So, the dumbest woman around decides to pick a pissing match with the firetruck known as the CIA.
Not. Even. Close.
First, Pelosi doesn't have the intellectual fire power to be coherent, let alone lie or smack down another person (aside from mediocre ad hominem crap "they mislead us all the time," hmmm, that will make sure the CIA plays ball). Second, as a result of that, she requires constant media manipulation to hide how dumb she is. But, today, the first point became apparent as the second point faded.
Finally, note that, as pointed out by Hot Air, the CIA doesn't care. They are not going to go down. If Pelosi wants to scare the shit out of the intel community in a bald faced attempt to turn this country into a banana republic by criminalizing all acts of the previous administration, the CIA will go ahead and drop shit on her for as long as they want.
Hell, they did it to Bush 43 and all he did was cut back on their Christmas party liquor budget.
BONUS
The alpha liberal of the liberal tribe dares to speak truth to kooks:
Her: You know, Joe, I'm done with assholes and dumb guys. That's why I like you, you are smart and nice.
Me. I've been meaning to tell you something. I've only been pretending to be smart.
Look at the following image:
What the fuck?
I think some jackass named Keynes is to blame. Blamed because he is the beard for which this thing hides behind to gain credibility.
In reality, of course, this is spending is not based on any economic theory or reality. It's a power grab, it's a reward for allies. And, it's just the beginning.
I am not a tribal hack, hating on HugObama because he's of the wrong political persuasion. That thing above, that is the result of 100 days. And maybe 15 minutes of debate. This thing isn't a moderate, cool, rationale way to govern. This thing isn't even a well thought out way to socialize the country. It's just a testament to how idiotic, ignorant, and dangerous superhacks like Pelosi, Reid, and Obama are. 100 days. Open the floodgates. Any pork, project, or reward...come and get it.
Fine. Even pretending that they're sincere (they aren't or they're ignorant). They believe that you solve a crisis of capital in a financial sector by repaving roads and other "stimulus" activities. Sure whatevers.
The summary of Keynesism is that by merely employing a man, you grow the economy. The example is, apparently, you pay guy to dig a hole and then pay him to fill it back up. He gets paid, he spends the money, and the greatest country and economy that the world has ever seen sprouts to life.
Can we, ah, unpack this train of thought?
What can we agree on? Wealth is created, right? Price follows the law of supply and demand, right? If you are an American and can't agree to these two basic precepts of the market economy, the economic system that has granted you more luxury, safety, and material well being than any other country ever, then leave. Please.
Ok, what is the demand for a dug hole. Not that great. Noone is going to spend a lot of money on a dug hole or a hole that's been refilled. No wealth is created by this meaningless act. It does nothing. Money is invested and nothing is returned.
More insidiously, what does this ditch digging and filling job do to the digger, the man himself? His value is tied to his job, he is not gaining new skills. He is not even being criticized or held to any standards. Just show up and do this thankless, meaningless work. Soon, the man discovers that the sum of his efforts is the same whether he works hard or softly. Or if he shows up drunk or high. Hell, why not show up late and leave early.
His soul degrades to the point where he won't even take a real job. He is programmed to earn his money for free. Real work is devalued because the compensation for an actual job is most likely trivial compared to what he makes for nothing. And, because he is a ditch digger, the opportunities for a jump in income from make-believe work to real work are small.
What proof have I of this? Look at the bloated unions driving GM out of business. Look at the hoards of French protesting the inevitable end of their 2 months of vacation and 35 hour work week. Look at the inner cities of America. These examples sprung not from my cold rationality, but from the empathy of make believe work. You loved these people to death.
Want more proof, what is this?
Now, I am not opposed to some spending. The seduction, the siren call, of giving jobs to people is there. And, maybe, some people can only dig ditches. But this theory is wrong and cannot be the basis by which an economy grows. Furthermore, yes, debt spending (another issue, but a related issue) is not always bad. Reagan had to agree to spending increases in trade for growing the military. At least military spending is the opposite of the ditch digging job. The science and engineering required to make and maintain advanced weapons systems (like the Spartans, there are no American "cannonfodder," every soldier and sailor is precious and can strike back at the enemy with unimaginable power) added to this nation's wealth. We got the internet, radars, VCR's, computers, medicine, etc. Not dug and undug ditches. The men emerging from the military were taught, if not marketable skills (how to shoot a gun, drive a boat, fly an airplane), they gained marketable traits (hardwork, leadership, and responsiblity). This spending added to the country's wealth and made the debt incurred relatively small.
Look at that thing again. Did our economy quadruple is size? Will it? No. So, where is this money going to come from? I have no idea. I expect we are going to borrow some of it and monetize the rest.
Japan is another example. They had an economic crisis. They spent like mad. They got new roads and shiny new stuff. Did it help or matter? no. They just ended up with more debt. This is known as the "lost decade." So, their debt is coming due and they don't have the economic growth to repay it. That debt is just as expensive now as it was then.
Think about it, you take out loans to get a degree, say $50K. You hopefully get a job that will make you enough money to pay off that debt. That $50K is less of a burden to you after school and better job than on the day you signed those student loan papers. If you went out and spent $50K on shoes and rims that spin, your income remains the same. That $50K is still as expensive to you on day 1000 as it was on day 1.
On the other hand, we have had the last 30 years of economic growth. Our lifetimes have been blessed by the Reagan presidency. He lowered taxes and cut regulatory interference. Our economy grew. We had several recessions and missteps, but we grew and we are stronger because of it. These recessions allowed us to clear the economic deadwood and to learn lessons. Instead of a lost decade, the recession is a rebuilding year. Think about it. We may have just abandoned the Patriots or Colts role model of the metaphorical football world because we didn't win the SuperBowl one year and decided to take up the Detroit Lion's managerial style instead. One bad year versus a bad lifetime.
Nonetheless, despite the success that we've had thanks to an embrace of the markets, the taxes crept back and the regulations crept back. They always do. Governments want more. And the power to tax is also the power to reward and to punish. And, the ignorant think that economics is a zero sum game and taxation is a linear event.
Bush is being blamed for the current recession. He was also blamed for inheriting Clinton's recession. Luck guy, eh? You saw what he did with the recession he inherited. He made life easier for businesses, not government. We grew...yes we did...hitting a record string of months of economic growth. Eventually, we hit a recession. This one caused by things that have no name (i.e., government regulations forcing banks to make bad loans and then forcing these loans to be sold as securities). But, despite a war, despite a lost city, despite many things, the economy grew.
The super-duper deficit keeps burrowing into my brain. I grew up post Reagan, I have zero recollection of Carter. We, as a country, have had it pretty good my entire known life. But, one stupid election, the flood gates are opened. The people currently in power are not ready for this and they are dangerously willing to spend away thirty years of economic growth and prosperity.
And think about what else they've done. They rewrote the game of investing without so much as a whimper. So, why ? how? What's going to grow if people aren't even sure that their investments are safe?
And the thing is...there's historical precedent for what happens when people like HugObama take over a society. At best, we could be in for an FDR era rough spell, you know 15 years of poverty. World War. That sort of thing. But as much as liberals love their dystopic-future-fiction, the world's shitholes of poverty, soul killing oppression, and lost time comes from the totalitarian model we may be embracing.
But who knows, maybe all the spending will work. Maybe Obama's a benevolent steward of our welath. Even so, there's one thing Reagan and the Bushes weren't able to even touch. And one thing Obama isn't going to touch. Social Security is going to go boom very soon. Think of that when Howard Dean tells you that capitalism is bad. Government is much worse.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
When I tell people that my parents are basically communists, they ask, well what happened to you?
I used to say, "they taught me to read."
But now...it seems the proper answer is that people like that don't live the way they preach. None of the things that they have done in raising me squares with what they advocate for other people.
Indeed, I see that by not living by the standards by which I was raised leads to your men being shiftless, lazy, and bad parents. That the women end up, well, at best as girls gone wild. From that point forward, the path is down, not up. I see no reason to advocate raising a feral human. I want everyone to experience what I have and more.
The people that force others into public education where social promotion is the goal, won't send their children to public schools. The easy living of rewarding single motherhood isn't an option. Neither is an abortion. Be responsible. That's what they wanted for me.
From where I was raised, things like bad education, being a victim, living off of others, and countless other things taken for granted were granted to others, but never an option. So, why should I be treated, and expect to be treated, one way, the way that they expected of me, but wasn't expected of others?
Not everyone is gifted. But everyone can do well. I could squander my gifts. You could work hard and be better than you, by all rights, could be. I realized, that what's good for me, is good for you. Not some other standard. I may be fit, but my fitness didn't cause your sloth. My virtue didn't cause your weakness. Jesus said that the poor will always be with us, but he never said that we had to encourage them that their poverty led to a poverty of their souls. The way I was raised wouldn't allow that for me.
There are, it turns out, plenty of poor people. But they still live moral, virtuous lives. Moreso than I could dream of. And these people are looked down upon because they're bitter clingers. Screw that. They are the model, an example.
Some say the poor (or the rich) are different. No. They aren't. Anyone who goes down the wrong path ends at the wrong place. Turn around, it's never too late.
So, in my mind, when Rand wrote, "I swear -- by my life and my love of it -- that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine," I realize that that I can't say rest, do nothing, it's ok, someone else will give you stuff.
I chose another viewpoint. What's good for me is good for others.
So, yeah, live by the same rules. please.
UPDATE
Of course, for most "socialists, libs, etc." types, their positions are more intellectual preening than anything else. Conservatives offer arguments, Liberals offer alliances. To put it clearly, Conservatives want to win the argument to win the crowd, liberals wish to win the crowd to win the argument. It's tribalism versus rationality.Think about that the next time, while watching Jon Stewart, he mocks a political opponent or praises HugObama. You are being told who is cool. Not who is right. So, flush away America's future, ignore what the uncool kids say. It's obviously not important. Following the herd is no excuse, and they should still pay for their thoughtless advocacy, of course.
PS. wow, I got a 3000 word comment. Easily readable because the author managed to condense his thoughts into 4 paragraphs. Very pithy and informative, I am sure. I liked the excess use of all-caps. Persuasive. and deleted.
Let's talk about greed.
Greed is bad. The Church names this as a sin.
You know what else greed is...it's a scapegoat.
That's right, since September of last year, trillions of dollars have disappeared. People have had their retirements reduced to their level of investment at say 2001. So, that's eight years of investing down the drain. And, our brilliant, adorable, smarter than smart president, with the help of mindless dolts like Pelosi and Reid, have borrowed trillions more in an effort to reward their contributors and friends, "fix"* the economy.
And what caused all this damage?
Greed.
Yup, that's it. Go home, nothing to see here citizen. Greed got out of the zoo and ate all the money again.
Fine. What greed was it?
Nope, they say, all you need to know that it was greed's fault. Maybe the greed of a speculator or other participant of the free market.
Is that all, you may ask? To which they would reply, how dare you...it was greed. and the greed on the part of people involved in banks (jews?) and business. Surely, no one in government is or was involved. And if it was a government problem, it's because we didn't let brainiacs like Barney Frank or Chris Dodd tell people how to invest their money. You aren't a right wing, constitutionalist, are you? The Department of Homeland Security has been notified!!!!
So, fine. Greed. Maybe Bush too, but mostly greed did it. That is, because of your political affiliation you don't ask deep questions. And lord knows, the answers to those questions aren't going to jump in your lap like a snowshoe cat. Nope, you would have to read this blog,investors business daily, or the Wall Street Journal to figure out why banks just got caught bare handed. But, for some people, John Stewart is their connection to the real world. And he, sure as shit, is not going to put blame on people inside his beloved political circles. So be it. Just walk away and don't ask about government based entities, community redvelopment acts, acorns, bundling high risk mortgages at the behest of fannie mae. These concepts are not important. It was greed, damn you!
So, obviously, greed is bad.
Let me point out some more greed.
In dealing with aging socialists who are close to retirement, I wonder...isn't it greedy to advance a welfare state, European style stagnating economic policy, to now want to retire like you live in a rich country? You wanted it, you got it. Or, maybe the problem with liberalism is that it's an agenda to tell people to live a way in which you yourself would not choose to live (abortion, bad schools, open marriages, crappy hospitals, crappy economy). Go to the social laboratory. Go see what your experiments have created. America stands at an edge. The next 30 years could be the 1920's to 40's all over again. And you wanted it. So live with it. Don't be greedy.
On a side note, I find it greedy that all these aging baby boomers are now clamoring for grandkids. Well, maybe not all of them, but old people, even aging socialists want grandkids. Well, I think it's greedy for people who laughed at "family values" while their kids were growing up, to be all about their families now.
Greed. Learn what it means. It's wanting something that you don't deserve. Working, earning a living, investing your extra few pennies to make more isn't greed.
Learn about other sins too. Your pride (I am so smart because I mindlessly vote democrat and watch Jon Stewart) and anger (damn you, Bush, it's all your fault, I refuse to even know what you are doing because I've been told it's wrong) lead you to scapegoat greed. It can't be anyone else's fault and it sure as shit ain't my fault. Right. The danger is is that you've spent billions, lost trillions, and you still haven't fixed the problem. Because of your pride.
What a sin.
* the word fix is given scare quotes because really, wink wink, nod nod, uh huh, they are just doing all this because they never want to let a crisis go to waste.
The dating scene, a conversation. It's all about tone.
me: blah blah blah.
her: you know, in college, I was anorexic.
me: That's hot.
her: I know.
How did this date go? How did this conversation sound?
The Lifetime, television for women version would play it like this:
me: blah blah blah. (another boring man, is he dangerous, will he steal my children, will he *gasp* sexually harass me!)(but I need a man because the world is stacked against us)
her: you know, in college, I was anorexic. (I am sharing a delicate personal moment, please connect with me, on a personal-emotional-supportive level)
Second, if you voted for Obama, you are a moron. You are an example of why the franchise should be extended to people who actually take this stuff seriously. (hint: this group of lovely ladies voted for Obama by 70 to 29 percent margin)
I remember, before the election, I would tell my friends why I wasn't going to vote for Obama. Point number one, the guy's a communist. When I said that, these people would act like they were choking on a peanut (the giggle, as I call it, is liberal argumentative technique number 3). Well, here we are, 100 or so days into the new era and contract law no longer exists. And those bond holders who dare try to enforce their rights are threatened. ACORN, the organized crime wing of the Democrat party is out threatening home owners, bond holders, and executives.
And, the bailouts, the TARPS, the creditor line jumping. These actions all seem to be favoring political friends of Obama. How is it that the UAW jumped the line?
So, yeah, to quote Megan McCardle:
"This kind of blatant political intervention between debt claims is unprecedented, and worse, it's a dress rehearsal for doing the same thing at GM. I don't think this is good for the rule of law, I'm pretty sure it will be bad for capital markets, and I'm nearly positive it's going to make it hard for any heavily unionized company to get substantial capital for the next decade."
What she wrote, simpleton, is that noone lends their money to people, corporations, or countries that pull this bullshit. This is bad because that money will go to countries that respect the rule of law and let a man keep what he's earned. You know, free countries. Countries that have decent standards of living. (Or to paraphrase Chris Rock, don't worry, contract law is for rich people)
Or, to put it another way, why the hell are you plunking money in your 401K? It no longer matters. You are a speculator. You are last in line, rich person.
Institutions May Panic and Entirely Agree that Contracts Have Overwhelmingly Been Abused and Mangled Agressively.
There is a video of Uncle Bill, before the 2006 elections joking that the Republicans would have you believe that if you voted for democrats, you'd be tripping over illegal immigrants as they socialized the country. Well, one for two right now. Not even baby steps. This Congress and this President have gone and raced bills through congress. So much for the moderation, so much for reading the budget line by line. Here's what we get:
Yes, I know. look at 2003. Whoopee, we had a war and shit. 2005 we had Katrina. Let's look at another:
It's a big joke. This next chart may explain another problem with the firm chart:
If you don't understand, don't worry, it's probably not important.
For everyone else, realize that, basically, we let the dumbest woman in the world
and the most overrated person in the world
write laws that spend money like it really, really doesn't matter. Oh, and now, American corporations, American investors, and Tax Payers are getting hosed. And where are all my uptown girls and concerned citizens now, with their, "what happens when China stops buying our debt concerns?"
But, the joke is on you. You, the Obama voter, you are a moron. Why bother learning about a candidate before you vote for him. Surely the man who goes to a "church," where Sptemeber 12, 2001 is marked with "Goddamn America," will look out for your interests. A man who believes, point in fact, in redistribution of wealth, will leave your taxes, savings, and job alone. Surely, Bill Ayer's friend is the guy for you. Surely, the guy who lied about his positions, past, and acted politically expediently at all times would be straight with you when he promised to go through the budget line by line, no pork, 5-days before signing bills, no jobs for lobbyists, ethical administration, executive signing statements, and so on.
I just had to get that out of the way. Things not discussed here, that should be discussed shortly include: whither Keynesianism an itemized Obama resume (what did he do at the Harvard Law Review anyway?) the cyclical nature of capitlism versus the stagnant and dying nature of socialism the upcoming social security implosion your upcoming tax hikes the upcoming inflation the effect of America's corporate tax rate (or rather, why are foreign companies buying our companies instead of vice versa). whither the uptown girl, the SWPL, and other pieces of trash. Why this is all Bush's fault (oh wait, I wrote that several times in October) and finally, how Pelosi adopted eugenics (or is this ZPG?) as the position of the democrat party
But right now, I just have to savor the moment. Moron.
Ok, moment over. The upshot of all this is that we already know where these policies lead. You may recall another messianic liberal who took a recession and turned it into the Great Depression. The question is, are you going to be patriotic enough to sit the next 30 years of your life through that? It's a deep question, for those that can actually think.
Some other things:
I was glad to see that last year gave us the only known, visible acknowledgement of media bias. Yes, 2008 was a special year. For one brief shining moment, we had this:
Oh, I discovered this new toy called Guitar Hero and RockBand. Which makes me realize that Death Magnetic is basically just school. guitar school. Listen and weep, all lesser guitarists.
Guns and Roses. Bravo. An album with maybe 8 awesome songs and 2 unlistenable songs. Another guitar clinic as well.
You know, people do dumb things. Sometime dumb things illustrate their world view, things like this (he knew and he didn't care and he didn't realize it would be a big deal):
yep, the thoughtlessness reminds me of some other tone deaf dolt:
