tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286680012024-03-07T13:40:52.158-05:00The Blue SouthLife, In the State of NatureThe Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.comBlogger100125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-81556881793484073232009-09-11T08:48:00.004-05:002009-09-11T09:18:40.507-05:00Civility is Alive and Well in National Politics...YOU LIE!This just in...Joe Wilson is an <a href="http://www.thestate.com/local/story/935924.html">asshole</a> with no manners. But it isn't just Joe Wilson that has forgotten what his mother taught him. People are ranting and raving at townhall meetings, parents are afraid to let their children hear an innocuous speech by the President, and the punditry continues to stoke the fire. <br /><br />Now, I'll cut the pundits a break here, because that's what they do-they stoke the fire, talk in histrionics, and make sweeping over-generalizations and intellectually lazy arguments that appeal to the groundling in us all. Maybe I'm giving humanity a little too much credit, but I can't bring myself to believe that the pundits truly believe the tripe they spew on the cable news networks. This is true for both the Fox News and the MSNBC crowds. It's all about the ratings, people.<br /><br />But the virulent river of wasted words has begun to flood into the halls of Congress, from the mouths of our elected representatives. This is pathetic. I repeat, this is pathetic. Civility is a cornerstone of democracy. Without civility, without an ability to hear opposing points of view, we will never reach the compromises that have defined our legislative process since the Constitution was written. When the Joe Wilsons of the world interrupt a speech, they signal an inherent disrespect for the speaker that in turn signals an unwillingness to compromise and build legislation that will move our country forward.<br /><br />I am of the firm belief that the legislative process should be like settling a lawsuit-the best settlements, like the best legislation, truly please no one. Everyone had to give up something in order to get something. That is a principle I think we have forgotten as a nation. You must experience some pain to bring about positive change. But instead of girding our proverbial loins, and accepting a solution that might cause a little pain in the short run, we act out like children. This is truly a pathetic state of affairs.<br /><br />Joe Wilson makes a valid point, that the healthcare legislation must address how we pay for healthcare for illegal immigrants. But Joe Wilson is fooling himself if he thinks that we don't already subsidize hospital care for illegal immigrants. Our hospitals cannot turn anyone away, by law, until that person is in stable condition. If an illegal immigrant shows up in the emergency room, he must be stabilized. Assuming that person has no health insurance, it is highly unlikely that he will be able to pay the bill. The hospital, after a meaningless effort to collect the money owed it, will then in turn write off the bill on its taxes. We, the American taxpayers, have just subsidized health care for an illegal immigrant. And we have been doing it this way for years. <br /><br />So why not address the problem in legislation, that will set out a proactive process for handling the issue, instead of allowing the money to seep into the system through the back door? Why not assert a little control over the situation, give the government a little more say in how it spends its money? Because Joe Wilson, and people like him, are assholes, that's why.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-54604599594720175372009-01-13T09:23:00.002-05:002009-01-13T09:25:34.812-05:00Quote of the DayThis comes from an <a href="http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/19/big_guns_takes_one_buy_one37888/">article</a> in the Post and Courier about our pro tem's new cannon:<br /><blockquote>McConnell spends much of his free time on his new toy, and his fellow re-enactors enjoy helping him polish, wax and fire it.</blockquote> I can't really add to that.<br /><br />Hat tip to Finx over at Indigo Journal for linking the article.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-38902589333056321662008-11-28T10:38:00.004-05:002008-11-28T10:42:00.118-05:00Ok, I know I said I'd be busy, but I couldn't resist...Compare and contrast. Both of these were headlines in today's State:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thestate.com/local/story/604398.html">Gun Bargains This Weekend: S.C. Firearm Purchases are Tax Free Today, Saturday in Recognition of the Second Amendment</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.thestate.com/statewire/story/604554.html">Two Injured in Gunfire at SC Thanksgiving Parade</a><br /><br />Oh, the irony.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-55758555545630085512008-11-26T16:28:00.003-05:002008-11-26T16:31:57.186-05:00Short HiatusThe Blue South is going to be busy for a couple of weeks. In the meantime, enjoy these remixes courtesy of Ross over at the Indigo Journal:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7g_S6clCY4k&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7g_S6clCY4k&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dDM3AGA1qQc&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dDM3AGA1qQc&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8vTZDFLRr6U&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8vTZDFLRr6U&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-64209793037318159252008-11-22T11:25:00.004-05:002008-11-22T11:43:10.324-05:00Quote of the Day<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYMQ3R2doeSo478-6rvKCo0tiStTpK3N3l8x9oJ-y9qs3e5LclPtQuA942lcrpJPyvqFj4MgNvdMnncVXaJJbFnh3qOEvbe2kKjM1bk5Xo0y7rjh0J-Cv2bYdWud87pVs9G07/s1600-h/id.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 236px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYMQ3R2doeSo478-6rvKCo0tiStTpK3N3l8x9oJ-y9qs3e5LclPtQuA942lcrpJPyvqFj4MgNvdMnncVXaJJbFnh3qOEvbe2kKjM1bk5Xo0y7rjh0J-Cv2bYdWud87pVs9G07/s320/id.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271523396735110306" /></a><br />Stephen Jones, president of Bob Jones University, has issued an apology for the school's past racist policies. Let's see what he had to say:<br /><blockquote>We conformed to the culture rather than provide a clear Christian counterpoint to it. In so doing, we failed to accurately represent the Lord and to fulfill the commandment to love others as ourselves. For these failures we are profoundly sorry.</blockquote><br /><a href="http://www.thestate.com/local/story/598502.html">Source.