We have been hearing a lot of bad news from the Doom-O-Sphere in the last year. Stories about folks in foreclosure who are losing their McMansions, banks losing their depositors and needing taxpayer bailouts. Then there are there thousands losing their jobs due to banks (losing their capital reserves!) hoarding what little loot they have and not willing to lend. It is easy to get caught up in all this and start feeling sorry for yourself and scared, too, but is it really justified?
Have we forgotten to be grateful for what we do have? This piece was sent to me by my good friend Margaret. Yes, the Margaret who rides her bike to work. Wow, what would I write about here if it weren't for Margaret sending me such good stuff to expound upon. She has inspired at least 3 of my postings, now. Mahalo, my good friend!
As we head into Great Depression 2.0 it will be a good thing to keep things in perspective. Things like how this country has so much food and stuff we send the excess to other countries. We have so much we end up hording it in our opus (stomachs)!
We consume 25% of the worlds oil yet have only 2% of the population. Is that a wakeup call or what? Should we be a bit more humble and grateful for the abundance we have been blessed with?
Most of us live in places that have indoor plumbing, hot and cold running water, flush toilets, tv's in every room, 2 fairly new cars in the driveway, food in the pantry, and a stove to cook it on. We have packed fridges and freezers, washers and dryers, vacuum cleaners and lawn mowers. I am talking about the average everyday American in a rental or a foreclosure, in a mortgaged home or a paid for home.
I could write pages about what we have in this country but you get the point by now, I'm sure. We have it pretty darn good in this country. Okay?
Now the problem is that all of this bellyaching and bailout crap along with the ridiculous sense of entitlements is making us the laughing stock of the rest of the world. We come off like a nation of overfed, overstuffed waddling spoiled, jaded brats and it's high time we all sat down and counted our infinite blessings even if we cannot buy that flat screen or take the kids to Disneyland this year. Anyway, David Letterman is getting credit for this piece below and as rich and privileged as he is, has taken some time to share some of his unique wisdom.
The below is attributed to David Letterman but was actually penned by Craig R. Smith. No matter who wrote it, it bears repeating that we need to be grateful for what we have in America.
David Letterman wrote this; it's the David we don't often see... As most of you know I am not a President Bush fan, nor have I ever been, but this is not about Bush, it is about us, as Americans, and it seems to hit the mark. 'The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some Poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right? The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the President. In essence 2/3 of the citizenry just ain't happy and want a change. So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, 'What are we so unhappy about?''
A. Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 Days a week?
B. Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter?
C. Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job?
D. Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?
E. Maybe it is the ability to drive our cars and trucks from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through each state?
F. Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter?
G. I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough either.
H. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.
I. Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home.
J. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames, thus saving you, your family, and your belongings.
K. Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes, an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss.
L. This all in the backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 % of teenagers own cell phones and computers.
M. How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world?
Maybe that is what has 67% of you folks unhappy. Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S., yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don't have, and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here. I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The president who has a measly 31 percent approval rating? Is this the same president who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ung rate ful brats safe from terrorist attacks? The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn't take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad? Think about it...... are y ou upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the 'Media' told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day.
Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have
volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom. There is currently no draft in this country. They didn't have to go. They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ''general'' discharge, an 'other than honorable'' discharge or, worst case scenario, a ''dishonorable' ' discharge after a few days in the brig. So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for-profit corporations. They offer what sells, and when criticized, try to defend their actions by justifying them in one way or another.
Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn't kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way......Insane! Turn off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as country. There is exponentially more good than bad. We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative. With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?
Did that punch you in the gut or what?
Now check out these statistics if you are still feeling down about your sorry ass life. I got this off of Tickerforum awhile back and now is a good time to post it. I do not know who wrote it but it sure will make you feel very BLESSED and FORTUNATE to be a citizen of this United States of America.
If you could fit the entire population of the world into a village consisting of 100 people, maintaining the proportion of all the people living on Earth, that village would consist of:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
13 Americans (North, Central, South)
8 Africans
There would be:52 women and 48 men
30 Caucasians and 70 non-Caucasians
30 Christians and 70 non-Christians
89 heterosexuals and 11 homosexuals
6 people would possess 59% of the wealth and they would all come from the USA.
80 would live in poverty
70 would be illiterate
50 would suffer from hunger and malnutrition
1 would be dying1 would be being born1 would own a computer
1 would have a university degree
Now, if you woke up this morning in good health, you have more luck than 1 million people, who wont live through the week. If you have never experienced the horror of war, the solitude of prison, the pain of torture, were not close to death from starvation, then you are better off than 500 million people. If you can go to your place of worship without fear that someone will assault or kill you, then you are luckier than 3 billion people. If you have a full fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep tonight, you are wealthier than 75% of the world’s population. If you currently have money in the bank, in your wallet and a few coins in your purse, you are 1 of the 8% of the privileged few amongst the rest of the population. If your parents are still alive and still married, you are a rare individual. If you can read this, then you’re not part of the 2 billion people who can’t read.
If this does not stop your complaints then God help you and your sorry ass!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Monkeynomics and the StockMarket
This was emailed to me by my good friend Margaret. She's the wahine that rides her bike from mauka Kurtistown to South Hilo. You can check out her story near the bottom of this blog.Once upon a time, in a village, a man appeared and announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10 each.
The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys around, went out to the forest and started catching them. The man bought thousands at $10 and, as supply started to diminish, the villagers stopped their effort. He further announced that he would now buy at $20 for a monkey.
This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms. The offer increased to $25 each, and the supply of monkeys became so small that it was an effort to even find a monkey, let alone catch it!
The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50! However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now buy on behalf of him.
In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers. "Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at $35, and when the man returns from the city, you can sell them to him for $50 each."
The villagers rounded up all their savings and bought all the monkeys.
They never saw the man nor his assistant again, only monkeys everywhere!
