Morning Open Thread
Chat away...
Comments (98) «
Morning all good Dems,
It's 27 here in beautiful downtown central New Mexico.
Last night there was a program about the obscene salaries of these wall street criminals. Then they said that secretaries are making $200k a year. These are the same companies that we are bailing out.
What is wrong with this picture. The f**king cheap bastard neocons bitch about unions making $15 an hour yet secretaries on wall street make $100 an hour.
All neocons are going to hell very soon now, especially the ones from alabama and kectucky.
Morning Johne, Cold one here in CT today, after being close to 60 yesterday. Crazy weather for December.
gee, somebody should tell these people that Global Warming is all in their heads, and merely a Liberal attempt to hurt Corporations!!
NOW | Climate Change Crisis: An Entire Nation Being Washed Away
Just this week, a top UN official predicted that by the middle of this century, the world should expect six million people a year to be displaced by increasingly severe storms and floods caused by climate change. But for many island nations in the South Pacific, climate change is already more than just a theory - it is a pressing, menacing reality. These small, low-lying islands are frighteningly vulnerable to rising temperatures and sea levels that could cause flooding and contaminate their fresh water wells. Within 50 years, some of them could be under water.
NOW travels to the nation of Kiribati to see up close how these changes affect residents' daily lives and how they are dealing with the reality that both their land and culture could disappear from the Earth. We also travel to New Zealand to visit an I-Kiribati community that has already left its home, and to the Pacific Island Forum in Niue to see how the rest of the region is coping with the here-and-now crisis of climate change.
http://www.truthout.org/121508U
Read this one, Johne. It clearly says, by overlooking the crimes of this administration, making statements like" we should respect the President of the United States, therefore let him get away with these war crimes" we are part of it ! Well, I do not condone one single bit of it!
"We are complicit in the horrors of this administration. We can claim neither ignorance nor innocence. We are complicit by the very fact that we are citizens of the United States, more so because we paid for the war, and even more so for this reason. Listen to a village sheik I met in Iraq describe it better than I ever could.
I met this man in a small farming village one afternoon in early 2004. He described how he and a dozen others were swept up in a raid by the U.S. Army and detained on a bare patch of ground surrounded by concertina wire. They had no shelter and but six blankets. They dug a hole with their hands for a toilet. They had to beg for water until one time it rained for three days straight and they remained on that open ground. He somehow found the graciousness to say he understood there was a difference between the American people and our government. Then through his tears he added, “But you say you live in a democracy. How can this be happening to us?”
Do we? Whether or not we bring our own government officials to justice for their crimes will determine the answer.
It's too bad that therer are still a few left in this country who believe that Bush is a good President. I for one would love to see him and Cheney behind bars where they belong!
History will write that these last 8 years have been the most corrupt in our history. Not only did Bush and Cheney lie that took us to war but they have destroyed our very way of life.
Let's show them how we feel - from now until they leave office, let's throw them some shores too. Empty out Goodwill and whereever they show up - throw shoes at them. They deserve no better.....
Of course they probably will leave sometime during the night - instead of full view of the American people who have come to hate them.
I've got a pair of the most dirtest pair of tennis shoes that I could throw at them. They have just a little bit of mud on them with a hint of dog shit too - but what goes around comes around - if the smell fits....
Obamamma, Hello!
I was thinking of somehow organizing a group of Americans to go to the White House the day the Bushs drive out, and pelting them with shoes! Remember when they drove up to it, in 2001, they got pelted with eggs, and even had to stop once on the drive, because of security? He has been despised from before he even took office.
Our country deserves better than this!!!
End of war on Terror has a good start, on November 20th when Bush/Cheney leave town!
Cheney Admits Authorizing Detainee's Torture
Outgoing VP says Guantanamo prison should stay open until end of terror war, but has no idea when that might be
Good morning, all.
Pam and Obamamma,
Remember when you were in grade school and a teacher or policeman caught some punk doing something they shouldn't and when confronted said, "So what?"?
The punks in the Bush Crime Family are doing just that as they are finally being challenged by some of the MSM in farewell interviews. Both Bush and Cheney used the phrase when queried about why al Queada wasn’t in Iraq before we invaded. Cheney used it when questioned about knowing that the WMD Intel was bogus and whether he approved torture.
Even the Nazis on trial at Nuremberg never used the phrase "So what" as a defense much less an excuse. Only the most juvenile bullies have the balls to arrogantly defy the conventions of civilized society. Bush and Cheney are brazenly telling the world that they have no morals or conscience...so what?
And they are the role models emulated by the rest of the Republican "family values" Party. Just look at the way the Southern GOP Senators like Shelby and Vitters talk about laying off 3 million people like they deserve that fate for daring to ask for a living wage.
The hand of that Iraqi man throwing shoes at Bush must have been moved by Divine Guidance, imho. They do not bow to a higher authority...they think they are the highest authority.
We'll see how high and mighty they are once they leave The Bubble that has protected them as they gave the rest of mankind The Finger.
I think we should start a shoe collection on The Mall so these pricks can see it as they leave Washington. Pile it as high as we can...as high as the Washington Monument. We should ask the world to join us in donating their shoes (for charity after the protest is over) in their Capitol cities, too.
Let's make our mountain of truth bigger than their mountain of lies.
Gotta run. later.
Morning Pam and Obamamma,
I stepped away from the computer to prepare three rooms and a hallway for painting. The painters are coming at 0800.
The criminals in this administration have to be brought to justice.
I heard on the news the other day that the "skeleton" head of homeland security had an illegal alien working as a slave in his house. How can he get away with this? I thought he was going to fix the illegal alien problem.
Right on Sandy - the line "so what" has a whole new meaning when it's spewed from these creeps mouths.
So what if 3,000+ soldiers have died over a lie.
So what if thousands of people in Iraq are dead.
So what if gas prices went over board because of deregulation that caused the crash of 08'
So what is thousands of Americans are out of work.
So what that thousands more have lost their homes.
So what if people don't have health insurance.
So what if the vast majority of Americans hate our guts.
They're thumbing their noses at us and we're sitting back and taking it - again.
Yep - I think we should have a "shoe-in" and have a date with George and Dick with a barrage of shoes - the assholes.