</a><br />BJU's "culture conformity" included a policy against interracial dating that was in effect until 2000. According to The State:<br /><blockquote>The school had used the Bible to justify discrimination in the past, such as in a 1998 letter to a writer who questioned the school’s ban on interracial dating. Then, school officials noted that God had created oceans to keep men apart, as well as ethnic, cultural and language barriers.</blockquote><br />I'm not sure which culture they were conforming to, since our culture was pretty clear about a need for racial equality beginning with the Civil War and culminating in the Civil Rights Movement, some 40 years before BJU ended it's anti-interracial dating policy. I guess Stephen Jones knew the time was right to issue the apology when his WWJD bracelet began glowing.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-23777260524821835872008-11-17T21:10:00.003-05:002008-11-17T21:18:06.644-05:00S.C.: the "Pay Toilet of the Nation"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiykgQ0PJO6D8iB6bj87uVLO8letrjsF1S7sy8hh_qgjBCeR7IvXFRJ9AT7zMeCbSiYPb29xQUMOEyNbX1PVsDNFgsDmNMtwpWJqbv41BP8VaOkgDCY_bV5qNJ-L1fn0g4acSJr/s1600-h/paytoilet.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 256px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiykgQ0PJO6D8iB6bj87uVLO8letrjsF1S7sy8hh_qgjBCeR7IvXFRJ9AT7zMeCbSiYPb29xQUMOEyNbX1PVsDNFgsDmNMtwpWJqbv41BP8VaOkgDCY_bV5qNJ-L1fn0g4acSJr/s320/paytoilet.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269816126996860178" /></a><br />At least according to Sen. John Courson, our lovely state has become a pay toilet. <a href="http://www.thestate.com/154/story/592794.html">Source.</a> Apparently it turns out that a loophole in the way that DHEC construes the landfill "needs" of counties allows our landfills to accept millions of tons of garbage from other states.<br /><br />The State began a week long series on DHEC's ineptitude today, and we here at the Blue South have to say, it has started out with a bang. We're biting our nails, wondering what's around the corner as the State's hard-hitting investigative team has set it's sights on DHEC.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-38964796371893948962008-11-15T10:37:00.004-05:002008-11-15T11:15:38.295-05:00Five Headlines(1) Catholic Priest, Father Jay Scott Newman has distributed a letter to his parishioners urging them not to take communion until they have done penance for voting for Obama. <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/11/14/national/main4603110.shtml">Source.</a> See, this was a tough call for me because, on the one hand, if I voted for Obama my eternal soul was in peril, whereas on the other hand, if I didn't vote for Obama, Tinkerbell would die. It was a tough call, but I think I made the right one. And Tink, you're welcome.<br /><br />(2) Wallace Scarborough is protesting the results of his election loss. <a href="http://charleston.net/news/2008/nov/13/scarborough_challenges_election_results61497/">Source.</a> Scarborough, who lost by a scant 211 votes, has challenged about 700 votes on the grounds that some of the people voted at the wrong precinct and did not cast fail-safe ballots, others voted in the district even though they no longer lived there, one polling place reported 27 more votes than the total number of signatures on the poll list, and because, c'mon, he's Wallace freakin' Scarborough, a REPUBLICAN, running for office in SOUTH CAROLINA, obviously there's something fishy about that.<br /><br />(3) Gov. Sanford was named chairman of the Republican Governors Association. <a href="http://www.thestate.com/politics/story/590412.html">Source.</a> That's right, Marky Mark is going to Washington, pigs in hand, to retool the Republican party. Meanwhile, while Sanford's veto pen is distracted by his new job of promoting a Republican return to it's bed-rock principles of limited government and low taxes, the General Assembly will be holding clandestine meetings to pass much-needed legislation while they have the chance.<br /><br />(4) The South Financial Group, S.C.'s largest bank, is on the dole. <a href="http://www.thestate.com/154/story/590409.html">Source.</a> Even though they claim they're in good financial condition, a bank spokesperson stated that it was too hard to resist $347 million in free money. Word on the street is that they plan to add a little bling to the teller lines, ATMs will get a fresh coat of paint, and departing executive Mack Whittle will get a roll of diamond encrusted toilet paper, a bejeweled scepter, and a custom velvet portrait of himself standing atop the hopes and dreams of his customers, doing a mean fist pump, that plays a constant digital loop of Jay-Z's "Diamonds are Forever."<br /><br />(5) Prison Fashion: Inmates in S.C.'s prisons who "commit overt sexual acts in common areas" will have to continue to wear pink jumpsuits. <a href="http://www.thestate.com/local/story/590407.html">Source.</a> Inmate Sherone Nealous lost a court fight to ban the use of the pink jumpsuits, sighting the fact that the pink really clashed with his eyes and that he would "rather have a nice paisley or argyle pattern." S.C. Prisons Director John Ozmint has reportedly been looking into the viability of adding some ruffles and lace to the jumpsuits and maybe switching the jumpsuit out entirely to bring in some more up-to-date fashions. "It all depends on what I see on the runways at Fashion Week," Ozmint said, "Who knows, maybe we'll introduce some patent leather, anyway you look at it, these inmates will be looking fierce."The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-33532117108098254032008-11-13T23:06:00.005-05:002008-11-13T23:33:44.980-05:00Exclusive: The Blue South Lands an Interview with Embattled Congressman Paul Broun of Georgia<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglyC-9oCG6NQk9VUmNhCF_C9r914QGFmU1K7P2HggpMchrQ_VZZ4WATnfGuZNoacQ6C6EKo7GHsurqD_sIP84w_iqQAOWG97pKpXJ4RGNA_HkX8233XwctDoto4-shmSQrHwdE/s1600-h/071119_broun-paul4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 274px; height: 206px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglyC-9oCG6NQk9VUmNhCF_C9r914QGFmU1K7P2HggpMchrQ_VZZ4WATnfGuZNoacQ6C6EKo7GHsurqD_sIP84w_iqQAOWG97pKpXJ4RGNA_HkX8233XwctDoto4-shmSQrHwdE/s320/071119_broun-paul4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268366747938565426" /></a><br />We here at the Blue South are proud as heck to publish our exclusive interview with Rep. Paul Broun of Georgia's 10th District. Some of you may know Rep. Broun for his recent comments comparing our president elect to Hitler and Stalin, saying that Pres.