Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Bailing with a hole in the bucket

Guest blogger Murray says:
    I know that you know it is not too comforting knowing that the same people who allowed this country's subprime mortgage crisis to happen are the ones that our government put in charge of fixing it. I also know that you know that they really don't have the slightest knowledge how to fix it. I also know that you know that this is really a bailout to the Wall Street high flyers and the sleazy investment banking business. Now they are adding the very bankers that caused the stink to the team assigned to fix the problem. It seems that once you're in bed with them you can't get rid of them. Kinda like bedbugs.

    Since it's the subprime mortgages that are the basis of the problem I would think the first thing they would do is put a stop to making these ridiculous loans. They have not done this. Banks and mortgage companies are still creating such loans. You can go to google and ask for "low price no money down mortgages" and you'll find all kinds of ads for these kinds of loans. It's pretty obvious to me that if we don't stop loaning with no money down and bad credit the "bailout" will go on forever.You can even apply on line. Here are a couple of examples:

    http://www.mortgage-helper.com/zerodown.html

    http://www.forthebestrate.com/no-money-down-mortgage.aspx

    OK, the damage has been done. Our astute legislators are throwing billions of our hard earned tax dollars all over the place. They say not to worry cause the are going to sell these worthless mortgage packages and they will get the money back. Why... they say we might even make a profit!! Well, let me tell you. IF THEY DO FIND SOMEONE DUMB ENOUGH TO BUY THESE WORTHLESS PACKAGES JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK THEY WILL DO WITH THE MONEY? Pay it towards the national debt? No, No, NO..... They will do the same thing they always do. THEY WILL SPEND IT. Folks, once they voted to spend that 700 billion, that money was spent never to return. That money can only be returned by you and I. The tax man cometh. If OBAMA gets elected it will come immediately. Find a way to protect yourself. Your first attempt would be to vote for McCain as feeble as that may be.
MURRAY

Why can't OSU cite its own or peer reviewed research?

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. It's happened twice now in about 6 weeks. If I see something health related in my OSU human resources site I think I should expect something other than shilling for an anti-aging supplement company. I noticed an article under Wellness about Vitamin D and immunity. It's flu season so I clicked on it and it brought up an interesting page (reformated from the original) about vitamin D research. I made the assumption I was reading research from the University's canyons of labs, offices, gov't grants and libraries, but by the time I started rolling through footnotes that began with #25, I realized something was wrong. So I scrolled to the bottom and got a link to Life Extension Magazine, a pop-health webpage that sells anti-aging supplements! And it wasn't even current--it was almost 2 years old!

The first time I was caught was a scare story about plastic baby bottles--that link led to an advocacy page loaded with the words, "might," "could," "it is thought," and nothing concrete out of thousands of studies.

If an OSU researcher has a break through, ah-ha moment, and it's out there at a popular science or consumer health website, by all means, let us know. But don't be making stuff up, folks, and sending off to buy supplements.

Meet the most powerful man in the world

until January 20, 2009. Who said you wouldn't get to the top with a degree in English (the degree of choice for directionless students when I was in school)?


Henry Merritt Paulson, Jr., was born on March 28, 1946, in Palm Beach, Florida. He graduated from Dartmouth College with a bachelor's degree in English in 1968 and from Harvard University with a master's degree in business administration in 1970.

Paulson began his career as a staff assistant to the assistant secretary of Defense from 1970 to 1972. He then became a member of the White House Domestic Council in the administration of Richard Nixon, serving as a staff assistant to the President from 1972 to 1973.

After his time in Washington, D.C., Paulson joined Goldman Sachs, an investment bank, at their Chicago offices in 1974. He became partner in 1982, and from 1983 until 1988 he was the head of the Investment Banking Services for the Midwest region. In 1988, he became managing partner of the Chicago office, and in 1994, he was appointed to the position of President and chief operating officer. In 1999, he became chairman and chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs.

President George W. Bush nominated Paulson as secretary of the Department of Treasury in 2006, and the U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed him on June 28, 2006. As the seventy-fourth secretary of the Treasury, Paulson is the leading policy adviser to the President on domestic and international economic affairs.