Oh and I forgot - Good Morning to John, Sandy and Pam. My manners - my bad.
Got to run but am lurking as always.
Respect MUST be shown, if not to him then his office.LincolnParkLiberal on December 16, 2008 at 07:55 AM
Try telling that to the person who has shown the most disrespect for the office of President in the history of the country.
Gee, wonder about whom I am speaking?
Good morning!
The weather report for Butte says sunny, but there's a layer of clouds and haze here right now. Summit Valley, which is the valley Butte is in, is probably having a bit of an inversion, but that's OK.
I can look out my window and see the Highland Mountains silhouetted against the clouds which are yellow from the sunlight shining through them.
It's -17 right now, but the high for the day is supposed to be 8. Wow! This is the first time the high will be above zero since Friday. I'm looking forward to it. ;-)
I thought he was going to fix the illegal alien problem.
10
Johne on December 16, 2008 at 10:14 AM
Johne: That is his FIX of the problem. He turns them into his (and other neo-cons) personal indentured servants!
Morning all good dems!
3
PamB on December 16, 2008 at 08:38 AM
Yes, we must bring them to justice if we are ever going to regain our credibility as a member of the world community.
They need to build a new West Wing, at the confinement facility at Leavenworth! None of this coddling the white collar criminals for murders and torturers! Let them eat bread and water!
GregL on December 16, 2008 at 12:15 PM
Gawd, when did Americans become so sheep-like? America is not a kingdom! We elect someone to work on our behalf and in return we give them a cushy place to live and lifetime pay. If any "respect" is due, it is to the people whom the office serves. I haven't seen much respect from the office directed my way, have you?
I agree, GregL
Respect is something that is Earned! Both by the person, and the office he holds.
Did you see the article that Jeb Bush is setting out to try and clean up the Bush name? heehee, that is like Marie Hitler, Adolph's sister, trying to create a good image about the name Hitler!
Must be Jebbie plus some of his ilk had hopes of running in the future. Good luck with that, Bushs! Remember that slogan that came out on T-Shirts shortly after Bush took office? "The Only Bush I trust is My Own"! I wouldn't vote for a Bush if it was the only name on a ballot!
7
PamB on December 16, 2008 at 09:59 AM
Hey, that's a thought! Keep Gitmo open. We can use it to hole the Bush Administration criminals!
I can look out my window and see the Highland Mountains
Butte, I guess that makes you qualified to be Secretary of the Interior...or a geologist, not sure which. :)
9
SandyH on December 16, 2008 at 10:11 AM
LOL! let me know the mailing address! Between my son and I, we have some really trashed shoes that we can send!
Now I can't wait to hear how the trollies react to this hard cold fact ! Oh yeah, I know, just more Liberal 'flapdoodle', whatever the hell that is! These guys are the most ignorant people I have ever encountered !
Over 2T tons of ice melted in arctic since '03
AP WASHINGTON – More than 2 trillion tons of land ice in Greenland, Antarctica and Alaska have melted since 2003, according to new NASA satellite data that show the latest signs of what scientists say is global warming.
More than half of the loss of landlocked ice in the past five years has occurred in Greenland, based on measurements of ice weight by NASA's GRACE satellite, said NASA geophysicist Scott Luthcke. The water melting from Greenland in the past five years would fill up about 11 Chesapeake Bays, he said, and the Greenland melt seems to be accelerating.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081216/ap_on_sc/sci_arctic_ice
but then, what does NASA know?
Good to hear the spirited comments.
Picking up after Bush will be like going back to a house you rented to people who essentially trashed it for 8 years. But rather than agonizing, the Obama team appears to be organizing. Democratic principles for labor, for the environment, education, and health care - these to replace the plundering criminal ways you all have stated above - and these will be so more apparent as what we need during these times - as the fallout from this decadent GOP group continues as it leaves the white house.
hi kids. still no electric where i live. at a borrowed puter. hope to be back soon!
Good morning / afternoon, all!
The Klondike Kleptomaniacs strike again.
Gov GILF Watch: Bristol Palin Baby Gifts Need Itemizing
Jeeze, their tax preparer is going to have a brain aneurysm trying to figure out all the scams they have going on.
And that family of grifters still hasn't returned all those fancy duds to the RNC.
hey Doo Bee, I am assuming that Palin's little run at VP, is going to end up costing them a pretty penney, in clothes, accessories, makeup and hair , baby gifts, etc!
I assume it was probably the witch doctor burning someone at the stake that set it all off !
Accelerant poured around Palin's church
This one makes me Laugh! He pretended she walked on water when she was running his campaign!
McCain hedges on backing Palin
WASHINGTON -- John McCain pointedly refused to say Sunday that he would back former running mate Sarah Palin if she runs for president in 2012, saying there are plenty of other good people in the Republican Party to consider.
"Oh, no," McCain said on ABC's "This Week" program when asked whether Palin could count on McCain's support if she seeks the Republican presidential nomination. "Listen, I have the greatest appreciation for Gov. Palin and her family, and it was a great joy to know them. ...
"But I can't say something like that. We've got some great other young governors. I think you're going to see the governors assume a greater leadership role in our Republican Party."
Good afternoon fellow Democrats. Good morning to the left coast.
One does not look at Global Warming on any short term bases ! It is looked at and compared with annual, bi annual, 5 year , 10 year periods, and every indication shows the earth is warming, and the Ice shelves are getting smaller and thinner !!!!!! Do yourself a favor and educate yourself, prior to pretending you know something about your subject !
http://www.worldviewofglobalwarming.org/pages/glaciers.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/photogalleries/global_warming/
http://www.effectofglobalwarming.com/global-warming-pictures.html
http://www.alaskastock.com/Global-Warming-Pictures.asp
http://www.koshland-science-museum.org/exhibitgcc/intro01.jsp
http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=global+warming+in+pictures&fr=yfp-t-809&toggle=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8
If you need more proof, just let me know, I have plenty !
If it wasn't for poor experience, she would have No experience at all !!!