-elect Obama is a Marxist who wants to establish an American Gestapo. Turns out, Rep. Broun is sorry for making those comments and he didn't mean what he said at all. Here's our exclusive:<br /><blockquote>TBS: Rep. Broun it's a pleasure to talk with you today.<br />Broun: Thanks, I'm glad to be able to fully explain my recent comments.<br />TBS: Well, then let's cut to the chase. What did you mean when you called our next president a Marxist?<br />Broun: Well, not to bore you with a history lesson, but if you look at Obama's record and his speeches, then take the third word from every sentence that contains the words "hope" or "change", then those words begin to spell out the first words of the Communist Manifest, by Karl Marx.<br />TBS: But we thought you were going to apologize...<br />Broun: Now, let me finish. See, if you take the letters from the name "Barack Obama" and take their numeric equivalent, you get 2-1-18-1-3-11-15-2-1-13-1, and if you add that up it comes out to 68. You want to guess what year Karl Marx wrote the Communist Manifesto? That's right, 1968.<br />TBS: But the Communist Manifesto was published in 1848...<br />Broun: Ohhhh, you just got served.<br />TBS: Ok, so didn't you want to...<br />Broun: Thanks for your time, it's been a pleasure.</blockquote><br />We here at the Blue South have been proud to bring you our exclusive coverage of this incredibly important issue. We would like to extend our thanks to Rep. Broun for graciously agreeing to say really stupid things in public and then have to come up with some logical reason for saying them. Keep up the good work congressman, and people of Georgia, look at the name next to the (R) on your ballot next time.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-55835758564679417602008-11-13T08:09:00.003-05:002008-11-13T08:16:31.240-05:00Sadly Ironic Quote of the DayThis gem comes to us from David Ignatius column in today's WaPo. The topic: the upcoming G-20 financial summit. Here's the quote:<br /><blockquote>Bush administration officials support some items in this package, but they are wary of the unintended consequences of new regulations -- particularly ones that are rushed through during a crisis. </blockquote><br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/12/AR2008111202531.html?hpid=opinionsbox1">Source.</a><br />See, I thought the Bush administration, the same one that declared war on a tactic and then used the "I'm a wartime President" excuse to curtail civil liberties, justify torturing and holding detainees indefinitely without a hearing, passing the USAPATRIOT Act, passing a $700 billion dollar bailout that gives god-like power to the Secretary of the Treasury, etc., etc., etc., thrives on crisis-mode.<br /><br />Guess I was wrong.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-87496630861590812802008-11-11T21:42:00.004-05:002008-11-11T21:58:07.468-05:00The Future of the Republican PartyI had an interesting conversation today with an author/scholar who thinks the Republican party is no longer, nor has it been for quite some time, on the side of federalism. He said that he has not voted for a major party candidate for president since (and it took him a minute to remember) George H. W. Bush. He then related how he stood in line at his polling place for two hours this time around only to achieve some sort of individual catharsis, knowing his vote would not make a difference.<br /><br />This got me thinking about the state of the Republican party in the aftermath of the Democratic tide that washed in on November 4. Jim DeMint was also thinking about this. Funny, I didn't know he had the capacity and it turns out, I'm right. DeMint wants the Republican party to turn back to its "Reagan-ite" roots of limited government and low taxes. <a href="http://www.thestate.com/politics/story/582641.html">Source.</a> Was Jim DeMint conscious during the Reagan years? Does he not realize that we underwent an unprecedented expansion of our military that cost taxpayers money that we've only just begun to pay back? Last I checked, the military is part of our government and spending money means you can only delay increasing taxes for a short while.<br /><br />The truth is that Reagan was merely a pawn in the neoconservative hijacking of the Republican party. The Republican party of limited government and low taxes has not existed for a very, very long time. Sure, they may cut taxes here and there, but every president tinkers with the tax system. In fact, capital gains taxes were higher during the Reagan administration than they were under the Bush (2nd) administration. Does that mean that DeMint will be belly-aching for a return to the Bush-ite roots of low taxes and limited government as well?<br /><br />My advice to Jim DeMint is to pull your head out of that place where all your thoughts seem to come from and look at the world around you. Limited government is a thing of the past. Federalism is dead. States are only as sovereign as the federal government tells them they can be. And lowering taxes at this point in our history is one of the most short-sighted panders I've seen in a long, long time. If people like Jim DeMint would quit pandering and misquoting history, take the reigns of Congress, and wield the power that was meant by our Constitution to be the most important power, then maybe, just maybe, our country could start climbing out of this mess we're in.<br /><br />But hey, the Jim DeMint's of the world have to get reelected, right? Makes me sick. Where's the term limits lobby when you need them?The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-90495896000159562882008-11-05T21:15:00.003-05:002008-11-05T21:32:30.489-05:00The Case for Raising Taxes (In a Nutshell)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWy6_oeSs14D5xzmIC3McIRXbKfN6dVxxNp2GT1ls1QsCHcBAPoeO6tpRCXYhrBztCRSzzG68TU4JmL93PETikb68dRsBVUs9Kb4N32k7npibNoOYykxNGatxWqLl1s8TVFR4v/s1600-h/TaxReady.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 257px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWy6_oeSs14D5xzmIC3McIRXbKfN6dVxxNp2GT1ls1QsCHcBAPoeO6tpRCXYhrBztCRSzzG68TU4JmL93PETikb68dRsBVUs9Kb4N32k7npibNoOYykxNGatxWqLl1s8TVFR4v/s320/TaxReady.