From The American Presidents On line reference source at Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904

Marxism, a refresher

All history, according to marxism (named for Karl Marx 1818-1883) is a struggle between the exploiter (in modern times, the capitalist) and the exploited (the worker). The struggle will only cease when capitalism is destroyed and a classless society exists. The golden age arrives when private property, marriage, nationality, and religions are abolished. Religion is a tool of the oppressor, as are conventional or traditional ethics and idealism (including humanism and liberalism). High on the list of marxist ideals are concern for public health, a sense of public duty (even if it has to be required), mutual respect, moral purity, modesty, brotherhood above family, race and class, and a solidarity with working people everywhere. Fraternity with capitalists, of course, is excluded from these principles, and class hatred is permitted for the cause of assuring justice. For Christians, this is most clear in Liberation Theology and Black Liberation Theology, both of which have made great inroads in both conservative and liberal Christian groups, who have become impatient to "bring in the Kingdom" while expelling God and replacing him with "the poor."
    Beginning in Latin America, Liberation Theology is based on the belief that the Christian Gospel demands "a preferential option for the poor," and that the church should be involved in the struggle for economic and political justice in the contemporary world—particularly in the Third World. Dating to the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) and the Second Latin American Bishops Conference, held in Medellin, Colombia (1968), the movement brought poor people together in Christian-based communities, to study the Bible and to fight for social justice. However, since the 1980s, the church hierarchy has criticized liberation theology and its advocates, accusing them of wrongly supporting violent revolution and Marxist class struggle” (Columbia University Encyclopedia 2004).

    Black Theology developed alongside Latin Liberation Theology and had its roots in the Civil Rights and the Black Power movements of the 1960s. In the process, many “black ministers consciously separated their understanding of the gospel of Jesus from white Christianity and identified it with the struggles of the black poor for justice.” Rev. Wright correctly credits two books written by James Cone, “Black Theology and Black Power” in 1969 and “A Black Theology of Liberation” in 1970, that made liberation the organizing centre of his theological system and subsequently of many Black churches.While Latin Liberation Theology was concerned with classism and Black Theology was concerned with racism, both held a common concern for the poor (Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology 1984). Orthodoxy Today
Liberalism used to mean free from restraint, particularly from a system, like the church or a federal or national government. It eventually came to promote the interests of the middle class which included helping the disadvantaged and minorities, non-violence and environmentalism because in the long run, liberals would benefit. In past years, liberals and marxists were hand shaking enemies because marxists can't tolerate personal freedom. But liberals were much more hostile toward conservatives who see justice as a moral code existing outside their own vested interests (usually but not always, God), so increasingly liberals in the USA have assisted and promoted and been swallowed up by the marxists.

Barack Hussein Obama is not a Muslim, he is a Christian and a marxist as illustrated above--they are not necessarily incompatible. If your "Christian" label pre-dates Liberation Theology, you'll just have to adjust. Get over it. But whatever label you give him, he hates capitalism, which means he is not good for America and your 401-K or your annuities or your health plan (or Europe, or the struggling Third World economies, for that matter). This is clear in the way he has taken advantage of the huge meltdown of capitalism in the past month, almost prematurely dancing on its grave, while rushing in with the claim that he will save us from the jaws of death. He is funded and backed by notorious criminals both here and abroad, progressives and marxists who go by a variety of names--like George Soros, Moveon.org, Hate America First, Daily Kos Kids, and ACORN who are about to dismantle our right to vote, and then will go after our freedom of information. I would add the feminists in that marxist crowd, except they're the only ones who are true to their team and have stayed poor--they haven't been much use to him except to make the coffee like the good old days of the 60s.

Some Christians amaze me

Not because of their good works, or their awesome miracles, their faith that moves mountains, but because they have any faith at all. I was reading Andy's account of the death watch at his father's bed. We've done this twice--in 1996 for my sister and my husband's step-father. You are with them, and yet they aren't there. But I didn't rush to the hospitals in Bradenton and Indianapolis loaded with personal baggage. How much harder that would have made saying good-bye. Andy writes:
    We had a good week anyway. We laughed a lot, and cried a little. We spent time with funeral home staff members, lawyers, doctors, and nurses, but we still had a lot of time left over to reminisce, to compare memories and to try to make some sense out of the chaos of a home that featured an alcoholic, crazy mother and a philandering, adulterous father who would grab his car keys and drive away whenever the butcher knives appeared, my mother’s weapon of choice to torment the kids. He ran away from us all his life. Now he can’t run anymore.

