August 29, 2008
TV's Oddest Couple Hits The Oval Office This Fall!
Carrying on where earlier political laff fests like My Bush and Commander in Chief left off, The Ticket For America pairs curmudgeon President Jedediah O'Caine (think of an older, grumpier, somewhat less lovable Walter Matthau) with his unlikely second-in-command Mitzi Palin (sure to be this season's Amy Poehler). Palin's unlikey rise from her youth on the beauty pageant circuit through star of a moose cooking show on Alaskan public access television to being just an unsteady heartbeat away from the Presidency is retold in an ongoing series of flashbacks. Meanwhile, Jedediah spends much of his time hunting for his housekeys and trying to log on to AOL.
In the series premiere, misunderstandings lead to comedy when O'Caine has to leave the Vice President alone in the Oval Office while he attends to some "urgent business'. (The President's "going problem" is a hilarious running joke in the series.) Palin can't resist answering the big red phone despite being warned to leave it alone. Who should be on the line but the Premier of East Atlantastan, an American ally somewhere in the former Soviet Union. He's calling for diplomatic support in a dispute over a border region with his powerful neighbor. The deeply religious Mitzi doesn't understand the strange language and assumes the premier is speaking in tongues, and she replies with her own expressions of religious ecstasy. As hijinks would have it, in East Atlantastanian she promises full military backing for an invasion with their poorly trained army... the laffs go ballistic when Jedediah gets back just as the missiles starts to fly!
The Ticket For America. On Fox Sundays this fall right after Family Guy.
Posted by mayor mcsleaze at 08:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Roundin' up the TPA
Do you know what the Texas Progressive Alliance blogs and bloggers have been up to this week? Well, our weekly round-up will tell you. This week's round-up was compiled by Vince from Capitol Annex.
refinish69 explains why Travis County and Texas doesn't need another Keel at Doing My Part For The Left.
Two White guys in Houston want each others' jobs. Former Gov. Mark might run for for mayor, and current Mayor Bill may run for governor. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has the Frick-and-Frack report.
Prepare yourself for a shock when you visit Bluedaze and see the BILLIONS in handouts given to Big Oil. TXsharon shows how these handouts, paid with our taxes, enable Big Oil to buy influence, work against our best interest, blatantly ignore laws and keep the US dependent on hydrocarbons rather than moving forward.
Mayor McSleaze at McBlogger wonders why, if Washington is broken as McThuselah's campaign says, McThuselah himself hasn't done something to fix it since he's been there more than, you know, 25 years.
The major media outlets may be arguing about whether experience, the war or the economy is the most important issue in this year's presidential election, but jobsanger says there is only one issue that matters , and it's not any of those three.
The Texas Cloverleaf exposes the plan by Congressman Michael Burgess and the Bush DOT to make I-35 from Dallas to Denton a toll road!
BossKitty at TruthHugger is concerned about WATER and what our fearless leaders plan to do about it: "Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink."
Justin at AAA-Fund Blog wonders when Houston will find good leadership – in government, in corporations looking for good PR, anywhere – for recycling.
Off the Kuff criticizes State Sen. Dan Patrick and State Rep. Frank Corte for their request for a ruling from AG Greg Abbott that the Lege can require cities to enforce federal immigration laws.
Off the Kuff criticizes State Sen. Dan Patrick and State Rep. Frank Corte for their request for a ruling from AG Greg Abbott that the Lege can require cities to enforce federal immigration laws.
Texas Liberal says that he is not a bridge builder.
Before she took off for the DNC convention in Denver, and the Big Tent, Texas Kaos frontpager SCCS took a look at the state of the Central Texas Congressional races.
The rich get Visas while the poor were asked to self-deport notes CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chimse.
WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts about Perry, Dewhursts, and Craddick's new toll road plan, Texas GOP Leaders Want To Use Public Pension Funds To Build Corporate Toll Roads.
Vince from Capitol Annex takes a look at Republican State Representative candidate Van Brookshire's stupid press release about immigration and the incorrect facts he based it on.
North Texas Liberal shares a stunning tribute to Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, penned by a great friend of the late congresswoman.
Posted by mcblogger at 01:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
McCain gets frigid
Sen. McCain is rumored to have picked Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be the Republican nominee for Vice-President.
Palin, 44, is a reform-minded governor in Alaska who's challenged the party's old guard, attacked pork-barrel spending and taken a keen interest in energy and environmental issues. A former Miss Alaska runnerup, Palin hold a degree in journalism and has five children, including one with Down Syndrome. If Palin is selected, it could indicate a strategy on McCain's part to siphon off women voters disaffected by Sen. Hillary Clinton's loss in the Democratic primaries to Obama, D-Ill.
First, this ain't gonna peel off any of Hillary's diehards, nor is anyone going to be persuaded that her goodwill and character will rub off on McCain. At the end of the day, the veep is largely irrelevant and the only way Independents and Democrats will vote for a Republican is if the Republican nominee stopped being John McCain.
Update 11:45 - Watching the speech now and it's clear they are going to focus on reform. I guess no one told her that the man she's running with has been an integral part of what she'd like to reform for decades. Also, I don't think she realizes she's a Republican. Look for the Democrats to make the point that we can't really afford anymore Republican 'Reform' like ever expanding deficits, low job and wage growth and dramatically higher energy prices.
Posted by mcblogger at 10:08 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Change I believe in...
After watching Sen. Obama's acceptance speech, it occurred to me that anything I could post would be woefully inadequate. His words were precisely chosen, his delivery was flawless and for 42 minutes he held a crowd of millions with specifics. And with hope.
I can, without reservation, say I am a tough sell. Yesterday afternoon while talking to Sister Ruth, I told her I wanted to be inspired by his speech. I was going to vote for him, but I wanted to believe that he was what he claimed to be, a candidate who would transcend politics and really talk about issues, frankly and fearlessly. One who would fight, head to head, on every front. Frankly, I didn't see it. Even yesterday afternoon.
Early this morning, however, I'm still in awe of the man who was willing to stand in front of a crowd of more than 80,000 and speak about real issues, genuine ideas and not worry about the smaller, pettier matters and conflicts. One who was clearly focused on leading his party and his nation back from the brink of oblivion.
Leader. That's the word that describes the man I saw just a few hours ago. A man I'm proud to say I'm voting for in November.
Posted by mcblogger at 01:25 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
August 28, 2008
Stop Domain Subsidies about to go into the toilet
According to this in the Statesman, the ballot language is set...
