MONEY: Sneering at Ron Paul and “End the Fed”

Friday, January 8, 2010

http://curiouscapitalist.blogs.time.com/2009/12/29/visiting-ron-pauls-fed-free-utopia/?xid=rss-topstories

Visiting Ron Paul’s Fed-free utopia
Posted by Justin Fox
Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 2:22 pm

*** begin quote ***

As for his welfare state argument, there’s surely something to it, but not nearly as much as Paul seems to think. In the post World War II era, Germany has followed much more of a hard-money (that is, Ron-Paulish) line than the U.S., yet it has a much bigger welfare state. So the growth of government can be a political choice, not just the result of the machinations of central bankers.

*** end quote ***

It’s hard to imagine the Germans creating their welfare state WITHOUT a fiat currency. That’s what enabled them to create the state without seizing the nation’s wealth silently. If there was a non-fiat monetary base (i.e., gold or competing currencies), then the German politicians would have had to inflict pain on the wealth holders to acquire the funds to give away. With a fiat currency, they can silently inflate away wealth without taxes.

Note that gold isn’t necessary. Repealing the legal tender laws would allow the folks to use a non-inflating alternative.

From times long past, sovereigns always debased the currency to serve their needs. I cite the French Franc from Louis 1 to 17. And rest my case.

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RANT: Self-reliance?

Thursday, January 7, 2010

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1240629/At-mercy-deep-freeze-Schools-shut-firms-hit–6-inches-snow.html

Army rescues 1,000 drivers stranded in cars for 12 HOURS as UK is paralysed by heavy snow (with more on its way)
By Sophie Freeman
Last updated at 2:09 PM on 06th January 2010

*** begin quote ***

The 23-year-old said: ‘We went through hell. I am eight months pregnant, I couldn’t go to the toilet all night, I couldn’t warm the bottle up for my baby daughter. It was very frightening.

‘There were loads of cars parked up, just on the motorway. No-one knew what was going on – there was no-one to help.

‘We didn’t see any police, we’ve heard that the Army is out but we didn’t see anyone – it’s not very good really.”

She had set off for Heathrow Airport in West Sussex at 5.30pm yesterday and didn’t arrive until 8am today.

Ms Holt’s father, Mark, attempted to reach his daughter but was prevented from driving up the A3 beause it had been closed because of the weather.

He said: ‘It took my daughter 15 hours to get home and no-one came to help her, they didn’t see anyone.’

*** end quote ***

Totally unprepared Brits, throughout article, whine: “they” didn’t do this for me; “they” didn’t do this for me; wha, wha, WHA! No one takes responsibility for themselves. Maybe it is the welfare state culture?

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MONEY: Time to get “small”

Thursday, January 7, 2010

http://www.newsweek.com/id/228428/output/print

Survivalism Lite
They call themselves ‘preppers.’ They are regular people with homes and families. But like the survivalists that came before them, they’re preparing for the worst.
By Jessica Bennett | Newsweek Web Exclusive
Dec 28, 2009

*** begin quote ***

In the end, what it all boils down to, at least for the preppers, is self-reliance—a concept as old as the human race itself. As survival blogger Joe Solomon pointed out in a recent column, during the Victory Gardens of WWII, Americans managed to grow 40 percent of all the vegetables they needed to survive. “My mother’s parents had a 10-acre garden, and my grandfather worked at the dairy farm next door,” says Hill, the former jet mechanic. “They worked by raising their own food, they had their own chickens, they canned vegetables, and my grandfather fed a family of 12 like that.” But in the modern world, he says, many of those skills are easily forgotten. Today, our food comes from dozens of different sources. Most of us aren’t quite sure how electricity gets from the wires to our stoves. We use debit cards to buy a can of tuna and we wouldn’t have the slightest idea how to filter contaminated water. We are residents of the new millennium; we simply haven’t needed to prepare.

*** end quote ***

Hard times are coming. While it may not be TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It), there’s no doubt that it will represent a lesser standard of living for everyone.

Get “prepared”!