Now you have a better understanding of how Wall Street works. SOLD TO YOU!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Survival of the Thriftiest
Yesterday, I saw a bit of news crawl by on CNBC. It stated that for the Chinese to weather the global slowdown that they would need to become more consumer oriented instead of relying on exports. Meaning, they need to quit hording those yuans and start buying all that Walmart junk or else no more jobby job. "Oh really?!" Does anyone think that 5000 years of ancestral history of constant famines and droughts can be glossed over somehow and turned into a some kind of polished up dyed in the wool Westernstyle uber consumer? How does that sit with the average Chinese person who has the god given intstincts towards thrift and savings? This instinct is a well known trait in Hawaii and we have a word for those Chinese tightwads: Pake. (I say this with love and pride mind you!) This pake-ness is as integral to the Chinese collective character as say, hot dogs, hamburgers and Fourth of July is to Americans? The Chinese know that they have 1 billion people dependent on a land that has not proven to be a dependable rice basket due to natures frequent capriciousness . I would say austerity and thrift is quite hard wired into their DNA.
Why, is it the US is so opposite when it comes to that essential character trait for survival? THRIFT.
Could it be that we have a free market capitalist system that by its inherent nature is rigged to blow when it reaches critical mass? Have we been brainwashed into this mass consumption to keep the hungry beast full of profits? Or is it because we live in a land so abundant with natural resources we have never known real famine and starvation? Will we ever have our collective souls tested like the Chinese have over and over for 5000 years?
Following is written by a well respected blogger, economic pundit and successful businessman by the name of Karl Denninger of Market-Ticker. He is a smart money guy, a no holds barred Bear but a true Patriot as well. He saw this current financial train wreck years before the derailment and has been shouting and writing from his soapbox to anyone who will listen. Here is what he has to say to say about our impending DEBT NUKE.
http://market-ticker.org/archives/623-The-Stark-Choice-Now-Facing-America.html
The truth is that our nation, and indeed the world, has too much debt for its ability to earn income and has had since 1968. As this became apparent to the people at The Federal Reserve and Treasury, in the 1980s starting with Alan Greenspan, interest rates were artificially kept low for a long period of time to encourage you and others to go into that debt - debt you and these firms cannot possibly repay.
This is why we had the crash in 1987, why LTCM blew up in the 1990s, why we had an Internet Bubble and now why we had a Housing Bubble.
All of these bubbles were intentionally created by The Fed, Treasury and Wall Street Banks to keep the charade alive that you could take on more and more debt and they could make more and more money.
We are now out of bubbles and ability to support bubbles, and America (and the world, in fact) is out of the ability to support more debt.
We are now borrowing money to cover up the fact that millions of Americans and tens of thousands of companies are bankrupt, and the banks and other institutions that loaned them money are likewise bankrupt, as the people who owe them that money can't and never will be able to pay.
The people who in turn loan America the money it needs to operate - over $2 billion a day - have become aware of this fact.
This is very bad, because nobody will loan money to someone forever when they have no reasonable belief that they will ever be paid back.
How have we gotten ourselves into such a stupendous mess? Have we not been here before in 1929? Why did we make things so complicated? How is it that we keep doing the same thing over and over again yet think that somehow the outcome will be different ? Is that not the definition of insanity?
I am not a scholar, and can only explain things from my own limited knowledge. The way I see it is in this Free market, Democratic, Capitalist system anyone can start a business with basic entrepeneurial spirit, common business sense, hard work and ambition. Add some bank fairy dust to the mix and voila- a successful business for those whose horsey happens to stop at the gold ring. I will use Martha Stewart as an example just for clarity and noteworthiness.
She started out selling gourmet pies in a boutique food market in Turkey Wing, Connecticutt (yes, I am making up the name of the town but her house is called Turkey something, I know that for a fact) back in the late 70's. Soon everyone wanted to buy her pies, she jacked up the prices and sold even more. Next thing she needs more ovens and a big commercial kitchen to mass produce the pies. Then, she hits up her Wall Street Banker buddies and gets big fat loans since she in fact used to be a stockbroker and is well connected. Next thing you know, she is a media darling and eventually a billionaire. We will stop right there and spare the rest of the story with the jail time and ugly crocheted poncho and all.
Beyond this well known tale of American Entrepeneurialship is all the rest of the Martha's who think their pies are pretty damn good, too. They get their loans and sell their pies to millions, well maybe not as many as Martha but you get the point. Soon we consumers, have 65 different pies to choose from. Maybe they're not all at the same store, but nevertheless we have a shitload of pies, all gourmet kine, to compete for our limited dollars. How can we support all these pies when we only have so much money? Remember Martha's Wall Street Banker budz?
Those ingenious banker dudes came up with an idea back in the 60's that was to revolutionize the average consumer. Bank of America was behind this brainiac idea: the Bankamericard. For the banks, this was the jackpot, the great big fat cash cow!. It was a way for them to loan money to anyone no matter how shitty the credit score. In fact the worse the score the more money the bankers could make since they could charge outrageous mafioso Guido type rates. (Are you getting a little pissed off yet? Good, you should be.)
The next hurdle was to get the masses to believe that having one in the wallet was a sign of having arrived on the American Dream Machine. This became the kuleana of slick advertisers from Madison Avenue along with their cohorts in Tinseltown. By the 1980's the ad campaigns sucked 'em up by the millions. When the digital millenium clock went from 1999 to 2000 most everyone was receiving these little plastic rectangle offers daily via the US Postal system. By then the Capitalist Machine was full throttle, consumers were saturated with unimaginable choices for anything and everthing, from burgers and fries, fried chicken and fish to designer bags and shoes. It was almost infinite and I am not even adding the consumer mecca of online shopping, either!
In true democratic spirit anyone could have it all for the price of paying a minimum balance at 25% apr compounded monthly. So here we are in the point of evolution where to be a valid human being we are taught that "Life takes Visa" and you are an idiot if you leave home without your Mastercard. Good one, huh?
