to escalating foreclosures nationwide.

Mayor Pam Iorio's plan calls for buying about 80 foreclosed homes to fix up to be sold or torn down. An additional 30 foreclosed properties will be bought and rehabilitated as rental properties. Both of these steps are requirements of the federal program.

Sulfur Springs, North Tampa and West Tampa have been identified as target areas, based on the high rates of subprime mortgages, mortgage defaults and delinquencies.

The city plans to work with local nonprofit groups and charities to find eligible buyers. The money will not be available to homeowners currently facing foreclosure.

Reinstalled windows....

Computers are a pain in the ass. Had my fair share of crashes last week. Lost my cd drive. Couldn't get on the net and lost all my settings for my blog editor, Scribefire.

I think we need a "cash for clunkers program" for shitty windows.

Anyways the economical crash has slowed down. In anticipation of all the stimulus money yet to come, is my best guess. Gas goes up because the gangs running the oil companies need the money so they can buy our National Debt. We used to blame it on the"big oil companies" but they have very little to do with compared to Governments like Saudi, Russia, America, etc.

This happened in the early 70's when Nixon sold these clowns all those weapons to protect them from those touchy Jews. So, in order to buy all this protection (Jews got it free) these gangsters simply Jacked up the oil prices and  gave us our money back.

Welcome to the plan!

P.s we still are floating in oil. Not politically correct to get it and it lowers prices. But what else is news. We're still a few years, probably 10, from the collapse of the world economies. But who's counting?

Where's my check?

Need any more proof that the fix is in just check out oil busting 70$ A BARREL.

Who can afford to drive other than the gangsters in power?

The 10% (officially) unemployed. Wait a couple of months and we'll need to get that bike tuned.

Hey! How about cash for junk Chinese bikes?

Welfare for car dealers.....

Cash for clunkers is off to a roaring start. Anyone with good credit, job, and an old piece of shit for a car can trade it in for a new one and get a big welfare check.

What happens when we run out of junkers and customers that qualify?

Why just make everybody and their junkers qualify. Then give everyone a check to buy two cars.

Hell why not? Welfare works to keep the cigarette and beer guys in business doesn't it?

And don't forget the farmers. Where would they be with out handouts, hmm?

Walmart had a bad quarter....

Sales down about 10%. Company had to cut everybody's hours next week to make the quarter look better for Wall Street.

Wouldn't want the suckers to see even Wally World is startint to hurt.

Wait til unemployment hits 12 %, heh heh.

Wait til you see the bill for this baby.....

We'll be paying through the nose for this little Dem fraud. Can't wait. First tax "the rich" who'll take it out of our ass. Then soak us because the rich will be able to buy their way out. Then pass the buck to the Government anyways because we'll all be unemployed.

Call it "soak the foreigners". After all they have our money.

Almost Daily Rant: Cap and Trade - Another Fraud

The Waxman-Markley American Clean Air and Security Act of 2009 (ACES), cleverly paraded as an earth-saving, energy independence bill that lowers pollution, is a draconian measure of taxation and government control.



The sad irony for me is that this bill will make it more difficult for the average person to transition to a lifestyle less dependent on centralized systems in order to deal with the converging crisis of our times – many of which, such as energy, food and fresh water shortages are environmental. In years to come, we face enough scarcity as it is, and the current subsidies that keep prices artificially low are unsustainable.



For decades government manipulation, from tax incentives to military interventions to irresponsible monetary policy has destroyed real market signals resulting in years of privatized gains and socialized costs at the expense of the average person and the environment.



Now we are believe that the solution is to give the EPA czar-like authority and a pollution permit allocation scheme that will continue to socialize costs through trickle down taxation.



Once again, in great haste the House of Representatives has scrambled to pass a bill with huge implications without having the chance to digest, analyze and summarize the 1200-page proposal, which was being revised up until the final minutes before the July 4th break.



It happened with the Patriot Act, then TARP and now ACES.



If bills were actually good for the population, then there would be no rush to push them onto the floor. But, since an informed electorate is the worst enemy of proponents of this type of legislation, they had to act fast before Americans had a chance to absorb the huge implications under cover of a constant deluge of Michael Jackson tributes in the media.



I usually avoid the global warming debate because even if humans do contribute to global warming, a combination of slowing population growth in the developed world and peaking out of easily accessible oil, natural gas and coal will offset the effects. If you do want to debate the science a growing number of scientists and Americans in general dispute the impacts of manmade warming. Even if you are are an advocate of global warming, then you know that the impacts of the bill on climate in the best case are negligible.

I'm sticking with Japanese junk.....

Can you believe it? In the 70's no one bought "Jap Junk."

You think selling these companies to foreigners will do any good?

Heh heh.