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GOVEROTRAGEOUS: You can’t make this stuff up

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/travel/80731457.html

A bomb scare Tuesday at the Lindbergh terminal at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport brought things to a virtual halt.
By ABBY SIMONS and SUZANNE ZIEGLER, Star Tribune staff writers
Last update: January 5, 2010 – 7:17 PM

*** begin quote ***

Portions of the Lindbergh terminal at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport were evacuated for about 90 minutes Tuesday afternoon after a bomb-sniffing dog reacted as though there were something suspicious on a bag found in the baggage claim area.

As it turned out, the battered pink bag was airport property, the one crews put on the carousel to mark that all luggage has been unloaded.

*** end quote ***

Left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing.

It leaves me speechless!

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RANT: Simple health insurance fixes

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

http://www.humblelibertarian.com/2009/12/how-to-strip-us-health-insurance.html

Monday, December 28, 2009

How To Strip US Health Insurance Companies of Their Power Forever in 1 Easy Step

Regulations Empower Insurance Companies

*** begin quote ***

These regulations usually consist of a long list of ridiculous coverage mandates that require customers to be covered for all kinds of things whether or not they want or need it.

So even if a woman in Maryland doesn’t want to pay $500/month to be covered for in-vitro fertilization, morbid obesity treatment, smoking cessation, substance abuse, and hair prosthesis, she has no choice.

And she can’t purchase more affordable insurance without any unnecessary coverage from another state because it would be non-compliant with Maryland’s regulations and mandates.

*** end quote ***

It’s interesting that the congress critters have deliberately created the “crisis” that they now seek to “save” us from that same crisis!

Argh!

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INTERESTING: Kon Tiki

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/knut-haugland-a-reallife-adventure-story-1851472.html

Knut Haugland: A real-life adventure story

He fought the Nazis. He braved the Pacific. And he hated being called a hero. Jonathan Brown looks at the extraordinary career of Knut Haugland, the last Kon-Tiki survivor

Monday, 28 December 2009

*** begin quote ***

Adventure stories rarely come more epic than that of Knut Haugland, the Norwegian resistance fighter who died on Christmas Day at the age of 92. His exploits were already the stuff of legend even before he joined Thor Heyerdahl’s crew aboard his balsa wood raft, Kon-Tiki. Together they not only conquered the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean using only the most primitive of technologies – but in doing so, they helped rejuvenate the crushed spirit of human endeavour in the bleak aftermath of the Second World War.

*** end quote ***

I remember reading Kon Tiki in high school. The good brothers were always challenging us to be skeptical. (That lesson took in my case. I rarely believe ANYTHING!)

I remember seeing the Kon Tiki movie and the Telemark movie (I loved movies. I’m an escapist.) Who knew that the same men were involved in both.

Reminds me of the guy who championed the idea that a Chinese admiral found “America” and Marco Polo brought the discovery back to Europe.

Guess that’s why I’m a “tin foil hat” kinda guy.

If we “know” so little about the past, then what make you think we “know” current events.

Sheeple are so easily manipulated.

Remember it’s all propaganda!

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SOCIALNETWORKING: “Privacy Theater”

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/12/27/privacy-theater

Privacy Theater: Why Social Networks Only Pretend To Protect You

by Guest Author on December 27, 2009

Editor’s note: The following guest post was written by Rohit Khare, the co-founder of Angstro. Building his latest project, social address book Knx.to, gives him a deep familiarity with the privacy policies of all the major social networks.

*** begin quote ***

The philosophical question at hand is what rights do I have in my friends’ information. When I accept a business card from someone I’ve just met, I don’t believe I have the right to re-sell it on Jigsaw in good conscience (they’d disagree 18M times). If it’s a colleague’s card, on the other hand, I might take the initiative to forward a new lead, or even buy a gift subscription to a magazine. Does that constitute a violation of their privacy, or spam?

