Tag Archives: 'economics'

• Fixing Social Security

  The title of this post is not as accurate as it probably could be, but “Eliminating Social Security and Implementing a New, Improved Federal Retirement System” doesn’t have the same ring to it. I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t fit on one line, and that’s the type of stuff that eats away at me. Current (and [...]

• Madoff

  There exists an underlying defense of the Madoff ponzi scheme — a fraud that amounts to more than $50 billion — and it goes like this: If a person is stupid enough to invest all of their money with one person than they deserve it; they should have known better. This is the defense being [...]

• Currently Reading

  Former CIA operative Robert Baer feels that the real terrorism threat lies in Iran, and that the unwillingness and political weakness in Washington and the impotence at the CIA are the reasons that America remains unsafe; after reading his story, it is hard not to see that Baer makes a strong argument. On to my [...]

• The George W. Bush Institute Of Foreign Policy

  Imagine this scenario: You are at a cocktail party, or with friends watching a baseball game, or whatever; you get the point, you are at some sort of gathering. The discussion turns to public infrastructure, and a self-proclaimed expert (even without saying that he is an expert, he exudes expertise through demeanor, use of terminology, [...]

• The Difference Maker

  I agree with the notion that the mounting number of foreclosures is partially at root of our current economic crisis. It is by no means the only reason. Equally culpable for the dire straits that we navigate was the need for a market correction, the house of cards that became of the banking industry, and [...]

• Media Is Blind To Obama’s Mandate

  In 2000, Texas Governor George W. Bush received less votes than Vice-President Al Gore. After a lengthy legal battle over the contested results from the tie-breaking state of Florida in the historically close election, a legal process that found itself in the Supreme Court, Bush was decreed the victor. Two months later, the president was [...]

• Part Two

  Consider this part two of my blogger manifesto. I have too many blogs. This blog is my pride-and-joy, and honestly, I could not imagine life without it, however sad that makes me feel that this is what the world has come to. In fact, I’m just glad building web-sites is cool now. Why wasn’t this [...]

• Currently Reading

  Enough with the pro-Communist mumbo-jumbo.* On to more exciting and relevant issues, John Perkins bestselling Confessions of an Economic Hit Man… Image: Amazon (I’m pretty sure that is Harvey Keitel from Reservoir Dogs on the cover.) I am a fan of political intrigue. I find it intriguing, and political. I am not entirely sure what [...]

• Embezzlement

  I’m glad I am not the only one that thinks so (cue Gregg Easterbrook)… Very high pay to Wall Street managers is justified on the grounds that they are financial geniuses with astonishing expertise. Instead it turns out many financial industry managers made basic blunder after basic blunder. The 2008 financial markets crash belies the [...]

• Fixing the Economy

  Well, I am just glad that the struggling economy is finally behind us. This may be some arm-chair quarterbacking, but this is what I would do to right the sinking economy… – Buy the auto companies. Yep, let’s get in the car business. Let’s salvage what they got, and sell them off for parts. GM [...]

• Introducing Hassle-Free Foreclosures

  I do not support a bailout of individual homeowners in today’s mortgage crisis, nor do I think it is wise for the government to purchase such troubled assets from banks and lending institutions. In either of those two scenarios, the government is attempting to manufacture a soft-bottom for this market. I relate it to the [...]

• Free Markets In Question

  So this is what it has come to for President George W. Bush. In the waning days of his two-term administration, following a resounding defeat of his policies at the ballot box, the following headline on MSNBC… “Bush to defend ‘free market’ system.” Well done, sir. How bad do you have to be as president [...]

• Bailing Out Seniors

  This is probably going to rain on a few parades. Aren’t the plans set forth by John McCain* and Barack Obama to protect seniors from mandatory withdrawals for their IRAs or 401ks (after age 70, or 59 in the case of McCain’s lowered tax rate on any withdrawals from retirement accounts) actually nothing more than [...]

• The College Endowment Elite

  I was talking to my wife about this issue last night,* and I’m glad someone else — in this case, Gregg Easterbrook — agrees with me. Measuring a university’s value with the endowment metric is entirely unfair (as is used in the oft-referenced U.S. News rankings), as it gives smaller schools literally no chance to [...]

• Iraq 2.0 (or 3.0, if you include the 1991 dust-up)

  After spending nearly a decade creating the problem, the president has now found it convenient to come out of his hole and demand changes, demand fast action from Congress (including unprecedented power handed to the Executive branch), and to continue to lay out the potential threat that the financial crisis poses on the American people. [...]

• Bailout Redux

  I loved this description of the bailout… The American people have been asked to gift-wrap 700 billion dollars to a bunch of people that are either greedy or dumb. Take your pick. Anyone up for hedge fund tax reform?

• Bailout

  I am sure I am not the only one who thinks this way, but the bailout — any bailout, especially one nearing a trillion dollars — must include ownership for the taxpayer (in the form of shares of the companies involved). It wouldn’t be surprising if many Wall Street firms sour on the deal just [...]

• Financials Redux

  Just to follow-up on last night’s half-drunk post ripping the financial industry… – Just because the wealthiest man in the room is unable to make as much money this year as he had hoped or expected (or wanted to), does not mean the public should cover his debts. – The U.S. economy would continue without [...]

• Financials

  I am too upset right now with the trillion-dollar bailout plan of greed-soaked incompetent unethical financial firms to really express any real thoughts on the subject. (All of this so they can stay in business, keep their jobs, keep their portfolios?!?) Plus, I am half-way to drunk. But I can say this, and I do [...]

• Liveblogging the Bush Press Conference

  7:44am Bush: “We understood what was coming.” We just didn’t do anything about it. 7:47am Bush: “Is this a war? Or is this like law enforcement?” 7:48am Bush: “One front is going better than the other, and that is Iraq. Afghanistan is a tough fight. Afghanistan is reminiscent of what was going on in Iraq [...]

older »