Of course we can always buy a car from Oba mama at GM.

Substandard Chrysler « LewRockwell.com Blog

The “New” Chrysler will be every bit as bad - no worse! - than the “Old” Chrysler. I’m still looking and thinking about that new vehicle, when the time is right, and none of my first 5, 10, … or 100 choices are an American-made car. Now, that door of possibility - if there was one - is slammed forever. I’ve been driving a 2003 PT Cruiser lately, to get from here to there, and, as usual, it’s been nothing but problems. Two issues in particular show me how unbelievably incompetent this company is. When I first bought the car (used) in magnificent condition, I bought new Pirelli tires and I noticed they kept getting low on air, and eventually, I could no longer keep the left front tire from going flat. Problem? I took it to two tire dealers, and both guys I talked to knew exactly what it was when they saw the PT with the factory chrome wheels. The PT Limitied Edition has a long, sordid history of the chrome wheels being defective in that the clear coat chips off the inside of the wheel, causing big, rusty, cracked flakes to gather between the wheel and tire, flattening the tire. I’ve been told it’s a massively common problem, even with PTs newer than mine. It happens to almost anyone with the PT and factory chrome wheels. They kept shaving the wheels until finally I had to go out and buy new ones.

How's Ob's economy coming along?.......

See any green shoots at your house? Unemployment at official 9.5%. 7 more banks bite the dust. Banks holding foreclosure moratoriums. (Not enough manpower to do them anyways.)
Walmart cutting hours as sales slide.



At this rate we'll all be in the poor house by Christmas. Next thing you know they'll have to send us another check.

Make mine a million, please.

Bankruptcy has it's attractions....

Screw them all. Next thing you know they'll be taxing themselves out of existence.

Not a bad thought.

By the way having internet problems right now. Need new company.

oftwominds: Devolution: 20 Predictions

As cities, counties and states default on their obligations and unemployment insurance runs out, devolution sets in.


While some see a collapse of society in our future, right now I see devolution, not revolution. Devolution is both the process of degeneration and the surrender of governmental powers from central authorities to local authorities.

Devolution will take many forms. The key driver behind devolution is simple: there's not enough money to fund the status quo, so something has to be cut, axed, trimmed or devolved. Examples already abound: the number of school days in the year are reduced to shave expenses, two-times-a-week trash pickup is cut to once a week, etc.

The key constraint on devolution is also simple: the status quo power structure must be left intact. Nobody will willingly surrender their power, so devolution means services and front-end expenses will be cut in order to protect back-end administrative powers.

Thus public union bosses won't be suffering any big cuts in pay or benefits, and neither will their municipal and state administration counterparts. (Of course there will be symbolic cuts for PR purposes, but nothing deep.) What will be cut is part-time librarians, custodians, county park staff, etc.--the powerless people who actually serve the public.

As the states run out of money, they will surrender some limited powers to local authorities as a mechanism for ridding their budgets of certain costs. As cities and counties go broke, then they will devolve some modest authority to non-profit groups or volunteers.

I've made this point before.........

Oil price manipulation is responsible. With a large dose of government thrown in.

I try to explain to people that a 5 cent Hershey bar  in 1970 has increased in price to $ 1 or so. Did our wages buying power go up?

Hardly.

$75 dollars a week in 1970 buys abject poverty today. People lived on it then.

But oil rules. we needed oil and the Arabs needed weapons. They sell oil, we sell weapons. Raise the price of weapons, raise the price of oil.

Everything revolves around the "black gold".

Everything!



The Great Depression of 2006: Government Inflation

For simplistic purposes (for which I deserved to be shot) assume that the cost of government has remained about the same (as has a pack of smokes)(try to keep a straight face). Back in 1964 a pack of cigarettes cost 25¢ and minimum wage was $2.00. If you do the math, one could buy 8 packs of cigarettes for one hours labor. Let’s progress forward to now. Cigarettes are $5.50 a pack. Extend out the 8 packs per hour and we arrive at $44 dollars for an inflation adjusted minimum wage. This calculated wage is more than most people today are making per hour, so it seems pretty absurd.

What we are looking at, is forced inflation by government legislation. Our wages are not increasing, and at the same time, more of what we ha

This is how the "Empire" is financed......

No one can take this power structure apart. It has to rot and fall under it's own weight.

What's interesting is that anyone really gives a shit. What with Jacko dying and all.

Of course he was important in the scheme of things.

He was???