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265366814060939618" /></a><br />There was a lot of campaign rhetoric about Barack Obama's tax policy being socialist, in that it seeks to redistribute wealth among the population. The problems with that characterization are legion, but the most glaring are: (1) true socialists seek to nationalize the means of production to harness the power of industry to redistribute wealth; (2) we have a progressive tax system, meaning that the marginal tax rate increases as income increases (e.g. tax brackets); and (3) (and I'll admit this is more editorial than factual) over the past two decades we have seen an enormous concentration of wealth in the upper echelons of our socio-economic structure that has lead to a real need to "redistribute" some of that wealth to a struggling middle class. Ok, so we are agreed, Obama is not a socialist. That's not really my point here, though.<br /><br />We are going to end up spending trillions of dollars trying to grease the wheels of our credit markets over the next couple of years. We are fighting two wars. Our Congress sees fit to expand spending programs every time they get the opportunity. In short, we are spending a lot of money. So where's that money coming from?<br /><br />In the macro-sense, that money can come from three sources: (1) we can borrow it; (2) we can print it; and (3) we can take it from our citizens. So far we have been borrowing vast amounts of money from China, Japan, and a few oil-producing countries to finance our wars and our deficits. I don't have time to verify this, but I'd be interested to see how much of our budget is spent each year just paying interest on those loans. My prediction is that when we hit the tipping point where the interest we pay on loans from other countries begins to outgrow our budget, those other countries will stop lending us money. So what do we do then?<br /><br />Well, we can print the money...and watch the value of an already shaky dollar plummet. There are pros and cons to a weak dollar, but my point of view is that the cons vastly outweigh any perceived benefits. So if we need money to finance our entitlement programs and wars and economic recovery, I would say that printing more money to fill that need is a terrible idea.<br /><br />So that leaves us with the problem of taxes. No politician that raises taxes can expect to keep his job. That's why we're in this mess. The problem is that the responsible thing for us to do as a society is to pay more taxes. But nobody wants to hear that. People like to drive on our roads, attend our schools, turn on their electrical appliances, talk on their cell phones, etc., but nobody wants to bear the burden of paying for all that. However, if we just raise taxes across the board, then we can all minimize the individual pain and begin building a road to a fiscally responsible government (provided they don't just spend all the new money on new toys, which is possible).<br /><br />My point here is this: Obama's tax plan, to increase taxes on those making $250k or more is not some socialist, redistribute the wealth to those who didn't work for plan. It's really only a first step in a much needed journey toward fiscal responsibility. So when you see your taxes going up, don't just give the knee jerk reaction and vote in another George Bush who will refuse to raise taxes even when he and everyone around him recognizes that it is necessary. It will hurt us in the long run much worse if we don't start paying for our government services now and just keep running up interest on overseas bonds.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-80144626310537357622008-10-30T07:28:00.001-05:002008-10-30T07:29:30.804-05:00Goin' Rogue on the Daily ShowFor anybody who didn't see this last night, it had me in stitches:<br /><embed FlashVars='videoId=189759' src='http://www.thedailyshow.com/sitewide/video_player/view/default/swf.jhtml' quality='high' bgcolor='#cccccc' width='332' height='316' name='comedy_central_player' align='middle' allowScriptAccess='always' allownetworking='external' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' pluginspage='http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer'></embed>The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-80501792150770595042008-10-26T08:26:00.003-05:002008-10-26T08:46:17.494-05:00Headline Innuendo-"Deep Boat"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJOxDZqFs2E3wOIAIfXSb1O4M_j-P3Zjg8pTMn7SKjuso_fymt9mr8IK1UBVRqxiKOIbHjnq8nnKNCnJIDcLKUUX7Ky7O83kQWo-hTVkzFGdGIe_DiB-eEQ3FpWCTS6YN0Ji3K/s1600-h/Image1.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJOxDZqFs2E3wOIAIfXSb1O4M_j-P3Zjg8pTMn7SKjuso_fymt9mr8IK1UBVRqxiKOIbHjnq8nnKNCnJIDcLKUUX7Ky7O83kQWo-hTVkzFGdGIe_DiB-eEQ3FpWCTS6YN0Ji3K/s320/Image1.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5261458509996965970" /></a><br />Apparently one of our state's competitive grants for filmmaking has gone to a porn producer and the people are loving it. The State featured an article today entitled <a href="http://www.thestate.com/politics/story/567483.html">"Polls Find Deep Support for Drilling"</a>. I didn't bother to read the article, but from the headline, it's clear that "Drilling" is going to be a hit at the, wherever pornos are shown publicly place.<br /><br />But on a more serious note, aren't we deluding ourselves a bit here people? I mean there's only about 20 billion barrels of oil out there. We use 20 million barrels every day. By my calculation, that keeps us burning that sweet sweet crude for only about another 3 years or so. Then we're right back where we started. Oh, and did I mention that it's going to take anywhere from 6 to 12 years to get the stuff on the market. Oh yeah, and it turns out that hurricanes come through a lot of those areas pretty regularly. Remember what Katrina and Rita did to gas prices? Oh yeah, and for those of you prone to hug a tree every now and then, it turns out that offshore drilling carries with it a significant risk of dumping a bunch of that black gold into the ocean and killing a whole bunch of animals, some of which we like to eat. Ooh, ooh, and I almost forgot to mention that pursuing this false solution is going to delay market forces that are driving innovation in new technologies to reduce our dependence on oil.<br /><br />In sum, it seems like the whole offshore drilling debate is not much more than a red herring. My vote is to increase research spending on the stuff that can get us out of this mess permanently before we end up driving our cars like Fred Flintstone.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-51530175512738933802008-10-26T07:42:00.004-05:002008-10-26T07:46:25.320-05:00Everybody's Doing It...It Makes You Feel Good<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSeA2nnwjugX22yvqzP6heUdqxEKtjOwzxj9D2txppbkvO4Xk5w_k3FJrXnoHUJ3Rsc9MNos6V36G3WYbpDA06pjyRp1jC9AckBLArXCz0awsibWaZg1LcIRrxv4Tz4S3-Wzo9/s1600-h/_39841627_203b_mcc_rove_file_ap.