Ruminations – 18mar13

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Ruminations – 18mar13

18 March 2013

George Rebane

You know you’re old when you realize that there’s a good chance that your pets will survive you.

Benghazi is not going away. Hillary’s ‘what difference does it make?!’ tantrum in front of the Senate is coming back in spades to haunt (and worse?) this administration. Meanwhile, the WH continues to lie through its teeth claiming not to have silenced the survivors who are now being interviewed by Senators (here) and telling quite a different story of having been told to shut their mouths during the last five months. This adds more to the pile of evidence that Team Obama is corrupt, incompetent, and perverse. Readers hewing to the lamestream are being spared all this.

Stay tuned to see how Kerry handles the ‘it didn’t happen on my watch’ as the survivors tell us how the Libyan terror strike was mis-managed from the gitgo – Hillary call your campaign headquarters. And the liars still maintain that Al Qaeda is a shadow of its former self as it spreads and strengthens in ALL quarters.

DHS with MRAPs and billion bullet buys. Speaking of the lamestream, that branch of our Fourth Estate has achieved the status of your local high school newspaper as far as currency is concerned. For almost a year they have fastidiously ignored the news of what federal agencies are doing to apparently prepare for civil insurrection in America (here). Now we begin to see reports (here) in various outlets evincing surprise and finally acknowledging the obvious, much asked, and ignored questions. Not the brightest bulbs on the tree, but their progressive agenda does explain away why liberals are so out of touch when talking about current affairs. Sounding lame probably comes from restricting your news sources to the lamestream and their blogging echo chambers.

Cyprus taxes bank deposits. So, does anyone out there believe that the Tuesday taxing of Cypriot bank accounts will really be a "one-off", and that government money grab will not be repeated in other failing EU countries (here and here)? And is the Atlantic wide enough to prevent the progressives (and their Democrat surrogates) from succumbing to that disease on our shores, especially with the crowd that now 'works' at 1600 Pennsylvania?

Posted in Current Affairs, Our Country, We the iSheeple

59 responses to “Ruminations – 18mar13”

MikeL

18 March 2013

Da gubnent in the good ol US of A is already stealing the savings people have in their bank o’counts. When good ol Benny Bernake cranks up the printing presses he is effectively taking your money.

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Russ Steele

18 March 2013

Drudge this AM:
Cyprus set to seize personal savings…
Plan moves ahead as vote delayed…
Putin: ‘Unfair,’ ‘Dangerous’…
FT: Here come bank runs…
Germany: Not our idea…
Italy to follow?
Markets rattled…
Euro tumbles…
Dow drops…

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Steve Frisch

18 March 2013

That’s right, the government to stocking up on ammunition because they plan to come after all you conservatarians. Better start the revolution tomorrow before its too late.

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Gregory

18 March 2013

Steven Frisch, CEO of the wretchedly misnamed Sierra Business Council, rather than being your usual snotty self, why not take a swag at justifying the 1.6 billion round ammo buy, good for about 20 years of peak Iraq war usage, many of which are rounds not even legal under the Geneva convention.
The Forbes article links to others in the ‘legitimate press’:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/ralphbenko/2013/03/11/1-6-billion-rounds-of-ammo-for-homeland-security-its-time-for-a-national-conversation/

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Ben Emery

18 March 2013

I will put this out there once again and maybe just maybe you guys will start seeing what I am talking about. How the take over is happening through debt.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-dsiufhMu0
First let me get my Marxist statement out of the way. I think Marx was on target with his analysis but way off the mark on his solutions.
“– the big fish swallows the little fish, the big bourgeoisie swallows the petty and middle bourgeoisie, one group squeezes out and swallows another group.
The bourgeoisie strives to possess the means of production and the market of its own country. And since its greed for profits knows no limits, the bourgeoisie strives to expand beyond its own country, to seize foreign markets, sources of raw materials and areas for capital investment, thus subjugating other nations and exploiting them. At the same time it squeezes out the bourgeoisie or rival capitalists of other countries.”
With the One World Order in place they are coming after nation states. IMF and World Bank were the the way to get into sovereign nation governments and their legislation. In other words forced austerity or national treasuries handed over to private banking. They have eaten up all the small fish in undeveloped world that has any sort of resource, now they are going after the medium fish in the PIIGS nations, and next will be the US. Not all at one time but first cities, then counties, then states, and finally the entire nation.
Jefferson County, Alabama Prepares for Largest Municipal Bankruptcy in U.S. History
http://www.activistpost.com/2011/07/jefferson-county-alabama-prepares-for.html
Accumulated or centralized wealth and power whether it be government or corporate is the biggest threat to our liberties and freedom.