The problem as Mr. Denninger states above is now we find ourselves in so much debt that not only can we not pay it back, we don't have any money to buy any more STUFFS, either. This is called an Economic Depression, kids. It is a BIG black sucking hole and no matter how thrifty and austere one may have lived their life no one is going to come out of this without some kind of sacrifice and loss of wealth. If you are a saver, then Mr. Helicopter Ben Bernanke wants to lower those Effective Fund Rates so your bank can only pay you a pitiful interest rate on all your hard earned loot.
Real smart folks, have invested in (Big Island?)farm land, solar power, heirloom seeds, livestock and rototillers. They may be the only ones who come out unscathed from this trainwrecked economy (that is if they were not stupid enough to buy it in 2005!).
It is going to be very painful, people may starve, cities may turn into New Orleans post Katrina, and certain goverment entitlements like Social Security and Medicaid/Medicare may not get funded. I hope it does not get this bad but the risk is highly there because the system we have has no where to go but BOOM as in mushroom kine.
The upshot of all this doom and gloom is that we will learn what the Pake's have soddered into their brainwires, that thrift, sacrifice and putting self indulgence aside, can have great future returns when events beyond control turn on us. It IS all about Survival of the thriftiest.
Why, is it the US is so opposite when it comes to that essential character trait for survival? THRIFT.
Could it be that we have a free market capitalist system that by its inherent nature is rigged to blow when it reaches critical mass? Have we been brainwashed into this mass consumption to keep the hungry beast full of profits? Or is it because we live in a land so abundant with natural resources we have never known real famine and starvation? Will we ever have our collective souls tested like the Chinese have over and over for 5000 years?
Following is written by a well respected blogger, economic pundit and successful businessman by the name of Karl Denninger of Market-Ticker. He is a smart money guy, a no holds barred Bear but a true Patriot as well. He saw this current financial train wreck years before the derailment and has been shouting and writing from his soapbox to anyone who will listen. Here is what he has to say to say about our impending DEBT NUKE.
http://market-ticker.org/archives/623-The-Stark-Choice-Now-Facing-America.html
The truth is that our nation, and indeed the world, has too much debt for its ability to earn income and has had since 1968. As this became apparent to the people at The Federal Reserve and Treasury, in the 1980s starting with Alan Greenspan, interest rates were artificially kept low for a long period of time to encourage you and others to go into that debt - debt you and these firms cannot possibly repay.
This is why we had the crash in 1987, why LTCM blew up in the 1990s, why we had an Internet Bubble and now why we had a Housing Bubble.
All of these bubbles were intentionally created by The Fed, Treasury and Wall Street Banks to keep the charade alive that you could take on more and more debt and they could make more and more money.
We are now out of bubbles and ability to support bubbles, and America (and the world, in fact) is out of the ability to support more debt.
We are now borrowing money to cover up the fact that millions of Americans and tens of thousands of companies are bankrupt, and the banks and other institutions that loaned them money are likewise bankrupt, as the people who owe them that money can't and never will be able to pay.
The people who in turn loan America the money it needs to operate - over $2 billion a day - have become aware of this fact.
This is very bad, because nobody will loan money to someone forever when they have no reasonable belief that they will ever be paid back.
How have we gotten ourselves into such a stupendous mess? Have we not been here before in 1929? Why did we make things so complicated? How is it that we keep doing the same thing over and over again yet think that somehow the outcome will be different ? Is that not the definition of insanity?
I am not a scholar, and can only explain things from my own limited knowledge. The way I see it is in this Free market, Democratic, Capitalist system anyone can start a business with basic entrepeneurial spirit, common business sense, hard work and ambition. Add some bank fairy dust to the mix and voila- a successful business for those whose horsey happens to stop at the gold ring. I will use Martha Stewart as an example just for clarity and noteworthiness.
She started out selling gourmet pies in a boutique food market in Turkey Wing, Connecticutt (yes, I am making up the name of the town but her house is called Turkey something, I know that for a fact) back in the late 70's. Soon everyone wanted to buy her pies, she jacked up the prices and sold even more. Next thing she needs more ovens and a big commercial kitchen to mass produce the pies. Then, she hits up her Wall Street Banker buddies and gets big fat loans since she in fact used to be a stockbroker and is well connected. Next thing you know, she is a media darling and eventually a billionaire. We will stop right there and spare the rest of the story with the jail time and ugly crocheted poncho and all.
Beyond this well known tale of American Entrepeneurialship is all the rest of the Martha's who think their pies are pretty damn good, too. They get their loans and sell their pies to millions, well maybe not as many as Martha but you get the point. Soon we consumers, have 65 different pies to choose from. Maybe they're not all at the same store, but nevertheless we have a shitload of pies, all gourmet kine, to compete for our limited dollars. How can we support all these pies when we only have so much money? Remember Martha's Wall Street Banker budz?
Those ingenious banker dudes came up with an idea back in the 60's that was to revolutionize the average consumer. Bank of America was behind this brainiac idea: the Bankamericard. For the banks, this was the jackpot, the great big fat cash cow!. It was a way for them to loan money to anyone no matter how shitty the credit score. In fact the worse the score the more money the bankers could make since they could charge outrageous mafioso Guido type rates. (Are you getting a little pissed off yet? Good, you should be.)
The next hurdle was to get the masses to believe that having one in the wallet was a sign of having arrived on the American Dream Machine. This became the kuleana of slick advertisers from Madison Avenue along with their cohorts in Tinseltown. By the 1980's the ad campaigns sucked 'em up by the millions. When the digital millenium clock went from 1999 to 2000 most everyone was receiving these little plastic rectangle offers daily via the US Postal system. By then the Capitalist Machine was full throttle, consumers were saturated with unimaginable choices for anything and everthing, from burgers and fries, fried chicken and fish to designer bags and shoes. It was almost infinite and I am not even adding the consumer mecca of online shopping, either!
In true democratic spirit anyone could have it all for the price of paying a minimum balance at 25% apr compounded monthly. So here we are in the point of evolution where to be a valid human being we are taught that "Life takes Visa" and you are an idiot if you leave home without your Mastercard. Good one, huh?