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 203px; height: 152px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSeA2nnwjugX22yvqzP6heUdqxEKtjOwzxj9D2txppbkvO4Xk5w_k3FJrXnoHUJ3Rsc9MNos6V36G3WYbpDA06pjyRp1jC9AckBLArXCz0awsibWaZg1LcIRrxv4Tz4S3-Wzo9/s400/_39841627_203b_mcc_rove_file_ap.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5261442966240679122" /></a><br />Former Bush administration mouthpiece, Scott McClellan, seen here looking uncomfortable next to MC Karl Rove, has endorsed Barack Obama for President. Read the story <a href="http://www.thestate.com/nationwire/story/565301.html">here</a>.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-11467898325988281882008-10-24T07:11:00.003-05:002008-10-24T07:14:45.904-05:00Quote of the Day<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMa8Gd4L8Lsh2a3pqyQjdbOiT3cA4F-s-QsjGmnrHoufFFH96KSyy4mrA_5r0a9VG4TKMaOup549YIol8UgxTzydUhAl0vL5KyHich3L9pU5NPu-Qtcf1SsO9SwB7znH9NeyX4/s1600-h/AlanGreenspan.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMa8Gd4L8Lsh2a3pqyQjdbOiT3cA4F-s-QsjGmnrHoufFFH96KSyy4mrA_5r0a9VG4TKMaOup549YIol8UgxTzydUhAl0vL5KyHich3L9pU5NPu-Qtcf1SsO9SwB7znH9NeyX4/s400/AlanGreenspan.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260692761074056642" /></a><br />Alan Greenspan on why our economy is tanking:<br /><blockquote>I made a mistake in presuming that the self-interests of organizations, specifically banks and others, were such as that they were best capable of protecting their own shareholders and their equity in the firms.</blockquote><br />Oops. <br /><br />So does that mean that Greenspan's mistake was trusting in one of the most basic tenets of capitalist theory? Talk amongst yourselves.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-18704745458012592042008-10-22T19:42:00.002-05:002008-10-22T19:50:55.055-05:00From Wall Street to the Corner of Main and Gervais<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UdpkOji2BQb_UHWWZzeraek6LsrkykygyoU0adUokWwJELbdH_nOsscg4hVZqPowdv9Wx9mVcLIWXTuASlEK2wWbPzelraN23Y0hL76OdljOX4sMJyEtUTkZwUizwgAbguRJ/s1600-h/Wall_Street.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UdpkOji2BQb_UHWWZzeraek6LsrkykygyoU0adUokWwJELbdH_nOsscg4hVZqPowdv9Wx9mVcLIWXTuASlEK2wWbPzelraN23Y0hL76OdljOX4sMJyEtUTkZwUizwgAbguRJ/s320/Wall_Street.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260145349898983186" /></a><br />So it turns out that reduced consumer spending means that we're going to have to cut about $500 million from the state budget this year. Apparently our state government receives about a third of its revenue each year from the sales tax. Oops. At least our legislature is cutting its budget instead of just running a deficit. That's refreshing.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-26977200676734414182008-10-22T12:34:00.003-05:002008-10-22T13:09:22.947-05:00Leaky Pipes and Our Growing Water Problem<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO01-nKSuc59H4QrX2e_wc80J4YbGHPUZ05L3do46jAUSuSLuAUWWL1gOSRW_kYzuBz-9CeEf6-M6hAojUIN19ybC9Js543wCmVeUT7_sQSNtZ1_Y6tSiFIc5fu94I_6n0bsuS/s1600-h/DSCF0286.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO01-nKSuc59H4QrX2e_wc80J4YbGHPUZ05L3do46jAUSuSLuAUWWL1gOSRW_kYzuBz-9CeEf6-M6hAojUIN19ybC9Js543wCmVeUT7_sQSNtZ1_Y6tSiFIc5fu94I_6n0bsuS/s320/DSCF0286.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260041883350820498" /></a><br />Unless you have been living under a river rock for the past couple of years, you've noticed that we've been in a severe drought. Anyone who enjoys spending time on any of our numerous lakes and rivers can provide anecdotal evidence of the decline of water levels over the past few years. One of the most stark reminders for me of this phenomenon is the floating dock at the landing on the Congaree at the end of Rosewood Drive here in Columbia. The pilings to which the dock is attached tower over my head as I pull my kayak to the end of the boat dock, reminding me of the potential torrent the Congaree can become. Then, as I paddle into the middle of the river and get out of my boat I find I'm only standing ankle-deep in water. It's depressing.<br /><br />However, despite my own selfish concerns for the river levels, there are also real concerns for Columbia and cities across the Southeast. Today American Rivers, a conservation group whose website can be found <a href="http://www.americanrivers.org">here</a>, released a report outlining possible solutions for our drought-based water supply problems. The report, which can be found <a href="http://media.thestate.com/smedia/2008/10/22/12/RiverReport.source.prod_affiliate.74.pdf">here</a>, outlines 9 basic conservation measures that can save Columbia up to 27 million gallons of water per day. Those conservations measures are: (1) fixing leaky pipes (which account for up to 14% of our total yearly water use); (2) retrofitting buildings with new appliances (which account for about 20% of our total yearly water use); (3) smart landscaping (we use about 30% of our drinking-quality water watering lawns each year); (4) increasing the cost of water (we are capitalists after all, despite what Hank Paulson tells you); (5) metering all water users instead of allowing shared-use buildings to charge a flat fee for water usage; (6) increasing public understanding of our water challenges; (7) returning more of our saved water to rivers (they liken it to a water "savings account"); (8) involve water users in decisions about water policy (localized democracy...scary to the elites); and (9) build smarter in the future.<br /><br />Sounds like a good plan, especially considering that a healthy supply of water is absolutely necessary to preserve any shred of our current way of life. My prediction, though, is that we'll build more dams and pray for rain. See, I'm beginning to realize that human nature tends to be reactionary. No matter how much we understand a problem, we are not apt to fix it until we feel the consequences. This is a sad truth, mainly because we have very smart people spending their time coming up with reports like this one and a whole bunch of people who will promptly ignore them. This complacency is endemic to our representative, republican form of government. We give more power than we have to to people and trust them to make these decisions for us. The problem is that we groan when those people actually ask for our money to implement the solutions and god forbid they start telling us to do things like fix our pipes or buy a new dishwasher.