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Ben Emery

18 March 2013

Here is how it went down with Jefferson County Alabama.
Looting Main Street
How the nation’s biggest banks are ripping off American cities with the same predatory deals that brought down Greece
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/looting-main-street-20100331
Follow up piece after the bankruptcy took place.
Jefferson County, Alabama – Screwed by Wall Street – Files for Bankruptcy
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/national-affairs/jefferson-county-alabama-screwed-by-wall-street-files-for-bankruptcy-20111110

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Walt

18 March 2013

Hear about the line for ammo at the gun show this weekend? Hours long…
Now that I found a new source in town, I was able to save me the time and trouble.
Most ammo is now a buck a round, no matter what you need. Some has jumped to a buck and a quarter.( and of course it would be on what I need.)
Now reloading materials are in short supply.
On the up side,, the guns and ammo stocks that I acquired are doing fine.
I’m sure the LIBS are peeved that they didn’t think of the bank deposit grab first. Do you think they have forgotten about our 401ks? ( money just sitting and waiting to be spent by government)

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Ben Emery

18 March 2013

Walt,
401k money sitting and waiting for service fees I think you meant to say.
$100,000 of fees over the lifetime and you still might lose everything to criminal banking practices.
On Retirement
A Simple Way to Add $100,000 to Your 401(k)
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/On-Retirement/2011/06/23/a-simple-way-to-add-100000-to-your-401k

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Bill Tozer

18 March 2013

Jefferson County? My, my. They tried to cut a corner and the chickens came home to roost. Hundreds of millions spent on a sewer plant that don’t work and don’t deliver. I can see why they needed one cause of the EPA and all that stuff. Sounded good at first. But they should have read the fine print. That’s the corner they cut.
Cost overrides, deadlines, and the devil is in the details.
I remember when people were clamoring for the head of Christina Dobbis (County Tax lady) cause of her conservative investments with the taxpayers’ money. The Board was all upset and people were saying how much money we could make in other investments. Shocking that she did not join the bandwagon and hop on board the derivative train.
Then Orange County got bit by the scheme and filed for bankruptcy. The idiots on the board (a few, one with the initials BS) stopped asking for her head. Oh, BS was still upset. He tried to have the County move its business to his bank. Even sought to put her office under his control. I hate control freaks, even ones that are good natured. Good thing Ms. Dobbis told him to go pound sand and stood up to them all and taught them a lesson about her civic duty to oversee the taxpayers’ money and the law forbidding them to stick their hands where they don’t belong.
Now the new BOS is putting the same pressure on the new County Tax lady. But I digress for the umpteenth time.
Slow and steady wins the race. Jefferson County ain’t the only one to be snookered. The good citizens of that County I mean.. The elected officials just got in over their heads. Should have had a tough bird like Ms. Dobbis reading the details and guarding the taxpayers’ best interest.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Hey Walt, glad to see you returned here. How about you go back to George’s March 9th post and follow up on all your BS about the 1M loan you say the City of Grass Valley made to a high tech company to move them here.
You also made personal rants about me and you told me how you were going to “force feed me crow”. I’m still waiting for you to back up your BS claims Walt.
Walt, did you give Grass Valley City Manger Dan Holler a call? I provided his phone number for you. I’m sure the City Manger would know about a 1M loan the City made to some high tech company to move here. I also provided a link to the past City Council agendas all the back to 2005 for you to check too.
Walt, you made a number of claims and statements like… “G.V. bribed a company to come here… in the form of a loan of close to 1MIL”. Walt, you also made a number of statements about me.
So I’m looking forward to your response about the 1M City of Grass Valley loan you say took place and as I said beofre I have no knowledge of such a thing. I do know about a number of RDA loans the City made, like the one to Goomba’s to expand on Colfax Ave.
Enjoy eating your crow Walt.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Bill… “Should have had a tough bird like Ms. Dobbis reading the details and guarding the taxpayers’ best interest” is 110% correct! Chris Dobbis saved Nevada County’s bacon a number of times. Chris watched out for the people not special interests.