Obama Sells Big Pharma-Corporate State Ripoff « LewRockwell.com Blog

Obama Sells Big Pharma-Corporate State Ripoff
Posted by Karen De Coster on June 23, 2009 07:52 AM | Post a civil, substantive, and intelligent comment

Is there something wrong with this headline on Bloomberg News today? “Obama Gets Drug-Industry Booster With Pledge That Keeps Elderly Medicated.” Here are a few snippets:

The pharmaceutical industry pledge includes $30 billion “that could be used” to provide discounts for medicines, said Reid H. Cherlin, a White House spokesman. That will help narrow a gap in Medicare drug coverage known as the doughnut hole. The allowances will encourage patients to remain on expensive brand- name medicines even when cheaper generic copies are available, Tim Anderson, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York, said in a note to clients yesterday.

“Filling the doughnut hole should help seniors stay on their branded therapies and lessen the tendency for seniors to switch from brands to generics once they hit the donut hole,” Anderson said. “This is critical because once patients convert to generics, they seldom revert back to the brand and are essentially lost to cheaper generics forever.”

This entire deal is nothing more than corporate state-special interest politicking on the part of Big Pharma, Big Government, and enriched special interests, with all players openly admitting their very specific goals. As the article clearly states, Big Pharma is willing to cut slightly into its profit margins in exchange for turning people - especially the elderly - into lifetime customers. Perpetual drug zombies buying their patent-protected, overpriced drugs. Another part of the deal is that government has promised it will “inoculate” Big Pharma from proposed regulations that would cost it some more dough.

Good.......

If the state can't borrow, you have to balance your budget! Raising taxes on broke dicks doesn't work. 

Just get Oba mama to do it. We will pay. One way or the other!

Duh!!!! Heh heh.

S&P warns California's credit rating is at risk of another cut | Money & Company | Los Angeles Times

California's credit rating, already the lowest among the 50 states, may be hacked again, Standard & Poor's warned today.

As the debate over budget cuts drags on in Sacramento, S&P put its "A" grade on the state's $59 billion in general obligation bonds on "negative credit watch," meaning the rating is at risk of a downgrade.

Using language that could further spook bond investors, S&P said, "Although we continue to believe the state retains a fundamental capacity to meet its debt service, insufficient or untimely adoption of budget reforms serve to increase the risk of missed payments in our view."

The Legislature and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger are facing a $24-billion budget shortfall, and Controller John Chiang has warned that the state could run short of cash beginning July 28, just one month into fiscal 2010.

Noting that time is running out, S&P warned:

Both the timing and magnitude of the state's impending liquidity shortfall raise significant credit concerns, in our view, particularly if the state were to begin fiscal 2010 without having meaningful budget revisions in place. We believe that without budget revisions, the state may need to defer (or issue registered warrants in lieu of making) cash payments for certain lower-priority obligations (such as vendors, student aid, and tax refunds) in order to preserve cash for required payments for education and debt service.

Were the state to do this, or if it were to adopt a budget package that relied on assumptions that we regard as too optimistic or that relied on mechanisms for bridging the projected shortfall through at least fiscal 2010 that we regard as unreliable, we may consider lower ratings.

Any downgrade could spur investors to force the state to pay even higher interest rates when it borrows. Market yields on California's general obligation bonds already have surged in recent weeks as the prices of the bonds have fallen, reflecting investor jitters.

Broke dicks live pay check to pay check......

Raise taxes or gas prices and they collapse like a house of cards. These are the people who stand in line to get their checks so they can buy milk.

Or beer. Think they'll use government health care by the millions?

Spend and borrow, spend and borrow. Didn't work for them, won't work for Oba mama's plans either.

American Thinker: Recovery When? How About If?

1: Energy. While it is conventional wisdom that our economic woes stem from the bursting bubble in the housing market, few consider the needle that did the bursting.

When gas more than doubled in what was just a period of months, household budgets got devastated as trips to the grocery store and the pump took more and more of the limited dollars of the sub prime borrowers' budgets. This led to the next domino:

2: Housing Crisis: People needed to eat and get to work more than they needed to pay a mortgage they had not invested a down payment in, so they quit paying those mortgages in huge numbers.

So the gas domino nudged the sub prime mortgage domino -- which then toppled dominos in both the mortgage market in general and in housing prices. More and more mortgages were in trouble making more and more houses available making those houses worth less which in turn motivated more and more people to default on these mortgages.

It makes sense. If you have a 250 thousand dollar mortgage with no down payment, and that house is suddenly only worth 175 thousand dollars, why in the world would you worry about paying the mortgage since your gas and groceries are suddenly taking all your money to begin with? Well, many did not and still are not bothering to pay those mortgages. This led to another domino that very few saw coming:

One of the gret scams..........

Our prisons, "PUBLIC SCHOOLS."

