Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Could We Re-Vote John McCain for President 2008?

I suppose I'm prescient judging by my earlier terrorist alert. I just had the wrong city and the wrong country. The coordinated terror attacks in Mumbai India are horrific. Suicidal Islamo-Nazis attacked several sites in Mumbai, killing 85 and wounding hundreds of others. The Islamo-Nazis took over hotels and hospitals, and fired into crowds indiscriminately as they targeted Americans and British vistors to India's financial center.

I expect the same thing will be coming to other cities soon now that the U.S elections are over. That's what I wanted to talk about anyway. I wonder if there is some way that the elections might be held again because I'm sure, if they were able to rethink the matter, most voters feel they may be better off with John McCain at the wheel. No disrespect to Barack Obama, who has style and elan and will try to do his very best, but I'm afraid Barack's philosophies and beliefs will not be up to snuff, not when America and its allies have to deal with assholes like the Decca Mujahadeen.

I have written to my congressional representatives urging that they pass some special legislation so that we may turn out in greater numbers to vote for John McCain. McCain, at least, has the experience of fire, of suffering, and of impending death. Perhaps Senator Obama will even go along with a re-vote; he's certainly had second thoughts about many things and perhaps now he is re-thinking the presidency. Obama could very well think it's unfair that the mainstream media helped him to such an extent, and perhaps prefers a bit more experience in the Senate before embarking on a presidential destiny.

Congress should understand. We made a mistake. We're only human, after all. The mood of the moment was toward Obama. Surely, we can vote again, and that would, in itself, reinforce whatever choice is made the second time around.

FOXNews.com - FBI Warns of Possible Terror Plot Against New York City Subways During Holidays - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News

FOXNews.com - FBI Warns of Possible Terror Plot Against New York City Subways During Holidays - Local News | News Articles | National News | US NewsIt's the holiday season and, as you might expect, Al Qaeda terrorists are not full of good cheer. Clearly, the Islamo-fascists are thrilled by the crash dive of the U.S economy and they feel that it is best to strike during a time of perceived U.S. weakness. Aside from the economy, there is another positive for the Al Qaeda Nazis in that we will soon have a new and untested president who, according to Joe Biden, is "guaranteed" of a test.

The geo-political pressures are building alongside the economic ones. Iran incrased its numbers of centrifuges very quickly to 5,000 all spinning away merrily at once. And when we last looked into Agent Raz Putin's eyes, he was pulling Medvedyev's strings to put missiles around Poland in perceived "retaliation" for the planned U.S. missile shield. The Russian Navy is in a joint manoever and manipulative circle-jerk with Chavez of Venezuela; they're doing this to please the old line communists who pine for the former Soviet Utopia.

So...if you click on the headline title, you will be taken to a Fox News site which tells the story of anticipated threats to the New YOrk Subway system. To tell the truth, any New York infrastructure element would make a great target but that surely doesn't rule out the transportation systems and institutional buildings of other cities and towns.

America is a mix of great people and idiots, and I wonder if the mix is not too much in favor of the latter. I wonder, too, if the new president can keep us as safe from future attacks and security threats as the outgoing president did. If the Islamo-Nazis, the Russians, or the Persians detect even a slight hint of mushiness (if they haven't sensed it already), you can be sure they'll go for the juglar.

There are stewing in their own sauces and they are tired of the successful experiment called the United States of America, a work still in progress.

Monday, November 24, 2008

Secretary of the Bailout: Tim Geithner

For sure, Barack Obama has picked some people will experience in bailouts. Tim Geithner is one such bailout expert. He was present during a whole bunch of bailouts, not only of banks and other financial institutions, but also of governments.

I don't know about you but I'm suffering from BB, a dangerous condition sometimes referred to as Bailout Blur. That's what happens when you get bailout on top of bailout and there appears to be no end in sight. My mind tends to wander, become distracted. At night, I count Bailout Sheep, jumping over the planned fence between the U.S. and Mexico.

Hank Paulsen just yesterday announced a bailout of Citigroup with its two trillion dollars in assets. The president elect and his cronies in Congress are not about to be outdone in the generosity department. On top of the Paulsen 750 billion, Obama's planning another 750 billion bailout heading your way. Christmas may soon be coming to your bankrupt town, city, or state.