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Bill Tozer

18 March 2013

Mr. Enos, we finally agree. Mark your calender! The following news blurb saddens me greatly. Its about someone in power that cares little for the working folk:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ex-calpers-ceo-board-member-204650562.html

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Gregory

18 March 2013

Also on Drudge today, thousands waiting in line at CalExpo to buy ammo!
http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2013/03/16/thousands-line-up-outside-cal-expo-gun-show-to-buy-ammunition/
If nothing hits the fan, there should eventually be a lot of surplus ammo being sold, including the 1.6 billion rounds the DHS is buying. Before this recent flustercluck, you could still buy surplus 30-06 and .30 Carbine ammo from the Dept. of Civilian Marksmanship.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

The main, primary ammo seller at the western U.S. gun shows is Miwall… of Grass Valley! Miwall sells a lot of bulk and reload and hard to find ammo. They also sell some reloading equipment, bullets, casings, primers and powder.
Each Father’s Day Miwall (and “The Range” next door) have a two day event. Miwall opens their warehouse to the public for these two days each year only. Over the years the lines to get into Miwall have grown and grown.
I hope they do not advertise their Father’s Day event this year. There is no need as the folks that know Miwall already will buy all they have to sell. I bet that this year folks will be lining up at Miwall the day before they open their doors.
“The Range” next door sells ammo and bulk via Miwall. They have been limiting the amount of bulk you can buy at one time to be fair to others.
Both Miwall and The Range are real nice folks. Shop local, shop The Range and Miwall Father’s Day weekend and keep your money local.

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Scott Obermuller

18 March 2013

Ben E – you are too much. You actually think it was the bankers that ran Greece into the ground? What about the Greeks themselves? Are they some sort of sub-human bunch of half-wits that need to be treated like retarded children? How is it that you lefties know all of the secret info that the banksters and Wall Street keep from the rest of us? How do you lefties escape the clutches of the evil banksters as they rip off all of the rest of us? Of course, when we conservatives detail criminal behaviour by the govt, you just roll your eyes and call us fascists. By several multiples of any metric you can think of, Ben Bernanke was/is stealing more value from the American middle class than anyone right now. But the stock market is booming, so who cares? Remember the housing bubble? It was booming and everyone was happy and no one cared about Frank Raine’s criminal activity. Well, some did, but they were called racists and shouted down. Name one single lefty that voiced concerns about the damage that Raines did to the American economy.

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Walt

18 March 2013

Like I said Steve in that post you mention… Why bother? It would be a waist of time. I still stand by my comments non the less. If you have memory problems, that’s not my fault.
YES.. close to a MIL was “loaned”.. It was talked about for WEEKS, and long before the comment world was shut down at The Union. ( you do remember those?)
On the other side of the coin, just “IF” that “loan” never went through, it was never told to the public at large. More smoke and mirrors? Create a big hype about “business being recruited to mover here” when in actuality they never were. But from memory I do believe they did move here. If they are still here is another question.
And GV is no better off job wise. When a small herbal soap shop is front page news,,, we still have some real job issues.
And speaking of “front page” business openings, many of those in the past few years have quietly disappeared as fast as they showed up. The Auction house that was to open never even got off the ground. He went back to selling on Ebay.
I know this because I had some items that would have sold for good money locally. But his “house” was already closed, but would be more than happy to put them on line. ( at a fee of course) Nope,, he didn’t get my business, because I could do the same thing without the commission.
And speaking of “city doings”,, I understand the city now owns the vacant property on Neil St. Did someone there do their homework? An old gas station occupied that spot. So the city now owns the contamination under that lot.
( all torn down and paved over long before remediation laws came into play)
It sure isn’t going to be a pretty sight when the city starts digging there in the future.
OK,, if I go dig up the facts on that “loan”,, then what? If you say you will leave the county, I will get right on it. Maybe open a shop in one of those vacant boxes at Walgreens someone demanded be built? that added a year to it’s completion and an eyesore for a the same amount of time.
Selective memory loss seems to be common with Leftys.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Walt… it was you that shot off your mouth, made false claims and posted how you would “force feed me crow” with the truth and the facts.
I know that the City did not offer a 1M loan to move a business to Grass Valley, but you said I wasn’t telling the truth and you said you would prove your claim and me wrong and you would “force feed me crow” over this.
I even provided you the contact number for Dan Holler, Grass Valley City Manager. Did you call Dan Holler for the facts? No you did not.
It’s all there for everone to read under George’s March 9th post Walt. You shot oof your mouth and you failed to back it up.
The only one eating crow over this is… Walt.