The problem as Mr. Denninger states above is now we find ourselves in so much debt that not only can we not pay it back, we don't have any money to buy any more STUFFS, either. This is called an Economic Depression, kids. It is a BIG black sucking hole and no matter how thrifty and austere one may have lived their life no one is going to come out of this without some kind of sacrifice and loss of wealth. If you are a saver, then Mr. Helicopter Ben Bernanke wants to lower those Effective Fund Rates so your bank can only pay you a pitiful interest rate on all your hard earned loot.
Real smart folks, have invested in (Big Island?)farm land, solar power, heirloom seeds, livestock and rototillers. They may be the only ones who come out unscathed from this trainwrecked economy (that is if they were not stupid enough to buy it in 2005!).
It is going to be very painful, people may starve, cities may turn into New Orleans post Katrina, and certain goverment entitlements like Social Security and Medicaid/Medicare may not get funded. I hope it does not get this bad but the risk is highly there because the system we have has no where to go but BOOM as in mushroom kine.
The upshot of all this doom and gloom is that we will learn what the Pake's have soddered into their brainwires, that thrift, sacrifice and putting self indulgence aside, can have great future returns when events beyond control turn on us. It IS all about Survival of the thriftiest.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
How to be a Revolutionary Without Doing Jailtime
How does one fight a revolution without getting killed or going to jail? Read the letter below by a guy by the name of John Dini. Guaranteed you have never heard his name but someday your great, great grandchildren may read about his letter helped fuel the American Peoples' Revolution of 2008. He explains what this Bailout thingy is really all about. This very respectable businessman, John Dini, took the time to read the 450+page bill and managed to weed through all of the mumbo jumbo and pork fat and lay it all out for us dummies and slackers in a clear and concise format. Please read the entire letter, because if you skip the part about all the hidden porkfat, you will not be mad enough to do something.
His conclusion, is that we must vote out everyone who voted for this unbelievable travesty and robbery of taxpayers (and their descendants for multiple generations). I am adding that esoteric and mystical word; Revolution. Esoteric and mystical for the root of the word is evolve. And in the middle of this magical word do you see the word LOVE? The Creator is everywhere isn’t she? (Much like Dog when spelled backwords=God! and Yes, I realize I have segued off the point.)
There is a day for a revolution of the people. That day is Nov. 4th. One day. This revolution can be fought and won in one day with no jail time, no gun shots and not even a broken press-on nail. You may not realize it due to the main stream media’s tendency to treat us like a Mushroom Ranch (kept in the dark and fed shit) but there are other respectable candidates that we could vote for. Candidates who actually have old fashioned respect for that nifty little document called the US CONSTITUTION that was signed by those bad boys of history who had the fired ass balls to kick those friggin English tea drinking biscuit eaters outta here, back in the last quarter of the 1700's.
Here's some other candidates that I am sure most have never heard one tiny word. There’s the Libertarian dude, Bob Barr, the Green Party Wahine; Cynthia McKinney (a black woman no less, now that would be way cooler than Obama with his old white guy vp!) and of course the venerable, irrepressable and nearly invisible Ralph Nader. If enough of us woke up by some strange miracle or some kind of 100th Monkey event, then we could stop these crimes and take back our country from the blatant thieves, er, I mean the Government.
“WE THE PEOPLE” have been robbed, raped, spit and crapped on by the Facist Wall Street Banking /Paulson/Bush/Cheney Cartel on October 1st with this phony bailout bill. They have stuffed the wadded up constitution up our butts and are laughing their asses off in their plush, well stocked, booze laden bunkers. They have given us the choice of Tweedle Dum or Tweedle Dee and think we are all STOOOPID and too pre occupied with “Dancing with the Stars” to give a crap. They fart in our face, and wave their fingers at us and dance around with all of their hot off the press FRN’s.
What is going on now, as the Bush Regime loots the taxpayers in plain daylight, is way more catastrophic than those twin towers' horrific controlled demolition on September 11th, 2001. Those towers were a portent of more to come. Seven years later, a monster named GREED has morphed into a blood thirsty GODZILLA with tyransaurrus size fangs and testicles stumbling around and devouring the entire economy in its path. No one, and no thing is safe. It would be fascinating to see how history tells this story five hundreds years from now, of how the most powerful nation on earth was laid to waste and ruin by a government run by an Oil cartel who did what they could to secure a dwindling resource barely available in their own nation.
Okay, enough of my lunacy, read this letter and please get pissed off enough to vote out ALL of these idiots, even our dear, sweet, Mazie Hirono, bless her pea picken little kitten heart. I like her but she did not think for herself and bowed down to the Dictator, Herr Paulson. (Sorry Mazie, you blew it. You should remained in Marcy Kaptur’s camp.
Okay, faithful readers, check this out:
This is not a conservative or liberal, Republican or Democratic letter. This is for anyone who is angry about how our government is running, or who is frustrated by a feeling of helplessness, or who feels unable to do anything about our current mess.
A legislature that has a 9% approval rating, ONE MONTH before an election, just passed a bill that constituents' comments ran 100 to 1 AGAINST. Not only did they ignore voter opinion, but under extreme scrutiny, they STILL added lots of breaks for cronies, and they did so KNOWING that 90% of them would be re-elected ANYWAY. This letter is long, but at the end I will tell you how I think we can do something about it.
My name is John F. Dini. I am a small business owner in Texas, with 4 employees and well under a million dollars in gross revenue. I have lived in both red and blue states, on the east coast and the west. I don't think what I have to say should offend anyone. That's why I'm willing to put my name on it. My email is jdini@mpninc.com. Unlike many of our legislators, I will take personal responsibility for my actions. You are welcome to let me know what you think, and whether you're signing on to this.
If you don't want to read about the bailout bill, skip down to "END OF BAILOUT BILL DISCUSSION".