Shall the City Charter be amended to prohibit the City from entering into future agreements to provide financial incentives in connection with the development or redevelopment of property that includes one or more retail uses, and to stop the City from providing financial incentives under certain existing agreements in connection with the development or redevelopment of property that includes one or more retail uses?
And with that, I'd like to take my hat off and salute Stop Domain Subsidies... for thoroughly fucking this up. Y'all took a perfectly good opportunity and turned it into a giant, smelly dog turd. ONE OR MORE RETAIL USES?!?!! Why not just 86 all mixed use?!?! What a fabulous idea.
Of course, the outcome of this was ENTIRELY predictable once Linda Curtis of Independent Texans got her stupid little rat brain involved in the effort. You may remember Linda as one of the masterminds (the Idiots Stall were the others) who told the Lege last session that SB 792 was great and then went and told everyone that it was a real moratorium on tolling and the TTC.
You people are too incompetent to achieve anything. The fact that anyone listens to you is a testament to their own stupidity. Take a bow, Linda. Now you've managed to have a hand in the ruination of two important efforts.
For many of us, SDS represented a necessary effort to stop tax payer funded subsidies for projects with questionable economics and job creation characteristics (i.e., retail). However, the language is now so broad that it includes some very necessary mixed use (residential, light commercial and retail) developments that are a key parts of the City's effort to establish Transit Oriented Developments.
It's very disheartening to see this effort dragged down into worthlessness. So, yeah, you should vote against this miasma of an amendment to the city charter.
Posted by mcblogger at 12:46 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
I'm gonna keep using the 'R' word, but thanks!
The Statesman ran this recently from a mother who doesn't like the free use of the word retard...
This is not about censorship or political correctness. This is a civil rights issue. It's about the right to be treated with dignity and respect as a human being. The disability community is glad to have the opportunity for a public discourse about the R-word.
So, you speak for the whole community? Allrighty...
I shudder at even typing the N-word, though many have few reservations about using the word "retard." When I was a child, was used only to refer to people with actual intellectual disabilities. Now, however, the R-word has fallen into casual use.Many don't realize that people with intellectual disabilities are four to 10 times more likely to be victims of crimes. They might not know that people with intellectual disabilities were among the first victims of eugenics in Nazi Germany. Perhaps they don't realize that "termination" rates are between 89 percent and 94 percent for those diagnosed, in utero, with Down syndrome. Many families cite the cruel treatment by society as a reason for termination.
WOW. I never even thought that someone would be such an ASSHAT as to completely separate the usage of the word ENTIRELY from the context. And throw in Nazi's, all at the same time.
As a mom, even before having a child with a diagnosis, I realized how my views shaped my child and how powerful words can be. We avoid using the word "fat" in our household; instead we focus on what is "healthy." We avoid even using the word "stupid;" instead we discuss "smart" choices or "better" decisions.Stop using the R-word. You can educate other people about its harmful ramifications.
I'm just gonna say this... when people use the word today, they aren't using it to describe someone with a mental health disability. Consider it synonymous with UNBELIEVABLY STUPID. I can't even remember the last time I heard it used to refer to someone who had a MHD. And quit whining about how offensive it is to you in general.
I'm so sick of shit like this. Feel good, meaningless crap. What she wants she's unable to ask for which is a more perfect world where everyone treats everyone with dignity and respect. I get that. However, it's the impossible dream and frankly, we'd all be bored to hell.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:33 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
It's a Man's (Political) World
What we learned this week:
Another man on man duo are nominated for POTUS and VP by the Democratic Party.
A high-powered, smart, opinionated woman is man-handled into become a simpering wifely, motherly, sisterly caricature of herself in order to make herself palatable to the American public (Michelle).
A high-powered, experienced national leader is reduced to "oh, what a good girl she is for gracefully exiting the stage". (Hillary) Gotta love it when a qualified woman is patted on the head for doing what she has always done - put country above self. The condescending bullshit about "if she had made a speech like that when she was running, she'd be the nominee now" has got to stop. The hope and change, looking for a Savior crowd weren't noticing that she's been that kind of leader, been that kind of speaker all along.
We have a nominee who surrounds himself with male advisors (well he's added a few women since the end of the primaries) and whose Texas leadership team is all male. Obama, you can do better than that and my suggestion is you start name dropping some high-powered qualified women who will be some of your closest advisors in your White House.
We've come a long way baby and if this is our time and this is our moment, I'd like to see where smart, talented, qualified women fit into that scenario.
Posted by Boobilicious at 06:36 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 27, 2008
Great speeches overcome objections, but not ignorance
After Hillary Clinton’s rousing speech, CSPAN had their call-in segment. A woman from Alabama said she would not vote for Obama because of the radical talk he had heard as a member of “that” black church. Another woman from California, whose speech seemed slurred by intoxication, rambled on about this and that. However, her premise was she was not going to vote for any Democrat because she didn’t like giving her tax money to lazy people, and that the Dems were socialist.
This is more than anecdotal. From all the conversations and what has been spoken and printed, we find this is a disturbing attitude of many. Are they a tiny minority? After seeing current polling data, I think not.
From now until the election, do we need to waste time and energy talking to people - many in despair of personal tragedy caused in general by contemporary American conservatism and specifically by policies initiated and enacted by Republican Party rule - who will never vote for Obama?
Why is it wrong to leap to conclusions about what is in the heart of people who feel the need to denigrate equality, diversity, compassion, and the common good.
Let them fester in their own cesspool of racism and hatred.
We have our work cut out.
Posted by Captain Kroc at 07:02 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Austin Chronicle Best Of...
The AusChron is once again running their 'Best of...' list. I've found the thing to be largely hit or miss mostly because these things seem loaded down vote-wise by granola fucks who think healthy food ROCKS and that Ginny's Little Longhorn is just unbelievably cool because they have Lone Star... and not much else.
Not to mention that this ballot is arduous...ChronPeople, I salute you for taking the inputs from these ballots and turning them into awards. That's an assload of work. And I hope you're well compensated for it. Seriously, you deserve a fucking amazing party and the kind of bonus money that would make Paris Hilton blush.
But back to the voting... Here's a link directly topolitics and personalities. And here are a few of our humble suggestions...
Local Issue - Traffic Congestion/Mass Transit
News Story - Toby's reign of EVIL ends
Scandal - That Brewster is STILL on Council
Elected Official - Will Wynn
State Legislator - Eddie Rodriguez.
