* The ineptitude of impetuousness meets the gall of arrogance – The U.S. government has provided over $150 billion to American International Group (AIG) to bail the mega-insurer out of financial paralysis due to risky, stupid, secretive and greedy decisions. It is estimated that the U.S. now owns almost 80% of the company. One would surmise that a representative of government would now be involved in AIG decision making to protect our investment in the firm. Apparently that is not the case. AIG has proposed “retention payments” to 38 top executives that range in amounts from $92,500 to $4 million. These retention payments would in some cases double or triple the salary of some of these managers. A responsible person might ask why pay limited and borrowed resources to retain the “brain” trusts that created this financial disaster. Rather than spend money to retain them they should be fired. Let them join the unemployment lines of people worried sick about how they will support their families, the innocents who were not responsible for the current financial implosion. Rewarding dishonesty and incompetence brought us to this financial brink. Its continuation is not a solution.

* Our financial world ~ what in the name of greed and stupidity happened? – Many people are asking how the U.S. got into the financial mess/disaster confronting us. I suggest one take the time to read the analysis of one of the preeminent economists of our day, Joseph Stiglitz. His article “Capitalist Fools” in the January 2009 edition of Vanity Fair lists the five reasons why we are in an economic crisis. They include:
~ Regan’s firing of FED Chairman Paul Volker and naming Alan Greenspan to the post in 1987
~ Deregulating the financial markets beginning in 1997
~ The Bush tax cuts and artificially low interest rates
~ Every major accounting firm and most of the banks lied about financial conditions
~ The government’s response to the financial crisis
This is a must read for anyone interested in what happened and a lesson for not repeating history, again.

* The golden years just became brighter! - Two new studies point to a way to fight Alzheimer’s Disease, red wine and marijuana. Researchers from Ohio State University reported that THC, the main psychoactive substance in the cannabis plant, may reduce inflammation in the brain and even stimulate the formation of new brain cells. Neurologist David Teplow of UCLA reported that polyphenols - naturally occurring components of red wine - block the formation of proteins that build the toxic plaques thought to destroy brain cells. In addition, these substances can reduce the toxicity of existing plaques, thus reducing cognitive deterioration. Now, if I could only remember where the hell I put my bong!

*Recession or Depression? – Forget the economic mumbo jumbo, statistics and graphs. If the guy next door has lost his job it is a recession. If you have lost your job it is a depression. And if you follow the White House and Congress’ attempt to fix the financial problems, that are primarily of their making, it is depressing. From one election to the next we tend to forget the egregious actions of our politicians. It is time to take notes so we do not forget. We elected these people and must now deal with the blisters! (see Abraham Lincoln’s observation at the end of this blog.)

* The macho NRA is loosing tumescence – The National Rifle Association (NRA), in one respect a lobbyist for gun manufacturers, is experiencing its influence waning. In the most recent election the “gun rights” mouthpiece spent over $7 million in a national fear campaign to defeat Barack Obama and other candidates in favor of gun control. NRA-endorsed candidates lost 80 percent of their races against gun-control candidates. Looking at the obverse side of the debate, The Brady Campaign Against Gun Violence, an organization I strongly support, saw more than 90 percent of the candidates it endorsed win their races.

Our country is about to change many approaches as to how it thinks and does business and that includes its viewpoint towards guns. It is well-beyond time the canard about Second Amendment rights for citizens to bear arms be put to rest. This amendment was instituted centuries ago when militias were an important element in the defense of the U.S. The number of guns that exist in our country, governed by archaic laws and control, is absurd. No other western industrialized society allows for such a condition. When an organization such as the NRA lobbies for assault weapons to be owned by private citizens, what more does one need to know? When the NRA fights a city such as Philadelphia that has attempted to limit gun ownership so that citizens and police are not cut down at an alarming rate it is time for responsible government leadership to set intelligent guidelines for gun control. For a better understanding of the issues I recommend a visit to The Brady Campaign.

* Make love, not war ~ world peace through tumescence – The third annual Global Orgasm is about to take place. The organizers of the Global Orgasm, evolutionary behaviorists Donna Sheehan and Paul Reffell, would like everyone to synchronize their greatest surge of physical and spiritual power on the Solstice, December 21st between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time. The theory is that if enough people can experience orgasm in the same time frame while projecting a conscious intention for peace and harmony on the planet, a surge of physical and spiritual positivity will infuse the Earth's energy field. Count me in!

* Conservatively speaking – Since the financial crisis began conservative pundits have tried to blame the mortgage part of the crisis on programs designed to help poor people become homeowners. It was not the greed of the financial industry, it was not the lack of federal regulation, it was the liberal do-gooders. This week the House Oversight Committee interviewed four former CEOs of Freddie and Fannie Mae. They were asked if poor people caused the current financial crisis. They all responded that it was not. Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) said that 400,000 documents amassed by the committee showed that the right-wing claim is nothing more than a conservative myth. Conservative thinkers and politicians are so busy running from the wreckage of their policies that alibis and urban myths substitute for veracity. And this is not intended to give a free pass to the Democrats. Deregulation began in the Clinton White House and some of these people are currently advising Barack Obama. It is a pause for concern.

* Legacy 43 – President Bush and his emissaries are making the rounds promoting a fairy tale story line about what Bush’s legacy should be. The Center for Public Integrity (CPI), a non-profit investigative journalism group, studied the Bush presidency. An article about the study is entitled, “Depth of Bush Failures Surprised Even Us.” On the ability of the Bush administration to get things done the study noted: 730,000 backlogged patent applications, 760,000 backlogged Social Security disability claims, and 806,000 backlogged Veterans Affairs disability claims.

“The results of the investigation, which are summarized at CPI's PaperTrail blog and presented in full at its Broken Government project, are stunning in their scope even for those who have been following the scandals of the last eight years.” Some of the more notable elements of Bush’s real legacy include:
~ $300 billion over budget for Defense Department weapons acquisitions
~ $100 billion lost every year to corporate offshore tax shelters
~ complete failure of a $100 million attempt to create a new system of internal information-sharing for the FBI in the wake of 9/11
~ $9.91 billion spent on government secrecy in 2007
~ the dismissal of all but 17 out of the 1273 whistleblower complaints filed from 2002 to 2008
~ pollution that causes 20,000 deaths a year and puts 60,000 newborns at risk of neurological problems
~ a two-thirds dropoff in the cleanup of toxic waste sites, and 2.5 million toxic toys recalled in the summer of 2007

“Toxic waste site” could be one description of the condition of the United States as Bush leaves office and that, unfortunately for the American people, is the George W. Bush Legacy.

* “Elections belong to the people. It is their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.”
Abraham Lincoln

1/26/08

*I am beside myselves – Former football great Hershel Walker reveals in a new book that he suffers from multiple personality disorder. In the extreme it would be defined as a disorder yet each of us have multiple personalities. We are subtly to demonstrably different as a spouse or a parent, in our work or hangin’ with friends, when we go to the doctor or place a bet at a casino. I bring this up because the people we elect to represent us also have multiple (varying) personalities and the one that we see campaigning is apt to be much different than the one that affects policies and enacts laws. Whom we see on the stump may actually be a chump. I have been leaning toward one particular candidate but learned this week of some votes cast in the past that raise questions for me. Possessing some knowledge of a candidate’s past actions will tell us a lot more than what we get from the overload of sound bites rained down upon us from our television sets. For each of us there will not likely be a perfect candidate but, a democracy does require compromise. At best we can try to be informed so that our final decision is not compromised solely by a candidate’s personality.

*Dinner with the Clintons ~ satiated – You know that feeling one gets following a holiday meal? One more bite and you are certain that you will explode. That is the feeling I have about Bill and Hillary Clinton. Enough is enough. I have commented that I felt Bill was a decent president. I will not forget his loose zipper and the very questionable pardons he granted at the end of his presidency. These examples are not G.W. Bush destructions of the fabric of our country but character flaws that remind one of a fabric that causes a nagging itch. What bothers me the most, however, is the current Hillary Clinton presidential campaign that is heavily funded by special interests (as are some other candidates to varying degrees, unfortunately) and managed by philosophical reprobates better suited for the Republican Party of dirty tricks and questionable campaign ethics. As Bill’s recent statements attempted to revise history (such as his claim that he did not support the invasion of Iraq) and as Hillary’s campaign appears to be one huge scripted stage production, I am Bushed and Clintoned out. It is almost 20 years since the White House had a different name in residence. Burp.

*Responsible leadership – There has been a recent spate of letters falsely claiming that Barack Obama is a Muslim. One target of these letters is the Jewish community. At a time when “religion” from the political right is polluting the national discourse I was pleased to see an intelligent, responsible and adult response to the attack on Obama. Seven Jewish U.S. Senators issued a statement against such attacks and said, in part, “Over the past several weeks, many in the Jewish community have received hateful emails that use falsehood and innuendo about Senator Barack Obama's religion and attack him personally. As Jewish United States Senators who have not endorsed a candidate for the Democratic nomination, we condemn these scurrilous attacks... All voters should support whichever candidate they believe would make the best president.” The signers are Senators Carl Levin, Barbara Boxer, Ben Cardin, Russ Feingold, Frank Lautenberg, Bernie Sanders, and Ron Wyden.

*The fine print – footnoted.org is a very interesting web site founded several years ago my Michelle Leder. “Each day, the site takes a closer look at the things that companies try to bury in their routine SEC filings.” It is read by financial money managers and analysts and it is a place to perhaps see what is going on with a company you work for or invest in. Examples of her finds: Countrywide gives President and COO David Sambol $2.62 million promotion bonus and country club membership just before stock implodes; Hair-salon chain Regis Corp. doles out more than $2 million worth of goodies to relatives of corporate executives; Morgan's Hotel Group adds $30,000-a-month Manhattan apartment to new CEO Fred Kleisner's $750,000 salary; I2 Technologies, a troubled software company, spends almost $1 million ferrying former CEO Michael McGrath between his Maine home and its Dallas headquarters; Qwest Communications CEO Edward Mueller sends his step-daughter to high school on a private jet. It may be a footnote but we “note” who foots the bill.

*Sometimes the truth hurts – A Canadian training manual for its diplomats inadvertently became public. The following countries were identified as nations that torture: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United States, Afghanistan, Israel and China. (A spokesman for the Israeli embassy in Ottawa said the Israeli Supreme Court was "on record as expressly prohibiting any type of torture".)
Update: Under heavy pressure from the U.S. ambassador to Canada, the U.S. was removed from the list. Canadian Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier said that, “he regretted the embarrassment caused by the public disclosure of the list and promised it would be changed to reflect the Canadian government's official position.” I did not notice my embarrassment abate because of Canada’s “official” position.

*Non-violent conditions in Iraq ~ don’t ask – In an unusually cold winter in the Middle East residents of Iraq are particularly hard hit. There is a lack of water, a lack of electricity and a lack of heat. “Little kerosene is available on the state-run market at the subsidized price of $0.52 a gallon. But the fuel can be found on the black market, where it goes for more than $3.79 a gallon... An average household needs at least 1.32 gallons a day to stay warm, which translates into a monthly expense of $150, or half what an average Iraqi earns.” Since January 1st temperatures at night nave fallen below freezing. Success in Iraq requires going well beyond reducing violence but the Bush spokespeople seem blind to the needs of the Iraqi people when measuring “success”. Recall President Bush saying that his invasion of the country was in part to help the Iraqi people. Ask an Iraqi how they have been helped. Bring gloves.

