Our 100 Days

Robert Borosage of The Huffington Post grades our role as citizens during Obama's first 100 days in office. Again, it is a mixed bag.

29 April 2009

May 9: Endangered Species

The Obama Administration has until May 9th to unilaterally roll back the devestation wraught by the Bush Administration to the Endangered Species Act. I encourage you to let the administration know that you want these protections for the environment reinstated. You can add your name to the cause here.

28 April 2009

The First 100 Days

Robert Kuttner has an interesting take on Obama's first 100 days as president at The Huffington Post. It is a decidedly mixed bag for the president.

27 April 2009

Addition: Arianna Huffington offers her take on this same topic here.

Cashing in on MLK

It is sad that I have rarely -- if ever -- heard a kind word about the children of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Most stories indicate that they are selfish, conniving individuals. Typifying this is a new account of their actions by George Washington University professor Jonathan Turley. I mention it now only because I learned new information from Turley dealing with the planned Washington memorial for King in DC. Yuck.

26 April 2009

Torture & the American Psyche

New York Times columnist Frank Rich has written a great op-ed about how everyday Americans are confronting -- or in many cases, refusing to confront -- the fact that our government under the Bush Administration orchestrated and carried out a system of torture. What is more, it was a system of torture designed not to keep us safe, but to further purely political ends.

Five years after the Abu Ghraib revelations, we must acknowledge that our government methodically authorized torture and lied about it. But we also must contemplate the possibility that it did so not just out of a sincere, if criminally misguided, desire to “protect” us but also to promote an unnecessary and catastrophic war. Instead of saving us from “another 9/11,” torture was a tool in the campaign to falsify and exploit 9/11 so that fearful Americans would be bamboozled into a mission that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda. The lying about Iraq remains the original sin from which flows much of the Bush White House’s illegality.

Levin suggests — and I agree — that as additional fact-finding plays out, it’s time for the Justice Department to enlist a panel of two or three apolitical outsiders, perhaps retired federal judges, “to review the mass of material” we already have. The fundamental truth is there, as it long has been. The panel can recommend a legal path that will insure accountability for this wholesale betrayal of American values.

President Obama can talk all he wants about not looking back, but this grotesque past is bigger than even he is. It won’t vanish into a memory hole any more than Andersonville, World War II internment camps or My Lai. The White House, Congress and politicians of both parties should get out of the way. We don’t need another commission. We don’t need any Capitol Hill witch hunts. What we must have are fair trials that at long last uphold and reclaim our nation’s commitment to the rule of law.

I would recommend reading the entire piece here.

26 April 2009

Bea Arthur

I just came home from an evening with friends to the sad news of Bea Arthur's death. I am a huge fan of Arthur. She was a wonderful comedian, who had made me laugh all of my life. "Maude" was truly groundbreaking work and the cast of "Golden Girls" still has me in fond stiches from time to time. If you don't find Arthur funny, you simply don't know funny. I'm glad that I'll still get to enjoy her work in reruns, but I'll miss her nonetheless.

25 April 2009

26 April 2009 Addition: More on Arthur here.

US Torture and the Media

Arriana Huffington has another interesting piece out today, this time on the media coverage of the use of torture by the United States. Rather, it is really about how our media isn't covering the topic... or at least not that well.

23 April 2009

Subaru Love

Love. It's what makes a Subaru a Subaru.

Or so the story goes. We sure love ours. Both of them! Here is a story on the company's current good fortunes in the US.

23 April 2009

"Constitutional Evil"

Howard Schweber had an interesting piece on the concept of "Constitutional evil" in the Huffington Post yesterday. He touches on its history and how it might apply to our current situation in America concerning the Bush Administration's use of torture.

23 April 2009

Bank Cop, No Gun

"The decisions that are made in the next six months or so are likely to set the economic course of this country for the next 50 years," says Elizabeth Warren, who chairs the COP, the Congressional Oversight Panel charged with reviewing the banking bailout. "That's what happened coming out of the Great Depression, and I think that will happen now."

So begins a piece in the Huffington Post by Robert L. Borosage. The problem is that right now, we have no oversight of the bank bailout with any real teeth. And we need that, both to find out exactly who (and how they) got us into this fix and to best decide on specific safeguards to prevent it from happening again.

And if a 50-year time frame doesn't scare you, what will?