Legislators skeptical about Palin's state budget proposal
Gov. Sarah Palin, faced with shrinking state revenue, is proposing a budget that she says will reduce state spending and won’t leave the state with a deficit. But top legislators are skeptical, saying the governor’s claim is based on shaky assumptions about future oil prices, and the state could be heading deep into red ink.
There will be a "shoe rally" in front of the White House tomorrow at 11AM. Protesters are going to bring shoes there and ask that Chimpy denounce the torture of that Journalist.
The BBC is reporting that he has broken ribs, a broken hand, can't move his right arm and is suffering from internal bleeding. Also there are signs of torture on his thighs.
DooBee, Wish I could be there !
First it was McCain, now Gingrich denouncing the RNC! Maybe they should smarten up and take a hint.
Gingrich Rips RNC For Blagojevich-Obama Attacks: "Destructive Distraction
Oh God! Great new website. Everybody can now throw things at Chmpy! Think of the hours of fun. And the Chyron changes to the appropriate "news-speak".
Just a quick fly by
Happy Holidays everyone.
Gotta' Run for now!
Fed ready to slash rates amid deepening recession
1 hr 13 mins ago
WASHINGTON – With the recession dragging down consumer prices and home construction, the Federal Reserve is prepared to slash a key interest rate — perhaps to an all-time low — in a desperate bid to stem the country's economic slide.
Consumer prices fell by a record amount in November, while home building plunged by the most in a quarter-century, according to government reports released Tuesday that underscored the economy's weakening state.
Falling prices for goods and services at first blush might sound like a good thing. But if prices keep spiraling downward, they can wreak economic havoc. That gives the Fed another reason to lower rates, which would protect against this risk.
Highlighting the toll of the financial turmoil: Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reported its first quarterly loss since it went public in 1999, and rates on 30-year Treasury bonds briefly dipped to a record low of 2.91 percent as nervous investors' flocked to a safe haven.
With the Fed's key rate dropping ever closer to zero, the central bank is moving into uncharted territory.
Nonetheless, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has made it clear the Fed isn't running out of ammunition to fight the worst financial crisis since the 1930s. It is exploring using tools — other than rate cuts — to revive the economy. New insights on that front could be revealed when Bernanke and his colleagues wrap up a two-day meeting Tuesday.
"The message is simply the Fed stands ready to do everything in its power to stop the economy's free fall," said Richard Yamarone, economist at Argus Research.
On Wall Street, those expectations lifted stocks. The Dow Jones industrials gained about 90 points in afternoon trading.
In its battle against a recession that started last December, the Fed already has cut the target for the federal funds rate, its main tool for influencing economic activity, to 1 percent, a level seen only once before in the last half-century.
Many economists predict the Fed will cut the funds rate in half — to just 0.50 percent. A few think the Fed could opt for an even more forceful action — lowering rates by a whopping three-quarters percentage point or more. If that larger cut occurs, it would be the lowest on records that track the monthly average of the funds rate going back to 1954. The funds rate is the interest banks charge each other on overnight loans.
President-elect Barack Obama said Tuesday the Fed is "running out of the traditional ammunition" to fight the recession and that it was critical for other branches government to "step up." Obama, whose economic team is meeting Tuesday, is working on a "bold agenda" to spur an economic recovery.
Left-Wing Bloggers Select The 20 Worst Figures In American History
by John Hawkins
Out of all the gangsters, serial killers, mass murders, incompetent & crooked politicians, spies, traitors, and ultra left-wing kooks in all of American history -- have you ever wondered who the worst of the worst were? Well, we here at RWN wondered about that too and that's why we decided to email more than a hundred left of center bloggers to get their opinions.
The worst figures in American history are as follows (with the number of votes following each selection)...
Honorable Mentions: Boss Tweed (5), Roger Taney (5), James Earl Ray (5), Charles Manson (5), Rush Limbaugh (5), Jerry Falwell (5), Roy Cohn (5), Dick Cheney (5), John C. Calhoun (5)
20) The Rosenbergs (3) + Julius Rosenberg (3) (6 total votes)
20) Pat Robertson (6)
20) Oliver North (6)
20) William Randolph Hearst (6)
20) Aaron Burr (6)
20) Aldrich Ames (6)
18) George Lincoln Rockwell (7)
18) Robert McNamara (7)
14) Richard Mellon Scaife (8)
14) Lee Harvey Oswald (8)
14) Charles Coughlin (8)
14) Strom Thurmond (8)
13) Ronald Reagan (9)
12) George Wallace (10)
11) Andrew Jackson (12)
9) Jefferson Davis (13)
9) George W. Bush (13)
6) Benedict Arnold (14)
6) Henry Kissinger (14)
6) John Wilkes Booth (14)
3) Timothy McVeigh (16)
3) Nathan Bedford Forrest (16)
3) J. Edgar Hoover (16)
2) Richard Nixon (25)
Madoff Investors May Be Protected By GovernmentJudge Says Those Duped Need Aid Under The Securites Investor Protection Act
NEW YORK (CBS) ― Federal investigators remain at the investment offices of disgraced investor Bernard Madoff, scouring through records to learn the scope of what may be the biggest Ponzi scheme ever in the United States.
The numbers are staggering, the losses far-reaching, but help may be on the way for investors thanks to an order for protection from a federal judge.
The scheme was operated out of the so-called "Lipstick Building" on Third Avenue. Bernard Madoff Investment Securities LLC occupies three floors and may have bilked investors of $50 billion...
Meanwhile, a federal judge on Monday threw a lifesaver to investors who may have been duped, saying they need the protection of a special government reserve fund set up to help investors at failed brokerage firms.
U.S. District Judge Louis L. Stanton ordered that clients of Madoff's private investment business seek relief under a federal statute created to rescue cheated investors. Stanton also ordered that business be liquidated under the jurisdiction of a bankruptcy court and named attorney Irvin H. Picard as trustee to oversee that process.
Stanton signed the order after the Securities Investor Protection Corporation asked that steps be taken to protect investors in the scheme, which has ensnared several major banks and prominent figures as victims and could result in as much as $50 billion in losses.