*I didn’t know that – Living in the United States we take the English language for granted. I am sure that none of us imagine a day when “our” language would disappear. Yet, a U.N. report says that “one language disappears across the world every two weeks.” An example of this loss is taking place in the village of Ayapan in Tabasco, Mexico. Two men in their 70s, the last speakers of the indigenous language Zoque, have drifted apart and are no longer talking to each other. It is humbling that little if anything on our planet is forever. I wonder how these two men feel about the impending end of their language line. I wonder how our behavior would be altered if we each had a true sense of our transience?

*Flash Observations:
~Chuck Norris says that he supports Huckabee because McCain is too old for the job. He says that the presidency ages a person faster than normal because of the demands. If elected, McCain would be 72 at his inauguration. I don’t care much for Norris’ acting or politics but I tend to agree that the age of 72 is a bit old to begin the most demanding job in the world.

~If you are not offended by Huckabee’s desire to integrate church and state maybe another matter will get your attention. In 1993 he had no problem addressing the Council of Conservative Citizens (while Lt. Governor of Arkansas), a white supremacist group. An excerpt from their Statement of Principles: "We also oppose all efforts to mix the races of mankind, to promote non-white races over the European-American people through so-called "affirmative action" and similar measures, to destroy or denigrate the European-American heritage, including the heritage of the Southern people, and to force the integration of the races." I guess the part about all of us being created in the image of God is open to opinion in the mind(less)-set of these miscreants.

~The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is refusing to provide Congress with a full explanation of why it rejected California’s greenhouse gas regulations. Amidst the smog of reasoning is the fact that the Bush-appointed EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson went against the opinion of EPA employees and scientists in this ruling in favor of the lobbying efforts of the U.S. oil and auto industries. Congress is investigating and late this week Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) proposed legislation that would override the EPA decision.

~I find it interesting that many of those opposed to abortion as well as those seeking to legally expand human rights to an embryo (currently a proposed law in 20 states) have so little to say or interest in the welfare of that embryo once born. To advocate the sanctity of life but not the sanctity of the living is incongruous to me.

~The Center for Public Integrity researched the number of false statements made by the Bush administration leading up to the invasion of Iraq. From the report: “...the 935 false statements painstakingly presented here finally help to answer two all-too-familiar questions as they apply to Bush and his top advisers: What did they know, and when did they know it?

~Quote of the Week - Editor of the LA Times Jim O’Shea was pushed out of his job this week because he opposed budget cuts and the way that the parent company Tribune newspapers allocate resources. He said, “We need to tell readers more about Barack Obama and less about Britney Spears.” I applaud this adult approach to news reporting.

*Freedoms Under Attack – Unbeknown to most of us, organizations such as Save the Internet are working diligently to protect us from cable and telecommunication companies illegally blocking free speech and greedily and insidiously hindering free choice to enhance their power and their wealth. Some examples:
· In October 2007, the Associated Press busted Comcast for blocking its users' access to peer-to-peer file-sharing networks like BitTorrent and Gnutella. This fraudulent practice is a glaring violation of Net Neutrality.
· In September 2007, Verizon was caught banning pro-choice text messages. After a New York Times expose, the phone company reversed its policy, claiming it was a glitch.
· In August 2007, AT&T censored a live webcast of a Pearl Jam concert just as lead singer Eddie Vedder criticized President Bush.
· In 2006, Time Warner's AOL blocked all emails that mentioned www.dearaol.com -- an advocacy campaign opposing the company's pay-to-send e-mail scheme.
· In 2004, North Carolina ISP Madison River blocked their DSL customers from using any rival Web-based phone service.
As a nation we are becoming aware of the cost to society of businesses being allowed to become too powerful. This observation applies not only to telecommunication companies but to other industries as well - with special attention to financial institutions, energy companies, health insurers and pharmaceuticals. I anticipate that over the next several years the American people will demand that Congress (which is a part of the problem through self-interest and cronyism) legislate alterations to the unfettered power of corporate industry that has taken root. I expect that there will be a more diligent policing of the abuse exhibited by these entities. It will be an opportunity to verify our democracy’s viability.

*Remembering Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
~A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.~History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people.
~Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness
~The time has come for America to hear the truth…