22 April 2009

Susan Boyle

If you haven't heard of Susan Boyle, you haven't been surfing the Net much of late. Hating all things reality-tv-related, I was loath to ride this train. However, after reading articles in both the electronic and print media, I finally gave in and watched her sing on YouTube. You should, too. Do it and do it now.

Boyle's TV moment has spawned a fan site that is astonishing in its true grassroots fervor. She also has some bloggers going on key-tapping binges. The Huffington Post gushes all the time and it was there that I learned of the fan site. She has also served as an effective tool with which to poke the mainstream entertainment industry. She has been (yet another) tool for how youth-and-beauty obsessed we are. Some said, Ich bin ein Boyle! Some have even speculated, "What if she couldn't sing?"

She can. And you should simply enjoy her joy in so doing.

21 April 2009

24 April 2009 Addition: Has change already come?

Gun Control?

If not now, when?

21 April 2009

Banking Blues Continue

The troubles for our banking industry continue to mount in spite of the fact that Wall Street had a mini rally last week (after a pretty "good" month), not to mention the fact that the Obama Administration, in line with Wall Street itself, continues to be in denial and lie to the American people about the overall economic situation. Once again, Paul Krugman layed out where we actually stand in terms of our economic realities.

How did we get there? It isn't that our banks are bad. That is the result. It is that our entire banking culture is corrupt. (And here, I'm again talking about the big players. Most small, regional and local banks are AOK.)

A good indication of what I'm talking about was offered by Arianna Huffington recently when she detailed how the banks are back to using -- legally! -- the same sorts of accounting tricks that helped bring them down. Moreover, the players at the top have massive conflicts of interest between their own self gain and the good of their institutions, not to mention the good of the public.

An even better assessment of this came on Bill Moyers' Journal program a couple weeks ago. William K. Black, professor of economics and law and a veteran of the S&L debacle twenty years ago, details in vivid detail just what is wrong with the system. It is built to fail. You read that correctly. And without top-to-bottom change, it will fail and fail and fail... and the cost will always be paid by the public. And individual investors will always get screwed in the process to boot.

I highly recommend Huffington's piece, but the Black interview should be viewed by every American. The link provides both video and a transcript. The program is not long and you will be amazed, if not exactly shocked. After all, what can shock us now?

21 April 2009

PS: If you don't think that Obama and Wall Street are both lying to you. Ask yourself this: Can the banks be solid and fully funded as they say and still need two trillion dollars worth of shoring up as the Administration maintains? Can the bailout be working as Obama says it is while the banks that have received the most bailout cash are loaning less and less? No changes to the system are being made and at best, we can hope for a situation such as Japan's "Lost Decade" with what is in place now.

WH Press Crops: Just Say No

Pundit Ana Marie Cox -- who is really fun to watch flirt with Rachel Maddow -- wrote a convincing piece in the Washington Post on Sunday on the topic of abolishing the White House press corps. She's spot on. It is short and worth a look.

21 April 2009

GOP: A Way Out?

Arianna Huffington wrote a great piece on just how lame and leaderless the GOP is right now. However, Democrats should not gloat, she says, both because it is unwise politically and because now is a time for action. Indeed, those two things are intertwined. The one salvation she sees for the GOP is if the Democrats do little or nothing at a time when people really are looking for change.

21 April 2009

ASU: A Sand Storm

It would seem that Arizona State University's decision not to give President Obama an honorary degree when he speaks at this years commencement was not only stupid, but financially unwise. The people of Arizona and specifically ASU alumni are none too pleased.

ASU has proven that comedian Ron White is correct once again: You can't fix stupid.

15 April 2009

The Art of Making Money

My sister forwarded me an article from The Morning News about artist Mark Wagner. Wagner makes collages made entirely from dollar bills. They are amazing! Check them out at the above link and make sure that you click through all of the photos.

The bridge is probably my favorite...

14 April 2009

Help Support Iowa Victory

Those opposed to Iowa justly recognizing the right of all Americans to marry regardless of their sexual orientation are massing their forces. A Prop 8-type campaign is starting to form. Your voice is needed to help stop this campaign of hate in its tracks. You can let Iowa politicians know that you support them in their fight to support equal rights for all.