Congress created the SIPC in 1970 to protect investors when a brokerage firm fails and cash and securities are missing from accounts. Funds can be used to satisfy the remaining claims of each customer up to a maximum of $500,000. The figure includes a maximum of up to $100,000 on claims for cash...
http://wcbstv.com/business/madoff.ponzi.scheme.2.888036.html
Your federal tax dollars at work. Once again, the fatcats are propped up while us poor working stiffs are left holding the bill.
This has got to stop. Screw Wall St.. They took their chances. They got burned. Is that class warfare? You betcha! And the working poor have the votes to get whomever they want elected if they just pull their heads out of their collective arses long enough.
MarkLof on December 16, 2008 at 01:20 PM
CactusBarrack on December 16, 2008 at 01:55 PM
Y'all do a good job of making this crap up. If you've got Gov. Richardson (D-NM) on tape like the IL governor, break it out. Otherwise, you've got nothing but baseless innuendo that is still a good number of levels away from the Commerce Secretary designate.
Good afternoon, all.
gregg on December 16, 2008 at 12:42 PM
gregg,
Ah, the dreaded broken infrastructure strikes again? We lost our power twice in 2006 for more than five days due to storms. Our metro power company has finally committed to upgrading the system and putting more of the lines underground. The poor shareholders will have to learn to live with a reasonable return again...instead of breaking the system to keep the stock price unrealistically high.
Keep warm. I held up at the library, mall, movies, and fast food places (McDonald's has the best variety of newspapers) during the day. Spent the night with friends and family. It's not fun to be homeless, but you soon find out who you can rely upon in an emergency. The shelter at City Hall took three days to get up and running.
The middle class has no safety nets.
I went to BMI Nashville about songwriting and there was Poetry on the walls about dreams, and found that they really did little for them.
I thought will all the talent of these members if they volunteered two hours a year to create dreams in our children, especially in the public schools in music how they notes would create children's smiles. But BMI is all about Royalties for its Royal members.
I still have a dream called the Franklin American Artmosphere Foundation, where the artists, poets, musicians, writers, and motivators could volunteer two sessions a year for an hour with the public schools to inspire them to dream.
Just think if BMI, ASCAP, NSAI, and others in Nashville could create the first branch to the future of our children, where dreams flow from children smiles to have been blessed with the artists with HeArts.
For is not music the building block to where America became Star Spangled Banner.
I came here to lay a seed and have someone take over. I think this will say a lot. Maybe you can contact BMI that they need to create some dreams in our children's futures in their members hearts.
Writing the Wind’s Wings Across America Shore Lines
Where do dreams start but inside the heart
Spreading the quill upon inspirational flight
Writing the soul’s canvas in singing verse
Setting sail among a horizon painting words.
Dynamic spectrum quivering verse wings
Blending a love so great, it cries in smiles
Creating streams of tears blossoming inside
Rainbows dancing upon mists as treasures.
Pot of golden ray sunshine tanning warmth
Breezing among currents whispering passion
Making love upon satin silk sheets static
Shuddering nerve strings in musical chords.
Write the wind’s wings across America,
Ride the canvas among heartbeats creation
Inside imagery floating Free Verse ripples
Winkling the weathering age, pages of time.
Wandering streams of shoreline’s soul
Streaming words by intelligent design.
We are the miracle from within the womb
Singing verse riding tide’s endless notes.
Wondering dreams of borderline’s soles
Dreaming prints on heavenly inclines.
We are the cries so deep within desires
Playing music’s meter –
In time’s hourglass grain
Washing ashore musical lines.
David Lester Young Two Poems merged as one 12/15 and 12/16/08©
De-Terminated poet, somewhere in America not on company time
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Federal investigators in Alaska say an accelerant was poured around the exterior of Gov. Sarah Palin's home church before it was heavily damaged by a fire.The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said Monday that the accelerant was poured at several locations around the church, including entrances.
Federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Special Agent Nick Starcevic says laboratory tests will determine what the accelerant was.
The blaze was set at the main entrance of the Wasilla Bible Church on Friday evening while a small group, including two children, were inside. No one was injured.
Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate, was not at the church at the time of the fire but visited on Saturday.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.
This is beyond the pale. Whomever did this should get life without parole. If you have a problem with Gov. Palin (R-AK), take it up in forums like this and in the voting booth. Setting fire to an occupied church is, quite literally, ungodly in nature.
BobVADemocratHawk on December 16, 2008 at 02:25 PM
Bob,
How can someone be reimbursed by the government for gambling in a floating crap game? The people who invested in this pyramid scheme had to know there was something fishy about it.
Next thing you know the Bushies will be handing out money outside Circus, Circus and Caesar's Palace. Perhaps the auto workers should go to Vegas and get in line?
What a ridiculous way of handling an economic problem...give out money haphazardly instead of setting up a recovery program for everyone who has been affected. That the Republican would say is socialism. Instead we get the typical GOP incompetence and waste.
I'm not sure but I have a feeling that the Presidential/Vice Presidential pension fund has gone broke. So what?
MarkLof on December 16, 2008 at 02:46 PM
And a good prosecutor could get a ham sandwich indicted as the old saying goes. Again, unless someone has Gov. Richardson on tape like Gov. Blagojevich (D-IL), I'm waiting to read the indictment.
With Caroline Kennedy as Senator, the JFK, RFK, and MLK supporters in the Democratic Party will have a new leader that will reflect John John and Robert Frost. Liberals now have someone to rally upon as their spokeswoman. Since Hillary has her Progressives, Obama his Conservative Progressives, the rest of the Democratic Party can rally with Caroline. Maybe she can be the First Woman President ever, and that would make President Kennedy so proud.
Plus Ted Kennedy could pull the right strings.
If President Elect Obama falters Caroline must be ready for "We the people" sake.
Fed cuts target for key rate to record low
Fed cuts target for key interest rate to record low, pledges to use all available tools.
Tuesday December 16, 2008, 3:14 pm EST
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve has cut its target for a key interest rate to the lowest level on record and pledged to use "all available tools" to combat a severe financial crisis and prolonged recession.
The central bank on Tuesday said it had reduced the federal funds rate, the interest that banks charge each other, to a range of zero to 0.25 percent. That is down from the 1 percent target rate in effect since the last meeting in October. Many analysts had expected the Fed to make a smaller cut to 0.5 percent.