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Walt

18 March 2013

OK smart guy,, ( Steve )Huntington Mechanical Laboratories Ring a bell?
$900,000 was the magic number. May of 2010 was when it all started.
“Money from Nevada County would smooth the move of Huntington Mechanical Laboratories to Grass Valley – though the firm already is committed, its owner said Friday.”We’re hiring people from Grass Valley right now,” said Ron Hooper, owner of the high-tech computer chip and aerospace company based in Mountain View.On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors is slated to ask the state for $900,000 in economic development funds for a loan to help the firm move. The money would be used for operations and equipment, according to county documents.Huntington also is working toward county permits to convert the former Furniture by Thurston …”
I no longer subscribe to the local fish wrap, so this is part of the first news about it.
MAY 21 2010 to be precise. So now you know where to look.
At least they are still here, and all of 36 workers. It sure don’t beat the 150+ that IMM would have had, and no need to loan money in the first place.
So take this info back to your buddy as well.

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Walt

18 March 2013

Now for the hair splitting and revisionism to begin.

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Walt

18 March 2013

Nothing but crickets? I guess that took the wind out of sails.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Walt… do you know the difference between the City of Grass Valley and Nevada County? They are two different “things” and two different jurisdictions, two very different entities.
Do you know where the former Furniture by Thurston facility is? Do you know if a loan was ever secured, offered, or made… by the County.
You made a claim about Grass Valley making a 1M loan to get a company to move to the City of Grass Valley. Since I live in Grass Valley and I was elected and served a 4 year term and I stay informed I know more than a little about the workings of the City of Grass Valley, the County not as much as I live and work and focus on the City of Grass Valley.
Enjoy your crow. You were wrong and you still don’t have all the facts.

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themkkeymcd

18 March 2013

Our youngest daughter asked to pray before dinner tonight.
“I pray that governments don’t steal anymore money like the 10% in Cyprus”
“Honey- the government stole 52% from us last year- enjoy your pasty”-me

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Cyprus… it’s nothing short of theft, it’s theft. No way to spin it!

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Walt

18 March 2013

Here we go with the hair splitting.I guess there is one little part of the story that failed to post. ” The City of Grass Valley requested the loan money from the county”. You didn’t go and do any of your own digging once again.
And EXCUSE ME ALL TO HELL,, that I was off by a hundred grand. In LIB math that IS a million bucks. But it’s close enough for me. By the time all the fees, lawyers, and fees, that would bring the tally to the 1 mil. mark easily.
So now I claim vindication Steve, “This” is the proof you demanded.
The bottom line is GV acquired the loan for this company to relocate.
That’s what I claimed, and that’s what I have proven.
Now on to the next dog fight.

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Walt

18 March 2013

Jay the Carney sure said it all when Cyprus came up. Instead of the W.H. condemning it,, what comes out is ” we’re monitoring the situation.” Which in LIB speak means ” taking notes” and “why didn’t we think of this first?!”

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Walt

18 March 2013

@ Steve F. My daughter who lives in Az. is attending the Big Sandy gun shoot this weekend. She will send me some video of those privately owned tanks and artillery in action, along with all the other civilian owned automatic weapons.
Point being? None of these have been used in a crime. This is true 2ND Amendment, the way the founding Fathers intended.
So a week from today I will figure out how to post the footage.
See Cyprus? Your seeing another great reason for the 2ND.

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Steve Enos

18 March 2013

Sorry Walt, you don’t get to revise history or the facts. It wasn’t the City of Grass Valley.

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Gregory

19 March 2013

Yes, Walt got it wrong, it wasn’t the city that actually made the loan. And I think we can expect Steve Enos knew what Walt was referring to the whole time.

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Steve Enos

19 March 2013

Gregory, I agree that Walt was wrong. A few key facts still missing…
Was a loan ever secured, was a loan ever offered, was a loan ever made?