14 April 2009

BANKER v. banker

Arianna Huffington has written another great post at HuffingtonPost.com on the current state of the banking industry. This time, however, she focuses on the positive. While Wall Street and large, national banks have failed both America and Americans, small Main Street banks and credit unions are alive and well. These local institutions are lending and are on strong financial footing. Huffington does a good job outlining why this is the case, how it is positive for the country right now, and why it should be the template for our larger banking institutions. It is definitely worth your time.

Those who know me know that I am a prudent man with money. Both my parents and my grandparents instilled this in me and part of that was banking locally. When moving into a new community, I have always researched as to what is the most stable local bank that has both the highest regard for customer service and the most convenient methods to interact with the institution (e.g. branches, drive-up, atm, Net). Although I am a Net junky, I am someone who often wants personal contact with my bank. It is all very boring, but it is also safe and I sleep like a baby.

One caveat, I also use a completely on-line bank for part of my banking needs, electronically moving assets between my local bank and this institution as needed. (I researched the hell out of that bank, too, btw!) This allows me the best of both worlds in terms of return, safety, and convenience.

So, if you are using a big Wall Street bank such as Bank of America or Wells Fargo, consider switching over to a local bank or credit union in your community. I bet you will be pleasantly surprised.

14 April 2009

ASU: Are they Simply Morons?

President Obama will give the commencement address at Arizona State University this year and, against all tradition, will not be given an honorary degree at the event. From Sam Stein at The Huffington Post:

Despite giving the commencement address at the university's Tempe campus on May 13, the president will not receive an honorary degree. The reason: "His body of work is yet to come," said Sharon Keeler, a spokeswoman for the university. "That's why we're not recognizing him with a degree at the beginning of his presidency."

ASU's decision, announced on Thursday, has already floored members of the academic, political and media communities. At once bizarre and insulting, critics are curious as to what, exactly, a sufficient body of work resembles under the university's standards. After all, in addition to being the first African-American elected to the office of the president in our nation's history, Obama has served in the United States Senate and authored two best selling books.

It takes a special brand of stupidity to be that tone deaf.

10 April 2009

White House Honey

It would appear that the White House has had a new, odd group of visitors. A swarm of honey bees has taken up residence in a bush in the Rose Garden. You can read the story here. Also if keen interest, the First Lady's new garden at the White House has two honey bee hives. Lovely.

10 April 2009

Two Thumbs Up

Roger Ebert of all people called out Bill O'Reilly in Tuesday's Sun Times. As usual, and not taking a shot in any way at Ebert, O'Reilly comes off looking like a clown. That says more about O'Reilly than it does about whoever is criticizing him on a given day.

Two thumbs way up!

9 April 2009

Return to Geithner

Sam Stein offers an overview at HuffingtonPost.com about a Washington rarity. Namely, the return to a topic already thought dead.

Two weeks after being introduced, Timothy Geithner's bank rescue plan is facing a new round of withering criticism from economists who say the proposal is likely to produce major losses for taxpayers as banks and investors game the system.

In public writings and interviews with the Huffington Post, some of the same figures that issued early warnings about the current financial crisis now say that Geithner's designs for alleviating toxic assets from the nation's banks are inherently flawed. As evidence, they point to the massive amount of federal funding, in the form of FDIC backing, being offered to prospective buyers of toxic assets. It is the "closest thing to risk-free investing -- with leverage! -- around," wrote Andrew Ross-Sorkin of the New York Times.

More specifically, they have highlighted the seeming ease with which a bank could effectively drive up the price on an asset it already owns by creating subsidiary entities to bid on those assets. "The amount of potential rip-off in the Geithner-Summers plan is unconscionably large," said Columbia University's Jeffrey Sachs.

These critiques have produced a Washington rarity: the re-sparking of a debate that, in the wake of positive reviews from Wall Street, had largely subsided. Just as Geithner seemed to be finding his political footing, the spotlight has been placed right back on his cornerstone proposal, with critics calling into question both his projections and past testimony on the matter.

8 April 2009

If a Tree Falls at the White House...

What if the Press Secretary at the White House held a press conference and no one came? From Planet Washington via The Huffington Post:

The White House press corps is stranded in Istanbul.

Originally scheduled to depart for home soon after President Obama and Air Force One took off Tuesday afternoon, the press corps stayed behind, first to file stories on Obama's Turkey visit, then a little later to file stories on Obama's secret trip to Baghdad.

But there also was a mechanical problem with the press corps' chartered 777. And a flight bringing a needed part from London landed at Istanbul without the part.