Council Member - He Who Stands Up To Toby
Unsung Behind-the-Scenester - Matt Curtis
Job - Following behind Mindy Montford with one of her signs after the County Convention
Public Service - Cleaning up shit? Somewhere? We really are not at all about this.
Nonprofit Group - Human Rights Campaign
Activist - Garry Brown
Local Politics Blog - Your choice... we'd say go for us, but honestly while we are based in Austin, we write as much about the rest of the state and the country as we do about Austin. And the last time I checked, there are only about 500 people who are physically IN Austin who read us on a daily basis. I think more people read us in Dallas than here... and I HATE Dallas like a motherfucking rash.
BOR would also be a good choice, as would EOW and TK.
Local Politics Blogger - Eh, vote for Mayor McSleaze. I want to see him get angry if he wins.
Grassroots Movement - Texans for Mark Thompson (seriously, WAS there a bigger surprise in the primary?!?!?!)
Environmentalist - Marguerite Jones. The rest of those fools are triflin'.
As for the rest of the ballot, feel free to fill out as much as you'd like. Just say nothing of that Place That Shall Not Be Named In Midtown Where You Can Still Smoke Inside. And tell them Trudy's is your favorite restaurant.
Posted by mcblogger at 12:48 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Senator Carona and his 'business'
I think HOA's are really just a step above extortionists. But that's me. However, I'm sure anyone who has dealt with an HOA managed by Senator John Carona's company would probably agree. Apparently, the Senator from North Dallas has decided to run his company into the ground by taking in payments... and doing no work.
Principal Management Group wouldn't go on camera, but said the association has been without a board for five years. Now the 300 or so homes are predominately rentals and getting the landlords to pay has been impossible.(KTRK13)
Oh, that's not true... HOA's have the ability to foreclose. In fact, they can scare first lien holders (if the unit is financed) into paying the back HOA dues and setting up a mandatory escrow account as part of the note repayment to make sure there is never a time when HOA dues go into arrears again. I know because the servicing division at a bank I worked for did it. HOA dues are serious business. The problem is, there's no board and with no board, there's no oversight. Which means the residents have to go through an arduous process to rid themselves of the albatross. And the garbage it's left on their doorsteps.
Kudos to Harris County Commissioner El Franco Lee for stepping up to the plate and helping these folks out. And shame on Senator Carona for NOT taking the time to make things right.
Please click through here and help Rain Minns, the Democrat running to unseat Carona, today.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:51 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 26, 2008
Cinton to PUMA's : Really?
Hillary Clinton asked some of her erstwhile supporters "Do you really want to vote for John McCain?" during her speech tonight at the DNC.
Now, John McCainis my colleague and my friend. But we don't need four more years of the last eight years. More economic stagnation and less More high gas prices and less energy work. More foreclosures and higher prices and less help for the middle class. More wars and less diplomacy.John McCain wants to privatize social security. And in 2008, he still thinks its okay that women don't earn equal pay for equal work. With an agenda like that, it makes sense that John McCain and George Bush will appear together in the Twin Cities -- because these days they are awfully hard to tell apart.
Yes, ma'am. They are. And in November, I'll join YOU in voting for Barack Obama.
Posted by mcblogger at 11:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Blaming the Democrats...
I LOVE BLAME! I love it when one of my subordinates, whom I've asked to perform a task, blames someone else in the office (usually a peer) for failing to complete it. Nothing makes me happier than knowing that the job I expected to get done, wasn't done. Well, nothing except knowing who to blame for the failure.
Oh, I'm just kidding... I usually berate the dick who didn't perform the task. Over the phone since my office is far, far from me.
Bush, on the other hand, likes to berate his peers. For high gas prices...
"This Congress has been one of the most unproductive on record. They've failed to address the challenge of high gas prices," the president said. "They need to send me a bill next month that I can sign so we can bring relief to drivers, small business owners, farmers and ranchers and every American affected by high prices at the pump."
You should never believe a liar, which is what makes this AP story sooo intriguing. It's also interesting because there are no counterquotes from the Democrats. Nothing except some lame thing from Pelosi about allowing some limited offshore drilling. Which Bush says isn't enough. And we should take his word on that because he's been right all along. He was:
1) Right about deficits not mattering.
2) Right about WMD's
3) Right about that whole Axis of Evil thing
4) Right about Vladimir Putin's soul
5) Right about how tax cuts would trickle down
6) Right about how the economy wasn't having problems
7) Right about how energy price increases (which have gone on every day since he entered office) were temporary.
The funny thing is that Bush says all this without a hint of irony since HIS party was in charge during most of the run up in gas prices. In fact, when refiners continued to gouge retailers and consumers, Bush and the Republicans did nothing. As Exxon's profits soared and Americans started to buckle under the pressure, Bush and the Republicans did nothing. Except blame Democrats who weren't in power.
The funny thing about this is that none of it is the fault of the Democrats. However, because of how retarded their leadership is in the Congress, it'll come across that way and in the end they'll fall over themselves to give the Republicans what they want.
They'll whine about how the polling data was too strong and how the R's had talking points that were engineered to win over an audience. I know this because I've heard it for two years. The reality is that none of you are really smart enough to get how to control message and win a debate in real time.
So, just save us all the time and trouble... and give in. God knows none of you know how to browbeat and intimidate the other side into caving in to you. Democrats don't do that. Well, they don't anymore.
Posted by mcblogger at 02:25 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Lulu and Lolly's video
Remember Lulu and Lolly? Here's their first video...
Posted by mcblogger at 12:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Frank Corte in a box?!
There IS a structure on the empty lot that Frank Corte calls home. It's a mailbox.
Now, the question is, can he live in it? I guess I could have called this post 'DICK (in a box)'.
Posted by mcblogger at 08:58 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Dear DNC and Barack Obama Campaign,
I am in the hospital this morning getting treated for the diabetic coma I suffered last night watching day one of the convention.
I hung on with my insulin shots until Nancy Reagan took the stage to speak adoringly of her husband. Then, I passed out.
Now that we have wasted 1/4 of the convention encouraging middle America to change channels, can we move on to kicking John McCain in the nuts?
Perhaps you can encourage Hillary to beat the living crap out of McSame tonight instead of blathering on about unity. And then, perhaps Bill Clinton can beat the living crap out of McLame tomorrow night. And then, Obama can beat the living crap out of the Republican failures on Thursday night at the football game.