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Ben Emery

19 March 2013

For those who supported the illegal and immoral invasion/ occupation of Iraq. Another notch in a long line of oppressive tyrannical misuses of the US military.
The Costs of War: 10 Years After Iraq Invasion, New Study Tallies the Massive Human, Financial Toll
http://www.democracynow.org/2013/3/19/the_costs_of_war_10_years

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Gregory

19 March 2013

Walt, I really don’t care. I assume you know the answer to your own question and will withhold that information until there is an opportunity for a snark attack.
Some people are not very precise in their writing; Walt is one. I expect more from Steve Enos.

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Walt

19 March 2013

Wrong? I don’t think so… It appears none have gone back and looked for themselves.( Steve) GV. is/was just like anyone else needing money, and borrowed form “somewhere” to give to “someone”. Just “who” gave said money is irrelevant. And as Gregory surmises, Stevey knew what I was getting at the whole time. Steve was counting on The Unions dead archive to stay that way. Too bad I managed to resurrect some of it, and now has the brass ones to marginalize the evidence. ( LIB 101) ( He’s just sore I found any of it)
So I was off by a few percentage points… Libs that get paid to guess like that get bonuses for being that wrong. ( CBO doesn’t even get this close)
And I see a question if the moneys were even given.. Good question. Don’t you think we would have heard about the Co. refusing the funds? That would have been front page news. And since they are still here, and actually DID relocate, that’s a pretty good indication the got the money. ( moving sure isn’t cheap)
OK,,, so I got a few details mixed up from memory. ( but “wrong”? Not quite)
Now the ball is in YOUR court Steve,, Let’s see the info on this Co. moving here all on their own, NO outside financial aid, it was all their idea and NO tax dollars were spent for the transition from “the bay” to here.
Show us something in print. Not a phone number to some buddy of yours that works for the city.

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Steve Enos

19 March 2013

Nope Walt, you made the false claim that Grass Valley provided a 1M loan to move a company to Grass Valley. That did not happen and that is fact.
If you finish your “research” you will also be able to answer the questions… if a loan was in fact ever offered or ever made to the company. Since you also claimed the loan was made to the company you are still lacking in your response/spin.
The City of Grass Valley never made a loan as you claimed and you don’t even know if the County made the loan you claim was made. Finish your reseach Walt… was there a loan made by the county as you claimed?

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Walt

19 March 2013

Gregory. No, I don’t hold info back just for a “gotcha” moment.
That’s not my style. I do ask questions of others when I already
have the answer. My parents did teach me some good tactics in that regard.( don’t ask a question you don’t already know the answer to.)
But in issues like this I don’t intentionally leave out key facts.(why?) I’m not MSNBC or CBS.
And when it comes to not so old history of the likes above, I have a pretty good memory.
And don’t take the call that reads “not in service” on the caller ID with a Beaverton Oregon aria code.971-217-9508 Some idiot is trying to scam money claiming to be a relative… then he had the guts to call back!
Heck! He tried to claim he was my wife’s long lost step Father.

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Walt

19 March 2013

More evidence that some elected LIBS have more than one screw loose.
Another Dizzy Izzy has added evidence to that. Good ol’ Izzy Warren
throws this out.
”
Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren during a hearing of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions last week asked why the current federal minimum wage rate is only $7.25 and not $22 an hour.”
If she had one clue of what that would do to small business and business in general, she wouldn’t be making such a stupid inquiry.
Remember? She also still claims American Indian status, even after the Indians officially don’t recognise her as one of their own.
Speaking of small business,, hear of the new Ca. tax grab on them?
No warning,,, just a bill in the mail, and retroactive.
So kiss more Ca. businesses goodbye, and the jobs right along with them.

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Gregory

19 March 2013

Walt, you are sloppy, which is what’s feeding Enos.
Enos, be an adult and put your cards on the table.