Social networks haven’t let their users make their own decisions on this issue. Through selective enforcement of their policies, some startups get locked out while big partners get exemptions. Power.com ended up in (and out of) court. Plaxo found out the hard way that they couldn’t assist their paying customers to OCR Facebook email addresses; or to synchronize with LinkedIn. It says a lot about LinkedIn’s draconian ToS that even with paying customers demanding it, Comcast hasn’t signed up for their API. Even if users manually download their own LinkedIn address books, it won’t even include links back to folks’ public profile pages.

*** end quote ***

Interesting post!

Unfortunately, it was posted during the holidays; many people won’t see it.

I haven’t found anything that will allow me to have a unified directory.

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POLITICS: Good cop; bad cop

Monday, January 4, 2010

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/janetdaley/100020863/obama-tries-to-find-new-words-to-fight-terrorism/

Obama tries to find new words to fight terrorism
By Janet Daley World
Last updated: December 29th, 2009

*** begin quote ***

Barack Obama has launched a new offensive against jihadi terrorism – which is to say, a new rhetorical offensive. Having discovered that the earlier Obama doctrine of “reaching out” to the Islamic fundamentalist enemies of western democracy has made no difference whatever to their determination to blow innocent people out of the sky (or, in the case of Iran, to build a nuclear bomb), he is opening another verbal front.

*** end quote ***

I guess we can declare “reaching out” a failure. Especially with supposedly hundreds more in training.

If you’re going to be in a war, you have to fight it to win.

I’m reminded of the old KGB “insurance policy”. During the Cold War, no one messed with the Soviet agents or diplomats. Anyone who did would risk having their families wiped out. Find something that the terrorists hold dear, and NUKE it.

That would establish “detante”.

Clearly, the “good cop” is getting worse results than the old “bad cop”.

Not unexpectedly!

And, they laughed when Ron Paul talked about “blowback”.

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INTERESTING: Roy Roger’s Museum closed

Monday, January 4, 2010

http://www.nationalenquirer.com/roy_rogers_museum_closes_dale_evans_trigger/celebrity/67877

KING OF THE COWBOYS ROY ROGERS REIGN ENDS WITH NO HAPPY TRAILS . . .

*** begin quote ***

Roy Rogers and his trusty steed Trigger may have come to the end of their “Happy Trails” – television’s most famous horse is going on the auction block, The ENQUIRER has learned exclusively.

The beloved golden palomino’s home, the Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum, has closed – doomed by bitter family feuding, greed, mounting debts and IRS demands.

*** end quote ***

This saddens me. I loved Roy’s shows.

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POLITICAL: Top 10 disasters of the 2009 Obama administration

Monday, January 4, 2010

http://www.independentpoliticalreport.com/2009/12/libertarians-release-top-10-disasters-of-2009-obama-administration/

*** begin quote ***

Libertarians release

Top 10 disasters of the 2009 Obama administration (in no particular order):

   1. Cash for Clunkers

   2. War escalation in Afghanistan

   3. Giant government health care expansion bill

   4. Post office loses money hand over fist

   5. Stimulus package

   6. Expansion of “state secrets” doctrine

   7. Big increase in unemployment

   8. “Bailout” Geithner as Treasury Secretary

   9. Skyrocketing federal spending

  10. Huge federal deficits

*** end quote ***

“Cash For Cluckers” was a bone-headed move on so many levels, but it was “cheap” in comparison to the items lower on the list. There’s no way I’d give it the #1 slot!

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RANT: Arguing with idiots

Sunday, January 3, 2010

http://channel-surfing.blogspot.com/2009/12/loose-lips-and-hyperbole.html
?showComment=1262014283785#c5749020565567766168

Anonymous said…

   Oh please, Health savings Accounts (HSAs) are the biggest bunch of crap ever, a steaming pile of cow dung. They are great if you are wealthy (they are a tax shelter for the rich), healthy or young. They do absolutely nothing for the poor, the lower middle class, for working folks who live from paycheck to paycheck. HSAs are crapola pumped out by the right wing and libertarians so they don’t have to think about all the people who are dying, suffering and going bankrupt from lack of health insurance or from being victims of greedy insurance companies.