This would be a step in the right direction. Not to mention, improving my health.
Posted by Boobilicious at 08:07 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 25, 2008
Tom Delay COULD get off on a technicality
According to the Statesman, there is a very real possibility that Delay could walk on corruption and money laundering charges due to a technicality. Apparently, the law has been narrowly applied by an all Republican Appeals Court (no, I'm not making this up) to only cash transactions.
Delay and Co. used checks. So you can obviously see how that's different and all. I guess if they'd used wire transfers it would have added still another wrinkle to this convoluted bullshit. What's most irritating about this is DeGuerin.
Money-laundering charges against former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and two indicted co-conspirators may be dismissed because the 2002 campaign finance case involved checks and not cash, a lawyer for DeLay said Sunday night."We win," said Dick DeGuerin, DeLay's lawyer, "because there's nothing but checks in the case."
Yes. You win. Because of a technicality created by how an appeals court looked at the law. Much like... actually, exactly like a drug dealer whose conviction is overturned because there wasn't probably cause for the traffic stop that resulted in his original arrest (where they discovered his 'distribution business and inventory'). Should feel good, Dick. You've worked hard to make sure a demon remains free to roam the Earth.
DA Earle is not a happy monkey as one might expect...
Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle said the check-versus-cash argument is absurd: "The court's reasoning is like saying that you can get away with murder if you pay the hit man with a check."Prosecutors can file a motion for a rehearing before the appellate court.
But there's still more dick. Kind of like in a porno...
"If this is how it ends," DeGuerin said, "it means every crime Ronnie Earle indicted Tom DeLay for was not a crime."
No, it means you helped him dodge his criminality based on a technical issue. And a partisan court bought the argument.
Of course, all of this is largely irrelevant. Delay's seat is gone. He's gone as a political force. He's a washed up loser who will be stepped on every time he pops his crooked head up. So, if that's all... then no big deal.
And thank you, Ronnie Earle for having the stones to take this on.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:07 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Really, Target? Really?
I'm guessing an overwhelming number of Target shoppers are retards who think plastic shopping bags are a swell idea for baby playtime.
What the hell does that say about me since I shop at Target? Oh, and underneath... ideas for "ways to reuse this bag". Idea #1? A trash bin liner. Clever, these people who design the bags at Target.
Posted by mcblogger at 03:42 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Transportation Daisy Chain
A certain political consultant emailed the release of the Republican Leadership (now ain't that just one hell of an oxymoron?) regarding their willingness to work with one another. After reading it, I responded to him with
Craddick sucks off Dewhearst sucks off Perry eats out Delisi sucks off Craddick?
To which he responded
I'd rather not have that image in my mind, but, yes, I think you have it about right.
Here's the gist...
Highlights of the new plan:Stop funding the Texas Department of Public Safety with gas tax funds, and divert those millions to road construction. DPS could instead be funded with general revenue tax funds.
What an AWESOME idea, y'all! We've only been asking for it for years but it's good to see that you're finally doing what we told you to do. Next, find the revenue to fund DPS without the gas tax. Good luck with that, R's. WITHOUT taking away CHIP.
Create a special Transportation Finance Corporation to allow Texas-based investment funds to directly invest in state transportation projects.
Rutro! This is the kind of place where you people normally take a nosedive. Here's the inside skinny... the folks at Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs (whatup, peeps!) are having problems selling toll bonds. Which means that road privatization has pretty much ground to a halt along with everything else in the debt markets, at least everything risky (read: toll revenue bonds). If Texas had issued tax-backed revenue bonds and indexed the gas tax (AS ADVISED YEARS AGO) they wouldn't have had any problems selling off the debt. However, toll bonds (much like subprime and Alt A mortgage credits) are questionable at best, valueless at worst. Which means nothing is selling and there's no way for Perry and his cronies at Zachry (and THEIR friends, Cintra (Bluebonnet)) to get the money to buy the roads. Burka has some great stuff up on just how successful road privatization has been. For investors.
So, now that private money has evaporated to finance your questionable plans, you morons want to dip into the underfunded public pensions!??!?!?! Lemme guess, you'll be giving the investment banks a cut on that transaction to work as adviser, right? And, of course, Zachry will be brought in to manage everything and take a cut. Annually. So, what does that leave for the pension fund?
Great idea, you guys! Precisely what I'd expect from folks with the intellectual capacity of sparrows.
Authorize perhaps as much as $5 billion in bonds for additional highway construction projects. Voters approved a constitutional change in November 2007 to allow these bonds, but legislation is still needed to authorize them.
Oh, those tax backed bonds! Yeah, you should totally issue those. Here's the thing, though... at some point, you R's are going to have to finally admit to folks you've been lying to them about the possibility of having economic growth, good public infrastructure and excellent services (schools, fire and police) all while paying less in taxes. Simply put, you've been selling (but not delivering) a free lunch. It's worked so far because no one's been real hungry. Now they're starving and they want something to eat.
EOW nails it and picks up on what the Statesman (and other major media sources) have always missed. These aren't REAL solutions, it's a shell game designed to make it appear that something is happening... and to put off the day when the bill really comes due.
The really wonderful post on all this comes from Paul Burka at Texas Monthly who lays it out beautifully.
The reality that no one on the R side wants to admit is that their ideology is fundamentally flawed. In the real world, privatization does not always work to the benefit of consumers, especially in the absence of substantive GOVERNMENT oversight. An old school economic conservative can you tell you that. In fact, I've done it several times. We, unlike the ideologues running the government who've never really worked in business, know from first hand experience that private enterprise can be every bit as wasteful as big government.
And we hate waste, whether it's Democratic or Republican. And crony capitalism is definitely waste.
One last point, there appear to be those who still want to parrot the old estimate that our transportation funding shortfall is $80-100 bn. It's NOT. It's not even close especially when you aren't building TODAY for capacity you won't need until the late 2040's. As a side note, I'd also like to ask the Lege to set up an independent body, appointed by the LEADERSHIP from both parties in the Lege, to audit TXDOT and what they are paying suppliers. I find it UNBELIEVABLE that true road constructions costs have escalated more rapidly than anything other than gold bullion.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:06 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 24, 2008
Won't you think of the children?
When you tell the WillCo Republicans to FUCK OFF?
That's right, kids! We knew it would come sooner or later but now the douchebags at the Williamson County Republican party are asking Diana Maldonado to give money to Fred Barron that she didn't receivefrom Fred Baron.