The Fed's aggressive move was greeted enthusiastically by Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 210 points in late-afternoon trading.
The Fed's action and statement made clear that economic conditions have worsened since its last meeting in October.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues said they will use unconventional methods to try to contain a financial crisis that is the worst since the 1930s and a recession that is already the longest in a quarter-century. For example, the Fed last month said it planned to purchase up to $600 billion in direct debt and mortgage-backed securities issued by big financial players including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in an effort to boost the availability of mortgage loans.
That move was one of a series the central bank has taken to increase its loans by hundreds of billions of dollars as a way to deal with the worst financial crisis to hit the country in more than 70 years.
Bob and Sandy. I agree. Screw the money changers. Most of them knew what they were getting in to, but the insatiable greed overwhelmed them.
Read this quote about that Ponzi scheme that just collapsed.
Analyst Henry Blodget wrote on his blog Friday that some savvy investors figured Madoff was up to something because his returns were so high. “Many Wall Streeters suspected the wrong rigged game, though: they thought it was insider trading, not a Ponzi scheme,” Blodget wrote. “And here’s the best part: That’s why they invested with him.”
(Bold in original)
BobVADemocratHawk on December 16, 2008 at 02:25 PM
SandyH on December 16, 2008 at 02:59 PM
I wouldn't just jump to the conclusions that you and Sandy have made. I personally know an investor who has lost nearly everything she has worked for her entire 50+ years. She wasn't a fatcat, she was someone who has invested with Madoff for over 25 years and thoroughly trusted his investment advice and experience. She lost her retirement, her grandkids college fund and faces having to sell her business. She was a victim in this, nothing more or less.
Wow, I've never seen "key" that low! I wonder how it will affect 'prime?' Banks receive bailouts; but, no one will reveal which banks or how much and can borrow at little or no interest; however, they refuse to provide loans or lines of credit to needy Americans. I don't know what to think of this mess. It honestly seems like Bernanke is actually trying but is limited in his means to do so; however, Paulson - with all of his secrecy and refusal to help main/side streets - is throwing road blocks up at every turn.
January 20, 2009 can't get here fast enough!
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 03:29 PM
It's the same smoke and mirrors game the Japanese tried, which resulted in their economy going into a death spiral for years.
I can't speak for anyone else but there is something (beyond her name) that I like about Caroline Kennedy Schlossburg (?? Spelling). I like the way she carries and presents herself with confidence but absent of arrogance. She projects a certain strength of character and sense of integrity. I don't know that much about her but from what I have seen, I feel that I could easily support and vote for her.
Doo-Bee-Doo-Bee-Doo on December 16, 2008 at 03:35 PM
"Smoke and Mirrors"
That is an apt description.
I am to the point of being convinced that there will be no help for anyone but the fatest of the fat cats until January 20 and I can't help but wonder how much money will be left at that point to help the 'real' people in this country.
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 03:35 PM
She has also written a slew of books, one about Patriotism and several about the Bill of Rights.
While President Bush nimbly ducked both shoes hurled at him at a press conference in Iraq, not everyone escaped the incident unscathed. Press Secretary Dana Perino was hit with a microphone in the ensuing scuffle. Today, new pictures of her injury from the White House press briefing.
Doo-Bee-Doo-Bee-Doo on December 16, 2008 at 03:45 PM
Sounds like Christmas Reading - along with the Bugliosi book!
Thanks for the recommendations!
This is an inquiry.
What are any of you learning about the FHA and the writing down of housing values as am attempt to bring down mortgage payments for home owners?
Many of our homes are now over valued and over taxed. I called some area banks and they seem ill informed. I was not surprised - that's the entire head in the sand sate of mind these last 8 years of non-leadership has left us in.
Any insight - leads - articles - references - much appreciated. And if it isn't happening, let's have an intelligent conversation about it - defy the culture!
Also, I just saw an article about how they finally 'got' the guy who murdered Adam Walsh, son of John Walsh. Apparantly the suspect who confessed and recanted a couple of times made a 'death bed' confession to a relative who has just now come forward.
Fromm on December 16, 2008 at 03:53 PM
I read something on that recently, but I can't remember where. As I understood it - and I could easily be wrong - this is one of several ideas that have been 'batted around' along with one about converting all adjustible rate mortgages and helocs to 40 or 50 year fixed with the loan amount based not on the appraised value of the home but on the value of the existing loan plus all fees necessary to accomplish the conversion.
There are a number of ideas - some of them seem like really good ideas but - as I said before - I doubt that we, the general public/middle class, will enjoy any relief before President Obama takes office and it may take some time after that to undo all of the bad that has and continues to be done by this administration before we see anything at all.
Sad but true.
fromm
not quite what you were looking fot, but close
http://www.fhaloanpros.com/2008/11/latest-fha-results-present-mixed-picture/
perino hit harder than we thought!!!
Perino: We’re not occupiers in Iraq; we’re guests.»
During today’s White House press briefing, spokesperson Dana Perino echoed President Bush’s claim that Iraqi journalist Muntader al-Zaidi’s frustrations are not representative of the Iraqi public’s sentiments. She pointed out that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki apologized for the mistreatment of his guest. When reporter Helen Thomas pointed out that U.S. forces are actually “occupiers,” Perino bristled
Perino later added, “If — if the Iraqis didn’t want us there, we wouldn’t have been signing that agreement that allows our troops to operate there for the next three years,” ignoring the fact that Iraqis primarily supported the agreement because it set a firm deadline for U.S. withdrawal.
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/12/16/perino-iraq-guests/#comments
IRS to help homeowners refinance or sell homes
2 hrs 6 mins ago
WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service said Tuesday it will try to make it easier for homeowners in financial straits to refinance or sell their homes.
The plan announced by IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman would speed up a process where financially distressed homeowners may request that a federal tax lien be made secondary to liens by the lending institution that is refinancing or restructuring a loan.
Taxpayers will also be able to ask the IRS to discharge, or remove, its claim to a property in certain circumstances where the property is being sold for less than the amount of the mortgage lien.
"We need to ensure that we balance our responsibility to enforce the law with the economic realities facing many American citizens today," Shulman said, stressing that "we don't want the IRS to be a barrier to people saving or selling their homes."