<br /><br />For too long America has tried to have it both ways. We entrust our government to strangers and resist them when they do their jobs. In turn, they give up trying and just try to find other ways out of the problem. We end up with a massive national debt and a weak economy, then we turn to them to fix it. This is why I think the single greatest recommendation made by American Rivers is to involve the end consumers in the process of formulating water policy. This will cause people to become better educated through a public debate, they will see the consequences of the decisions before those consequences arise, and the people can have their solutions they way the people want them to be.<br /><br />Direct democracy is not an easy thing to pull off. We are busy people and often perceive that we have little time to govern ourselves. But if we want to remain a free society, we must begin to democratize parts of our lives that we once entrusted to representatives.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-29830928266336239912008-10-19T11:40:00.005-05:002008-10-20T21:44:54.557-05:00Colin Powell Endorses Barack ObamaThe quintessential American moderate has spoken. The video is worth a look. Sorry I can't get the embed to work right, so here's the <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/10/19/colin_powell_endorses_obama.html?hpid=topnews">link.</a><br /><br />Update. Let's see if this works:<br /><br /><iframe height="339" width="425" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/27265490#27265490" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-44121907291201708102008-10-15T06:37:00.004-05:002008-10-20T21:55:30.618-05:00The Gambler's Fallacy and Economic Collapse<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0E1JYkHKaNYjgyoISpfmUBFriJwys1lWUSZ-G-VIshOULC49cv-xEJxxYmNpDx-mKvQE_-lBVcYYEkRcsipEkZ4D90rVOiaNyP1p8fZlhxl_e2y7qYEsLJEVvSVuQPDlR3fU5/s1600-h/dogs-playing-poker.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0E1JYkHKaNYjgyoISpfmUBFriJwys1lWUSZ-G-VIshOULC49cv-xEJxxYmNpDx-mKvQE_-lBVcYYEkRcsipEkZ4D90rVOiaNyP1p8fZlhxl_e2y7qYEsLJEVvSVuQPDlR3fU5/s320/dogs-playing-poker.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257348645171212770" /></a><br />I have play a lot of poker in my day...a whole lot. I used to sit around and watch the World Series of Poker on ESPN when I didn't have a game going. I marveled at the skill of the poker pros, the ones who made it time and time again to the final table. They carried an enormous amount of respect from the growing number of amateurs who found their way into the tournament. The commentators would profile the pros, tell us why they were so good at the game. Some of them were mathematical geniuses, they told us. They could figure the odds of winning at the drop of a hat. Some of them had an uncanny ability to see into the thoughts of their opponent, reading the twitch of an eye, or betting patterns, or some ephemeral glow about them that told the pro exactly what that person was holding. <br /><br />I too once suffered from the hubris of believing myself to be a good player. I approached the table with an air of confidence, pushed more and more money into the pot until I came out ahead. But over time I learned something about poker. Players have varying degrees of skill that allow them to gain certain advantages, but ultimately, to win you have to have the cards.<br /><br />Let's shift gears for a moment. The gambler's fallacy is the false belief that as a certain result occurs more and more over time, the gambler believes that the probability of that event happening again rises. The classic example is the coin flip. If I flip a coin 20 times and it comes up heads twenty times then, if I fall prey to the gambler's fallacy, I begin to believe that the probability that the coin will land on heads again is greater than 50%. The problem is that no matter if I flip a coin every minute until the day I die and it always lands on heads, the probability of it landing on heads never rises above 50%. However, my confidence that it will land on heads goes up each time, causing me to believe more and more that the coin is destined to land on heads no matter what.<br /><br />It's the same thing with derivatives. The contracts were structured in such a way as to allow for such a small probability that their inherent risks would manifest themselves that the people engaging in these agreements began to fall prey to the gambler's fallacy. The problem with derivatives is the same problem with any investment: greater risk = greater (possible) reward. Thus, the companies entering into derivative contracts made enormous profits from them and managed to avoid the risk factors. But then home prices began to decline and the risk reared its ugly head. <br /><br />We can only hope that our government learns that if it looks like a security, and quacks like a security, then it needs to be regulated like a security. There is a reason that the SEC was formed in the 1930s. There is a reason that we still abide by the Securities Act of 1933 and 1934. We learned a lot about the pitfalls of unconstrained finance in those years. Let's not forget those lessons.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-61954640168113732332008-10-08T20:05:00.004-05:002008-10-08T20:28:19.562-05:00I Put a Spell on You...And Other Headlines<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBkwnnXPWvFx60_D5qXBe7xlW_b-6nGH073cqmv1uDagC0KgOHVf9zGMyPHcsHEIOZAbAVetlLMvfcRMsDUsO8H9AbGsJs9VRIH-8ATGeONxnsn3uAW3HvV2r8GKsE47eu061/s1600-h/Slide1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBkwnnXPWvFx60_D5qXBe7xlW_b-6nGH073cqmv1uDagC0KgOHVf9zGMyPHcsHEIOZAbAVetlLMvfcRMsDUsO8H9AbGsJs9VRIH-8ATGeONxnsn3uAW3HvV2r8GKsE47eu061/s400/Slide1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254959896063372626" /></a><br />This week in unbelievable headlines comes the most unbelievable of all: <a href="http://www.thestate.com/local/story/548016.html">Voodoo Priestess from Blythewood Hired to Kill?</a> Oh man, you've got to read that story if you haven't already. I don't want to spoil it for you, but let's just say when you write a check to a voodoo priestess for putting a spell on your political opponent, make sure it doesn't bounce.<br /><br />In other news, it turns out our state revenues are going to be about <a href="http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/oct/08/forecasters_state_budget_cut_by_another_57136/">$550 million</a> short of the 2008-2009 budget. I guess for all those people who wanted small government and never voted, congratulations, you win.