John Edwards had an affair. Fred Baron helped the woman in the affair out. It had nothing to do with Annie's List. Or Diana Maldonado.
Of course the WillCo R's want to talk about this. They can't talk about their record of leadership which has resulted in tolling being the primary method of financing new road construction. Low investment in non-freeway infrastructure, high taxes and developmental disarray that makes Downtown Austin look positively tranquil.
And let's not forget about T. Don Hutto.
Much of this failure and inadequacy is directly the result of Ogden, that asshat Gattis and Krusee the Time Traveler. The citizens of Williamson County are making a decision to give Democrats, like Diana Maldonado, a chance to come in and put things right.
Posted by mcblogger at 02:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 23, 2008
The good news...
... is that The Obama did not pick Chet Edwards (still hating on you, douchebag! Are we the only people in the Tex-o-sphere who really think this guy is a walking, talking, pile of pond scum?) to be our Vice Presidential nominee.
He did (and you had to know the bad news was coming, right?) pick the Senator from MBNA, Joe Biden of Delaware. Mostly because of his foreign relations experience since he's all the time negotiating cease-fires, treaties and trade pacts. But let's focus on his previous life as the Senator for the Credit Card issuers...
Keep in mind that Biden wasn't intimidated into voting for the Bankruptcy Bill in 2005. The guy OWNS his seat and will until he either retires or dies. He not only voted for it, he actually worked to bring other D votes to it in an effort to reach a bipartisan consensus with the Republicans on a bill that allowed a hospital or doctor to take your home for unpaid (and grossly inflated) medical bills. It also made sure that unsecured creditors could take your house as well. Isn't that nice?
The real jewel was making it almost impossible to obtain a bankruptcy under Chapter 7 of the code. For the uninitiated, that's the type of bankruptcy that allows an overwhelmed debtor to wipe the slate clean and start over. It's a cornerstone of our country, the ability to a debtor to seek the relief of bankruptcy. Of course, there were always those who abused and gamed the system. Rather than going after those people by giving courts more latitude, Congress (including Joe Biden) decided instead to go the other way and restrict everyone's access to the courts.
Some say Joe is a fighter. That remains to be seen. What we do know is that he's been an unabashed defender of financial corporations vs. consumers for decades. But then, of course, so has McCain. At least The Obama doesn't have that baggage.
No, I'm not excited. How can you be over an old man who eats soup at lunch with reporters?
Posted by mcblogger at 12:50 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Meanwhile, In My Spam Folder
Okay, in case you have somehow managed to avoid the news, Joe Biden will either be next Vice President of Earth or the fall guy if this whole Hope and Change thing does a Lakehurst in November.
Meanwhile... The last twenty-four hours have seen an explosion of Paris Hilton-related umm, err, headers....
The Last Temptation of Paris Hilton
For something to count as a temptation, don't you occasionally have to say "no"?
Paris Hilton denies screwing Ron Paul
Thanks for that image, guys!
Paris Hilton Donates Income To Children's Hospital From Mini-Me Sex
Paris Hilton's Peach - The Secret Ingredient on Iron Chef
Paris Hilton Gives Birth To Twins...Aliens
John McCain To Paris Hilton: "Cosmo, bayatch!"
And get those alien babies the hell off my lawn!
Posted by mayor mcsleaze at 07:40 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 22, 2008
Jokes of My Father's : Hangin' out
GRANDPA'S FISH
1. Rented boat = $75.00
2. Bait = $ 10.00
3. Camera film = $22.50
4. Showing the world that BIG fish and having it posted on the Internet....
PRICELESS
No, this isn't my father.
Posted by mcblogger at 01:52 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Is Kate Snow retarded?
I read PL's synopsis of the Good Morning America interview of Bill Clinton and was left with only the title of this post as a question in my mind.
Seriously, Kate, you had a man who HAS been President, who is still playing a part on a stage far larger than you can imagine, still working to make life better for those less fortunate and all you can think to ask him about is the GODDAMN PRIMARY?!?!?!?
Granted, morning television isn't for people like me (those with IQ's over 130). BUT COME ON...
(This was originally written on the 4th, however I got a little backed up with MY LIFE and didn't have a chance to post. So, why do it now? Because Kate Snow is a fucktard.)
Posted by mcblogger at 10:20 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Ladies, I give you...
The NYT Fall Fashion preview... or at least an abbreviated version. Break out those cards and let's help out the economy!
Posted by mcblogger at 09:01 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 21, 2008
Hey You Kids! Get The Hell Off My Lawns!
McCain unsure how many houses he owns
Is it cold in here? It feels cold. Cathy, where's my sweater? No, not that one. The one with the zipper.
Is it July yet? I thought it was July. Or Tuesday. I can never tell them apart.
It was the messboys, I tell you. I knew the messboys ate the strawberries. Durn their hides. Why isn't there any whipped cream?
Posted by mayor mcsleaze at 07:11 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
So Gaydar is Real
Another recent study, this time from Tufts University (like THAT doesn't sound like its full of poofs), is lending evidence to the idea that, No Shit Sherlock, Gaydar might work!
WOW. This is stunning news. To further test this out, I have placed a series of photos below for you to test your skills. Leave a comment with your guesses.Published in July's Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, the study claims that people could guess fairly accurately ("better than chance") whether men were gay or straight by looking at photos of their faces.
For the study, 15 undergraduate students, both male and female, were shown photos of faces of 90 men, evenly divided between gay and straight. The photos were taken from Internet personal ads and from Facebook. The study's lead author, graduate student Nicholas Rule, says men were used in this study for convenience, because they have a greater presence on the Internet than women.
The researchers found that subjects could accurately determine in 50 milliseconds — one-twentieth of a second — whether the men were gay or straight about 60 percent of the time. Rule says all the subjects were accurate 55 percent to 70 percent of the time.
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Posted by spamburgler at 04:13 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
DFA endorses McClelland!
Hurray, John!
Go throw him a few bucks while you're at it and help beautify the Texas House... by taking Myra Crownover out of it.
Posted by mcblogger at 01:55 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Krazy like a Keel
Donna Keel, whose only distinguishing feature seems to be her decision to marry a Keel, is running for State Representative against Valinda Bolton way down southwest... in southwest Travis County. Developers love her, mostly because she views the environmentally sensitive area as nothing more than empty land on which endless mini-malls filled with dry cleaning shops, frozen yogurt stores and nail salons may be built. All those low wage retail jobs also mean she's a brill promoter of economic growth.