OK. Let’s examine this assertion. HSA’s are characterized by (1) a high deductible insurance policy and (2) a basic deposit savings account like and FSA. When I’ve priced HSAs, they are about a third of the cost of other policies. So which is better, have an HSA policy or none? Can’t go bankrupt from a medical expense with an HSA. And, using the SA part of the plan, the individual is in control of their expense.

Insurance companies typically earn about 4% on their capital. No one is getting rich on earnings like that. So “greedy” doesn’t fit.

   What the hell do tax credits do for the poor or for working folks who work from paycheck to paycheck, who can’t save anything and who are in fear of going bankrupt from medical expenses, whether they are insured or not.

So, is the problem paycheck to paycheck? Or underemployment. As usual, ANONYMOUS want to be chicken little. THe sky is always falling. Automobile insurers offer payment plans; I know BCBSNJ does the same thing. The “POOR” have medicaid; the working folks have payment plans. SO what IS the problem?

   Buying insurance across state lines is more garbage from the right wing and their libertarian lap dogs. Buying insurance across state lines will have no affect on anything worth mentioning.

Except that state mandated coverage for hair implants, and all sorts of other “stuff”, makes the cost of insurance in New Jersey higher that without it. Insurance should allow one to CHOOSE what risks you wish not to bear. Personally, I’d like to forgo “hair implants” insurance. Old folks don’t need maternity coverage. So, once again with the gooferment interference, “one size” fits all!

   Single payer or Medicare for all would have been the way to go. This whole libertarian freak show is a cancer on any intelligent discussion about health care and is a total waste of oxygen.

Medicare is going broke in the next few years. Your beloved Health Care Bill cuts 500M$ from Medicare while the coverage group will increase 30%. And, what about all the fraud that’s going on?

   Why should there be caps on suits for medical malpractice? If hospitals, doctors, drug companies, medical equipment companies screw up, they should pay up, no damn caps. Right wingers love to protect the rich and the powerful against some poor schlub who has been maimed through medical malpractice.

Tort reform is to take the GIGANTIC lottery aspect out of the system. And, when the gooferment takes over healthcare and you get screwed, who will you sue then? The gooferment int he gooferment court.

   Ending FDA regulation of pharmaceuticals is just insane. If anything, the FDA and its regulations should be beefed up and strengthened.

Sure, no one wants cheap drugs quickly. For someone who argues against corporations, you don’t recognize “regulatory capture”!

   The drug companies have too much power and influence over our government as it is, the FDA must be insulated from undue influence and all this massive economic power of the drug companies.

Never ever going to happen. Name one “regulatory agency” that hasn’t been “captured”?

   Dr. Mary J. Ruwart works for Cannabis Science Inc and previously worked for Upjohn. She’s nothing more than a corporate shill for the drug companies who don’t want any kind of regulations and the public be damned.

That’s why she advocated for more freedom.

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RANT: It’s not OK to run up the score

Sunday, January 3, 2010

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/womens-basketball/recap?gid=201001020050&prov=ap

Griner dunks twice, No.5 Baylor rolls 99-18

*** begin quote ***

WACO, Texas (AP)—Brittney Griner and No. 5 Baylor put on a show—at the expense of Texas State.

*** and ***

“We would have beat a lot of teams tonight,” Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. “I don’t care who we would have played tonight, this basketball team was ready to play.”

*** end quote ***

What idiot SCHEDULED this game in the first place?

Guess Coach Mulkey thinks beating up on little kids is “OK”!

Sorry, but even if the scrubs were in, I wouldn’t permit this embarrassment.

If there is any justice in this world, the admonishment will come from UConn.

OK, Geno, I hereby release you from any criticism if you run up the score on Baylor.

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MONEY: Fun way to get the message across

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Bullion Is A Girl’s Best Friend

ROFL!


TECHNOLOGY: Lost camera

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Recently I lost my camera. Argh!

Fell out of my pocket in cab.

My fault.

But it had no way to identify itself to a finder who might be interested in returning it.