    He’s left behind a mess. His estate, such as it is, was left to a former roommate who is now dead. His latest will, which was supposed to designate my Columbus sister Cathy as the recipient of his home, was never signed, and so the good State of Ohio gets to figure it all out. My dad’s house apparently goes to the estate of the former roommate. Whoopee. I’m washing my hands of the whole affair, even though technically I’ve been named as the executor of his will. It’s what I told him I would do, and would not do when he told me he was leaving the house to his roommate. I refuse to execute injustice, at least if I can help it.
Many days I remember to thank God for my fine, upright, honest parents, who worked hard and loved their children and extended family, always available for moral and economic support. And I ask forgiveness for the many times I was cranky or short with them when they didn't see things my way. After all, they weren't "fun," they rarely talked about our accomplishments (would be unseemly), we didn't take vacations, they often ignored my demands for more attention, they insisted that I do the right thing, be respectful and have good manners. I had to go to church, had to earn my own way, had to do well in school (actually, they never, ever said that--it was my own idea based on what I thought they wanted). They wouldn't take my kids off my hands when I was desperate for a break and oftened ignored my own failures at parenting, and just looked the other way! My Dad could be so casual about money that one time he sent me $10,000 (coupon bond) in the U.S. mail uninsured with no information or explanation about what it was. Even when I was 60 years old he thought he needed to remind me to put on an apron, but by then I could get back at him by hugging him, something not on his list. Some of the best times I had with Dad were the last two years of his life, and I still wonder why we waited so long. And when their time this side of eternity was over, they simply closed their eyes and were gone. Then there are the days I completely forget about them and think I got here all on my own, without their genes, love, hard work and discipline. Andy's blog was a good reminder.

65th wedding anniversary, 1999

At least she's honest

When looking through LibGuides that I mentioned a few posts back, I came across a library guide (don't remember the institution) for information on global warming. All of it led to sources that I would call pro-anthropogenic (human caused) climate change. One of the nice features of LibGuides is you can e-mail or text message the librarian who created the resource for additional information. Their photos are even posted--and I tell you, librarians today are much more attractive than my graduating class. Anyway, she responded: "This guide was created to support a teach-in that was not intended to present the other viewpoint." I'm not sure how a librarian assigned to a "teach-in" differs in responsibility from preparing materials for a regular class, but I suspect either way, you get the view of the librarian, not a range of viewpoints and studies.

Librarians always bring their personal values and viewpoints to their work--maybe moreso than some other professions. Librarians have a value system that is a blend of missionary and social worker. They are do-gooders in sensible shoes. When I was at the Ohio State Veterinary library, I purchased a nice collection of pet health books--the kind you can buy in pet stores for owners, not for researchers or veterinarians, the people I was hired to serve. It was my personal view, and it was not in my collection statement which gave the official version, that better educated pet owners would benefit both the animal world and the veterinarian. Also, I had lots and lots of unassigned gift money. In those days, my library was both the first stop or last resort for both children and adults because the public libraries had so little. Nor could a public library afford to buy books on relatively obscure breeds or pets (I also had an excellent collection for owners of snakes, flying squirrels, hamsters, rabbits, llamas etc.) I think I saved a lot of animals' lives by advising students to use a plant species instead of animal for their science project. If a beloved pet died, I often got the call. Well, was I going to describe Cushing's Disease in Fido from a textbook or a breed specific book? (And yes, of course, I would tell them to talk to their vet, but these people were in deep shock and grief.) And then you find out he was 18 years old and had practically been on life support for two years, and the owner was still grieving. So you put all those research skills aside and just listen letting the other work pile up. In my own mind, I justified stepping away from my primary duties as good PR for the college and library opting for the long range benefits rather than short term gain.

But I don't know why other librarians do what they do, except I know absolutely that politics goes with them to the work place. When you look at a library guide whether on-line or in print, look for what's missing.