No one ever said Donna was smart or a protector of the environment. On the smart thing, she did, after all, marry a Keel which is a small step above marrying a Manson. By virtue of the fact that the Keels haven't killed anyone. At least no one that we know of. What we do know is that her bother-in-law and winner of the 2008 LAMEST HAIRCUT IN THE WORLD is Terry Keel and he's the one forcing her to do this. Because, in his new role as parliamentarian, he wants a buddy since all CradDICK does is repeat him. One has to assume that Donna had met Terry prior to marrying the other Keel (the one who gave her the glam name). One has to wonder about the sanity of ANYONE willing to marry into that family with eyes wide open.
Can you tell we don't like Terry? Oh, there's a reason... Terry has all the integrity of a homeless drunk, he'll do anything for a dollar, much as a drunk will for a bottle of MD20/20. From scuttling real ethics reform to helping Tom CradDICK stay in power, Terry was a miserable failure as a State Representative. Now he's firmly supporting his sister-in-law. Just what we need... feathered hair, part 2.
On the environment, a massive concern for voters in the district, Donna Keel had this to say...
Business Friendly Environment - Many businesses that were overtaxed and over regulated in other states are relocating to Texas. Many of those same states have responded by increasing taxes on the remaining businesses and individuals, perpetuating a vicious cycle .
Oh, shit. I guess they forgot about being concerned about breathable air and drinkable water. My bad! Well, let's just address her economic stupidity for a moment, shall we? What she's saying here is that we need to keep business taxes low. I'm all for that. However, the Republicans she wants to join, the same ones who've been running Texas into the ground for more than 10 years, have made sure that business pays close to nothing in taxes to support the state that supports them. They use our roads, our schools, our police, fire and most definitely our courts. Yet they pay nothing to support the state. Oh, they provide some wonderful blue collar and minimum wage jobs (massive failure that IS Cabela's anyone?) but those jobs don't inject a massive amount of tax revenue either.
The reality is that Texas is one of the few states where our elected officials are dumb enough to give up everything for bargain basement prices. And Donna, you want to be one of those people? REALLY?!??! I find that just infuriatingly stupid. However, looking at your resume it's clear that while you've had a B school education, you've never worked in private industry. So you don't know what the real world is like where we actually look for places with economic stability where the taxes may be a little higher, but government is operating efficiently and investing for the future.
Republicans and Donna Keel are quite simply, bad salesman. They don't want partners that shoulder the burden of funding our state government and infrastructure and they don't understand that partnerships are built on shared sacrifice, trust and an understanding that long term profit is better than short term gain.
They are creating, though their policies, a business class who've grown fat and happy sucking off the government teat without paying so much as a dime in taxes. So, in a situation like that, you have to ask if the economic 'growth' these companies bring in is worth the cost to our environment, if the economic gain exceeds the cost. The answer, for many of these companies, is NO. They cost us far more in health care, education, transportation, public safety, etc. than they provide in taxes. Which means they are drains on our economy and we'd be better off without them.
Donna Keel doesn't know that. Which makes me wonder what, other than the way to the Comptroller's building, she does know.
Finally, her stand on toll roads...
Toll Roads – Austin absolutely needs to improve its infrastructure, particularly at the Y in Oak Hill. These improvements should be paid for with existing funds. I would only support tolls as an absolute last resort, never on existing roads or bridges( double taxation), and never as a source of revenue in perpetuity. Once a road is paid for, the toll should be removed.
Sounds great, doesn't it? Many Republicans said the same thing in 2003... right before they voted for the bill that gave TXDOT the ability to privatize new AND existing roads as well as toll in perpetuity. Donna, further proving she has a shallow-puddle deep understanding of the issues, doesn't get that tolling is more expensive for Texans than any other financing solution. Note here she makes no mention of the gas tax which we already know would be the cheapest way to fund infrastructure. Probably because she can't do the cost per mile break down in her head to determine that she'll pay more on a per gallon basis with tolls than with the gas tax.
As for 'removing the tolls', sure Donna. We've heard that from EVERY Republican at one time or another. We believed some of them. However, we're not going to blindly trust you since your brother-in-law helped put us in this mess to begin with. And he's one of your advisers and supporters, which to us means you have bad taste in both and even worse judgment.
We can't afford another Keel. We need to KEEP VALINDA BOLTON.
Posted by mcblogger at 10:28 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 20, 2008
A simple question...
Why is Karl Rove running fundraisers and not in jail?
On a lighter note, there's this from Dean Rindy...
Posted by mcblogger at 01:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
We (heart) Hector Nieto (and Jesmer's a tool)
No, Hector, not in THAT way. So you don't have to feel nervous around us...we love you for saying this...
"Instead of resurrecting a non-issue like Fred Baron, why doesn't John Cornyn explain to the people of Texas why he voted six times against bipartisan legislation to expand the Children's Health Insurance Program? Every time a child goes to the emergency room because a parent couldn't afford quality healthcare, that parent can thank John Cornyn."
Yesterday, dippy little Rob Jesmer of the Re-Elect A Worthless Douchebag campaign (AKA, Cornyn for Senate) sent out an email about Fred Baron (who?) giving money to Rick Noriega and the Texas Democratic Party and Girl and Boy Scouts of America. While he mostly left Noriega and the TDP alone, Rob went hog wild on the poor little scouts.
"No, we don't want any more of your Fred Barron cookies. We don't want anymore of your trial lawyer sing alongs or massive settlement knots. We certainly don't want to see any more of your tort pine car derby's..." Jesmer went on to discuss the Freemason's, threatening to teleport laughing reporters into the sun (with his MIND) and the Illuminati/Rothschild/Bilderberg grand unified conspiracy theory.
He did not comment on when Cornyn will be giving up the MILLIONS in oil and energy company money he's taken while those same companies have raped Texans on a daily basis.
Meanwhile, the Noriega campaign was taking a nap.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:47 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Roundin' up the TPA
It's time for another edition of the Texas Progressive Alliance's weekly round-up.
To kick the week off right, the TPA is unveiling its newly redesigned website where you can connect with the Alliance and our member bloggers via Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, DFA, Party Builder, Ning and other social networking tools.
Mike Thomas of Rhetoric & Rhythm looks at a week's worth of opinion columns from the San Antonio Express-News and determines there is a nearly three-to-one imbalance of conservative/Republican columns compared to liberal/Democratic ones.