Hey Pam:
It would appear that Dana Perino is "lame" at "ducking."
Yep - those Republicans are real good money managers! They manage the money out of public service and into the pockets of the fat cats while children, the elderly and the ill suffer.
I used to enjoy some of Ah-nold's movies but now, every time I see him, it makes me sick. What an ass!
GOP Budget Plan: Slash $10 Billion From Schools
Tuesday 16 December 2008
by: Matthew Yi, The San Francisco Chronicle
Sacramento - Republican state lawmakers unveiled their answer Monday to the state's budget crisis - a $22 billion plan that would avoid raising taxes, cut deeply into education spending and dip into voter-approved funds intended to pay for mental health services and children's health care.
The plan is the Republicans' first comprehensive proposal since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called a special legislative session last month to try to solve the state's fiscal crisis. That special session ended without any action by lawmakers, prompting Schwarzenegger to declare a fiscal emergency Dec. 1, the first day on the job for newly elected legislators, and to call another special session to fix the budget.
Senate Republican leader Dave Cogdill of Modesto insisted Monday that raising taxes was not the answer to California's problems. Republicans have refused to consider tax increases as California's money problems piled up, and they can block any budget that includes increases because both the Assembly and Senate must muster two-thirds votes to approve a spending plan.
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 04:32 PM
Bwwwaaahahahahahahahaha! :-)
War Talk, the Death of the Social, and Disappearing Children: A Lesson for Obama
Tuesday 16 December 2008
by: Henry A. Giroux, t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Under the Bush administration, the language of war has taken on a distinctly new register, more expansive in both its meaning and its consequences. War no longer needs to be ratified by Congress since it is now waged by various government agencies that escape the need for official approval. War has become a permanent condition adopted by a nation state that is largely defined by its repressive functions in response to its powerlessness to regulate corporate power, provide social investments for the populace and guarantee a measure of social freedom. This has been evident not only in the all-embracing militarization of public life that emerged under the combined power and control of neoliberal zealots, religious fanatics and far right-wing conservatives, but also in the destruction of a liberal democratic political order and a growing culture of surveillance, inequality and cynicism.
The concept of war occupies a strange place in the current lexicon of foreign and domestic policy. It no longer simply refers to a war waged against a sovereign state such as Iraq, nor is it merely a moral referent for engaging in acts of national self defense. The concept of war has been both expanded and inverted. It has been expanded in that it has become one of the most powerful concepts for understanding and structuring political culture, public space and everyday life. Wars are now waged against crime, labor unions, drugs, terrorism and a host of alleged public disorders. Wars are not just declared against foreign enemies, but against alleged domestic threats.
The concept of war has also been inverted in that is has been removed from any concept of social justice - a relationship that emerged under President Lyndon Johnson and exemplified in the war on poverty. War is now defined almost exclusively as a punitive and militaristic process. This can be seen in the ways in which social policies have been criminalized so that the war on poverty developed into a war against the poor, the war on drugs became a war waged largely against youth of color and the war against terrorism continues as a war against immigrants, domestic freedoms and dissent itself. In the Bush-Cheney view of terrorism, war is individualized as every citizen becomes a potential terrorist, who has to prove that he or she is not dangerous. Under the rubric of the every-present state of emergency and its government-induced media panics, war provides the moral imperative to collapse the "boundaries between innocent and guilty, between suspects and non-suspects."[1] War provides the primary rhetorical tool for articulating a notion of the social as a community organized around shared fears rather than shared responsibilities and civic courage. War is now transformed into a slick, Hollywood spectacle designed to both glamorize a notion of hyper-masculinity fashioned in the conservative oil fields of Texas and fill public space with celebrations of ritualized militaristic posturing touting the virtues of either becoming part of " an Army of one" or indulging in commodified patriotism by purchasing a new (hybrid) Hummer.
Bob, Doobie: Did either of you read that article about how Paulson and the other a-holes at Treasury refuse to disclose how and to whom they 'gave' 2 trillion in bank loans?
WTF!!! That is taxpayer money and we have a right to know!
Good Day, Dems,
Since the trolls come here and hurl insults at senior women, I have zero respect for them. I don't want to feed the trolls, so I won't engage with them. But as favor to all men out there, I'd like to point out where on-line hateful obsessions gets them:
"We traded our Buick for a Dodge mini van this year, my wife had to have one, don't know why, the kids are grown and gone, but, what ever."
13 CactusBarrack on December 12, 2008 at 12:49pm
I know why minivans are good to have, without kids. They are great for secret meet-ups, and save money... if you know what I mean. In case you have not figured it out, silly troll, let me help you out... while you're making hate with woman on-line 24/7, your wife has found something else to do. The irony. It's a shame you have forced her to carry on like that. I hope you know that you're on-line hate and aggression directed at helpless woman make you a very sad and pathetic excuse of a man. The joke is on you.
I read it. The "justification" is some lame excuse that if everybody knows which banks are holding on by a thread nobody will do business with them.
BOO HOO. Maybe that a-hole can secretly give some money to the Bridge Fund.
This is just like the justification for giving out all of those "retention bonuses". They claim that if they lose a lot of the "good" people the ratings firms will lower the their bond limit.
Again, BOO HOO.
Wow - here's something that I thought that I would never say, write, blog, etc. I actually agree with the dub???? I may faint right here, on the spot!!! LOL
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush said Tuesday he is "considering all options" in aiding the U.S. auto industry because doing nothing could lead to further economic decline.
President Bush tells CNN's Candy Crowley on Tuesday he doesn't want to worsen the U.S. economic plight.
"A disorganized bankruptcy could create enormous economic difficulties, further economic difficulties," he said. "I feel a sense of obligation to my successor to make sure there is a not a huge economic crisis. Look, we're in a crisis now. We're in a huge recession, but I don't want to make it even worse."
However, the president noted, it's important to make sure he is not wasting taxpayers' money.
"I'm mindful of not putting good money after bad, so we're working through some options," he said. "What you don't want to do is spend a lot of taxpayers' money and then have the same old stuff happen again, and again and again."
BYD!
Good to "see" you! I wish you were here more often!
