Month: March 2009

More US Interventions?

Iraq is waning…Afghanistan is….well Afghanistan!

The US has its hands full with Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan, but somewhere the next big test is brewing.  But where?

Could it be Sri Lanka?

Further evidence has emerged confirming that top-level discussions are underway involving Washington, Colombo and New Delhi over an American-led military intervention in northern Sri Lanka on the pretext of evacuating civilians trapped by the island’s civil war.

Speaking to a group of South Asian journalists last weekend, US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher was asked about press reports in Colombo revealing plans for a marine expeditionary brigade attached to Pacific Command (PACOM) to be sent to Sri Lanka.

While deliberately vague on detail, Boucher did confirm that talks were taking place. “We had some people there to look at the situation to identify what the possibilities might be. We could do whatever we can to help these people,” he said.

Is that Mexico calling?

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen briefed President Barack Obama over the weekend on the so-called drug war in Mexico and the prospect of increased US military involvement in the conflict south of the border.

Mullen had just returned from a six-day tour of Latin America, which took him on his last and most important stop to Mexico City. There he held meetings with Mexico’s secretary of national defense and other top military officials and discussed proposals for rushing increased US aid to Mexico under the auspices of Plan Merida, a three-year, $1.4 billion package designed to provide equipment, training and other assistance to the Mexican armed forces.

How about Sudan?

Washington has welcomed the charges against Bashir. The US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, declared, “Those who committed atrocities in Sudan, including genocide, should be brought to justice.” US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “Governments and individuals who either conduct or condone atrocities of any kind, as we have seen year after year in Sudan, have to be held accountable.”

There are many indications that the Obama administration is taking a more aggressive stance toward Sudan than that which prevailed under the Bush administration. Writing in the Washington Post on March 5, the former Air Force chief of staff and co-chair of the presidential campaign of Barack Obama, General Merrill McPeak, called for the establishment of a no-fly zone over Sudan and hinted that it could be the first step toward a bombing campaign. Referring to Yugoslavia in the 1990s, he wrote, “[W]e ultimately saw that more vigorous action was needed to end that conflict. The same conclusion holds now for Darfur.”

Where will the next test be?  The chest thumping has begun…where will it end?

What A Difference A TALF Makes

What the hell is a TALF?

TALF is Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF).  It is Bailout #2, which consequently will not be tapped from our pockets rather from printing of more money, is known by some as the consumer bailout, and also a refocused plan to more-so help financial markets dealing with consumer asset-backed securities like auto loans, credit-card debt, and student loans. The new consumer program will allocate $200 billion by the Federal Reserve to security holders of consumer backed debt, essentially doing this will insure the debt if a borrower defaults. And backing the backers, the Treasury department will provide $20 billion from the $700 billion from bailout #1 funds to safeguard losses the Federal Reserve will incur.

Basically, a pool of cash to be used to assist car loans, home loans, etc.  This is a lame attempt to try and create demand.  The problem with this plan is what good is a pool of cash when so many are unemplyed?  These people will will not qualify for a home loan or a car loan….so what is the TALF for?

Just another attempt to save Wall Street.  The people are suffering and the answer to that is more cash to help the business biggies survive.

Hurry! Save The Banks!

Since the very beginning of the economic crisis and then the bailout process it has been about saving the banks, because “they are too big too fail”.  Dollar after dollar has been thrown at the banks in question and what has it accompliushed?  A damn fine question!

The Congress and all concerned are throwing this money at the banks with the hopes that it will prop up their bottom line so that they will once again start loaning money.  In essence they are trying to improve the bank’s liquidity.

Good one, guys!  But answer this–what good is liquidity if there is NO demand?  Why would banks loan to companies if no one is buying their product?

Let us take it further.  There is NO demand!  Until demand can be created banks will NOT loan money to anyone.  The only economic activity right now is between banks, because they are too big too fail.  The banks are being saved—they are NOT saving jobs–They are NOT creating jobs–they are NOT loaning–they are doing nothing.  Wait!  That is a lie!  They are investing overseas and Citi made a profit.

Profit?  Does that mean the government can expect a check?  Doubtful!

One more time!  If demand cannot be created, then liquidity means squat!

We Do Not Want Your Money

That is what several governors have told the Federal government, most of them in the South and Repubs, but why would a governor not want stimulus money to help his/her state?  Well, some say that it would put a strain on their budgets in the future.  Or maybe it is the red tape involved.  Or maybe it is because it is coming from a Democratic pres.

There has not been a definitive answer to why they do not need or want the cash…but with a little reading and research there could be an answer…..

The buzz grows surrounding the possibility of a second massive economic stimulus package, President Obama and Vice President Biden warned state officials yesterday to spend their shares of the approved $787 billion wisely – or else.

“If we see money being misspent, we’re going to put a stop to it,” Obama said at a daylong White House conference on the recovery package.

With that one statement it could explain the hesitancy of the governors to accept the cash.  It must be spent for the good of the state…not put in some “general fund” to be pissed away like so many other funds that some of the states receive.

Could it be that the governors are afraid of the word “transparency”?

I did find one thing that caught my attention.

Some state officials expressed confusion about what role they will play in passing on stimulus money to cities and towns and what reporting requirements they’ll face. They also complained that there has been a lack of communication about projects that have been announced.

This is a good possibliity, especially in my state of Mississippi, where we have the absolute worst system of record checking….another good way to piss money away …if no one can check where it goes…..

These governors are NOT acting in the best interests of their states and its people.  They are playing politics…in a tiome when politics should be the furtherest thing from their minds.