Last week Congress passed HB 1424, the "Emergency Economic Stabilization Act." As you've probably heard, it was a bit more than just the bailout bill. I've gone through all 451 pages. Here are some highlights:
• Sec. 103: The Treasury can also purchase mortgages on apartment buildings. To my knowledge, those who own apartment buildings aren't usually in danger of having their house taken away.
• Sec. 110 allows the regulators (there is a whole new bureaucracy being formed) to make any change to any troubled mortgage, including giving the property away.
• Sec. 116: Keeps the bureaucracy in place until the last asset is sold, or the last loan is paid.
• Sec 122: Raises the debt ceiling to $11,315,000,000,000. For historical reference, we broke the $1 trillion debt limit in the Reagan administration. That runaway borrowing is what George H.W. Bush called "Voodoo Economics." Last week we borrowed another trillion in a day.
• Sec. 132 suspends FASB 157. That's what made banks show the real value of their assets on their books, even if it had fallen to zero. That is no longer necessary, (but we WILL form a commission to decide later on what they should be showing to their shareholders, presumably something other than the actual value of their assets.)
• Sec. 136 raises the FDIC published coverage limit to $250,000 per account. What they haven't mentioned is that this higher "coverage" expires in 15 months, and the FDIC is ordered NOT to adjust the insurance for these new risks. That law actually just orders the FDIC to change the number $100,000 to $250,000 everywhere, nothing else.
That is the first 112 pages. The next bill (actually several different laws, passed on the same vote) extends a bunch of energy tax breaks for wind, clean coal, biofuels, geothermal, and others. It also gives credits to the steel industry, for plug in vehicles (in addition to the $25 billion handout to GM and Ford last week), for the black lung trust fund, and for home appliances that recycle gray water.
The next bill tacked on is a Tax Relief bill. That one raises the AMT trigger by a fraction (from $66K to $69K) and has special tax breaks for:
• Restaurant and retail depreciation
• Rum from Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands
• Businesses in American Samoa
• Mine rescue training
• Businesses on Indian Reservations (casinos)
• Railroad tracks
• Motorsports Racing Facilities (the "NASCAR" break)
• Employees of companies affected by Hurricane Katrina
• Investing in Washington DC
• Wool producers
• Film and television production
• Wooden arrow manufacturers
• Winners of Exxon Valdez lawsuits
• Farming Machinery purchases
Also, the failed 2007 Paul Wellstone mental health bill is included here, which requires all health insurers to cover mental health treatment just like physical illness. I'm not sure how long this bill has been trying to get passed, but Senator Wellstone DIED in 2002.
Under "other" THAT bill has another 100 pages including the following:
• Funding for schools, roads, weed control, forest ecosystems, improved cooperation among Federal agencies and the Oregon & California Railroad.
• Secure payments for states with Federal Lands, which you would think was everybody, but is defined as only LA, CA, OR, PA, SC, SD, TX and WA.
• A call for proposals to cooperate with Federal agencies, which upon reading is actually a requirement that BLM accept a minimum of 50% of timber logging contracts over the next 3 years.
• Doubling of the "Mine Reclamation Fund"
• Rewording of the Katrina relief bills to include IL, IA, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, and WI
• Further extension of Katrina Relief to ANYONE "affected" by Hurricane Ike.
My sympathies to the folks in Maine and North Dakota, who appear to have been left out (unless that's where the wooden arrow makers cluster.) Actual outlays are not $700 billion, but an estimated $852 billion, apparently not counting tax reductions.
Are you angry yet?
END OF BAILOUT BILL DISCUSSION
In her 1957 novel "Atlas Shrugged" Ayn Rand foresaw an America where corrupt businessmen and politicians allied to loot the country for all they could get. They got away with it because most people either believed that a bit more hard work, a bit more struggling, would see things turnaround eventually, or that everything was beyond their ability to control anyway. Many people disagree with Rand's conclusions and philosophy, but on this she was truly clairvoyant.
Most voters believe that Congress is full of bad actors, EXCEPT FOR THEIR GUY! Your congressman (or woman) came to your Rotary meeting, or saved a local industry, or got funding for your favorite park, and therefore is one of the "good guys." I put forward the idea that if any one of them was truly above the corruption, he or she would have been back in your district screaming bloody murder rather than in DC casting a vote for or against this farce. Instead, every single Congressman is telling you that it was the other guys who got us into this mess. They are cultivating and depending on our fear of each other to stay in power.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO SAVE AMERICA
I don't "do" chain letters, even the ones my relatives send me that say "return this to show you care for me." This is my first-ever exception. I care enough to risk your annoyance with me for sending this. It's up to you to decide whether you care more about saving this democracy, or having a friend, customer or client think you are "too political."
I believe that if we continue "business as usual" by returning over 90% of Congress to office, we are rewarding their arrogance; and surrendered any fantasy that our government is answerable to the people. They obviously don't believe it. That is why Congress has exempted itself from labor law, equal opportunity, OSHA, Social Security and any liability. This may be our last chance to remind our elected officials that this is supposed to be a government by the people.
"My vote can't do anything"
You can't vote to throw out the other guy's representative, you can only vote for or against your own. In 2006 the Democrats won their average district with a 54.8% vote, considered a landslide. The so-called Republican Revolution of 1994 was won with an average of 51.6% of the vote. So if one person in twenty changed their vote, the result would be an almost complete turnover in Congress!
Our Founding Fathers designed the checks and balances of government well. The Senate is supposed to change slowly, so that it provides a longer-term perspective. The House changes every two years because it is supposed to reflect the current mood of the people! Returning 90% of Congress to office year after year, decade after decade, is surrendering the responsibility that Jefferson, Adams and Washington placed in us. It confirms their belief that they are untouchable.
On November 4th, vote for whomever you feel would be the better President, Senator, Governor, and for any state or local office, BUT VOTE AGAINST YOUR INCUMBENT CONGRESSMAN OR CONGRESSWOMAN. It doesn't matter who it is. It doesn't matter who the other candidate is. Cross party lines. Close your eyes or hold your nose when you do it, but do it. In 30 days we can send the biggest message to Congress of the last 100 years. It's a message that says "You aren't above the law. You are answerable for this mess. You still serve the people of this country."