LOL

8 April 2009

The Fall of the Newspaper

Jeff Jarvis at The Huffington Post has an interesting take on the sad fate of the printed newspaper in America.

8 April 2009

Banks: Ptolemy vs. Galileo

Once again, Arianna Huffington has it exactly right regarding the current state of the bank bailout and how -- and why -- the Obama Administration continues to screw it up.

7 April 2009

Love, Maple Syrup Style

From MSNBC.COM, an AP story quoted in full:

MONTPELIER, Vt. - Vermont on Tuesday became the fourth state to legalize gay marriage — and the first to do so with a legislature's vote.

The Legislature voted to override Gov. Jim Douglas' veto of a bill allowing gays and lesbians to marry. The vote was 23-5 to override in the state Senate and 100-49 to override in the House. Under Vermont law, two-thirds of each chamber had to vote for override.

The vote came nine years after Vermont adopted its first-in-the-nation civil unions law.

The other states allowing same-sex marriages are Massachusetts, Connecticut and Iowa. Their approval of gay marriage came from the courts.

Hope floats.

7 April 2009

Religion in the US

Newsweek has an interesting article on the state of religion in the United States. I read the survey results on which it is based last month. Interesting indeed.

4 April 2009

Obama = Bush

If that title doesn't get your attention, nothing will. Unfortunately, it is spot-on.

Read this Washington Post article at MSNBC.COM detailing how Obama's Treasury Department is breaking the law in regard to allocating bailout money to distressed financial institutions. In a nut shell, the game goes like this. Congress put restrictions on the money handed out, including things such as executive pay caps and the goverment having to take an ownership interest in firms receiving the funds. Now, the Obama Administration is basically setting up shell entities through which it is funneling money to banks, instead of it being paid directly to them. This, they say, allows them to put no strings on the money. Yep, the banks can have it free and clear... or at the very least, without all of those pesky oversight rules -- (e.g. laws) -- that Congress set up.

If this doesn't violate the law -- and it almost certainly does -- it definitely violates the spirit of the law. It is the type of thing that the Bush Administration would have done and gleefully thumbed their collective noses at the rest of us. I expected better of Obama. I was wrong.

Certainly, this discussion sidesteps the issue of what might be the better policy on this question. To me, however, that is next to irrelevant. The law is the law and we've had our leaders breaking it willy nilly for far too long. If you don't like the law, change it. The president, however, must not simply break it.

4 April 2009

Bee Brains

As a beekeeper, this new study about bees was most interesting. Enjoy.

3 April 2009

Geithner Background

A great article today in the Washington Post regarding Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's background with credit derivatives as head of the New York Fed. It would seem that he missed all signs of the crisis even as he made moves that made it worse in the long run.

3 April 2009

Love, Corn Style!

The Iowa Supreme Court ruled today that a ban on gay marriage violates the state constitution's equal protection clause. The ruling will take three weeks to implement and the original plaintiff has said that it will not ask for a rehearing. This means that by the end of the month, marriage equality will have come to the heartland of America. Indeed, "heartland" takes on a whole new meaning with this just ruling.

You can read the actual ruling here.

3 April 2009

Stevens & the DOJ

The DOJ has decided to drop all charges, even after a conviction, against Alaska Senator Ted Stevens. This isn't exactly surprising given the amount of bungling in the case, mixed with Stevens' age. However, official Washington -- including the media -- is greeting Stevens with open arms as if his misconduct, which was great and illegal, never happened. The fact that charges were dropped doesn't change that fact and the facts are well known and proven. It is a fine example of anything goes in DC as long as you either don't get caught or cannot be convicted in a court of law. It is disgusting.

A good article on this can be found at TPM.

Chris Matthews' take on Stevens. George Stephanopoulos' (short) take. Morons.

2 April 2009

Gov't Pension Protection Revisited

Last week, I detailed how the Bush Administration gutted the fund that is the safeguard for private pension protection. Now, information is coming to light that man responsible, Charles Millard, was warned specifically that the route he eventually took with the fund could and very likely would lead to dire results. What is interesting is that the warnings came from Members of Congress, who were later informed by Millard when he indeed made the catastrophic changes. What is unknown is why no outcry from Congress came at that time. Were the changes approved? Were they overlooked? I hope someone keeps digging into this.

Sadly, there are too many April Fool's to count pretty much every day of the year.

1 April 2009