Afternoon all good Dems,
twinkletoes may lose his land in Paraguay. It seems the peasants are getting restless and tired of being screwed. the bush crime family is no doubt involved in the demonstrations. the bush crime family will have them liquidated.
"Paraguay's large landowners are organising a second day of protests against an increase in land invasions by peasant farmers in recent weeks."
More...................
Just curious?
Has anyone here watched Nancy Grace and, if so, what do you think of her show?
Good afternoon, all.
mary,
Thanks for the link to this exchange today between Helen Thomas and the President's Press Secretary.
QUESTION: But he (Bush) wasn’t a guest. We’re occupiers.
PERINO: No, we’re not. We are absolutely a guest.
Perino later added, “If — if the Iraqis didn’t want us there, we wouldn’t have been signing that agreement that allows our troops to operate there for the next three years,” ignoring the fact that Iraqis primarily supported the agreement because it set a firm deadline for U.S. withdrawal.
* * * *
Someone didn't hit Perino hard enough...to knock some sense into her.
What about the manners of the guest?
Guests don't shock and awe bomb the daylights out of their host's home before they even enter. Guests don't move in and stay without an invitation to do so. Guests don't use up all the clean water, screw up the plumbing, and break the electricity. Guests don't torture the relatives.
Basically, civilized people don't have to sign a legal agreement stating that they will leave. Someone should give Ms. Perino a copy of “Etiquette for Dummies” as a gift this holiday season.
Talk about dodging a question with nonsense. Well, I suppose she didn't say "so what"...in so many words or did she?
Hi Sandy! How are you today? I hope that you are well.
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 05:06 PM
I've seen her program once or twice. She pretty much convicts the suspects before they even go to trial. But then she used to be a prosecutor.
"She pretty much convicts the suspects before they even go to trial."
THANK YOU!
Everytime I watch her, it seems like she's playing prosecutor, judge and jury - and not doing a particularly good job.
I can't help but wonder if anyone she 'targets' has any hope of getting an impartial jury anywhere.
I am so sick of people being tried in the media before all of the facts - or even a large portion of the facts - come out. Her show and others like it need to be taken off of the air - for the public's protection!
Caroline Kennedy wrote a great book on PRIVACY. This is an important subject, and AMERICA would do well to have a Senator stand up for Americans' Right to Privacy, considering the attacks of privacy was made law over the last 8 years.
However, I'm not convinced she has the fight in her to take on swift-boating Republicans. I knew Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, and worked for her. She is very smart, but didn't stand-up well to the attack-dog republicans on the trail. Sadly, she was too nice, and this was noted in the media after her defeat. But in all fairness, KKT lost because of a fractured Dem party, and not just the lack of an aggressive campaign, and person-to-person skills.
This is opinion has nothing to do with belief that Fran Dresher is hot, Hot, HOT! And she's not just another pretty face. She's fought for women's health issues, and we could use more of that in the Senate.
Regardless, we need more Democratic woman in the Senate. IF Andrew Cuomo gets the nod in NY, I would hope that Rep. Jan Shipkowski is appointed to replace President-Elect Obama by Lt. Gov Quinn.
(Forget this talk of a "special election." It takes too long, and would cost too much.) IMO, Democrats need to MORE female representation in the Senate, or stay the same.
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 05:12 PM
Hi, mary.
I'm doing well...been in and out of meetings and running errands all day. It's always hard to keep up with the discussion here when you come and go.
It appears that Karen Hughes' Bush legacy initiative is only raising more questions about the administration's unnecessary invasion of Iraq. They are trying to sell it again...and nobody is buying it any more than the $1.5 trillion bailout of Wall Street.
And she drives people to suicide with her constant yammering.
Hi MaryMac,
Thank you. I try, but I have several irons in the fire. I do this for the party, and to practice my writing on-the-fly skills. And we can't let these idiot trolls control the debate with lie. I can't stand these Commie-loving, Freedom-hating, and liberty-loathing Republicans.
I don't care for Nancy grace. I think her rage is fake, and she's exploiting victims. I'd rather watch the weather channel. lol.
Happy Holidays to you!
Rush Limbaugh VS Colin Powell: Limbaugh Responds To Powell's Criticism
December 15, 2008 07:52 PM
Colin Powell, in a lengthy interview with Fareed Zakaria on CNN, questioned whether the Republican Party had a future if it continued listening to and taking its cues from right wing radio host Rush Limbaugh. Powell said that figures such as Limbaugh appeal to Republicans' lesser instincts, suggesting that's not the kind of party that the GOP wants to be.
Limbaugh responded to Powell today on his radio show, dismissing the criticism as without merit. Limbaugh believes that the Republican Party hasn't been listening to him over the last six years, as evidenced by its selection of John McCain as the Party's 2008 presidential nominee.
Limbaugh also called Powell's thinking "incoherent" and accused him of being a "turncoat" for supporting Obama. Limbaugh states that the main lesson to be drawn from this is that Powell is a Washingtonian who doesn't care who's in power as long as he's in close proximity, and that Powell is seeking to be "loved and adored by the media."
Good evening all. So, the right wing nut attempt to link Blago with Obama is being criticized even by Newt Gingrich:
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sent a rather scathing letter to Mike Duncan on Tuesday, accusing the RNC chairman of engaging in "a destructive distraction" by attempting to tie Barack Obama to Rod Blagojevich. In particular, Gingrich hit the RNC for putting out a web ad that made it seem as if the President-elect was hiding a nefarious chapter of his personal history with the embattled Illinois Governor.
"The RNC should pull the ad down immediately," Gingrich writes.
I was saddened to learn that at a time of national trial, when a president-elect is preparing to take office in the midst of the worst financial crisis in over seventy years, that the Republican National Committee is engaged in the sort of negative, attack politics that the voters rejected in the 2006 and 2008 election cycles.
The recent web advertisement, "Questions Remain," is a destructive distraction. Clearly, we should insist that all taped communications regarding the Senate seat should be made public. However, that should be a matter of public policy, not an excuse for political attack.
In a time when America is facing real challenges, Republicans should be working to help the incoming President succeed in meeting them, regardless of his Party.