Frankly, the word "bailout" is outmoded. It's a sort of nautical term where the image is conjured up of using a steel bucket to bail water out of the bottom of a sinking ship or boat. That's not what's happening. The "boats" are already at the bottom of the sea. Waht's happening here is we're trying to rescue the "sailors."

Some of the sailors happen to be in Congress... people like BArney Frank and Chris Dodd, and their pal at bankrupted Countrywide Bank, Angelo Mozilo.

And what about Frank Raines and Jamie Gorelick. If Jame Gorelick could eff up the 9-aa Commossion and rob millions from Freddie Mae, why can't she be hired by the Obama administration as a PICOB (Person In Charge of Bailout)?

And what about me? My ship is sinking? I have experience. I have learned. I'll tell you what's wrong! They're not printing enough money, dammit!

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Did Barack Obama Offer Hillary Clinton Secretary of State? - Associated Content

Did Barack Obama Offer Hillary Clinton Secretary of State? - Associated ContentHow long does it take to appoint Hillary Clinton Secretary of State? You knew, the minute you heard that Hills was invited for a tete-a-tete, that the die was cast. So who's responsible for the charade in mentioning Fat Boy Richardson or John Kerry-Heinz? It's Hills all the way! But what's taking so long?

Will Barack Obama Make His First Big Mistake by Supporting an Auto Industry Bailout? - Associated Content

Will Barack Obama Make His First Big Mistake by Supporting an Auto Industry Bailout? - Associated ContentThe surest way to rescue the Big Three is for Americans to buy American cars. While there was a problem with quality in the 80s, the Big Three are producing some nice rides like the redesigned Chevy Malibu and the Ford Fusion, the new Taurus, the Ford Focus, the Dodge Charger, the Magnum, the Mustang, and I can't wait for the new Camaro. And it's not like the Japanese, German, Subaru, and other makers haven't had their problems. But the loss of image in the 80s hurt the Big Three and it's a hurt they're still feeling.

Do you favor a bailout for the industry? Better spend your energy convincing yourself and your friends to find some American cars they don't mind buying. A bailout is just an imprimatur to maintain the status quo. The status quo is that UAW workers get about 35 bucks more per hour than what a Toyota, Honda worker gets in the southern states where the Japanese have their car factories employing substantially more than 100,000 Americans. Is that competitive?

Anyway, the top heavy bureacracy of the United Auto Workers expects Obama to pay them back for their support by spending your taxpayer dollars on an industry upon which the UAW has a death grip. Are you comfortable with that?

To read more, click on the title...

Obama Picks Eric Holder Anti-Gun Attorney General

So much for "I support the Second Amendment," and so much for the notion of "change." Those were Barack Obama's words during the campaign and, of course, the truth will out.

Holder was Deputy Attorney General under Janet Reno during the Clinton Administration. Indeed, it seems that Obama has hired the entire Clinton clan to run the White House for the next four years. That's "change we need." The twinkie left has to be having conniptions when thinking of the Obama message of "change" and then having to deal with all these Clintonistas who keep popping up.

Eric Holder, like many newly elevated elites, has his own left-liberal fanatical interpretration of Second Amendment rights. Holder said that the Second Amendment does not protect an individual right, but instead protects the right to have a firearm when serving with a militia. I'll have to join the U.S. Army again, apparently, or move to Afghanistan.


The NRA researched Holder's position and points out that Holder signed Janet Reno's brief to the Supreme Court in the Heller case.

For sure, the Obama people want a redo of the recent Supreme Court decision which supports the 2nd Amendment rights to gun ownership by responsible citizens.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Where Is Barack Obama on this Economic Crisis?

So Obama selected his new treasury secretary, Tim Geithner. People are wondering if the new guy is going to be like Greenspan with a lisp. Like Greenspan, Geithner seemed to favor a hands-off policy. But the strangeness of the economic times has triggered some unprecedented actions.

It’s not exactly news that the financial institutions are nervous and inclined to hold to whatever capital they have now. But wasn’t one of the more often heard reasons for voting for Barack Obama that the Bush economic plan failed?

I have a simple question. What is the Obama economic plan? The campaign rhetoric was not helpful in clarifying this mystery, nor was the campaign website. I know Bush is still the president but Jan 20 will come soon enough and it’s not too early for Obama to tell people what he intends to do about the economic crisis. We are in crisis, aren’t we, Barack? Hello, anyone there? Barack?