<br /><br />Howard Rich, in his attempts to become the next king of South Carolina, has sent <a href="http://www.greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081008/NEWS01/81008019/-1/rss01">threatening letters</a> to notable SC Democrats, including former DNC chairman and USC professor Don Fowler, stating that their contributions to "a wide variety of leftist organizations" are being monitored. Rich also grew a pair of fangs and sprouted bat wings over the weekend.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-49072430020208132802008-10-08T15:17:00.003-05:002008-10-08T15:47:55.639-05:00The Boogie Man Cometh<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqAi299jokMeqasScwZyJ-bR4fdvuxbg4C_o6K1nixpRtbDhOD3aWZ5TTzqYG_dQ6hEOPec9nOxLPtpy3oHei9KSC02vFIofMpOZliOKS-pSDMZR-LwfIm9q6re8MX5jqSYeLS/s1600-h/HWbush.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqAi299jokMeqasScwZyJ-bR4fdvuxbg4C_o6K1nixpRtbDhOD3aWZ5TTzqYG_dQ6hEOPec9nOxLPtpy3oHei9KSC02vFIofMpOZliOKS-pSDMZR-LwfIm9q6re8MX5jqSYeLS/s320/HWbush.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254887613551636354" /></a><br />"Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story" is about to open in theaters around the country. It is still playing at the <a href="http://www.nickelodeon.org/">Nickelodeon</a> through October 14. For those of you who have not heard about the movie, it chronicles the rise and fall of S.C. native Lee Atwater. Atwater made his name as a win-at-all-costs campaign manager for George H.W. Bush and later as the chairman of the RNC. <br /><br />The film follows Atwater from his early days in South Carolina through his death in 1991. Throughout the film, Atwater comes across as a lovable, yet sinister figure. Atwater was eulogized by James Baker as Machiavellian "in the best sense of the word." The film portrays Atwater as someone who was fiendishly adept at manipulating others, including the press, and who would stop at nothing to gain victory for his candidate. <br /><br />For anyone who plans to vote on November 4, this movie is a must see. The ugly underbelly of election politics is juxtaposed with the dying plea of one of its most successful and ruthless purveyors that the slimy tactics must stop. It really makes you think, as a voter and a human being, about the process that elections have become. It makes you wonder how we allow our politicians to get away with being liars and thieves, with shirking any moral or ethical responsibility or dodging accountability through scapegoating others.<br /><br />Atwater was a villain- there is no doubt about that. However the film has a way of humanizing the villain so that we can see ourselves in him. We can see our potential for evil, we can see our glaring imperfections, we can see how pathetic a life lived like Atwater's looks in the end.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-44949201970098448882008-10-03T06:46:00.003-05:002008-10-03T06:54:37.884-05:00You've Got to Know When to Hold 'em<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_8zsRa9ZXB4bJokjgLOjLccMnQeLvCgQeamk_JUkJ7XEmnspiGKbwF9UHqCqeZoEFjV7oIwOV3H0MiMQe47EnWpdwC6dlQUcz4cBFghVVulWZunAp5NF_ghO1-9Nm1a49DUwL/s1600-h/Gambling-Help-Line.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_8zsRa9ZXB4bJokjgLOjLccMnQeLvCgQeamk_JUkJ7XEmnspiGKbwF9UHqCqeZoEFjV7oIwOV3H0MiMQe47EnWpdwC6dlQUcz4cBFghVVulWZunAp5NF_ghO1-9Nm1a49DUwL/s320/Gambling-Help-Line.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252894775159893186" /></a><br />There's a great article at Slate.com <a href="http://www.slate.com/id/2201428?nav=wp">(here)</a> that describes those all-too-complicated derivatives in terms we can all understand: gambling, baby, yeah! Turns out somebody smarter than me looked at what the banks were doing, figured out a mathematical probability of the investment banks making money versus total financial meltdown and came to the conclusion that what the Wall Street folks were doing was essentially a game of double-or-nothing. See, it turns out that, statistically, higher risk means a chance of higher reward, whereas lower risk leads to lower rewards. What the Wall Street folks were doing was concentrating risk in a way that makes it highly unlikely that their bets would fail, but, in the event that they did fail, well, armageddon. I don't really have much to add to the article, so I just suggest you read it and discuss.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-54593318312687149392008-10-01T18:37:00.005-05:002008-10-01T19:08:58.164-05:00Bailout Alternative Offered<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYraZMDoe7EMov_OLW2IKi0ZgMCFxG0BEP_Xb1nYY08PwoU924oP3yNa2GQmU0ihq4PUHQpbOf7ktYUM3V8RDIGgKr9TI7or8cqGoLp95XZbmUQgR3MuhouaGCNpvUqnNkPYL7/s1600-h/images.jpeg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYraZMDoe7EMov_OLW2IKi0ZgMCFxG0BEP_Xb1nYY08PwoU924oP3yNa2GQmU0ihq4PUHQpbOf7ktYUM3V8RDIGgKr9TI7or8cqGoLp95XZbmUQgR3MuhouaGCNpvUqnNkPYL7/s320/images.jpeg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252341848489688930" /></a><br />Many of us are skeptical about the wisdom of the proposed $700 billion bailout. Turns out a few House Democrats share the sentiment. Enter Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) and his No BAILOUTS (Bringing Accounting, Increased Liquidity, Oversight and Upholding Taxpayer Security) Bill.<br /><blockquote>Aside: Is it just me, or is anybody else sick of the cheesy, strained acronyms that are forced onto just about every piece of legislation that comes out of Congress these days? Hey Congress, I've got your acronym: The DYJASWTCUWAA Act (DO YOUR JOBS AND STOP WASTING TIME COMING UP WITH ASININE ACRONYMS)</blockquote><br />I won't bore you all with the details, which can be found <a href="http://www.thenation.com/blogs/jstreet/366574/house_progressives_propose_bailout_alternative">here</a>, but let's just say the price tag doesn't involve a 7 and 9 zeros. DeFazio's bill calls for increased oversight through the SEC (hey, at least he's not proposing yet another federal agency with yet another asinine acronym for a name), a popular increase in the FDIC insurance limit from $100,000 to $250,000, and a "Net Worth Certificate Program" (and, in the spirit of this post, those are hereinafter referred to as NWCP's). The NWCP basically allows the FDIC to make loans to banks in exchange for a promissory note. A similar program was initiated in 1982 with much success.<br /><br />Here's what I like about DeFazio's plan: (1) it doesn't just throw a whole pile of money at a big problem and hope that makes it better; (2) it attempts to establish oversight in the trading of securities, no matter what they're called; and (3) it doesn't bail out irresponsible companies that probably need to go by the wayside in order for our economy to truly recover.