From now until the inaugural, Republicans should be offering to help the President-elect prepare to take office.
Furthermore, once President Obama takes office, Republicans should be eager to work with him when he is right, and, when he is wrong, offer a better solution, instead of just opposing him.
This is the only way the Republican Party will become known as the "better solutions" party, not just an opposition party. And this is the only way Republicans will ever regain the trust of the voters to return to the majority.
This ad is a terrible signal to be sending about both the goals of the Republican Party in the midst of the nation's troubled economic times and about whether we have actually learned anything from the defeats of 2006 and 2008.
There has been, it seems, two mindsets within the GOP as to how to revitalize the party in the wake of its '06 and '08 losses: seek political blood against Barack Obama whenever possible, or focus on reaching out to moderates and minorities. In addition to Gingrich, Sen. John McCain -- appearing on "This Week" Sunday -- offered a dig at the RNC for their obsession with Obama's (apparently limited or nonexistent) links to Blagojevich.
A Republican strategist, asked about the Gingrich letter, said he agreed with the former House Majority Leader. But, he added, "I think that Newt wants a change at the RNC, and it is an intervention in the RNC race."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/16/gingrich-rips-rnc-for-its_n_151438.html
Give it up right wing nuts. You have nothing on Obama. Face up to it:
YOU LOST THE ELECTION
YOU LOST BAD
OBAMA WILL BE THE NEXT PRESIDENT
GET OVER IT
90
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 05:30 PM
================================================
Hi Mary,
Drug Limbaugh is a bunch of hot right wing nut air.
86
Big_Yellow_Dog on December 16, 2008 at 05:18 PM
================================================
No argument from me Big Yellow. We definitely need more women in Congress. I think Caroline Kennedy is a good choice.
Thank you to those who gave constructive feedback on FHA and mortgages (with escrows). For those of us with real stated incomes - still financially afloat - perhaps the conversation needs to come back to our local cities and home values being reassessed.
Cheney was key in clearing CIA interrogation tactics
By Greg Miller
December 16, 2008
Reporting from Washington -- Vice President Dick Cheney said Monday that he was directly involved in approving severe interrogation methods used by the CIA, and that the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, should remain open indefinitely.
Cheney's remarks on Guantanamo appear to put him at odds with President Bush, who has expressed a desire to close the prison, although the decision is expected to be left to the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama.
Cheney's comments also mark the first time that he has acknowledged playing a central role in clearing the CIA's use of an array of controversial interrogation tactics, including a simulated drowning method known as waterboarding.
"I was aware of the program, certainly, and involved in helping get the process cleared," Cheney said in an interview with ABC News.
Asked whether he still believes it was appropriate to use the waterboarding method on terrorism suspects, Cheney said: "I do."
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-cheney16-2008dec16,0,5456856.story?track=rss
Bush and Cheney are guilty of murder. Have fun boz in retirement.
It's kind of funny to me when my Republican Friends and Co-workers start to 'argue' or bring up GOP talking points about the economy. I always ask them, "who do you listen to or read? Who influences your opinion on these important economic issues?" Without fail they answer "Rush Limbaugh!"
That's when I explain to them the following about Rushie's education:
"Limbaugh graduated from Cape Central High School, in 1969. His father and mother wanted him to attend college, so he enrolled at Southeast Missouri State University. He dropped out after two semesters and one summer; according to his mother, "he flunked everything", even a modern ballroom dancing class.[4] As she told a reporter in 1992, "He just didn't seem interested in anything except radio."[7]
Draft status
Limbaugh's birthdate was ranked as 175 in the Vietnam War draft lottery. No one was drafted above 125. However, he was classified as "1-Y" (later reclassified "4-F") due to either a football knee injury or a diagnosis of Pilonidal disease.[8][4]"
That's when I say, well - I read and listen to Dr. Paul Krugman - you may have heard that he recently won the Nobel Prize for Economics, got his PhD from MIT and currently teaches at Princeton University. I also like to read the work of Columbia Professor and past Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz.
That usually shuts them up!
marymac_memphis on December 16, 2008 at 06:02 PM
SEMU was always considered a party school back then. It would be hard to flunk out unless you pissed off the instructors.
I can hear him now, "So what?" We do know that Rush likes the sound of his own voice.
Johne on December 16, 2008 at 05:02 PM
Sounds like the farmers in Paraguay don't like globalization either.
CNN has reported a follow-up on Nazi war crimes with more new information.
Inquiry: Has any one on this sight read Edwin Black's book, "The Transfer Agreement?"
All this is still relevant to the Middle East - and public perspective on the complexity of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
My sense of Obama is that he has a learning curve on this subject.
"Charlie Wilson's War" is an interesting movie. I think a sequel is very possible because the true story continued, and it gets more interesting.
What happened after the Afgan Freedom fighters, now called the muhjahameden (sp), beat the Russians? Where and when does ol' Osama Bin Hidin come into play? Does they party on with the rockets? When does they turn on the US? Does this lead to 9-uh-leven, as Bush says? How does the Taliban play into the history?
Also, did the wealthy woman from Texas take on the mission because of defeating the Russians, or was it also about getting at that oil?
I think the movie suggests that this strange mission, or war, had many unintended consequences.
I'd like to see a Part II.
And what's the story about Rep. Charlie Wilson (D) from SE Ohio? (He took Gov Strickland's seat.) The area had all kinds of signs that said "Re-elect Charlie Wilson," in red, white, and blue. I took one before seeing the movie. I hope this Charlie isn't such a character on Tom Hanks plays...
So Jesse Jackson Jr was an FBI informant on Blago for years? Why didn't they indict Blago before? After all this time, you would think that an indictment is easy, and he wouldn't need a criminal complaint... that earned a $4,500 bond?
It's being reported that Fitz told Obama NOT to comment on the "criminal complaint." However, the MSM is running around saying Obama has answering to do. That's real fair... make someone stay silent while the MSM questions his character and ethics. I don't like it one bit. Tie someone's hand while they are being attacked in the WORLD media? I don't think that's justice or ethical.
Fitz needs to come out in a HUGE press conference and say President-Elect Obama and Rep Jackson are in NO way a target of this investigation, and are likely victims of Blago's game.
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