The product design should have a place for a name or phone number. Maybe it should have a sensor to alert me that it was “leaving”. Or the ability to “phone home”?

Argh!

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John Edward OConnor

or maybe just use one of those address labels every charity ion the world sends you trying to guilt you into a donation?

Do you really need a technical solution where glue and paper will work? :)

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No good place on the old or new camera to put one. And, they wipe off over time. (I’ve tried it on other things. Like cars and toys.) Same the maker doesn’t do serial number registration and retrieval services. Give a token to the finder; modest recovery fee to the owner? Like an extended warranty against loss?

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POLITICAL: Nuke power for the USA!

Sunday, January 3, 2010

http://science.slashdot.org/story/10/01/02/1330245/Thorium-the-Next-Nuclear-Fuel
?from=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A
+slashdot%2FeqWf+%28Slashdot%3A+Slashdot%29

Science: Thorium, the Next Nuclear Fuel? on Saturday January 02, @10:57AM
Posted by Soulskill on Saturday January 02, @10:57AM

*** begin quote ***

mrshermanoaks writes “When the choices for developing nuclear energy were being made, we went with uranium because it had the byproduct of producing plutonium that could be weaponized. But thorium is safer and easier to work with, and may cause a lot fewer headaches. ‘It’s abundant — the US has at least 175,000 tons of the stuff — and doesn’t require costly processing. It is also extraordinarily efficient as a nuclear fuel. As it decays in a reactor core, its byproducts produce more neutrons per collision than conventional fuel. The more neutrons per collision, the more energy generated, the less total fuel consumed, and the less radioactive nastiness left behind. Even better, Weinberg realized that you could use thorium in an entirely new kind of reactor, one that would have zero risk of meltdown. The design is based on the lab’s finding that thorium dissolves in hot liquid fluoride salts. This fission soup is poured into tubes in the core of the reactor, where the nuclear chain reaction — the billiard balls colliding — happens. The system makes the reactor self-regulating: When the soup gets too hot it expands and flows out of the tubes — slowing fission and eliminating the possibility of another Chernobyl. Any actinide can work in this method, but thorium is particularly well suited because it is so efficient at the high temperatures at which fission occurs in the soup.’ So why are we not building these reactors?”

*** end quote ***

Here’s an excellent idea!

Why can’t we have nuke power here int he USA? France does it.

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NEWJERSEY: Public Pension have bigger problems

Saturday, January 2, 2010

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20091228/D9CSJBM80.html

NJ lawmaker proposes public pension reform
Dec 28, 5:49 PM (ET)
By ANGELA DELLI SANTI

*** begin quote ***

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) – A New Jersey lawmaker is planning to introduce legislation that would bar nongovernment workers from enrolling in the state’s taxpayer-funded pension system.

Assemblyman Paul Moriarty’s bill would restrict eligibility to the Public Employees Retirement System by keeping lobbyists and others out.

Currently, employees of some 17 private groups are eligible for state pensions.

“Why should the taxpayers pay even $1 to someone who is not a state employee, but a lobbyist who is trying to get special favors,” asked Moriarty, D-Turnersville.

*** end quote ***

Why do we have such “public pension funds”?

Private industry has gone to 401ks for “pensions”.

The “State” hasn’t made a contribution to the pension fund in a dog’s age. Surely that’s a bigger problem then a few bottom feeders pigging out at the trough.

Perhaps it’s time to “reform” the whole problem.

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GOVEROTRAGEOUS: Just say “no” to any gooferment official

Saturday, January 2, 2010

201001011251.jpg

http://www.homelandstupidity.us/2009/12/31/tsa-withdraws-subpoenas-over-leaked-security-directive/

*** begin quote ***

From my own experience with having federal agents at my door, let me say this: Remember that if law enforcement shows up at your door, you are in no way obligated to speak to them, and in no way obligated to hand over anything immediately if they hand you a subpoena. You can and should challenge (move to quash) such a subpoena in court, if you receive one. You only have to surrender anything immediately if they have a search warrant, and only if the thing is named on the search warrant. Other than that, say absolutely nothing until you can consult a lawyer. Be polite, of course, when you ask them for their business card and send them on their way.