On Not Locking Your Children Up in Public Schools « LewRockwell.com Blog

I just wanted to take a moment to praise your recent article, Pep Rallies and Public School. I am finishing up my 5th year of homeschooling my two children, and books like Dumbing Us Down, John Taylor Gatto’s searing commentary on being a teacher, were instrumental in our family’s decision to take our daughter out of school 6 years ago. My son has never had the humiliation of being locked up for even a day, a fact for which I am extremely grateful. My husband and I, unfortunately, received the “whole package,” that is, public education, and were sufficiently brainwashed to participate in such banal, nonsensical things as pep rallies, needing a note to pee, taking timed IQ tests, acting like caged animals on the last day of school, teasing our younger/or dumber classmates, etc. The list of degradations, ours and that of our peers, is a long one. Of course hindsight is 20-20, and it seems normal when you’re in it. Sad, no?

Anyway, kudos again for bringing up this taboo subject. The path to personal liberty is certainly a road less traveled, and I believe it will remain so unless compulsory public schooling is banished. However, the group-think, Prussian model is so entrenched in our culture, that merely mentioning the idea of dismantling public education will get you horrified looks of astonishment, if not ostracism from your social circle. Even in a community of faith this is true. When our family began this journey, we thought our church family would be some of our biggest supporters. What we found was, very few supported us. In fact, in our small town, a large portion of our church is employed by, or involved in some capacity, with the school. The grip on the community is almost total. No one could fathom the idea of their town without a school to “rally-round.”Add to that the fact of it being a fairly predictable “gravy-train,” and you have an institution that will be close to impossible to abolish. But a girl can dream, can’t she? Essays like yours will at least inspire some to think about the subject.

Kill off the rich.....

Sooner we raise taxes on them the sooner the Empire dies. That's where the money comes from to run this mess.

That's how we get rid of America. Run the guys out of business so we all work for the GOVERNMENT. Be in socialist paradise then.

Where else is wealth created? I guess we could  steal it from small oil producing countries, right?

Taxing the Hell Out of the Rich Isn’t the Answer | AllFinancialMatters

LOL comes across as almost hateful towards the rich, the vast majority of which worked their butts off and made great sacrifices to get where they are. I get the feeling that LOL thinks that most rich people woke up rich.

Personally, I think the middle class’ struggle has much more to do with their inability to prioritize. I would suggest that LOL read The Millionaire Next Door* by Thomas Stanley and William Danko. In that book he will find that most millionaires drive old cars. Take a look around at what most “middle class” people drive and you will probably see that they are driving cars and SUVs that they really can’t afford. Imagine how much money could be saved if we didn’t have to drive $50,000 SUVs.

For example, I was dropping my daughter off at daycare one day and this young woman pulled up in a BMW 740. For those of you not familiar with cars, the BMW 740 is around $80,000 brand new (I could have purchased THREE of my cars for the price of her BMW). No, I do not know this woman’s situation—she could be wealthy and can afford a BMW 740 without harming her finances. But, going on the averages, I would have to say that by driving that car she is forsaking some other important area of her finances.

I think the middle class suffers from the “I deserve it” syndrome.

Take a look at the houses being built these days. They are freaking huge (and freaking expensive)! I grew up in a 900 square foot house (plus a basement) and we were a family of five! We had one bathroom. Yes, times have changed but these bigger homes cost more money and they cost more to maintain. All of this means that they are requiring resources that could be allocated elsewhere (like savings, retirement planning, college funding,…).

Can they get any more stupid in California?........

Probably not. Pretty interesting that the nut jobs in government figure that unemployed broke dicks can make house payments. Or that people will make payments on houses that lose money in the process. All you have to do is buy a house across the street at much less than you owe.

If you have any sense you'll simply quit making payments  and move. After all these moratoriums on foreclosure, that is. Should be able to milk it for a year or so. Save the payments and buy a nice mobile for cash.

Just think, no house payment , little taxes, only a small lot rent, tax credit refund in California , of course.

Did I mention their getting more stupid in California?

California Foreclosure Prevention Act: Creating an Army of Lifetime Renters in California.

On June 15th California implemented another foreclosure moratorium. The California Foreclosure Prevention Act (CFPA) was signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger which adds another 90 days to the foreclosure process. If you recall, a similar law was put into place in 2008 and turned out to be an utter failure. So what do we do? We virtually create another replica plan for a second go around. The plan will fail on so many levels and we will discuss the reasons why in this article. California has taken a major beating since it was part of the housing bubble mania and is now at the forefront of the bubble bursting.

The problem with dealing with the current foreclosure issue in California is how the issue is being framed. Take this perspective for example:

“(SF Chronicle) The goal is to compel banks to do systematic loan modifications across California to reduce our foreclosure rate, which is the highest in the nation,” said Assemblyman Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, who wrote the bill. “Until we slow that down, the California economy cannot recover.”

Go to college, get really stupid.........