Get Government Out Of Your Life

I do not mind the government taxing me or telling me that my kid has to go to school but there are some things that they should NOT be allowed to do.  These are to legislate morality or good health or good eating habits.

Last year the state of Mississippi tried to encat a law that would make it illegal for restaurants to sell certain foods to overweight people.  You got it!  They were trying to making certain eating habits illegal….like what they are doing with smoking and oral sex.

But Mississippi is not alone in this assault on the people’s right to the “pursuit of happiness” thing.  Paterson of New York had his “fat Tax”.   The initiative that drew the most criticism was an 18-percent tax on nondiet soda. It was dubbed the “fat tax” because $404 million in proceeds were to go toward combating childhood obesity.

The government needs to stay out of the people’s private lives…their health habits are just that…theirs.  No matter how hard the government tries they cannot legislate morality or health.

Where Is The Crime?

Tariq Aziz, for many years the public face of Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi regime, has been jailed for 15 years for his role in the execution of 42 merchants.

Aziz had denied any role in the summary trials of the men accused in 1992 of profiteering during economic sanctions.

I live in the path of Katrina, well actually at ground zero.  I watched as many people profitted from the disaster and the suffering of the people of my area.  Persoanlly, I think what Aziz did to those profiting from the sanctions anbd the misery of the Iraqi people was not a crime, just deserved punishment.

If this type of punishment was dealt out after disasters, it would go a long way at preventing others from trying to take advantage of others.  Extreme?  Of course….Deserved?…Damn right!

Before I get the round of the Saddam hating morons…I am talking about the act of profiteering, not the Saddam regime…..got that?

Gingrich Is A Moron!

And you thought you had heard all you were gonna hear from this guy….HA!

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich says Michigan should pay pregnant teenagers to take prenatal vitamins and stay healthy so the government avoids expensive costs when babies end up in neonatal intensive care units.

The Republican also told state senators Wednesday he supports paying poor children to read, and the state should consider paying girls to not get pregnant.

Gingrich is the founder of the Center for Health Transformation. He says politicians and the media spend too much time focusing on the finances of health care. Gingrich says more attention must be paid to cultural changes such as requiring students to exercise, putting grocery stores in the inner city and incentivizing people to not smoke.

Is he saying to pay teen girls to have sex but not get pregnant?  I believe there is a title for that activity.

Earmarks! A Pathetic Issue!

Earmarks?  This is funds added to a build for pet projects in districts of the congressperson attaching them.  Think about that…..if so, what the hell was the recent stimulus package passed for?

The media keeps punding Obama for the spending bill he just signed.  Their main bitch is that it is full of earmarks, about 9000 or so.  Now the media is truly concerned because during the campaign Obama said he would eliminate all earmarks, at least that is what the pundits are saying.

Houston, we have a problem.  To begin with, during the presidential campaign it was Mccain who spouted the crap about eliminating earmarks.  Obama said that he would reform the earmark system and I believe that is what he is trying to do.

The truly silly part about the last bill with all the earmarks that the Repubs are so getting political mileage out of, was full of the earmarks from Repubs.  The two biggest came from the two senators from Mississippi.  Oh yeah, both are Repubs.

Repubs are just flipping pathetic and should be put on some type of hypocrisy watch.

New Light Bulbs? Are You Kidding?

I wish someone would just start telling the truth about these so-called “environment friendly” light bulbs.

Now you people do realize that the new light bulbs contain mercury, right?  If not, then just take a good look at the package it is labeled.  How will the people dispose of the bulbs when they are replaced?  The trash will be a good guess.  If so, then that means that mercury will be put into the US landfill system.  And eventually the mercury will build up in the water table and fianlly infect the food supply.

In case you are interested–mercury poisoning is has an extensive list of problems from psychological to gastro-intestinal.

I have heard that there will be special disposal sites set up so that people will bring in their spent bulbs for disposal.  Think about that…..a culture that lives and dies by a remote and buys salad shooters…just how many will take the time to drop off spent bulbs?  The CFLs are NOT the answer to the energy problem.  let me see if I have this about right?  I use the bulbs to lessen the impact of air pollution while feeding an increase in water pollution.  Sorry, I am not that stupid!  Are you?

Time for the people to wake up! A wonderful thing, energy saving, but everything comes at a price and the CFLs have a price. My question is why would anyone support anything that would have such lasting effects? We settle for short term feel good solutions and the whole time we are poisoning our children’s children. Good plan!

Oh Goody! The Bitch Is Back!

Just when you thought you had heard all there is to hear about the bitch with the overactive womb….but….we were WRONG!

Southern California’s octuplets mother may be moving to a new home and getting help to raise her brood.

Nadya Suleman’s father Ed Doud is purchasing a $564,900 house in the city of La Habra in a deal is expected to close Friday, said Prudential Realty listing agent Mike Patel.

In a related development, television’s Dr. Phil McGraw said Monday that Suleman will accept a volunteer group’s offer of nursing care for her children.

The 2,583-square-foot house in La Habra, about 20 miles east of Los Angeles, has four bedrooms, three baths and a large, fenced-in backyard. The master bedroom features a walk-in closet

McGraw said in a statement that Suleman will accept childcare help from the nonprofit nursing group Angels in Waiting.

Suleman had previously said she wouldn’t accept the group’s offer to provide round-the-clock care because it would mean relocating to the mountain community of Lake Arrowhead, but a deal has been made to provide care at home, according to the statement.

Suleman is scheduled to appear on the “Dr. Phil” show Tuesday and Wednesday.

Okay people…now is the time to STOP letting this bitch have a voice in the media…..time to move past this whacko….