*** end quote ***

Good advice for any interaction with the gooferment at any level.

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UPDATE 2009.01.03 1600 ZULU

http://www.target.com/Come-Back-Warrant-Doormat/dp/B00020O572

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TECHNOLOGY: Crapy User Interface “design”

Saturday, January 2, 2010

http://www.macworld.com/article/145309/2009/12/10_technologies.html?lsrc=rss_main

*** begin quote ***

10. Redundant registration

Many Web sites offer some form of registration, which typically ask you to add your personal contact information and specify a username and password.

Why do some sites require me to enter my e-mail address or my password twice? They’re going to verify all this anyway. Why do I have to enter city, state and ZIP code, when the ZIP code already knows the city and state, and vice versa.

Bad, redundant and obsolete technologies make life needlessly complex, expensive, irritating and ugly. Let’s get rid of them.

*** end quote ***

Agreed!

State and zip are my particular “favorite”!

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NOTRECOMMENDED: A sad commentary on Hollywood

Saturday, January 2, 2010

201001011122.jpg

The movie made him look old and fat. frau was disappointed. (her pick!) made old people look pathetic. And the kids look like idiots. Typical hollywood stereo types. I thought it was a bust like Mama Mia. Wait for it on free tv. imho

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MONEY: Plan for your OWN retirement; gooferment workers are retiring better than you can!

Friday, January 1, 2010

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/12/22/extending-federal-benefits-sex-couples-cost-m-cbo-says/?test=latestnews

Updated December 26, 2009
Extending Federal Benefits to Same-Sex Couples Will Cost $898M, CBO Says
  FOXNews.com

*** begin quote ***

Extending federal benefits to same-sex couples will cost taxpayers $898 million over the next nine years, according to an analysis of “domestic partnership” legislation released last by the Congressional Budget Office.

The CBO said in its Dec. 17 report that the House version of the Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act — H.R. 2517 — would cost $596 million in direct spending and $302 million in discretionary spending through 2019.

The independent nonpartisan agency found that “providing additional health insurance benefits through the Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) program” — for active and retired gay federal workers with spouses — “causes the largest increase in both mandatory and discretionary spending — $590 million and $266 million, respectively.”

*** end quote ***

Sounds like we have to examine the cost of ALL gooferment benefits.

We need to ELIMINATE the concept of benefits and pensions from employment.

Pay folks what they are worth and allow them to buy the benefits that they wish.

Life insurance is something folks buy on their own. Why not everything else as well. Let people save for their own retirement and balance current needs versus future ones.

Big brother gooferment is taking “Social Security” taxes and spending everything. If an insurance company did it, the execs would be in jail. It’s a Ponzi scheme.

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POLITICS: The value of conspiracy theories

Friday, January 1, 2010

http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php

Philosophy vs. Conspiracy
By Jerry Salcido
Published 12/23/09

*** begin quote ***

Anyone who has worked in support of the liberty movement knows an unfortunate truth: it is all too often associated, rightly or wrongly, with “conspiracy theories” — those all too often unsubstantiated, speculative viewpoints on various topics such as the assassination of JFK, the attempted assassination of Reagan, 9/11, the role of the Rockefellers and Rothschilds in modern world history, and the current doings of the Bilderbergers, Trilateral Commission, and the Council on Foreign Relations. The problem is that liberty’s enemies are very aware of this association as well and they use it to their advantage. Too often freedom’s detractors slander the liberty movement as being filled with conspiracy nuts and other wackos.

*** end quote ***

I too havw a tin foil hat in the closet. Matters not which one it is. (OK, it’s FDR and Pearl Harbor!) What that has taught me is: (1) Very few people care; (2) The entire government is one giant gooferment that screws everything up while spending vast sums of money doing the screwing and it’s the sheelple being screwed; AND (3) the corrupt system has to be btought back to the roots. While one should rarely lead with one’s favorite conspiracy theory, they can be used with a giant panaolophy of “where there is smoke there’s fire” argument.