Makes me glad I didn't graduate.

P.S. Father's day and I'm going fishing.

Unexplained Mysteries :: Scientists debate "shading" the Earth

Radical new ways of combating global warming have been proposed by scientists at a recent National Academy of Sciences meeting including the concept of shading the Earth in order to cool it down.

"Engineering our climate to stop global warming may seem like science fiction, but at a recent National Academy of Sciences meeting, scientists discussed some potential geoengineering experiments in earnest. Climate researcher Ken Caldeira was skeptical when he first heard about the idea of shading the Earth a decade ago in a talk by nuclear weapons scientist Lowell Wood."

Bring in the tanks.......

heh heh. These guys are a little premature on cutting back the Fed's power. Most get more fed money than their broke dick citizens pay in to Obamama's little socialist fantasy.

I have a feeling the courts will tell them to grow up.

Besides, you can't have a revolt when it means getting off your ass and doing something real: like stick a gun  somebodies face.

Or quit paying taxes period!

Western states want reins on federal power - Los Angeles Times

It is difficult to say how the Supreme Court might rule on Montana's gun law, which challenges the government's authority under the commerce clause of the Constitution, the legal basis for much federal regulation.

In the mid-1990s, the court struck down a federal law that sought to restrict guns near schools, using the rationale behind Montana's law: that the federal authority over interstate commerce did not extend to a product that was made and used within one state.

More recently, however, the justices rejected a direct challenge to the commerce clause, ruling in 2005 that the federal government had the authority to effectively override California's medical marijuana law, even though the cannabis was being grown and used within the state's borders.

"As an abstract legal matter, it's perfectly plausible," Eugene Volokh, a UCLA expert on constitutional law, said of Montana's case. "But it's very unlikely to succeed in today's legal climate."

Retirement is for the lazy........

 I can't wait.

Florida in the winter and Idaho in the summer. RV for me. Plus running a hot dog cart for spending money. Fishing with Al, Jake and with my son Jeremy.

They already get one check so I'll have to catch with my piddly Social Security check. Won't be much when Obamama gets done, but what the Hell!

For Boomers, recession is redefining retirement - USATODAY.com

The reality is sinking in: Baby Boomers, born from 1946 to 1964, are planning to work longer, save more money and spend less, to reach any semblance of the retirement they once envisioned. According to AARP:

•35% of those ages 45 to 54 have stopped putting money into their 401(k), IRA or other retirement accounts.

•25% said they have prematurely withdrawn funds from their retirement accounts.

•56% have postponed a major purchase.

•24% have postponed plans to retire.

"Today, I see myself working until I drop," says Kyril Wickenberg, 59, of Savannah, Ga.

The pain of unemployment

It may not be so easy.

When 1,097 Americans 45 and older were surveyed last December, 9% of them said they had lost their jobs in the past 12 months, and 31% of workers that age said that it is very likely that jobs will be eliminated this year, according to AARP's 2009 report.

Baby Boomers also are out of work longer than younger Americans. Last year, they were out of work 22 weeks on average, compared with 15 weeks for the 20- to 24-year-old age group, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

They may find it hard to get a new job because they've had higher salaries. And that means they may have a higher threshold before they're willing to take another job, says Maria Heidkamp, a senior project manager at the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University.

Market is a Ponzi scheme.......

Running out of suckers all over the world. I'm waiting for interest rate to explode and wrecking Obamama"s plan. Can't borrow at 10%, let alone 15%, and not throw the whole budget at interest payments. Interest rates are creeping up because no one can lend money for free for ever.

No one.

Not good for elections in 2010, let alone OB's in 2012.

May we live in interesting times.

oftwominds: 8800/950 or Bust; The Dollar Set To Rise

In other words, the gargantuan pillaging of public funds in the EU, an economy larger than the U.S., is not even half the amount looted from the U.S. taxpayers. The central banks of the major trading nations have thrown well over $20 trillion (don't forget Chinese and Japanese "quantitative easing"/stimulus) of public funds into their deleveraging, insolvent banking sectors, all in the vain hopes that the unwary public will see spray-painted weeds as "green shoots" of organic economic recovery.

Have you noticed that every day the market threatens to close lower, a sudden "rally" in the last 20 minutes gooses it higher so that it once again closes within an unprecedented narrow band, day after day?

If that isn't manipulation, then why can you set your watch to the daily "rally"? That is hardly a "random walk down Wall Street," is it?

Told you so........

Really piss off the "green shoots" crowd. Better unlimber a new plan. Every increase in rates takes out thousands of potential buyers. No one works, or lends money for free.

Except the Obamama crew. Of course,  they'll just steal the money from the working stiff.

Mortgage Rates Hit Seven Month High

So much for the low rates; the popular 30-year fixed averaged 5.59 percent this week, up from 5.29 percent a week ago, but still better than the 6.32 percent seen a year ago, Freddie Mac reported today.

The last time it was higher was the week of Thanksgiving, when it averaged 5.97 percent; it will likely surpass that level by next week the way things are looking.

The 15-year fixed fared no better, rising to 5.06 percent from 4.79 percent, though still below its year-ago average of 5.93 percent.

“Mortgage rates followed the increase in bond yields this week as the May employment report showed that the economy lost fewer jobs than the market consensus had expected,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.

“Revisions to the jobs report for earlier months also showed the job loss was not as large as early estimates had indicated: March and April figures were revised to add an additional 82,000 jobs to the work force. As a result, federal funds futures rose after the report, signaling that the market expects the Federal Reserve may raise its benchmark rate sooner rather than later.

Good news often lifts interest rates, so the Fed is having even more trouble reining them in, which could lead to subsidized mortgage rates if they still believe low rates is the solution here.

Faschism is not particular....

Hate is hate. Smokers have become the "Jews" of modern times. Who;s next? Talk show hosts? Walmart associates?  Big shot Wall street executives?

Only a matter of time to these people. What will they find to hate about you?

New York Times: Prohibition is “Perfect” « LewRockwell.com Blog

This is a great day in America, according to the New York Times, because the FDA now is “regulating” cigarettes, but its editorial demonstrates the fascism that now governs the “Newspaper of Record.”

After more than a decade of struggle — and countless smoking-related deaths — the Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill on Thursday that gives the Food and Drug Administration the power to regulate tobacco products. The House approved a similar bill in April, also by an overwhelming margin. The days when this rogue industry could inflict its harmful products on Americans with impunity are drawing to a close.

Me? I had no idea that the tobacco industry had this much power. How does someone “inflict” something on others when it does not have the power to “inflict” anything? But it gets even better:

Hold on for Obamamanomics.....

Need to get our shit together because the Gov will be looking for working stiffs to rob to pay for all these bailouts and loss of pension money. Signs of desperation are starting to appear with the fixing of unemployment data.

Now we start hear about the end of the recession. Yea we all can borrow 50 grand on our houses that lost all of their equity. And don't forget stocks are off by  a third or so. This is after 2 trillion in stimulus created out of thin air, not counting  the 2 trillion they already steal from us.

Expect a lot of hot air on health care to fix our problem. Or lending money for house with no money down FHA loans. Though how broke dicks can afford these programs is beyond me.

Maybe we can bum some more from foreigners. Not!

Can We Have a Recovery When People Have So Much Debt? | AllFinancialMatters

I don’t know about you but I get nervous when I hear all the talk about hopes for a consumer-led recovery. Why? Because consumers are already maxed out:

By the end of 2008, households were on the hook for $13.8 trillion in debt — nearly matching the $14.3 trillion output of the entire U.S. economy, not adjusted for inflation, that year.

Households are shedding debt; they’re just not doing it very quickly. They owed roughly 130% of disposable income at the end of 2008, down only slightly from a record 133% in the first quarter of 2008.

An old saw about U.S. consumers is never to underestimate their willingness to spend beyond their means. The debt-to-income ratio first crossed 100% during the 2001 recession, when debt-fueled consumer spending helped spark a recovery. It kept rising post-recession as super-low interest rates encouraged still more borrowing. And it rose even after the Fed raised rates, as consumers piled into mortgages to chase rising home prices.

The government has to get control......

With the economy sliding off the cliff, Obamama has to shore up and plug the biggest looming deficit: health care. (Education is politically, for the Dems, untouchable.)

Trillions are on the line with desperate bureaucrats scrambling to stanch the losses. The Medicare system goes into the red in 2011 and no one knows where the money is going to come from. On the other hand, the private system takes trillions out of our pockets and can't be taxed by the Government.

This leaves the  government basically stealing from the "rich". Assuming they will sit still for it. Though to me, it seems reasonable to think that even the government  will run out of rich people  to rob.

 And don't forget the richest class among us, the old geezers,  will be retiring after losing most of their wealth tied up in houses and stocks.

WE are broke and don't have enough years to regain our losses..

As for  the Chinese and other foreign suckers, they'll have their own problems. Like unloading all those inflated dollars. And keeping their citizens in check.

The key, of course, is cheap energy that drives our economy. After all, oil is the ultimate "money". Unfortunately for the Fascist in Washington, no one will give it away any more for paper dollars. And adding to the mix, the government won't allow drilling for American oil.

Personally I think Washington will have to take over another small oil producing country to pull it off.

Not politically feasible? Wait a few years, heh heh.

In the meantime watch your taxes explode!