<br /><br />This bill's definitely not as sexy as its $700 billion counterpart, but it's worth a look. More importantly, people are using their brains to find creative solutions to this problem instead of taking yet another Bush power grab and pretending it's going to save the nation from financial ruin. Our economy is screwed because there are fundamental problems with the way we've been doing business for quite sometime. Throwing a whole bunch of money at it is only a bandaid. The time has come to address the fundamental problems with our economy such as the fact that "service economy" really means that we don't produce anything and simply pass money between ourselves, continually putting a bigger number on it, when it really retains the same value.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-67087473692939600842008-10-01T16:58:00.003-05:002008-10-01T17:25:20.767-05:00Adding Insult to InsultSo the Senate has proposed its own version of a bailout bill, aimed at garnering more Republican support. My immediate reaction was that the new bill would include the erection of a golden statue of Ronald Reagan standing between the World Trade Center Towers waving an American flag that constantly plays a loop of Toby Keith's "Angry American (Courtesy of The Red White and Blue)". Turns out I was wrong, but that would totally be a bad ass statue. By the way, reader(s), I hereby commission artistic renderings of such a statue. These can be sent via email to thebluesouth@gmail.com. I'll post the winning submission on the site.<br /><br />However, it turns out the Senate, in their infinite wisdom, has decided to attract Republicans with the old faithful of Republican support-garnering devices- tax cuts. That's right, our Senate decided to make a $700 billion economic rescue package (that's $700 billion dollars coming from the government) more appealing by reducing the amount of money the government can collect.<br /><br />AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!<br /><br />Please fire these people. Please, voters, fire these people.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28668001.post-8377260737915728592008-09-29T16:43:00.006-05:002008-09-29T17:18:41.320-05:00The House Bails on the Bailout<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsVmgDqqPjJywoHCzAu0ZhCQiz4UBukWXMr5qEsly9FDHqx-GJCL4CaFeWWHz9vUsCuIuaF6f-pIIn5YuP7eBupN6T4Ux2dvOYc3EP7In25WAZtvRc13XsznT2nTeFgKRl8S4t/s1600-h/DustbowlFarmNearDalhartTexas1938-500.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsVmgDqqPjJywoHCzAu0ZhCQiz4UBukWXMr5qEsly9FDHqx-GJCL4CaFeWWHz9vUsCuIuaF6f-pIIn5YuP7eBupN6T4Ux2dvOYc3EP7In25WAZtvRc13XsznT2nTeFgKRl8S4t/s320/DustbowlFarmNearDalhartTexas1938-500.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251571229295985602" /></a><br /><br />The House of Representatives voted 228-205 today against the massive $700 billion economic bailout (or "buy-in" if you choose Rep. Pelosi's preferred nomenclature). Below are a few gut reactions:<br /><br />(1) Hank Paulson won't get his chance to do the Scrooge McDuck backstroke in a room piled 8 feet deep with dollar bills (which, by the terms of the failed bill, he literally might have been able to pull off without congressional, judicial, administrative, executive, or any other type of oversight);<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzyV3A5egE80SDJQmISOTlKYqiSt7f7u0RpxHiIQXs4hQreVlpTv3JjhZLGFQYD-MFw9NLzYSLJ0psw6MeapcQAqSIDOJdQalVOegp6hQ1Oy0_CTa3rTCCo54PXzQ8O0LvP0_/s1600-h/scrooge-mcduck.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzyV3A5egE80SDJQmISOTlKYqiSt7f7u0RpxHiIQXs4hQreVlpTv3JjhZLGFQYD-MFw9NLzYSLJ0psw6MeapcQAqSIDOJdQalVOegp6hQ1Oy0_CTa3rTCCo54PXzQ8O0LvP0_/s320/scrooge-mcduck.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251570860639429266" /></a><br /><br />(2) The stock market fell 700 points, signifying what I've been thinking all along: these companies aren't really worth what we thought they were when that flashing number on TV kept going up and we kept buying stock based only on the flashing numbers instead, oh say, SEC filings and the like;<br /><br />(3) According to minority leader John Boehner, he couldn't muster the Republican support for the bill because Nanci Pelosi hurt their feelings before the vote (if that is really true, I'm jumping off a bridge);<br /><br />(4) We are still a semi-capitalist society (high five to the Invisible Hand);<br /><br />(5) Giant corporations still can't borrow millions of dollars in day-to-day loans to pay for their operating costs;<br /><br />(6) Giant corporations have to borrow millions of dollars in day-to-day loans to pay for their operating costs?;<br /><br />(7) My power is still on, and I get cable TV and the internet, food supplies are steady, I own a shotgun, two serviceable fishing poles and a whole bunch of camping equipment, and there are no riots in the streets. All-in-all, not a bad day.<br /><br />Ok, so on a more serious note, I'll explain why I don't support the $700 billion bailout (other than the 700 billion reasons I just gave, or, for my part, my $2,000 piece of it). Ever since September 12, 2001, the Bush administration has been pushing legislation down our throats via a weak, ineffectual and compliant Congress (both Republican and Democrat) in the name of perpetual crisis. September 11 was a crisis and it demanded swift action (which we never took). The Bush administration has found a great source of power in perceived crisis and has used that perception to demolish the traditional role of the executive branch in our government and the role of the government in our lives. Their latest escapade has been to push a fundamentally flawed piece of legislation down Congress' throat in the name of yet another in a long string of "crises." Bravo to the lawmakers who finally stood up (what took you so long?).<br /><br />It is true that our economy is in bad shape. It is true that there are several fundamental economic problems that need to be solved and, if the markets are left alone to work themselves out, things are going to get a whole lot worse before they get better. However, what we don't need is another 11th hour bill, rushed through Congress and signed by Bush's golden pen (subject, of course, to his signing statement) that ends up becoming yet another piece of regrettable crisis legislation.The Blue Southhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10930584935849057061noreply@blogger.com8