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Bill Tozer

19 March 2013

Stepping out of the current thread, Dr. Rebane gave 3 delicious topics to haggle over. 1) Benghazi, 2) what the hell is Homeland Security doing with 1.6 billion bullets. They ain’t the military and our own military is barred from doing exercises at the Mexican border. Hmm, I smell something fishy in Denmark and it ain’t the Danes. 3rd is Cypress which I will touch upon with your forbearance.
When the Cypress thang broke, I immediately though it could happen here. Sure, there is billions of Russian dollars among other folks money stashed in Cypress off shore accounts and Germany told the Cypress beggars to have your people pay for it instead of the bondholders. Funny how another insignificant little Southern Europe Island country can shake up the global markets.
Its my first reaction that alarmed me. Ask me if that could happen here 20 years ago and I would have laughed. Since I have opened my mind and ears and eyes, it could very well happen here. Gov’t will not stop in its quest for more money to grab, confiscate, and spend like there is no tomorrow. It shakes my trust. Especially considering all the rumors that keep coming up (much more often now) that our government be eyeing our 401ks and investments. All that money sitting in tax deferred accounts is too much temptation for our government. So much to spend, so little time.
Our government has an unquenchable lust for piles of money that all the money in the world can never satisfy. Like the old saying “The man who worries about his well running dry draws water that can never quench his thirst.”
All this borrowing which they currently declare is not a problem. Knew a guy who declared bankruptcy on purpose. He planned it out. Spent like a drunken Washingtonian then filed. He waited a couple of years after the bankruptcy and started charging up and maxing out new credit cards. Went in a filed bankruptcy again, all planned. I could no longer be his friend. See, he borrowed money with no intention of repaying. Government is spending and borrowing money just like my former friend. Makes me wonder if they even have one iota of intention of paying it back. There is a lot of mula sitting in bank accounts, pension plans, and IRAs. That’s money to spend now, pay back when you be dead.

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George Rebane

19 March 2013

re BillT’s 214pm – I thank Mr Tozer for reminding readers about the topics raised in this post. Haven’t a clue what Walt, SteveE are going around about that has now drawn GregG in to adjudicate the matter – whatever. But we do have two earth shaking state policy matters that will reverberate across America – the Cypriot bank hold up, the largest in memory and, perhaps, recorded history; and the retroactive taxation and fining of California small businesses guaranteed to accelerate the exodus from the state. Perhaps my selection of topics was over the heads of the local parochials. Oh well.

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Paul Emery

19 March 2013

“See, he borrowed money with no intention of repaying.” Bill Tozer | 19 March 2013 at 02:14 PM
Sounds like Silverado Savings and Loan where Neil Bush, the lost schrub loaned millions to his pals who had no intention in paying it back. Cost the taxpayers billions
wiki for conveniance
“As a director of a failing thrift, Bush voted to approve $100 million in what were ultimately bad loans to two of his business partners. And in voting for the loans, he failed to inform fellow board members at Silverado Savings & Loan that the loan applicants were his business partners.[citation needed]
Neil Bush paid a $50,000 fine, paid for him by Republican supporters,[27] and was banned from banking activities for his role in taking down Silverado, which cost taxpayers $1.3 billion. “

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Bill Tozer

20 March 2013

Paul E. I am not a friend of Neil Bush either. Two wrongs don’t make a right. I wish this current mess would only cost taxpayers 1.3 billion. Think that is how much we spend and waste by 9:35am on a daily basis.

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Paul Emery

20 March 2013

Yeah Bill We didn’t learn much from the S&L debacle. i am a reader of William Black who was the fraud investigator that Keating wanted to kill. He wrote a book called the “The Best Way To Rob A Bank is to Own One where he reveals how Charles Keating and hundreds of other S&L owners took advantage of a weak regulatory environment to perpetrate accounting fraud on a massive scale. He contends that the bank collapse in 2008 was the same scheme.
“http://www.amazon.com/Best-Way-Rob-Bank-Own/dp/0292721390

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Ben Emery

20 March 2013

Paul and Bill,
There is so much more I can post on this but lets keep it to something I think we can agree on. Both major political parties are owned and in the pockets by the banking industry, which has the same interests at the military/ pharmaceutical/ energy complexes.
The Go Go 90’s
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/warning/view/
“Greenspan, Rubin and Summers ultimately prevailed on Congress to stop Born and limit future regulation of derivatives. “Born faced a formidable struggle pushing for regulation at a time when the stock market was booming,” Kirk says. “Alan Greenspan was the maestro, and both parties in Washington were united in a belief that the markets would take care of themselves.”

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Joe Koyote

20 March 2013

“Readers hewing to the lamestream are being spared all this” — the lamestream misses a lot of stuff or it is in the better interests of their owners to miss stuff. The last few days the press has been all awash in introspection and apologies as to why they failed to do their jobs when passing on the lies and slight of hand that led up to the invasion of Iraq under false pretenses.

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Ben Emery

20 March 2013

Joe,
On the corporate media and what they choose to cover or not cover.
Upton Sinclair
“It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!”

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Paul Emery

20 March 2013

That’s my contention as well Ben. The Republicrats divide up a shade of the popular political spectrum (nothing too radical that might change things) and put on a good show during election time. The rest of the time it’s business with cash in, friendly legislation out. Anyone who thinks it means a rats ass whether the Pubbers or Dems are in control is hopelessly naive. Sure there are differences in social issues (gay marriage, abortion, gun control etc) but the big boys are in control of both parties and the money keeps flowing to keep the military, banking, health care and too big to fail institutions fat at the expense of the American people.

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Ben Emery

20 March 2013

Paul,
I truly believe the R’s and D’s are two sides of the same coin. Even with the social issues my guess if we get out of the radical elements in both party bases the agreement will be overwhelming. Wedge issues are marketing scheme to show that we have a vibrant opposition two party system. In fact we haven’t had a two party system since the R’s decided to become war mongors and the D’s decided to go corporate. It started in the 60’s and started to pick up some energy in the 70’s. In the 80’s it really started to pick up steam and for the last two decades it has been full throttle of a duopoly one party government.
If we look at it
-Obama care benefits the private insurance and private health care sectors most
-D’s didn’t talk about raising taxes on wealthy until they lost control of the house and in fact passed extensions of Bush tax breaks when they had complete control of legislature and executive branches
-D’s opposed Patriot, FISA, Torture, Guantanamo, Black Prisons, Extraordinary Rendition when Bush was in office and have quietly promoted those policies with Obama
-R’s scream about debt and deficits but since the 80’s R administrations have been signed budgets that are responsible for about 90% of the debt/ deficits. With that debt was public money going to private industry.
-R’s controlled all three branches in early Bush years and did nothing on the wedge issues and in fact expanded our federal government tremendously
It all has become a show within the leaderships of both parties. The reps as individuals are legitimate but have very little power over their votes if they are to get anywhere in the party or even backing to win their next bought campaign/ election.

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Ben Emery

20 March 2013

I recommend Grand Illusion The Myth of Voter Choice in a Two-Party Tyranny
didn’t read Nixonland and but did read Grand Illusion, in 2004 over 32 lawsuits brought by the Democrats towards the Nader campaign, draining resources and energy from the campaign.
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/287523-6
“Theresa Amato takes the biggest swing—not a jab, but a roundhouse punch—at America’s corrupt electoral system. It is not an overstatement to speculate that the next president of the United States could be decided by Anheuser-Busch! Skeptical? Read this book.
—PHIL DONAHUE”

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Joe Koyote

20 March 2013

“It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!”
One of the major effects of media consolidation and increased pressure on news organizations to make a profit is the thinning of the reporter herd. With fewer jobs you get self-censorship, reporters won’t bite the hand that feeds them, and the public won’t get all of the truth.

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George Rebane

20 March 2013

Wonderful conversation gentlemen. I do have a few observations.
• Maybe the meaty issues that matter to grass roots Repubs and Dems are abortion, gun control, gay marriage, debt, size of government, … . And all the other issues that both parties pretty well manage with equal ineptness make no never mind to both sides.
• “Obama care benefits the private insurance and private health care sectors most.” BenE 1237pm. Now that one will have to be inscribed in stone, dated, attributed, and set in a very public place.
• Re JoeK’s 1254pm – I wonder how American journalism would work when profit were not a motive, say, as 501c3 non-profits or with government funding.
• Re JoeK’s 1106am – I’d be interested to see what evidence the press withheld when it covered “the lies and slight(sic) of hand that led up to the invasion of Iraq under false pretenses.”

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Walt

20 March 2013

Our good friend Jeff is going to have a field day with this news.
Another tax money ripoff from another solar fiasco has reared it ugly head.
Just this time it’s Origin’s problem.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/03/20/taxpayer-backed-solar-firm-faces-layoffs-shakeup-amid-calls-for-more-government/#content
Now who knew a issued “tax credit” could be sold? Wonders never cease…
This is right up there with a solar panel Co. that ” Their exact words were, “the solar panels worked great until you put them in the sun”. ( Abound Solar)

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