And pass this along widely and quickly. Remember, we have less than 30 days, and it will only take one in twenty.
Thank you.
John F. Dini, CMBA, BCB, CBI
President, MPN Incorporated
(210) 615-1800
www.MPNinc.com
Profile of John F. Dini:
John Dini
• Bachelor's Degree: B.S., Accounting, Rutgers University
• Master's Degree: MBA, Pepperdine University
• Certifications: Professional Behavioral Analyst
• Certified MBA
• Certified Medical Practice Executive
• Strategic Business Leadership
• Board Certified Broker
• Certified Business Intermediary
John Dini has over 30 years of experience in entrepreneurial management. He has owned and operated start-up or turnaround companies for the last 21 years, and consulted for start-up organizations for 10 years. John founded The Alternative Board-TAB® in San Antonio in 1997, and has overseen its growth to its current status as the most successful TAB chapter in North America.
He has owned companies ranging from $2,000,000 to $15,000,000 in sales, including a warehouse distributor (automotive), a manufacturer (automotive and sporting goods) and a management services company (healthcare). John is a member of Jim Blasingame's "Braintrust", a group of business experts who appear regularly on the Small Business Advocate a nationally syndicated radio show. He is also the author of "103 Tips for Better Hiring" and co-author of "11 Things You Absolutely Need to Know About Selling Your Business".
His conclusion, is that we must vote out everyone who voted for this unbelievable travesty and robbery of taxpayers (and their descendants for multiple generations). I am adding that esoteric and mystical word; Revolution. Esoteric and mystical for the root of the word is evolve. And in the middle of this magical word do you see the word LOVE? The Creator is everywhere isn’t she? (Much like Dog when spelled backwords=God! and Yes, I realize I have segued off the point.)
There is a day for a revolution of the people. That day is Nov. 4th. One day. This revolution can be fought and won in one day with no jail time, no gun shots and not even a broken press-on nail. You may not realize it due to the main stream media’s tendency to treat us like a Mushroom Ranch (kept in the dark and fed shit) but there are other respectable candidates that we could vote for. Candidates who actually have old fashioned respect for that nifty little document called the US CONSTITUTION that was signed by those bad boys of history who had the fired ass balls to kick those friggin English tea drinking biscuit eaters outta here, back in the last quarter of the 1700's.
Here's some other candidates that I am sure most have never heard one tiny word. There’s the Libertarian dude, Bob Barr, the Green Party Wahine; Cynthia McKinney (a black woman no less, now that would be way cooler than Obama with his old white guy vp!) and of course the venerable, irrepressable and nearly invisible Ralph Nader. If enough of us woke up by some strange miracle or some kind of 100th Monkey event, then we could stop these crimes and take back our country from the blatant thieves, er, I mean the Government.
“WE THE PEOPLE” have been robbed, raped, spit and crapped on by the Facist Wall Street Banking /Paulson/Bush/Cheney Cartel on October 1st with this phony bailout bill. They have stuffed the wadded up constitution up our butts and are laughing their asses off in their plush, well stocked, booze laden bunkers. They have given us the choice of Tweedle Dum or Tweedle Dee and think we are all STOOOPID and too pre occupied with “Dancing with the Stars” to give a crap. They fart in our face, and wave their fingers at us and dance around with all of their hot off the press FRN’s.
What is going on now, as the Bush Regime loots the taxpayers in plain daylight, is way more catastrophic than those twin towers' horrific controlled demolition on September 11th, 2001. Those towers were a portent of more to come. Seven years later, a monster named GREED has morphed into a blood thirsty GODZILLA with tyransaurrus size fangs and testicles stumbling around and devouring the entire economy in its path. No one, and no thing is safe. It would be fascinating to see how history tells this story five hundreds years from now, of how the most powerful nation on earth was laid to waste and ruin by a government run by an Oil cartel who did what they could to secure a dwindling resource barely available in their own nation.
Okay, enough of my lunacy, read this letter and please get pissed off enough to vote out ALL of these idiots, even our dear, sweet, Mazie Hirono, bless her pea picken little kitten heart. I like her but she did not think for herself and bowed down to the Dictator, Herr Paulson. (Sorry Mazie, you blew it. You should remained in Marcy Kaptur’s camp.
Okay, faithful readers, check this out:
This is not a conservative or liberal, Republican or Democratic letter. This is for anyone who is angry about how our government is running, or who is frustrated by a feeling of helplessness, or who feels unable to do anything about our current mess.
A legislature that has a 9% approval rating, ONE MONTH before an election, just passed a bill that constituents' comments ran 100 to 1 AGAINST. Not only did they ignore voter opinion, but under extreme scrutiny, they STILL added lots of breaks for cronies, and they did so KNOWING that 90% of them would be re-elected ANYWAY. This letter is long, but at the end I will tell you how I think we can do something about it.
My name is John F. Dini. I am a small business owner in Texas, with 4 employees and well under a million dollars in gross revenue. I have lived in both red and blue states, on the east coast and the west. I don't think what I have to say should offend anyone. That's why I'm willing to put my name on it. My email is jdini@mpninc.com. Unlike many of our legislators, I will take personal responsibility for my actions. You are welcome to let me know what you think, and whether you're signing on to this.
If you don't want to read about the bailout bill, skip down to "END OF BAILOUT BILL DISCUSSION".
Last week Congress passed HB 1424, the "Emergency Economic Stabilization Act." As you've probably heard, it was a bit more than just the bailout bill. I've gone through all 451 pages. Here are some highlights:
• Sec. 103: The Treasury can also purchase mortgages on apartment buildings. To my knowledge, those who own apartment buildings aren't usually in danger of having their house taken away.
• Sec. 110 allows the regulators (there is a whole new bureaucracy being formed) to make any change to any troubled mortgage, including giving the property away.
• Sec. 116: Keeps the bureaucracy in place until the last asset is sold, or the last loan is paid.