The American Spectator : AmSpecBlog : Stimulus Math and Health Care

Public perception of the stimulus will play a crucial role in the upcoming health care battle. Many Americans following the debate won't be wading into the policy details. Instead, they'll be exposed to claims and counterclaims -- Obama and Democrats saying their health care legislation will make things better, and Republicans (if they get their message together) most likely arguing that it would have disastrous implications. With both sides throwing statistics back and forth a lot of it will come down to a credibility issue, and whoever the American people trust more will win the debate. Will Americans trust Obama that he can insure everybody, control costs, allow everybody to keep the insurance they have, improve the quality of health care, avert a government takeover of medicine, avoid rationing, and avoid raising taxes on 95 percent of the population? Or will Republicans be able to convince Americans that he's misleading them, that insuring everybody will require higher taxes, that expanding health care will raise costs unless the government imposes rationing, and that Obama's plans will inevitably lead to a government takeover? So, if people start to get skeptical about the results of the stimulus package, then it will make it harder for Obama and Democrats to sell the public on their health care claims, and it will be easier for Republicans to attack any legislation.

Obamama getting desperate.....

Spend more.  Spend faster. Borrow. Tax. Tax. Quite a formula. Expect this to come to a head when California, then several other states, beg for bigger relief. Unemployed people can't pay taxes or vote for fiscal discipline. Soon the Dem's will pull out all stops.

Watch the price of oil. Pushing $70. Gas prices up and up. All this stimulus money will find a home. In stocks or in commodities. Speculation fever is kicking in.

But this is not the "big crash." it's coming over the next decade. We have time to prepare. I still plan on  getting my Social security check. Even if I have to vote for a Democrat.

And so will you.

There's nothing to be done to save the "empire" from spiraling out of control and become a one time great power. There's no one who can lead us any other way.

Expect a lot of war. And running from the world scene.

Prepare for several new countries to emerge in the former U.S.A.

Does anyone trust the government about anything?......

I never believed Specter's "magic bullet" about Kennedy's assassination so why should I  discount 270 eyewitnesses testimony to the TWA 800 being shot  down?

Only real question is "why?" No one has taken credit.

Or blame. Your guess is as good as mine

       American Thinker: Reopen the TWA Flight 800 Case

These are just three of the 270 eyewitnesses by the FBI's own count that saw a flaming, smoke-trailing, zigzagging object appear to destroy TWA Flight 800. All three followed the object off the horizon. Delgado and the surfer tracked TWA 800 separately from the object and witnessed the moment of impact. Wire and the surfer saw the object "arch over" before the strike. The New York Times interviewed none of these three, none of the 270 for that matter.

A no-nonsense, 6'-7" millwright and U.S. Army vet, Mike Wire watched events unfold from the Beach Lane Bridge in Westhampton on Long Island. He came to play a key role because the CIA based its notorious video animation on Wire's perspective. Why the CIA was involved in a domestic airplane "accident" is anyone's guess. The media never bothered to ask.

The FBI showed the CIA video just once. That was in November 1997 when it officially bowed out of the case. The FBI needed it to negate the stubborn testimony of the eyewitnesses.

A key animation sequence in the CIA video showed not a missile but an internal fuel tank explosion blowing the nose off the aircraft. According to the video's narration, TWA 800 then "pitched up abruptly and climbed several thousand feet from its last recorded altitude of about 13,800 feet to a maximum altitude of about 17,000 feet." This rocketing aircraft was alleged to look like a missile and to have confused the eyewitnesses. (The animation begins at the 8:30 mark of Part 2 of "Silenced").

This animation was essential to close the investigation. Without it, there was no way to explain what these hundreds of official FBI eyewitnesses, many of them highly credible, had actually seen.

39 years tomorrow......

Married that is. Planning a dinner and putter in the garden. Work sucks. Can't wait for vacation.

How's those gas prices working out........

No one's buying, prices going up. Make sense? Where are all those Obamama's printing press dollars going? Not to me.

Again, interest rate are going up. No one wants to lend money for free. Even to the government. Subtract taxes and inflation from the yield means buying Treasuries at a loss. Not going to happen even if you are the Chinese government.

And what are the state governments going to do? Talk about fucked.

California goes so goes the nation. Right?

oftwominds: What's Wrong with California

California's pending bankruptcy has deep roots in tax policy, public employee costs, regulatory dysfunction and a declining real-world economy.

Standard-Issue Financial Pundits (SIFPs) like Paul Krugman ( State of Paralysis) are claiming the state's problems all stem from miserly California voters refusing to pay higher taxes. Uh, Paul, do you pay $10,000 in property taxes for a property you bought in 1992? I do, and I don't think that's a low tax.