Getting a head start on stealing the election

American Thinker poses a scenario where Obama and McCain are neck and neck after a last minute rally by McCain in the final weeks of the campaign. The polls are closed and McCain is leading by only 50,000 votes and then. . . our Secretary of State (register-and-vote-on-the-same-day Jenny) "discovers" some uncounted votes in Cuyahoga County.
    "Meet Jennifer Brunner, Ohio's real life Secretary of State, whose actions in the lead up to this election have been so shamefully partisan -- violating both federal and state law in the process -- that it is doubtful any result on Election Day from Ohio is going to be accepted as credible.

    Coupled with the outrageously illegal registration activity of ACORN and the shockingly illegal actions of the Obama campaign itself and what you have is an effort to not only "count every vote" but also steal as many votes as will be necessary for Obama to win the state on Election Day." American Thinker
Everyone in Ohio knows we have these thousands of phony registrations--people were bussed in to vote during that one week of same day vote registration. Legitimate, legal early voters saw them, saw the vans, busses and out of state license plates, the "community organizers" herding their flocks, some drunk and disorderly. Now Brunner's excuse, even as ACORN admits the problem that they've signed up all these non-eligible voters (more than we have voting age citizens), her excuse is there isn't time or resources to check all these registrations before Nov. 4. The Obama campaign has hired ACORN to do its dirty deed--to steal Ohio.

Our last Governor's term ended in disgrace because of some unreported golf games with cronies and an obscure fund raiser's misdeeds. This Governor, Strickland, a former Methodist pastor, needs to get down on his knees, do some soul searching and clean house or he won't even get as high a rank (50th) as Gov. Taft.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Sub-prime, from the archives

I wrote this April 25, 2007, complaining about the way the topic was written up in USAToday. It began with the obligatory sob story, and it wasn't until the middle of the article you found what was going down. Even so, I gleaned these facts from the article (perhaps the reporter figured the editor wouldn't read that far). I haven't changed a word of it, so all this was well known 18 months ago long before we knew this meltdown was going to happen. The only words missing are CRA and ACORN. It was reported in the news, discussed on talk radio and cable panels, and commented on in the blogosphere. And still people are falling for Obama's ridiculous lies.

A closer look at the middle paragraphs:
  • Minority home buyers helped fuel the housing boom--49% of the increase between 1995-2005. [Note that this trend of "empowering" minorities by burdening them with impossible debt began under Clinton, and any attempt to reverse it has brought condemnation on Bush.]
  • 73% of high income ($92,000-$152,000) blacks and 70% of high income Hispanics had subprime loans, compared to 17% whites.
  • Lenders were supported by politicians and "community leaders" eager to promote minority home ownership.
  • When Illinois (Cook Co.) tried to establish credit counseling programs for new minority buyers by targeting ZIP codes, the program was pulled as being "racist".
  • Access became a buzz word at the expense of sound lending policies.
  • Buyers/borrowers with poor credit or low salaries who wanted a cheap deal is a large part of the problem.
  • Investigation by a counseling group found 9% of those in trouble were victims of fraud; the rest was poor judgement and poor financial skills.
  • Rather than focus on the borrowers' poor financial skills, it appears that new regulations and programs will pounce on predatory lenders.
  • Government investigations of charges even before the current problem came to light showed a "good chunk" [not my term] of higher loan cost is attributed to borrower's income, not to race or ethnicity.
But this is America, where nothing happens if it isn't about poverty, race, gender or disability.

And you wonder why I call Obama a marxist?

Actually, the real reason is all those Soviet history courses I took back in college, the PL 480 books I cataloged, and my Chinese roommate whose family lost it all under Mao, but here are three more reasons a bit more current, seen at the Taxman Blog about Obama's interview with Charlie Gibson. Gordon calls it socialism. I think B.O's well beyond that when you look at the encouragement by his campaign of sexism and misogyny, add up the millions coming from foreign countries that will never be investigated because of Congress, the thousands being illegally registered to vote in the swing states that can't be verified because of lack of staff and desire on the part of Democrat officials, and the felons in Florida swamping their ability to check. These are old tactics, maybe a bit more sophisticated than 1917 and 1949, but they still work:
    Listen to Obama's interview.

    1) He doesn't care if the capital gains rate increases Treasury receipts, he's raising it out of "fairness".

    2) Democrats refuse to drill to lessen our energy dependence, even if it means struggling workers pay more for a gallon of gas. Caribou are more important than people....


    3) Never mind that the end result of the Fannie Mae was a worldwide financial meltdown, democrats still think it's a good idea to push loans for people who cannot/will not pay them back.

He hasn't changed much, has he?

In an interview with Jet, Feb. 26, 1990, a pop culture magazine published in Chicago for African Americans, we find that no accomplishment of an African American is good enough, high enough, or satisfactory enough for Mr. O. Not even his own.
    Barack Obama, a 28-year-old second-year Law student, was elected in balloting by last year's editors [student law review, Harvard]. Obama, a native of Hawaii, said his election shouldn't be seen as a sign social barriers have been broken down.

    "I wouldn't want people to see my election as a symbol that there aren't problems out there with the situation of African-Americans in society," he said. "From experience I know that for every one of me there are a hundred or a thousand Black and minority students who are just as smart and just as talented and never get the opportunity," he added.
By 1999, 58% of Chicago's blacks had some college or a college degree; 54% were home owners; 39% were married; and 43% were white collar workers. (Marketing stats from N'DIGO). I'm sure the 2008 stats are even higher. And I'm just as sure, it's not good enough for Mr. O.

Can you name another nation in the 21st century with a black president or black presidential candidate who could claim statistics like this for his black population?

It's possible you weren't even aware of the black middle class because our race baiting media hide their wealth, accomplishments and achievements. It's also possible you didn't know that 100% of American historically black Protestants believe that God is alive and well, compared to about 63.6% of Mainline Protestants (mostly white). Unfortunately, about 98% of those God-fearing folk are going to go to the polls and vote for a false Messiah.

10 million documents on tobacco

50,000,000+ pages. Give or take a few. Hurry before California melts down and look at its Legacy Tobacco Documents Library. I was a librarian, I've seen it all, but this is awesome.

I found it through Library 2.0, LibGuides of Babson College Horn Library, which has 248 guides, and the ones I looked at (about 6 or so) were all current within the month. The geology librarian at OSU had heard about LibGuides which has almost 18,000 guides at the CIC geoscience Librarians meeting.

Today I was following a pick-up truck with some construction materials in the bed. It had a bumper sticker that read, "Librarian, the original search engine." Must have bought it used, because he didn't look like any librarians I know.

Worst advice I've ever heard

Last Thursday my husband called me into the family room to check out the Dr. Phil show. We sat there in stunned disbelief as we heard absolutely the worst advice on finances anyone could possibly be promoting. In fact, if his TV audience actually did what he said, I'm sure we would have been in a total financial meltdown by Saturday! I'm sure Phil and his friend Oprah and Rachel all have enough to get by, but there are a few retail clerks, waitresses, builders, truck drivers, etc. who need to stay in business. I'm surprised he didn't cause a run on banks and a new purpose for mattresses.

Barack's cousin Odinga

Jerome Corsi was being interviewed this morning on the radio. He was detained (not imprisoned) for a few hours in Kenya, and not for promoting his book (he only brought his personal copy) as the AP erroneously (surprise!) reported. All his papers were in order and clearly stated the research nature of his trip. He went to Kenya to dig up some more dirt on the relationship between Odinga and his cousin Barack Obama, who had been his campaign advisor (this is illegal, btw, for a sitting senator to be involving himself in another country's election). Seems the campaign theme was "hope and change" and that when Odinga didn't win, his supporters took to the street rioting in a seige of ethnic violence. In Kenya, there's a slight difference. You shout out the other tribe's name; in the U.S., you just shout "racist." And instead of threatening rape, as an Obama supporter Sandra Berhard has done during our 2008 campaign, you do it to women and boys as they flee their burning home.
    The dead, who had been barricaded inside the church, were members of the country's dominant Kikuyu tribe. They were among hundreds that sought shelter in an Assembly of God church near the western Kenyan city of Eldoret. The city is a stronghold of the nation's main minority tribe, the Luo. According to witnesses, a mob barricaded the church and started the fire with gasoline-soaked mattresses. While many escaped through open windows, at least 30 victims and possibly dozens more were trapped in the flames.

    The incident was the most violent of several that have erupted in Kenyan cities since a hotly contested presidential election. Sitting Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu, narrowly defeated opposition leader Raila Odinga, who is a Luo.

    Odinga's followers have alleged that voting fraud perpetrated by pro-Kibaki polling officials tilted the election's outcome. The election took place Dec. 27, and Kibaki was sworn in Dec. 30. Riots in urban centers across the country quickly ensued, causing more than 300 deaths as of Jan. 2, according to Agence France-Presse. . . Baptist Press
Obama and his cousin are NOT members of the Kikuyu, they are Luo. Looks like Obama was destined to be a minority candidate whether he ran in Kenya or the USA, and he's just darn mad about that. Democrats have already warned us that American blacks will take to the streets if Obama doesn't win; they've accused their own party members of racisim when he was low in the polls in early September; they accused two of their candidates, Clinton and Biden, of racism early in the primaries; they've upped the ante on every possible criticism of Obama and his policies and friendships calling them racist. Do we see a theme here? Who is the person using race baiting in this campaign?

Sunday, October 12, 2008

A new generation of consumers

The children of China in school today outnumber the total population of the United States. I think Wal-Mart figured this out many years ago--the Walton family organization (they are 26th today in wealth, Buffet is 1st) is a marketing genius. First they bought the labor there using our know-how and raw-materials, then they marketed there. The people had money from the jobs to spend on the products they were creating. Why not skip the middle step and just market to the Chinese? By-pass all those stupid protestors and regulations trying to keep Wal-Mart jobs out of their communities. You may have noticed in those gut wrenching videos of the earthquake last spring as people scrambled to get out of danger, how extremely well dressed they were and what lovely buildings and parks were being destroyed. That's the new consumer generation American business caters to, not us. We're yesterday's news. How the global financial meltdown, which some are now suggesting belatedly was economic terrorism with help from our own stupid Congress, we'll have to see. The U.S. government caught on to the Walmartization of China, particularly the USDA, and is acting accordingly.

Meanwhile, we're still shipping tofu from Ohio soybeans to China (much bigger market--they actually like tofu). Then we buy their funny contaminating mercury light bulbs made in dirty coal factories and feel self-righteous because Ohio environmentalists believe in Al Gore and want alternative sources of energy not our clean coal. It's called trade.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Who gets the bonus?

The Food Stamp Program is USDA's largest domestic nutrition assistance program serving more than 28 million individuals each month and has given the states that administer the program $48 million in bonuses this year for 2007. It was renamed SNAP as of October 1, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which is supposed to imply healthier food.

OK, call it whatever you wish, but what do states do with their bonuses for outstanding customer service? For improved program access? For processing applications in a timely manner? For excellence in administering benefits. Do the poor people get this money or do the government employees? I’m counting $48 million in bonuses--that’s about $1.70 per person on the program. However, we know it would cost more than that to cut them each a check, so who’s getting the bonus? Do they close the office early one Friday and have a big party for the clerical staff? Do the Executive Directors get to go to Hawaii or Florida?

    1) $18 million
    USDA's Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services announced Sept. 26 $18 million in bonus awards to states in fiscal year (FY) 2007 for outstanding and timely customer service in the administration of what has been known as the Food Stamp Program, soon to be known by name change from Congress as "SNAP" - Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
      $12 million
      Each year USDA awards a total of $12 million in high performance bonuses to the eight States with the best and most improved program access index.

      $6 million
      USDA also awards a total of $6 million among the six States with the timeliest processed applications.
    2) $30 million
    In June 2008, the Food Stamp Program awarded $30 million to states for excellence in administering benefits.
To see if your state was awarded a bonus see USDA FNS Press Release Ohio must have a really shoddy work force helping the poor because we didn't get a single bonus. Or maybe they call it a paycheck?

From Marx to Bernacke

She writes:"Yes, the proximate cause (trigger, really) of this unfolding meltdown is the mortgage crisis. And this we have courtesy of Barney Frank, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Obama’s ACORN, and their collective PC folly that home ownership is a right and not something to be earned. But the foundational cause is that ancient, yet ever-ascendant humanism which holds that Man knows better than God: “This fruit doesn’t look dangerous; License, not submission, brings fulfillment; Government, not Providence, can be our safety net; Paper, not Nature’s gold, will be our money”, (and will conveniently enrich those who control it). The list is endless.

Now comes the day of reckoning. The piper waits, but we’re unable to pay. The house of cards has fallen. We’ve been dancing with a harlot dressed like a bride, but now the veil is lifted. Pick whatever metaphor you please - almost all of them apply."

From Marx to Bernacke

How ACORN and Brunner will steal Ohio for Obama

Our Secretary of State, Jennifer Brunner, put in place a week of same day registration and voting, then claims she can't be expected to check all those phony addresses and names before the election. Brunner says she wanted to avoid the questions of 2004 when some doubted the results. Who? The Democrats who believed the polls and MSM talking heads instead of the results.
    People in Ohio this week may register to vote and cast an absentee ballot on the same day. Critics, including state Republicans, say this may open the door to voter fraud. Election officials are hoping to avoid a replay of 2004 when some people had to wait hours to vote. NPR
Is this how Brunner thinks confidence will be restored? Homeless people from God knows where were being bussed in to vote last week. A friend of ours went down to Vet's Memorial to vote because they'll be out of town on election day, and said the sight was stunning. Story Why wait for hanging chads?
    The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals set aside a federal judge's order a day earlier that Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner institute the means to verify voter registration information and make it available to Ohio's 88 county election boards.

    Brunner argued that it would take two to three days to create the necessary computer programs, and that nothing in the Help America Vote Act required her to do what the lower court ordered. A three-judge panel of the appeals court agreed in a split decision.
Why didn't she have such a program already in place. I thought this was to instill confidence in the process.

Farrakhan calls Obama the Messiah

I've heard conservative talking heads joke about Barack Obama's Messianic complex, but when you hear Louis Farrakhan speaking to the Nation of Islam call him that, it's a bit more eerie. Check out this web site
    FARRAKHAN: You are the instruments that God is going to use to bring about universal change and that's why Barack has captured the youth.

    And he has involved young people in a political process that they didn't care anything about. When the Messiah speaks, the youth will hear, and the Messiah is absolutely speaking.
Creeps me out. Hmmm. Can we say that or is it on the "racist" vocabulary list along with Ayers is a terrorist, baby daddy, skinny, that one, his wife's patriotism, his full given name, etc.?

Here's Farrakhan blaming Jews for black music destroying the youth (ADL site)
    “Do you know some of these satanic Jews have taken over BET?... Everything that we built, they have. The mind of Satan now is running the record industry, movie industry and television. And they make us look like we’re the murders; we look like we’re the gangsters, but we’re punk stuff.”
And he's not too nice to Christians and gays either. Is there anyone this guy likes, besides Obama?

Good-bye Cincy

The goal of Green Cincinnati Plan is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 8% in 4 years, 40% in 20 years, and 84% by 2050. This plan has 80 specific recommendations. Everything from riding your bike, to air drying your dishes to composting your garbage. And why are they doing this Earth Day repeat that anyone who lived through the 70s remembers?
    "You‘ve seen and heard about it everywhere, from the media and the scientists to celebrities and your own family members. Earth‘s climate is changing, and we all are to blame." GCP Introduction
Because they saw Al Gore's movie and listened to some Hollywood starlet who reads script for a living say it is true. Helloooo Ohio--you used to be under a glacier. We are not to blame for climate change. There are a hundred good reasons to have clean air and water, but why don't you start with cleaning the trash off the city streets, the old mattresses from the underpasses, and requiring all the legislators to reduce their BMI and their hot air. The world would be a much cleaner, cooler place. No one has a clue how much greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by these measures, but I think we can guarantee that for every new "green" business or activity you bring to town that can smell a greenback a mile away, you'll drive ten established businesses out who won't be able to afford this idiocy.

Mayor Mallory needs to read Kids Against Anthropogenic Global Warming written by a 14 year old. Not everyone under 65 has been sucked into this silliness.
    Our mission here at Kids Against Anthropogenic Global Warming is to make aware that AGW is nothing but an unproven theory. We don’t want to pay all these carbon taxes when they are enforced, especially if its for something unproven.
You go girl.

If the builders knew why didn't Barry and Barney?

"Approximately $216 billion in subprime and Alt-A mortgages will reset for the first time this year, which could ultimately push 3 percent of all outstanding mortgage debt into default. As a result, a large number of households will return to the renter pool throughout 2008. To compensate, builders are expected to expand existing apartment inventory by 1.1 percent, or more than 100,000 new market-rate units." Buildings, Annual Industry Forecast, 2008