• Sec 122: Raises the debt ceiling to $11,315,000,000,000. For historical reference, we broke the $1 trillion debt limit in the Reagan administration. That runaway borrowing is what George H.W. Bush called "Voodoo Economics." Last week we borrowed another trillion in a day.
• Sec. 132 suspends FASB 157. That's what made banks show the real value of their assets on their books, even if it had fallen to zero. That is no longer necessary, (but we WILL form a commission to decide later on what they should be showing to their shareholders, presumably something other than the actual value of their assets.)
• Sec. 136 raises the FDIC published coverage limit to $250,000 per account. What they haven't mentioned is that this higher "coverage" expires in 15 months, and the FDIC is ordered NOT to adjust the insurance for these new risks. That law actually just orders the FDIC to change the number $100,000 to $250,000 everywhere, nothing else.
That is the first 112 pages. The next bill (actually several different laws, passed on the same vote) extends a bunch of energy tax breaks for wind, clean coal, biofuels, geothermal, and others. It also gives credits to the steel industry, for plug in vehicles (in addition to the $25 billion handout to GM and Ford last week), for the black lung trust fund, and for home appliances that recycle gray water.
The next bill tacked on is a Tax Relief bill. That one raises the AMT trigger by a fraction (from $66K to $69K) and has special tax breaks for:
• Restaurant and retail depreciation
• Rum from Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands
• Businesses in American Samoa
• Mine rescue training
• Businesses on Indian Reservations (casinos)
• Railroad tracks
• Motorsports Racing Facilities (the "NASCAR" break)
• Employees of companies affected by Hurricane Katrina
• Investing in Washington DC
• Wool producers
• Film and television production
• Wooden arrow manufacturers
• Winners of Exxon Valdez lawsuits
• Farming Machinery purchases
Also, the failed 2007 Paul Wellstone mental health bill is included here, which requires all health insurers to cover mental health treatment just like physical illness. I'm not sure how long this bill has been trying to get passed, but Senator Wellstone DIED in 2002.
Under "other" THAT bill has another 100 pages including the following:
• Funding for schools, roads, weed control, forest ecosystems, improved cooperation among Federal agencies and the Oregon & California Railroad.
• Secure payments for states with Federal Lands, which you would think was everybody, but is defined as only LA, CA, OR, PA, SC, SD, TX and WA.
• A call for proposals to cooperate with Federal agencies, which upon reading is actually a requirement that BLM accept a minimum of 50% of timber logging contracts over the next 3 years.
• Doubling of the "Mine Reclamation Fund"
• Rewording of the Katrina relief bills to include IL, IA, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, and WI
• Further extension of Katrina Relief to ANYONE "affected" by Hurricane Ike.
My sympathies to the folks in Maine and North Dakota, who appear to have been left out (unless that's where the wooden arrow makers cluster.) Actual outlays are not $700 billion, but an estimated $852 billion, apparently not counting tax reductions.
Are you angry yet?
END OF BAILOUT BILL DISCUSSION
In her 1957 novel "Atlas Shrugged" Ayn Rand foresaw an America where corrupt businessmen and politicians allied to loot the country for all they could get. They got away with it because most people either believed that a bit more hard work, a bit more struggling, would see things turnaround eventually, or that everything was beyond their ability to control anyway. Many people disagree with Rand's conclusions and philosophy, but on this she was truly clairvoyant.
Most voters believe that Congress is full of bad actors, EXCEPT FOR THEIR GUY! Your congressman (or woman) came to your Rotary meeting, or saved a local industry, or got funding for your favorite park, and therefore is one of the "good guys." I put forward the idea that if any one of them was truly above the corruption, he or she would have been back in your district screaming bloody murder rather than in DC casting a vote for or against this farce. Instead, every single Congressman is telling you that it was the other guys who got us into this mess. They are cultivating and depending on our fear of each other to stay in power.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO SAVE AMERICA
I don't "do" chain letters, even the ones my relatives send me that say "return this to show you care for me." This is my first-ever exception. I care enough to risk your annoyance with me for sending this. It's up to you to decide whether you care more about saving this democracy, or having a friend, customer or client think you are "too political."
I believe that if we continue "business as usual" by returning over 90% of Congress to office, we are rewarding their arrogance; and surrendered any fantasy that our government is answerable to the people. They obviously don't believe it. That is why Congress has exempted itself from labor law, equal opportunity, OSHA, Social Security and any liability. This may be our last chance to remind our elected officials that this is supposed to be a government by the people.
"My vote can't do anything"
You can't vote to throw out the other guy's representative, you can only vote for or against your own. In 2006 the Democrats won their average district with a 54.8% vote, considered a landslide. The so-called Republican Revolution of 1994 was won with an average of 51.6% of the vote. So if one person in twenty changed their vote, the result would be an almost complete turnover in Congress!
Our Founding Fathers designed the checks and balances of government well. The Senate is supposed to change slowly, so that it provides a longer-term perspective. The House changes every two years because it is supposed to reflect the current mood of the people! Returning 90% of Congress to office year after year, decade after decade, is surrendering the responsibility that Jefferson, Adams and Washington placed in us. It confirms their belief that they are untouchable.
On November 4th, vote for whomever you feel would be the better President, Senator, Governor, and for any state or local office, BUT VOTE AGAINST YOUR INCUMBENT CONGRESSMAN OR CONGRESSWOMAN. It doesn't matter who it is. It doesn't matter who the other candidate is. Cross party lines. Close your eyes or hold your nose when you do it, but do it. In 30 days we can send the biggest message to Congress of the last 100 years. It's a message that says "You aren't above the law. You are answerable for this mess. You still serve the people of this country."
And pass this along widely and quickly. Remember, we have less than 30 days, and it will only take one in twenty.
Thank you.