In case Paul hasn't visited the Golden State recently, allow me the honor of introducing a funny little concept called fact to his pro-tax rant. We pay 9.5% sales tax (9.75% if you voted for various transit projects like BART) which is among the highest in the nation.

If you make a decent wage (I don't, but many do) then the state income tax is about 10% as well. That rate is also among the highest in the nation.

What we have here is not just cognitive dissonance but pathological disassociation from reality: California is a very high-tax state, with among the highest rates in the nation in virtually every category of taxation.Voters rejected the bogus tax-and-borrow-more propositions for two reasons:

How many houses are you going to buy this yeaqr?

The low end in the market can be rented out if financed low enough for cash flow. After tax savings, (Obamama is going after the middle class next) a guy can make a few bucks.


Maybe!

Buy older mobile homes for cash and then resell them on time will work better, I think. Easy to do. My landlord has been doing it for years.

He's 84.

Calculated Risk: The Dearth of Move Up Buyers

From David Streitfeld at the NY Times: Home Prices Decline Again in March

In many urban areas, including those tracked by Case-Shiller, the residential real estate market is essentially cleaved in two. The top half of the market is largely stagnant, with owners unwilling to sell and buyers unable to buy. “Move-up” families seeking another bedroom or a better kitchen are an endangered species.

Bend over.........

Heh heh. Take no prisoners. We going to take your money, sonny.
Give me my check. I need to start mooching.

By the way how did he get to keep so  many teeth at his age? (heh heh)

Degringolade: Costco Trauma

(Or, why one should never, ever, be polite to boomer scum)

Mom's eightieth birthday is coming up rapidly, and as we are going to have an everybody is there, serious family reunion with all the bells and whistles, I decided to renew my lapsed Costco membership so that we could go and buy all the vegetable, lunch meat, and fruit trays that the pack of ravenous jackals that I call a family can eat.

So, into Costco I went, fairly crowded, but I've seen worse. Got my card and went a shopping. It seems that the prices aren't really super exceptional, but they sell good quality stuff at a good price. Soups, lunch-meat, pizza fixins', and dental stuff went into the cart (won't need dental floss or Listerine for a while). The goods I bought we worthwhile.

What pisses me off is the people my age who are there. Boomers have now seemed to be more self-absorbed than usual in that store. They will stop dead in the middle of the aisle and stare intently at labels, oblivious to people behind them who are trying to get by. My favorite experience yesterday was a long-in-the-tooth trophy wife who had parked her cart across the aisle, blocking traffic in both directions. When I asked her "excuse me", her response was "I'll be done in a minute you can wait". Needless to say, I moved her cart myself.

But it got me to thinking about that ongoing embarrassment that is my generation. In a sense, a lot of the problems that we are experiencing is that this group of prima donna's has been promised far too much.

Social security is going bankrupt because there are too damn many of them getting ready to retire. Oh yeah, they paid in their money, but they were at the wheel spending the money in DC the last twenty years.

The financial mess is the baby boomers idea and problem. 4% steady growth by a well-managed firm wasn't enough for the boomers, they had to go out and invent the dot-bomb and the sub-prime mess.

Now just wait until this self-righteous, self-absorbed band of creeps queue up to the retirement line. They will start demanding tucks and cosmetic surgery from Medicare. They will demand that they be given special rights as senior citizens.

So, never, ever be nice to a boomer, because they fully intend to screw the rest of us to get what they want.

Remember only the working stiff pays....

Imagine if everyone packed up and left. What would the politicians, welfare queens and various low life blood suckers do?

Work? (Heh heh.)

Niagara Falls Reporter Opinion

This problem did not begin with the current recession. New York faced a $6 billion shortfall before the economic downturn. However, in the face of economic turmoil Gov. Paterson, Speaker Silver and Majority Leader Smith looked to the unions and special interests, who answered with one voice: Raise taxes.

Among other taxes and fees, they raised the marginal tax rate on the most successful (and most mobile) New Yorkers to 8.97 percent, the second highest rate in the nation.

It was irresponsible and it may just prove to be counterproductive, since the top 1 percent of earners account for about 50 percent of state revenue. We're the ones who can -- and will -- leave.

It's not an easy decision, but I'm being forced away from my family and friends, a pain shared by too many parents and grandparents in this state.

I'm leaving. And by domiciling in Florida, I will personally save $13,800 every single day. That's a pretty strong incentive.

Like I said, I love New York, but I'm not going to pay New York more for the waste, corruption and inefficiency that is New York state government.

Tom Golisano is the Chairman of the Board of Paychex, Inc. and the founder of the B. Thomas Golisano Foundation. He created Responsible New York so the voices of ordinary New Yorkers can be heard over the special interests, to hold elected officials accountable and to advocate for government reform.