On Bluedaze, TXsharon busts the myths that Natural Gas is cleaner, that shale drilling will make us safer, and that Domestic Drilling can make us Energy Independent.
There was no attempt of a citizens' arrest of Karl Rove while he visited Houston last week, raising money for Texas House Republicans. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs hoped it would happen, to no avail.
WhosPlayin is concerned about operators wanting to drill for gas in Lewisville's urban forest area near Central Park.
CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wonders why sexual assault equates to perjury - wink, wink - if you're a person of power in Texas.
WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts on HD-52 Democratic candidate Diana Maldonado's opponent Bryan Daniel sharing his campaign office with a local charity, IRS Complaint Filed Against Round Rock Charity.
Off the Kuff takes a look at the possible effect Libertarian candidates may have on some close State House races.
Texas Liberal uses the ancient epic Gilgamesh to discuss reactions to vulnerability and innocence in both the ancient and modern world.
McBlogger takes a look at the latest Republican fundraising pitch and finds that it's only appealing only to the same geriatric patients who are McThuselah's base. And those elephants are very tacky.
This week jobsanger is outraged by an Arkansas city that's trashing the Constitution and a small Texas country school that's allowing teachers to carry guns.
refinish69 awards the Infamous Cheese Tray Awards over at Doing My Part For The Left.
Mean Rachel supports Obama but argues against Maureen Dowd's assertion that Hillary Clinton's appearance in Denver will "dampen the dreams of our daughters."
Libby Shaw puts the pieces together for us over at TexasKos in his dairy Military Contractors Charge U.S. Taxpayers $85 Billion. Not only are we NOT saving money by outsourcing military support functions, we are pissing off people worldwide. Worst of all? Eisenhower's worst fear has come to pass, the MIC is real , alive and in control....
Justin at Asian American Action Fund Blog marvels at the coming Charlie Wilson Chair at UT, which will become the first Pakistan Studies chair in the nation.
Vince at Capitol Annex takes a look at a scandal that links State Sen. John Carona (D-Dallas) to a condo development in Houston that is falling apart.
Don't forget to check out other TPA member blogs for the latest news on Texas and national politics: The Agonist, Asian American Action Fund, B & B, Bay Area Houston, Beginning to Wonder, BlueBloggin, Bluedaze, Brains & Eggs, Burnt Orange Report, Capitol Annex, The Caucus Blog, Common Sense, Dallas South Blog, Dig Deeper Texas, Doing My Part For The Left, Dos Centavos, Easter Lemming Liberal News, Eye on Williamson, Feet To Fire, Grassroots News U Can Use, Half Empty, In The Pink Texas, jobsanger, Latina Lista, Lubbock Left, Marc's Miscellany, McBlogger, Mean Rachel, MindSpeak, MOMocrats, Musings, North Texas Liberal, Off The Kuff, Para Justicia y Libertad, The Red State, Rhetoric & Rhythm, Same Blog, Different Day, South Texas Chisme, StoutDemBlog, The Texas Blue, The Texas Clover Leaf, Texas Education, Texas Kaos, Texas Liberal, Texas Truth Serum, There... Already, Three Wise Men, TruthHugger, Who'sPlayin'?, and Xpatriated Texan.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:18 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 19, 2008
Having it GOOOOOD (if you're a corporation)
The WaPo decided to take some time out of it's busy schedule sucking up to McCain and his outrageously stupid staff to rain a little dookie on Senator Obama and his plan to stop offshoring American jobs and make sure corporations pay taxes on income earned by overseas divisions. Which is interesting in light of the recent report from the GAO that using loopholes, two-thirds (that's 66% for those of you who don't do fractions so well) of US and foreign corporations operating in the US didn't pay taxes between 1998 and 2005. In fact, 25% didn't pay a dime to the US Treasury on more than $1.1 TRILLION in revenue in 2005 alone.
Some of course think this is great...
I see it completely differently. First of all, corporations don't really pay any income taxes at all. People do. Every time a company decides to sell something to you, the price depends on a lot of things, including how much it costs to make the item, how much profit the company wants to make, and how high the company's tax bill is. You, the consumer, end up paying the corporate income tax with higher prices. And you want more of that?
This is, of course, untrue. Whether a company makes a dollar or $1 billion, it should pay taxes on those profits. Consider it the cost of doing business in a country with a strong consumer base, a tradition of the rule of law (at least so far as commerce is concerned) and a fantastic (though deteriorating) infrastructure. Not to mention, police and fire protection and an education system that spits out workers that are easily trained. You don't get that in many other countries, especially not in those with lower taxes.
Further, from an economic perspective, this is utter nonsense. For one thing, companies have competitors who offer similar products and servicesm not to mention a little something called demand elasticity. When consumers are gouged, they look for a cheaper alternative. Which means that it's hard to drive up prices arbitrarily, say to make more to pay your taxes as the author (a CPA) suggests.
No, these taxes hit shareholders. As a shareholder in a number of companies, I'm fine with that. After all, in other countries, my stake could be arbitrarily taken away. Not so here. In point of fact, I'm happy to pay taxes... it means I made money and am doing my part as an American to maintain the country that has allowed me to prosper. You see, I'm a true conservative who believes fundamentally you pay for what you get. Sure, I don't want government waste but at the same time I don't want private sector waste, either. And the private sector is way more wasteful. I want efficiency and despite what some supposedly conservative ideologues would like to believe, GOVERNMENT IS THE ANSWER IN CERTAIN SITUATIONS.
Finally, let's talk about corporations as people. The fact is, according to a number of SC rulings and interpretatins of the 14th Amendment, corporations ARE people. Why on earth shouldn't they pay taxes like the rest of the people?
Krugman has his take on it and takes on the argument that poor US companies are taxed too high. Actually, as a percentage of GDP, American corporations are taxed at a rate that's middle of the road for first world countries. Only Germany and French corporations pay less as a percentage of GDP, something that will no doubt infuriate those who hate these allegedly socialist countries.
The most striking thing about this debate are the ends to which some will go to dissemble. To wit...
First, while it is true that 60 percent to 70 percent of companies in the study paid no tax in a given year, there was a big qualification. The study focused on an Internal Revenue Service tax database that included millions and millions of companies. The vast majority of firms in the study were tiny mom- and-pop enterprises.Why did the tiny mom-and-pop enterprises pay no taxes? Because they didn't make any money! The study reported that was the reason about 80 percent of the firms in the sample avoided taxes in a given year. How terrible of them.