John F. Dini, CMBA, BCB, CBI
President, MPN Incorporated
(210) 615-1800
www.MPNinc.com
Profile of John F. Dini:
John Dini
• Bachelor's Degree: B.S., Accounting, Rutgers University
• Master's Degree: MBA, Pepperdine University
• Certifications: Professional Behavioral Analyst
• Certified MBA
• Certified Medical Practice Executive
• Strategic Business Leadership
• Board Certified Broker
• Certified Business Intermediary
John Dini has over 30 years of experience in entrepreneurial management. He has owned and operated start-up or turnaround companies for the last 21 years, and consulted for start-up organizations for 10 years. John founded The Alternative Board-TAB® in San Antonio in 1997, and has overseen its growth to its current status as the most successful TAB chapter in North America.
He has owned companies ranging from $2,000,000 to $15,000,000 in sales, including a warehouse distributor (automotive), a manufacturer (automotive and sporting goods) and a management services company (healthcare). John is a member of Jim Blasingame's "Braintrust", a group of business experts who appear regularly on the Small Business Advocate a nationally syndicated radio show. He is also the author of "103 Tips for Better Hiring" and co-author of "11 Things You Absolutely Need to Know About Selling Your Business".
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
"I See Debt People" Uncleoxidant
I was talking story with my neighbor, Kathy, today, hearing yet again, how worried she is about money. Bill collectors call at all hours, credit card statements pile up beneath the cigarette debris littering the coffee table. Senses dulled with pharmaceuticals, she frantically treads water, barely keeping her nostrils above the waterline. My friend suffers from the debilitating disease of “affluenza”. This pandemic has tangled so many into the ball and chains of DEBT SLAVERY. My friend should become the poster girl for those SLAVES. Banks love her, Home Shopping Network loves her. With her 30 credit cards and a low FICO score she is filet mignon for the Credit Monster.
How is it that this society has collectively mastercarded itself into economic oblivion? When did it become sensible to take on such massive debt?
Some, such as columnist George Will, blame government and its infinite debt ceiling for this catastrophe. Others, blame Alan Greenspan. We may not have elected Alan but we sure did elect the guys who put him in charge of the money.
The Financial Idiot Meter has now reached CODE RED as we look down the maw of a blood thirsty credit monster rampaging through the streets. No one knows what to do. If an asteroid was headed in the direction of “Target Earth” would elected officials know what to do? Well this IS THE asteroid headed our way, and the problem is that it is already too late. This asteroid has a name and it is called “DECADES OF FINANCIAL IDIOCY”. No bailouts or bazookas can knock this baby down. We MUST GO BACK to basics folks. We will hear this message over and over again in this century as we slowly climb out of this mess we have all created: WE MUST LEARN TO LIVE WITHIN OUR MEANS.
We have broken the basic laws of economic physics for so long now, that it may take generations to heal from this. It has been nearly 80 years since the last depression and few are around to lecture us, anymore. Besides, when they were around, most of us thought they were just a bunch of tight fisted old fuddy duddies, about as much fun as poop in da punchbowl.
Once WE all go back to the sense of our forefathers, like Thomas Jefferson, or the sages of the Old Testament, we may begin to live a different life.
The transition period, I fear, is going to be a REAL BITCH. Fasten your seat belts, folks, its going to be a trippy ride.
As a society, now is the time to demand intelligence and common sense from our leaders. The two presidential candidates are basically dishing out the same vapid promises with Disney vacations and tax cuts for all. I do not have the answers but I sure am desperate for a TRUE leader who will tell us this: “We are deep doo doo and we are all going to have to pitch in and clean up the mess.” Is that leader even out there?
We need someone like Representative Marcy Kaptur from Toledo Ohio who had the brass balls and bosoms to stand up the Paulson and his ilk to blast the stupidity of this bailout. This brave democrat embraced our own Mazie and others to stand fast against this travesty. Her courage, wisdom and down to earth sense are the marks of the true leader of the people. Google her and You Tube her to see her ferocity against the TITANS of government. She is my HERO for now.
How is it that this society has collectively mastercarded itself into economic oblivion? When did it become sensible to take on such massive debt?
Some, such as columnist George Will, blame government and its infinite debt ceiling for this catastrophe. Others, blame Alan Greenspan. We may not have elected Alan but we sure did elect the guys who put him in charge of the money.
The Financial Idiot Meter has now reached CODE RED as we look down the maw of a blood thirsty credit monster rampaging through the streets. No one knows what to do. If an asteroid was headed in the direction of “Target Earth” would elected officials know what to do? Well this IS THE asteroid headed our way, and the problem is that it is already too late. This asteroid has a name and it is called “DECADES OF FINANCIAL IDIOCY”. No bailouts or bazookas can knock this baby down. We MUST GO BACK to basics folks. We will hear this message over and over again in this century as we slowly climb out of this mess we have all created: WE MUST LEARN TO LIVE WITHIN OUR MEANS.
We have broken the basic laws of economic physics for so long now, that it may take generations to heal from this. It has been nearly 80 years since the last depression and few are around to lecture us, anymore. Besides, when they were around, most of us thought they were just a bunch of tight fisted old fuddy duddies, about as much fun as poop in da punchbowl.
Once WE all go back to the sense of our forefathers, like Thomas Jefferson, or the sages of the Old Testament, we may begin to live a different life.
The transition period, I fear, is going to be a REAL BITCH. Fasten your seat belts, folks, its going to be a trippy ride.
As a society, now is the time to demand intelligence and common sense from our leaders. The two presidential candidates are basically dishing out the same vapid promises with Disney vacations and tax cuts for all. I do not have the answers but I sure am desperate for a TRUE leader who will tell us this: “We are deep doo doo and we are all going to have to pitch in and clean up the mess.” Is that leader even out there?
We need someone like Representative Marcy Kaptur from Toledo Ohio who had the brass balls and bosoms to stand up the Paulson and his ilk to blast the stupidity of this bailout. This brave democrat embraced our own Mazie and others to stand fast against this travesty. Her courage, wisdom and down to earth sense are the marks of the true leader of the people. Google her and You Tube her to see her ferocity against the TITANS of government. She is my HERO for now.
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