The basic argument is that a gooferment based on force CAN NOT suceed; we need the soverign individual freely pursuing their own best interests while respecting the mutual extended rights to everyone. The Zero aggression principle IS the golden run for government.

imho

Now let me adjust my tin foil hat and talk about the evils of FDR. (In second place for worst prez after Abe!)

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POLITICAL: Fire “Big Sis”!

Friday, January 1, 2010

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/74041-homeland-security-dept-to-launch-international-airport-security-campaign

Napolitano announces international airport security campaign

By Tony Romm – 12/31/09 04:30 PM ET

*** begin quote ***

The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday announced it would launch a campaign next week to strengthen security screening procedures at a host of international airports.

The effort is part of the White House’s heightened response to a Christmas Day attempt to bomb Delta Flight 253 in Detroit, a flight that originated in Amsterdam.

*** end quote ***

A story about a lock, a barn door, and a horse comes to mind!

Fire “Big Sis”!

She gets paid the big bux to ANTICIPATE and preclude problems.

Anyone can react. And, “everything worked” shows her to be incompetent.

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RANT: Air travel sucks

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Note: TSA at PHL is now enforcing a “two carry on bag limit” as you enter their lines. People are being told “Either consolidate or check it”. I’m sure the airlines are happy about this now that they all charge extra for each bag (i.e., 15$ to 100$).

Today, my wife’s nephew, his wife, and their twins had an “interesting” experience. Driving them to the airport, they found that their flight had been cancelled. Hubbie was booked on a later flight and Wifey with kids was delayed until the morrow. (Good luck finding a room on New Year’s Eve!)

Conflicting directions of where to check in. United moved them to US Airways in a different terminal. Then the lines again. Conflicting directions. More problems.

It all worked out. But not without a lot of angst!

Argh!

Confirms my firmly held conviction to never fly again.

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RANT: Self-defense is a mind set

Thursday, December 31, 2009

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20091226/D9CR18JO0.html

Passengers help foil attack on Detroit-bound plane
Dec 26, 8:49 AM (ET)
By JIM IRWIN

*** begin quote ***

ROMULUS, Mich. (AP) – An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke – sending passengers scrambling to subdue a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from al-Qaida to blow up the airliner, officials and travelers said.

*** end quote ***

One thing is new — passenger docility.

The days when passengers would sit idly like sheep and let terrorists act with impunity.

And, how did the explosive get on board?

Yes, security theater!

See it’s all about fooling the traveling public into complacency. And giving job to people who will vote the “correct” way.

Argh!

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RANT: Good after bad

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Govt gives GMAC $3.8B in new aid, boosts stake

*** begin quote ***

WASHINGTON (AP) – The government gave GMAC Financial Services another $3.8 billion in cash and took a majority stake in the auto lender, aiming to stabilize the company as it struggles with big losses in its home mortgage unit. The fresh infusion is on top of $12.5 billion in taxpayer money…

*** end quote ***

How dumb!

Time to cut the taxpayer’s losses.

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RANT: Lift her light beside the golden door

Thursday, December 31, 2009

http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15108634&source=hptextfeature

Going to America
A Ponzi scheme that works
Dec 17th 2009 | ANNANDALE, VIRGINIA AND DALLAS, TEXAS
From The Economist print edition
The greatest strength of America is that people want to live there

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When he arrived, Mr Lee was astonished by how rich nearly everyone was. He recalls his first dinner with Americans: the huge bowls and immense portions. He was startled to see lights left on in empty rooms. He is still impressed: “The roads are so wide, the cars so big, the houses so large—everything is abundant,” he says.

Yet this is not why he came, and it is not why he stayed and became a citizen. For Mr Lee, America is a land that offers “the chance to be whatever you want to be”. More prosaically, it is a place where nearly any immigrant can find a niche.

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We NEED these immigrants. Everyone who wants to come and work.

Kill welfare and then there is no reason not to have them come.

Take the trash bag off the Statue of Liberty and get back to our roots.

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