If the GAO issued a report that added together data for nine hot dog stands and General Electric Co., and found that 90 percent of companies didn't pay any tax, it would be a harmless and silly thing to do. But if the Democrats then rush to the microphones and insinuate to the general public that 90 percent of companies are tax dodgers, the stakes change.
The author of the above is from the American Enterprise Institute and his focus was on the Democrats rightfully politicizing this. And, in case you were wondering, what he says above is utter bullshit. The focus of the study was on corporations with more than $50 mn in revenues and/or $250mn in assets. How many hot dog vendors do you think fall into that class? How many mom and pop Ebayers have more than $250mn in assets?
Of course, the author didn't bother to leave his arguments there but instead decided to reiterate the tired assertion that US corporate tax rates are the highest in the western world. Which is true if you're looking at published tax rates. What he should be looking at is the actual tax burden which is composed of the actual taxes paid by companies in the US. That number is among the lowest in the world which rather neatly rains dookie all over the argument that our poor corporations are overburdened with taxes. Want more proof? See the Krugman link again.
Leona Helmsley was often quoted as saying that only the poor pay taxes. They can't, after all, afford accountants to find exotic loopholes in the tax code and they certainly can't afford attorneys to defend them in the event of an audit.
Posted by mcblogger at 02:03 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Future of the Republican Party
That's right, it's not up and comers like that fuckball Todd Staples who'll get his head handed to him in the R primary in 2010. It's Dan Patrick, radio personality (a contradiction in terms if ever there was one) and State Senator. If any of you 30 other men and women in the Texas Senate want to know why people look at y'all like listing agents at a funeral, he's the reason.
BOR has some information up on Dan's latest antics, trying to get on Finance where he will no doubt make such awesome reco's as:
1) Cutting taxes to zero
2) Cutting spending to zero
Which is his dream. Of course, for the rest of us who like police, state troopers, roads and schools it'll be a nightmare. But that's OK because Dan will manage to get a law passed to privatize the entire state... and we'll pay twice as much as we do now for half as much service.
Take a bow, assweevil. And do something about those fucking teeth. They look like jacked up chiclets.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:58 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Washington's Broken, And So Is This Record
"Washington's broken" proclaims a McThuselah campaign spot, conveniently overlooking the fact he's been there for a quarter century (that's twenty years longer than he spent as a POW) and might bear just a teeny bit of responsibility for the state of affairs he affects to deplore.
Remember when you had to actually not be part of Washington to run against Washington?
Also oddly missing is any notion that McCain's BFF, George Bush, might have had anything to do with things.
But what really chaps my ass is when he claims to be the "Original Maverick". Sorry, friend, the original Maverick was James Garner, and you're no James Garner. Hell, you're not even Jack Kelly.
Posted by mayor mcsleaze at 07:29 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 18, 2008
Yes, But Can Beer Goggles Work on Candidates?
So some English researchers spent some time and money (hopefully American because those exchange rates are AWESOME right now) doing some testing to find out that, No Shit Sherlock, the "Beer Goggles" effect really is real.
Turns out that booze may help mediocre men seem more fuckable and not just because of lowered inhibitions. Experimental psychologists at the University of Bristol in England gave 84 heterosexual college students chilled lime-flavored drinks that were either non-alcoholic or given a dose of vodka equivalent in alcohol to a large glass of wine or a pint-and-a-half of beer. After 15 minutes, the volunteers were shown photos of 40 other college students from both sexes.
Here's what they found: Both men and women who drank booze found these photos more attractive by roughly 10 percent and the effect was not specific to the opposite sex (meaning that your straight buddy may actually find you more attractive after a few vodka tonics and a backrub).
This leads us to two important issues.
One, this fantastic image.
Two, would they PLEASE find out if this effect applies to political candidates? Lord knows, it would help Texas Railroad Commission candidate Mark Thompson not look like a fucking train robber.
Posted by spamburgler at 09:55 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Having drinks with Kelso
Yes, Kelso, we agree with you... there are a bunch of lightweights at Forbes and the CDC.
Posted by mcblogger at 03:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
FDA, once again, dismisses a preponderance of evidence...
... and says that Bisphenol A, a plastic additive so common in food containers that it's found in the urine of 93% of Americans, is safe. But don't take it from me...
Posted by mcblogger at 01:41 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
My dirty little secret...
I love dogs... even chihuahua's, though I do make fun of them. And their owners.
Cynthia Miller has, with the help of her two Maltese dogs (Lulu and Lolly), created a website dedicated to raising money for dog rescue and helping people who have rescued dogs. The site is based on a 'what if...' scenario involving Cynthia's credit cards, Lulu and Lolly's sense of wanderlust and a camera. And now it's grown to products and a blog... check it out when you have a chance!
Posted by mcblogger at 11:53 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Globalization and the Credit Crunch
The past four years have brought India economic growth of seemingly unstoppable momentum, often 9 percent a year, helped along by big inflows of foreign investment. Rising incomes and low interest rates enabled many middle-class Indians to realize the dream of owning a home, even while still in their 30s.But economists warned that the economy was overheating, producing inflation and speculative bubbles in real estate and the stock market. So government policymakers moved to cool things down by raising interest rates and tightening the rules for home loans. Taken along with the general global slowdown and spiraling fuel costs, the measures have had the intended effect.
On Wednesday, the government projected the growth rate would fall this year to 7.7 percent, compared with nearly 9 percent last year. Industrial output slipped to its lowest in six years, growing 5.4 percent in June, compared with 8.9 percent in the same month last year.
ad_iconTrapped in debt, many middle-class Indians are struggling to cope. Raina's monthly mortgage payment has gone up by 12 percent. "I have to cut corners now, or I may not be able to pay back my loan before retirement," he said. Payments on some loans have doubled since 2004, when interest rates were at a record low.
"The boom of the last four years mesmerized them to live beyond their means," said Deepak Raheja, a therapist who runs a support group called the Hope Foundation. "In the past ten weeks, I am getting five to six new patients every week with financial worries about mortgages, loan repayments and credit card bills. All in the age group of 25 to 40. They exhibit anxiety, helplessness and depression. Some even contemplate suicide."
No longer are financial shocks localized. We saw the beginnings of that in the late 1990's and it's continued to develop which points out one negative of globalization, bad policy and laws lead to a collapse in one country that can effect consumers on the other side of the planet.
Posted by mcblogger at 09:47 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack