Month: April 2010

2010 Anal-Ocity #13

I always enjoy it when someone, anyone makes a comment, anal or otherwise that flies in the face of the Constitution……this time it was yet another Repub, Rep. Duncan L. hunter of California….not that Duncan Hunter but rather his son….apples do not fall far from the tree, huh?

“Would you support deportation of natural-born American citizens that are the children of illegal aliens,” Hunter was asked. “I would have to, yes,” Hunter said. “… We simply cannot afford what we’re doing right now,” he said. “… It takes more than just walking across the border to become an American citizen. It’s what’s in our souls. …”

Repubs seem to be the ones that yell the loudest about things are unconstitutional and yet it appears that they seldom know what the document says……let me help:

14th Amendment of the US Constitution:

Section 1.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

May I suggest that people read and understand the Constitution before you open your idiot mouths……I expect more out of a group that pretends to care so deeply about the Constitution…….

“Shared Sacrifices”?

Daily Agitator

Federal Deficit Series

I have had about enough of the bullsh*t!  As we all know the deficit is choking our nation to death….and the Dems and Repubs will meet in some half-assed way to find an answer to solving the problem….you can bet your butt that it will mean the people will pay through the nose, while Washington continues its runaway spending….

Well Obama has a plan:

The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility held its inaugural hearing on Tuesday, launching the process through which the Obama administration plans to introduce drastic attacks on social spending and living standards to make the working class pay for the crisis of American capitalism.

The commission, consisting of 10 Democrats and 8 Republicans, is charged with discussing ways of slashing trillions of dollars from future federal budget deficits and making recommendations to the White House and Congress six months from now.

Now we have yet another commission to find answers to the problem of an ever expanding deficit……the bi-partisan commission will look at ALL avenues for savings, at least that is what they would have us believe but the real truth lies in what they do not say…..

Obama sounded the theme of “equal sacrifice” in his own remarks to the commission, in which he blamed the crisis, in the final analysis, on the American people, citing “the reality familiar to every single American—it’s a lot easier to spend a dollar than to save one. That’s what, at root, led to these exploding deficits. And that is what will lead to a day of reckoning.”  (thanx to wsws.org for the excerpts)

“Everything on the table” is another Washington code phrase, meaning that cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the major entitlement programs, will be among the measures to be considered and proposed.

That basically means ….YOU will pay for the bailout of the country….YOU will be asked to sacrifice while your do-nothing reps sit on their butts and collect their salaries…..

Hoyer was compelled to admit in his Wall Street Journal column that the rapid increase in the US national debt is the product of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (launched by Bush and continued by Obama), the bailout of Wall Street (begun by Bush and continued by Obama), and the ongoing recession (which began under Bush and continues under Obama). In other words, corporate America, not the working people, is responsible for this crisis.

That aside……YOU will still pay the bill……with taxes and loss of benefits……..It will be “shared sacrifices” but it will be shared by the working people of the country while the game remains the same in Washington…..keep supporting wars of intervention, keep supporting corporate communism, keep quiet and watch YOUR family go hungry……I hope you can live with yourself……

Where Are The “Drill Baby Drill” People?

Daily Agitator

Think back to the 2008 election….there was one party that jumped all over the issue of domestic oil production…..saying that we need to break our dependency on foreign oil…..the mantra of these people was “Drill baby drill”……justifying their position by saying that there had NOT been a major pollution problem from off shore drilling since Santa Barbara back in the 60’s and that the industry had made significant progress in technology that prevents such a problem from ever occurring ……..they even went so far as saying that it was un-American to oppose such a move…..

Now skip forward to today:

The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn’t have a remote-control shut-off switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills.

The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week.

The accident has led to one of the largest ever oil spills in U.S. water and the loss of 11 lives. On Wednesday federal investigators said the disaster is now releasing 5,000 barrels of oil a day into the Gulf, up from original estimates of 1,000 barrels a day.

The U.S. considered requiring a remote-controlled shut-off mechanism several years ago, but drilling companies questioned its cost and effectiveness, according to the agency overseeing offshore drilling. The agency, the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service, says it decided the remote device wasn’t needed because rigs had other back-up plans to cut off a well.

Now my question is….where are all the “drill baby drill” people now that their calls have been proven to be a pile of crap!?  Come on, you blowhards….you wanted it you got it!  Welcome to the future!

Let us be real……there is a bout 3-5% of the world’s oil reserves off the US and the US uses about 25% of the world’s supply….explain how we would break our dependency by domestic drilling?  The technology that they were so proud of……it seems that might have be a bit of misinformation…….

Thanx to the domestic oil industry there may well be a horrible seafood year for the Gulf Coast……do you like shrimp?  Good, then you will pay through the ass for them this year….you may take the time to thank the domestic oil industry for you lack of Gulf Seafood……

Bastards! One And All!

Daily Agitator

I spent a good portion of my day watching the Senate hearings into the Goldman-Sachs scam….there is only so much arrogance I could stand….the pricks from Goldman were anything but forthright…they NEVER answered a single question and this went on for 6 hours maybe more…..

They were well trained and coached by their attorneys and they proved, at least to me, just how bad we need to cut the dicks off these self-centered toads……but I will not hold my breath….I do not see the Congress growing a complete set of nuts in this matter……

Yes, I thought the guys from Goldman were arrogant and self-indulgent……the Senators were angry….trying to reflect the anger by their folks back home…..this was a show also….these dipsticks have nothing to be angry about…why?  These are the same people that allowed this gambling scam to go forward…..How is that, Professor?

They are the ones in 1999 that repealed the Glass-Steagall Act…..and I know what the Hell is that?  The easy answer is:

Legislation passed by Congress authorizing deposit insurance and prohibiting commercial banks from owning full-service brokerage firms. Under Glass-Steagall, these banks were prohibited from investment banking activities, such as underwriting corporate securities or municipal revenue bonds. The law was designed to insulate bank depositors from the risk involved when a bank deals in securities and to prevent a bank collapse like the one that occurred during the Great Depression. The original separation of commercial and investment banking had already significantly eroded when, on November 12, 1999 the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 was signed into law, repealing parts of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act and the 1956 Bank Holding Company Act and effectively allowing banks, brokers, and insurers into each other’s businesses. Basically, the 1999 Act allows banks to affiliate with securities firms and insurers through a holding company structure and permits nationally chartered banks to engage in most financial activities through direct subsidiaries. While provisions of Glass-Steagall continue to restrict banks from most underwriting activities and securities firms from taking deposits, these restrictions apply only to the banks and securities firms, not to their Financial Holding Company affiliates and are, therefore, technical.

Everyone in Washington is to blame, as much as the bankers for the problems we have now…..so to watch these Senators feign anger is sickening and to watch the guys from Wall Street sounded like they are a victim in all this is just as putrid as the Senators.

Once again we come to responsibility….NO one is to blame….is the cry….”sh*t happens!” seems to be the norm……they ALL are responsible for the economic mess….everyone involved needs to hone up to their complacency in the financial crisis….they were warned in 1999 to what they were doing and they did not heed the word…..the people need to be angry with ALL those involved in the scam and that started with Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act that let the banks run wild unchecked and Pres. Clinton who also thought this was a sterling idea…….Repubs as well as Dems are the cause of your problems…..stop whining!  And make else dipsticks take credit where credit is due!

2010 Election Watch: The UK

From the desk of the Scriptorium

Election series 2010:  The UK

I realize that most of the people in the US could care less about the elections in the UK…..I think they are mistaken…….

I have been asked why I subject myself to the agony of politics…..the answer is easy….my education made me a political addict….it is the most fascinating of subjects…..I meet a lot of good friends and a bunch of crazies….both are interesting in their own way….and the exchange of views is almost a good exercise…..I have also been asked why I would be interested in the politics of another country….that is easy also…they have a different type of government and it plays differently than the Federal system we have here……I also depend on my friend Quin from Quintessential Havoc (blogroll will get you there) to help me understand better and to fill in the gaps that I will no doubt have in my posts concerning the UK and the EU…….

The election for PM of Britain is under way…..they have Brown from Labor, Cameron from the Tories and Clegg from the Liberal Democrats….as best I can tell it is pretty much a draw right now, but the LibDem Clegg is making lots of noise and could be a spoiler for one of the dudes….

The voting system is a bit unique , at least I think it is……..Rather than marking an ‘X’ against their preferred candidate, each voter ranks candidates in order of preference. If a candidate receives a majority of first place votes, he or she is elected. However if no single candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the second choices for the candidate at the bottom are redistributed. The process is repeated until one candidate gets an absolute majority.  (Quin maybe able to expand this a bit)

The UK currently operates a simple plurality, first-past-the-post system. In this voting system the single winner is the person with the most votes; there is no requirement that the winner gain an absolute majority of votes.

Uses multi-seat constituencies and transfers votes that would otherwise be wasted to other eligible candidates. STV initially allocates an elector’s vote to his or her most preferred candidate and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, transfers surplus or unused votes according to the voters’ stated preferences.  (Thanx to Reuters reporters for some of the facts in this post)

With that said…there is a push for electoral reforms in the UK….the issue is popular as it is in the US?

Labor

– Referendum early in the next parliament on whether to move to the Alternative Vote* system for elections to the House of Commons

– Free vote in parliament on reducing voting age to 16

– Legislation to ensure parliaments sit for a fixed-term

– Commission to chart a course to a written constitution

– Statutory register of lobbyists

– Completion of reform of the House of Lords

– Full implementation of a new system of independent regulation of MPs pay, pensions and allowances.

CONSERVATIVES

– Oppose change to ‘first-past-the-post’ system**

– Reduce the number of MPs by 10 percent to 585 from 650 (The US only has 435 Reps)

– Work to ensure consensus for substantially elected House of Lords

– Give House of Commons more control over own timetable

– Reduce discrepancy between constituency electorate sizes

– Right to kick out MPs found guilty of wrongdoing

– Ensure that legislation on devolved issues that only affects England, or England and Wales, can only be passed with the consent of MPs from England, and where applicable Wales

– Introduce new rules on lobbying

LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

– Prefer Single Transferable Vote system***, which would allow them to cut MPs by 150

– Right to vote from age 16

– Fixed-term parliaments

– Replace House of Lords with fully elected second chamber with fewer members

– Introduce written constitution(Wait!  There is NO written constitution?)

– Right to sack MPs who have broken the rules

– Curb influence of lobbyists

Alternative vote

This will make the Brit system of electing a PM as clear as mud for most, but I think that what effects one country may ultimately show up in others and that includes the US……once again I apologize of my UK readers if I screwed up any of this…..I look forward to hearing from them….

FinReg: GOP Style

Lots and lots of words and speeches about the necessity for some sort of regs on the financial markets….Dems have a plan (one that does not go far enough, IMO) and there was suppose to be a vote sometime this week, but now the GOP is back to slowing down all bills in an attempt to under mine all of the Obama proposals…..

The NY Times is reporting:

Republicans, including Senator Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, have said they would use the procedural vote to block the start of debate on the Democrats’ bill unless the Democrats agree to make substantial changes in it. But in a political climate of public impatience and anger at Wall Street, it was not clear how long the Republicans could hold ranks in delaying the bill.

Republicans also said they would propose regulatory language aimed at the giant mortgage entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which for practical purposes are now wholly controlled by the federal government. Some Republicans say the absence of the mortgage giants from the financial regulation bill is a glaring omission, while Democrats say they need to be dealt with in separate legislation.

More on the GOP FinReg Plan…..Their alternative proposal includes several similar provisions, including establishing a board to oversee systemic risk, consolidating banking regulation, and reducing Federal Reserve independence (though, to be fair, the GOP doesn’t expand Fed authority anywhere close to what the Obama plan does). The GOP’s plan disappointingly does not address attacks on hedge funds and derivative contracts, and it expands the role of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). However, the Republicans are chiefly focused on ending the policy of “too big to fail” and are opposed to bailouts, which is very encouraging. Here is a comparison of three key provisions that favor the GOP:

Why do they continue to play a game…..why not sit down and negotiate with the Dems on the proposals they have?  There seems to be plenty of room for compromise in both plans.  Why is it necessary to hold press conferences and play games that Repub consultant Lutz diagrams for them?  Does that mean that Repubs have NO original ideas?  If they do why is this Lutz guy doing all the writing and talking points for them?

Once again……the games politicians play get in the way of REAL reform…….and where is the loud mouths in the Tea Party?  They started with the original bailout and morphed into the right wing spin machine….but yet they do not seem to have an opinion on FinReg…..so where are they?  Speak up people!

2010 Anal-Ocity #12

Just as no one party has a corner on the moronic, neither does any one religion over another…..morons are everywhere….

This one from a Muslim cleric:

Women who wear revealing clothing and behave promiscuously are to blame for earthquakes, an Iranian cleric says. Hojjat ol-eslam Kazem Sediqi, the acting Friday prayer leader in Tehran, said women should stick to strict codes of modesty to protect themselves. “Many women who do not dress modestly lead young men astray and spread adultery in society which increases earthquakes,” he explained

So cleavage and breast and the sight of them are causing all the earthquakes…….this anal statement made by a cleric in the country of Iran that is one of the most active areas for quakes and if I am not mistaken there is NOT that much cleavage to be seen in the country………

Anal is anal!

Freedom (Liberty By Any Other Name)

Inkwell Institute

Professor’s Classroom

Subject:  Political Theory/Philosophy

Paper #11

Now here is a subject that will give a person brain worms…..Freedom…….and it is scary what some think is freedom or liberty….they can mean the same things…..for instance free will means the ability of rational agents to exercise control over their actions, decisions, or choices….or a political freedom means the absence of interference with the sovereignty of an individual by the use of coercion or aggression….or a more pragmatic definition  the state of not being imprisoned, enslaved, or otherwise constrained.  No matter which meaning you embrace it is probably not what is actually originally meant by freedom.

Then we have liberty….a concept that identifies the condition in which the individual to act according to his or her own will. In feudal times, a liberty was an area of allodial land in which regalian rights had been waived.

Whether you want to define freedom/liberty or not, there are ways that the concept is viewed by the major political systems of the world. Yes, different political systems view freedom differently…..which best describes your beliefs on the subject?

Liberals–give priority to freedom as the supreme individualist value.  Classical liberals support negative freedom, understood as the absence of constraints or freedom of choice…modern liberals advocate positive freedom in the sense of personal development and human flourishing.

Conservative–traditionally endorse a weak view of freedom as willing recognition of duties and responsibilities, and see negative freedom as a serious threat to the fabric of society.

Socialist–understand freedom in positive terms to refer to self-fulfillment achieved through either creative labor or cooperative social interaction.  Social Democrats are close to modern liberals in treating freedom as the realization of individual potential.

Anarchist–regard freedom as an absolute value and believe that it is irreconcilable with any form of political authority.  Freedom is understood as the achievement of personal autonomy, not merely being left alone but rather being rationally self-willed and self-directed.

Fascist–rejects any form of liberty as nonsense.  “True” freedom means unquestioning submission to the will of the leader and absorption of the individual into a national community.

(Thanx to Andrew Heywood for the descriptions from his book “Political Ideologies”)

There are the simple definitions of the word according to the different political ideologies….if you take an objected look at most modern democracies one can see a little of ALL the ideologies in their make up….which is your definition of the word?

We see in today’s news that the Tea Party goers are screaming about Obama is making them less free, that he is stomping on their freedoms…….but as of yet NO one has said what those freedoms are…..the word “Freedom” is just another word politicians use to manipulate the throngs of adoring followers…they do not have to define what they mean, just convince the people that it is so….which is NOT a very difficult undertaking………….the perception of freedoms lost is by far more important that the definition in today’s world i minute sound bites…….

Thoughts Without Posts #3

Once again I have found that I have made more notes than I have made posts…..I will continue my tradition of posting these thoughts as a post….

1–The worst governor in the US, Haley Barbour of Mississippi, may run for the GOP nomination in the 2012 election season…..my governor…. if that thought does not scare you then you are in a coma……ask me what type of president would he make….Please!

2–Some retired generals has issued a report saying that American children are too fat to fight in the armed services……

3–Carly Fiorino (sp?) has spent $59 million of her own money in her election campaign for senator…..spent that much cash to win a seat that pays about $200,000 a year….would you spend $1 million to win the job you have?

4–Tanning Beds have been viewed as addictive—–and the use may also include substance abuse…..why do we not ask Ohio’s Boehner, he has a perpetual tan and he seems to be the addictive type…..

5–Here is a unique idea–

“And I would have suggested, and I think that bartering is really good. Those doctors who you pay cash, you can barter, and that would get prices down in a hurry,” she said. “And I would say go out, go ahead out and pay cash for whatever your medical needs are, and go ahead and barter with your doctor.”

“Bartering with your doctor is not a new concept. There have been numerous reports as to how negotiating with your doctor is an option and doctors have gone on the record verifying this. Unfortunately, Harry Reid’s failed leadership forces us to take drastic measures.”

This from a GOP candidate trying to win Harry Reid’s senatorial seat from Nevada……..Barter with doctors?  Yeah, those self-righteous, little dicks will let you paint their house for a by-pass surgery……Doctors are in it for the cash, that is why they all are specialists now……

6–You DO realize that 6 banks make up 63% of America’s GPD, right?

7–This should make one confident that the government is on your side–Senior staffers at the Securities and Exchange Commission spent hours surfing pornographic websites on government-issued computers while they were being paid to police the financial system, an agency watchdog says.

Seventeen of the employees were “at a senior level,” earning salaries of as much as $222,418.  That is what I thought…..when the economy crashed these guys were watching Asian teens and flogging their jollies…..

Stay tuned….more amazing stuff to come……

Papers! Give Me Your Papers!

Daily Agitator

It is a sunny day at the park and your are approach by uniformed police and they demand your papers….NO!  This is NOT a scene from a movie about occupied Europe during the Second World War….nope…this is in your own backyard……….

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer on Friday neared a deadline to act on the nation’s toughest legislation against illegal immigration.The sweeping measure would make it a crime under state law to be in the country illegally. It would also require local police officers to question people about their immigration status if there is reason to suspect they are illegal.

Other provisions of the bill allow lawsuits against government agencies that hinder enforcement of immigration laws, and make it illegal to hire illegal immigrants for day labor or knowingly transport them.

I realize that immigration is a touchy subject for many on the Right and that they are trying to find an answer to the problem….but this is NOT an answer!  Why?  Say you were born in East LA, most likely you will be of Hispanic descent, and you do not drive or have a passport……got all that?  When your papers are demanded by the authorities how do you prove your citizenship?  Birth certificate?  Those are just as easy to forge as SSN……so then how do you prove your status?

Is illegal immigration the problem they would have us believe?  IMO, no it is not!  Why do I say that with all the evidence to the contrary?  There is a strong construction industry in my area plus it is a strong right to work state, but there are NEVER any of the unemployed locals waiting outside Home Depot for day work…..so the BS of them taking American jobs is not valid, at least where I live……

Of course, they, meaning the authorities, use the drug wars in the border regions as a reason for such actions….how about this….if you eliminate the middle man then the drug wars would virtually cease…yes, that means legalization of drugs….not only the elimination of some of the crimes but it would generate much needed revenue…..(this is a post for another day)

Thoughts?