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Auto Bailout: Pelosi, Reid, & Frank on the UAW Union Hook

So the auto bailout seems to have failed on the first time around. I guess they ran out of runway for the corporate jets. You know, I don’t have a problem with Nardelli, Waggoner, or Mulally—they are who they are. Actually, I like that guy Mulally and I like what he’s done for Ford. Those other dudes I don’t know about…

I love American cars like the beefed up Ford Mustang my friend has. It goes from zero to sixty in less time then it takes me rescue my heart from the back seat. And I like the design of the new Chevy Malibu, not as much as I’d like to have the new Camaro which is still on the launching pad but pretty much. I like the Ford Focus, too, and I like the sticker price which is about 4,000 dollars less than it’s rival Honda Civic which can be tricked out to be too fast too furious and too boring. I also like the 5,000 pound Crown Vic, the police cruiser/taxicab looking thing that can take a hit and keep on ticking. I like the Ford trucks—I have one now but I’d like to have a bigger one so that I could burn more gas just kidding. I think the government should give me some cash so I can buy a Ford 150 with an extra cab for the groceries. I like to haul dirt or gravel from the local quarry for home projects. I like to move used furniture. I like to carry heavy stuff once in a while. But most of America buys Toyota and Honda and BMW and VW and Subaru because they’re brainwashed from the 80s when the Big Three was building crap cars.

But all that has nothing to do with the UAW job banks where schmucks get paid not to work and have phat pension plans. I really hate bailing out the union bureaucracy which is top heavy and has its own corporate jets. I really really hate bailing them out when the bailout is a payback for supporting Barack Obama and not giving a shit what happens to the damned country.

I’m praying that Barack Obama will be a better president than I gave him credit for, but so far he seems to have hired a lot of unemployed Clintonista lobbyists. His anti-war pronouncements and posturing while troops were in the field still rankle, but I suppose he was the prototype left-wing Democrat of the Year in that constellation. But the real beast is hiding behind the curtain and the slide in the stock market indexes is a sign that people in are not exactly heeding the message of “hope and change.” You’re supposed to be getting an election bounce but, except for the rare day or hour, the market’s gone down, down, down and taking everybody with it. The poor slobs like me can’t afford to lose even 10Gs in the pension plan and the housing crash compliments of Barney Frank, Frank Raines, Jamie Gorelick and Chris Dodd. Yeah, I know—those Fanny-Freddies are my scapegoats but they did a lot to make sure things turned rotten for America’s economy.

Well the best thing about the Congressional hearings that failed to bail out the Auto Industry and pay back Gettelfinger and the Unions was to see Barney, and Nancy and Harry sweating it out in front of the hot lights and trying to save face. Pelosi’s makeup was caked and her botox seemed to have melted. Barney was stuttering more than usual and his pores were emitting a jet spray as Harry sheepishly confessed there had to be a better way to do it, do something, save the Obamanites from public embarrassment and pay back the Unions, that debt needing to be discharged.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Did Barack Obama Offer Hillary Clinton Secretary of State? - Associated Content

Did Barack Obama Offer Hillary Clinton Secretary of State? - Associated ContentThe sub-plot to this political drama is that Hillary may not want the job. Obama could be a one-term president. One thing's for sure--Hillary could get about 18 million votes in "Twelve."

Is it a Bailout Plan or a Payback to the Unions?

Barack Obama sent a letter to President Bush urging him to support a bailout plan for the Big Three. Nancy Pelosi did the same. Top Democrats have everything to be thankful for.... Give me 15K so I can buy a Ford Focus instead of going into debt for $30K to buy a Prius. I'll be happy, too.

Click the link. It should bring you to another site where I occasionally scribble.

Monday, November 17, 2008

What’s In the McCain-Obama Meeting for Me?

President-elect Obama made a positive move in calling for a fence-mending meeting with John McCain. It’s easy to see that McCain would be a valuable ally in pushing some of the programs where the candidates meet on edges. Harder to understand is what the meeting can do for McCain and, by extension, for me.

I can only think of one thing. If McCain is successful in persuading Obama to get real about Iraq and other foreign policy matters, I would be in a better mood to cut my losses on some other matters. I’m hoping Obama turns out to be a much better president than I have pre-judged him to be. Even in my worst moments, I could see that the guy had something going for him.

Effing up the foreign policy would be the one unforgivable mistake Obama could make. Announcing a too-early pullback from a Free Iraq could reignite what Democrats used to call a “failed Iraq policy.” The only “failed Iraq policy” was the submission-monkey programs offered by Pelosi, Reid, and yes—Obama.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Pennsylvania Opposes a Big Three Bailout

Our local newspaper, The Pocono Record, supported Obama and will support any Democrat without a felony record over any Republican. That means they blithely applaud any edict which comes from Pelosi, Reid,and Obama and go along with it. Some of our local readers think otherwise:

"I happen to prefer American cars and we have 2 of them. But what we don't need from a Big Three Bailout is a billion dollar boondoggle designed to pay back the UAW and other unions for support of the Obama campaign. The U.S. industry has been promising fuel efficient cars since the 70s oil crisis. Their most creative "innovation" so far has been "job banks," the practice of paying union workers who don't work because technological efficiency has streamlined the assembly line. America can produce great cars but the unions have made them uncompetitive with the Toyota, Honda and other plants in the South. A pared down, restructured U.S. car industry will be hugely better than a politically inspired bailout which pours money down the same hole where it has previously disappeared. "


And then there is this:

Nov-15 - CGraham — I say let 'em fail. They've had 30 years to clean up this mess and build better cars and they chose not to. The only two things US auto makers have ever been good at is building trucks and manipulating the American public into thinking it's good for the country if we waste our hard-earned money on their second-rate products.


And here's an example of the kind of fluff written by this local managing editor:

If you bought GM stock, you'd want a financial return on your investment. How about a social and political return? Anything that reduces our reliance on oil reduces our reliance on other nations. That's where we want to go: Energy independence. Everything government does should have that built in.

It's not pie in the sky, either. It's just a lot of effort and a lot of retooling. And with demand for petroleum products increasing around the world, alternatives will become a necessity, not an option. Why not seize the moment to save both jobs and the future?



Strong arguments from a "pillar of the community" right?

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Secretary of State HIllary Clinton - Will She Accept or Decline

Obama's trying to recreate some of the excitement of Kennedy's Camelot but that's an impossible task in the computer age. In spite of the Kool-Aid message of change, Democrats are even more cynical than conservatives. The list of names being considered for Secretary of State includes Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Bill Richardson, and even Chuck Hagel.

Let me tell you right now--Hagel's a smokescreen intended to roil the waters and convince people of Obama's egalitarianism. He's talking to McCain for the same reason--to convey the image of a guy capable of working across long standing political and philosophical boundaries.

Bill Richardson is the bagman buffoon who defected from the Clinton campaign to support Obama. He carries baggage, too. While Bill Clinton's Energy Secretary, he persecuted the largely innocent nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee and was at the center of a national espionage scandal. He once boasted he was drafted into pro baseball, a claim that turned out to be untrue. His chief value to Obama was in drawing off some of the Hispanic vote but he looks and acts too much like John Belushi for people to take him seriously as Secretary of State. If paying off the Spanish vote is Obama's game, I'd suggest Cesar Millan, the Dog Whisperer. That guy would be a million times better than Richardson, and he might have better luck as "pack leader" to world despots.

John Kerry has "gravitas" in spades but too many Huffington Post liberals find him ultimately boring as the Senate's Ted Kennedy Clone.

No,Hillary is the brightest light that Obama can summon to the job and you have to think that the job is hers if she wants it. Personally, I hope she has declined to express an interest in the position because I think her strengths lie elsewhere. Obama may be a one-term president and, as Obama Secretary of State, she'd be out of the running in "12" by accepting the job.

Pelosi, Obama, Reid: Evil Triumvirate Pushes for Auto Bailout

It remains to be seen how far Democrats Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Barack Obama will push for an auto Big Three bailout package. The Bush administration has allowed a $25 billion loan to the industry with clearly defined and targeted goals of retooling the industry and working on energy-efficient vehicles.

For some Democrats, however, a payback to the unions like the UAW which came out big for Obama is de rigeur. The Bush Administration hasn’t been stupid enough to fall into the trap so it’s likely that Pelosi and others will skewer themselves behind an auto bailout.

It should be funny to watch when Obama takes office. The WSJ has reported that Pelosi tasked Barney Frank to patch together some bill. Poor hard-working Barney!... he screwed up the housing industry and now he’ll be working on screwing up the auto industry. The WSJ also said that the unions and the “greens” were at each other throats regarding the direction of any auto bailouts.

Except for the people in the UAW “job banks” who get paid for doing nothing, people don’t want another bailout. It will never end until citizens scream “NO”, something they’re already beginning to do. The mood is ugly, sour, and the Treasury guy Paulsen keeps people guess with his frequent direction changes.

Why don’t we all get handsome health benefits and pay for doing nothing. I had a idea a while back that the Gov ought to just give us the money to buy new cars. We give it to the car companies and get a new car, at least.

That way the taxpayers get something. By pouring billions into the phat car companies which mismanaged their own billions for years, the taxpayers get nothing except endless debt.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Gun Ban Advocate in the White House: NRA and ILA Alert

They're baaaaaack!.... I wonder if you saw the dorky pseudo-hunting advertisement that appeared in the Obama election campaign. It was designed to sucker conservative Democrats and to keep them in the fold. Right now Obama is recruiting a whole legion of Clintonista gun-banners to fill jobs in his administration and you can be sure that these people are ready and willing to do your thinking for you. Here's some important news from the NRA-ILA website:

Senator Barack Obama's presidential campaign slogan, "the audacity of hope," should have instead been "the audacity of deceit." After months of telling the American people that he supports the Second Amendment, and only hours after being declared the president-elect, the Obama transition team website announced an agenda taken straight from the anti-gun lobby--four initiatives designed to ban guns and drive law-abiding firearm manufacturers and dealers out of business:

"Making the expired federal assault weapons ban permanent." Perhaps no other firearm issue has been more dishonestly portrayed by gun prohibitionists. Notwithstanding their predictions that the ban's expiration in 2004 would bring about the end of civilization, for the last four years the nation's murder rate has been lower than anytime since the mid-1960s. Studies for Congress, the Congressional Research Service, the National Institute of Justice, the National Academy of Sciences, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found no evidence that gun prohibition or gun control reduces crime. Guns that were affected by the ban are used in only a tiny fraction of violent crime-about 35 times as many people are murdered without any sort of firearm (knives, bare hands, etc.), as with "assault weapons." Obama says that "assault weapons" are machine guns that "belong on foreign battlefields," but that is a lie; the guns are only semi-automatic, and they are not used by a military force anywhere on the planet.

"Repeal the Tiahrt Amendment." The amendment--endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police--prohibits the release of federal firearm tracing information to anyone other than a law enforcement agency conducting a bona fide criminal investigation. Anti-gun activists oppose the restriction, because it prevents them from obtaining tracing information and using it in frivolous lawsuits against law-abiding firearm manufacturers. Their lawsuits seek to obtain huge financial judgments against firearm manufacturers when a criminal uses a gun to inflict harm, even though the manufacturers have complied with all applicable laws.

"Closing the gun show loophole." There is no "loophole." Under federal law, a firearm dealer must conduct a background check on anyone to whom he sells a gun, regardless of where the sale takes place. A person who is not a dealer may sell a gun from his personal collection without conducting a check. Gun prohibitionists claim that many criminals obtain guns from gun shows, though the most recent federal survey of convicted felons put the figure at only 0.7 percent. They also claim that non-dealers should be required to conduct checks when selling guns at shows, but the legislation they support goes far beyond imposing that lone requirement. In fact, anti-gun members of Congress voted against that limited measure, holding out for a broader bill intended to drive shows out of business.

"Making guns in this country childproof." "Childproof" is a codeword for a variety of schemes designed to prevent the sale of firearms by imposing impossible or highly expensive design requirements, such as biometric shooter-identification systems. While no one opposes keeping children safe, the fact is that accidental firearm-related deaths among children have decreased 86 percent since 1975, even as the numbers of children and guns have risen dramatically. Today, the chances of a child being killed in a firearm accident are less than one in a million.

Big Three Bailout Plans: Pelosi, Reid, and Obama Ride to the Rescue

I read a terrific article in the Wall Street Journal by columnist Joseph White. It was called "Two Car Companies," or something like that It was about the Democrat's cheerleading for a bailout of General Motors Corporation and Chrysler, and Possibly Ford. Of the Big Three, Ford is probably faring the best and has streamlined some of its auto lines. I like the Ford Focus and the Fusion, as well. I like the Edge, too, and the hybrid development they're doing.

The "two car companies" mentioned are the Big Three and the other one, comprised of Honda, Toyota, and Hyundai, which do not have the burden of ancient marketing practices, union bureacracy, and management which hasn't responded to lean market conditions.

The Asian car makers produce a limited number of model, unlike their American counterparts which seem addicted to the practice of "twinning" or making too many different product lines with and endless and confusing variety of options which were dreamed up in the 50s.

With regard to Mr. White's article, I liked the prognosis but I didn’t like the diagnosis. Screw the UAW and the Democrat’s payback to the unions.

Let the car companies re-structure, then we'll see if they can make it on their own. We've all got hurt by the Fanny-Freddie ripoff and other credit default problems. So why then do we have to pour money down a possible hole unless the hole is patched up first?

We’ve got blue-collar death over here in Pennsylvania and no cavalry riding to the rescue.

White's article can be found at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122608860916209213.html?mod=djemroad

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Is Hank Paulsen the Stock Market Fairy?


Yeah, okay, I'm not the only one who got burned by the credit slash mortgage crisis. But I hate being suckered twice. The first time was when housing prices soared thanks to the wealth spreading generosity of Fanny and Freddie Mae. Needing to move and therefore to buy another house, we bought when prices were high and the market for housing was brisk and competitive.

The second time was when I believed the B.S. that Hank Paulsen and Ben Bernanke were feeding Congress and the public about the currently titled "TARP" but which was then known by its more accurate term: the bailout.

So you have to see how this plays out in the Post-Bush era. With the ascendance of Barack Obama, we're all supposed to be in the hopeful phase, a wonderland where everything can be solved with good will and right thinking. And like an economic giant MacGyver, we think we can fix things with a little duct tape, some pliers, and a string. Even gravity.

The weird thing is that the markets keep falling through a series of false bottoms, all the more since Obama's election. Steve Leisman of CNBC was arguing with a skeptical Italian guy I like a lot (but whose name I can't remember) and the Italian guy was saying that "the market" also didn't believe in what Paulsen and Bernanke were telling Congress.

Leisman was kind of angry, and making little attempt to hide it, when he told Italian Guy (now I got it--Charlie Gasparino) that "the market is not an entity." Get it? No, not an entity but it is a leading indicator and the smart guys and dolls who work the street aren't buying what Paulsen is saying.

Meanwhile, they are being very generous with taxpayer dollars and the profits gets no higher and neither do the stock prices and neither does it seem to "free up" the credit markets.

So WTF is going on? Don't ask Paulsen and Bernanke, they're likely to tell you to wait for the tooth fairy. But meanwhile, we'll bail out the car companies.

Which brings us back full circle to the wonderfulness of it all, and Barack Obama, and how everyone wants to believe.

Obama Administration Welcomes Lobbyists

Buyer's remorse with regard to the Obama administration will be a long and painful process. The "kids" who swelled with pride as Messiah Obama challenged the former lobbyists in the McCain-Palin camp may be a little disappointed to discover that Obama acknowledges that lobbyists must be a vital part of his presidency.

We're coming down to reality again, people, and the decompression process will be painful to watch. Meanwhile, America's enemies are plotting. Russia has already slimed the president-elect and then reversed course to "reach out" in the hopes that Obama will respond to the "good cop" and ignore the "bad cop."

I can deal with just about anything, but national security must always be paramount, especially in these times. If there is one time where my hopes are high that Obama can be tough on America's enemies, it is now. If he's squishy-washy on domestic matters, I'll just have to grin and bear it.

Will President Barack Obama Buoy Wall Street Stocks?

I want to make one thing plain. Blaming Barack Obama for Wall Street's woes would be a ridiculous position at this point. That doesn't mean that Barack's ideological and philosophical positions won't have an effect however, nor does it hold blameless the entire public works-big government apparatus that "spreads the wealth" by taxing the well-to-do.

The stock market has been behaving weirdly these days, no doubt. On election day, there was a significant rally in the major averages. That didn't stop pundits from crediting Obama's election as a positive believe-in-the-Democrats force on the Street. But it didn't take long for the news to sink in that Obama brings to bear a whole raft of policy issues that would work against Wall Street profits, including more regulation, or rather, selective regulation.

The latest Pelosi-Reid-Obama concern is to pay back the unions for their financial and political support. The UAW figures significantly in Obama's entreatment of President Bush to support a Big Three bailout. That would certainly help the stocks of the Big Three, but what would the Obama policies do to the others?

For these and other reasons, there seems to be little Wall Street credibility in an Obama future of "change." Already beaten up indexes have sustained almost unrelenting beatings since the election. The Wall Street indexes do not directly respond to any president and are best regarded as a "leading indicator."

That means that financial wizards are looking down the road six months or more and responding to future conditions. There would be less worry over an Obama presidency had the candidate not raised expectations so much by attacking the economic policies of the Bush administration.

There may be hell to pay when the bloom comes off the rose.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Should the TARP cover GM, Ford, and Chrysler?

I'm driving a Ford and it's been a great vehicle. I mention it because, from a consumer standpoint, it's been competitive with anything from the Japanese in quality, reliability, and performance. At the time of purchase, there was a significant cost advantage to the Ford when I compared it to the Toyota Camry I also thought of buying. That's a roundabout way of saying thatI believe the American car companies can compete head to head--if not for their exhorbitant costs, part of which come from the fat union contracts negotiated by the auto workers.

I'm not totally against unions nor employee wages and benefits, but when they become so extortionist that they strangle and threaten to bankrupt the industry, it's hard to support any "bailout" of that industry with taxpayer money. Yet, that's what Nancy Pelosi asked Hank Paulsen to do with some of the 700 bn bailout money.

The Fed responded to Pelosi's letter of beseechment but it was a neutral reponse. Paulsen was right in stonewalling and let's hope he continues to do so. The Japanese make cars in the U.S.; they're squeezed too but there's no talk of bankruptcy.

There's nothing wrong with the U.S. car industry that can't be remedied with a little management "kan-ban." That means assembly line "efficiency" (and a whole lot more) but both union and corporate fat cats could use a little such discipline in regulating their appetites for power.

So you can see what Pelosi and Reid are up to--extending the range of the TARP for political reaons. They want to push a payback to the unions which provided millions for the Obama victory. Coupled with a "card check legislation" which limits the freedom of American workers, the unions certainly expect to extract more than a pound of flesh from the American taxpayers.

The TARP was designed with only one purpose in mind--to buttress FINANCIAL institutions providing liquidity to the economy. Somebody ought to explain to Pelosi and Reid that they can't hand taxpayer money over to pay their own political debts to the United Auto Workers Union.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Obama's Lefty Critics Find Fault with Rahm Emmanuel

Obama's already got flak within his own supporters as some snooty Huffington Posters have their panties in a bunch over the choice of Rahm Emmanuel as White House Chief of Staff. What is the reason for this internecine angst? It's rather hard for me to believe but the Panty Posters take issue with the Emmanuel's volunteer service with the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). In other words, he was once an Israeli soldier. You still don't understand? Well, it's a simple matter for the twinkie-left. Rahm is a Jew. Rahm was an IDF soldier. Rahm carried a gun. There, now you have it, the whole story. What could be worse than to have a Chief of Staff who was an IDF soldier and carried an automatic rifle? Worse, all that happened in Israel! The Israeli state is an emetic for the twinkie-left fascists who believe, and think Obama also believes, that the state of Israel has no right to exist.

Obama Gives Stock Market A Dead Cat Bounce

News service Reuters got most of it wrong in an article describing the positioning of Wall Street investors in aftermath of the Obama victory in the 2008 campaign. Tuesday, November 4, was voting day in America, as everyone knows, and the stock market went up a couple of hundred points. The Reuters writer Jennifer Ablan must have been steeped in euphoria when she wrote her November 5 article praising the wonderfulness of it all. She probably wishes she could withdraw the entire article since, just one day after the Obama victory, the Dow index experienced its biggest HISTORICAL two-day point drop in its long life, far worse even than 1987. The S@P lost ten percent in the 2-day period.

The Dow is down another 443 points after a similar drop yesterday. Obama's scrambling to get his economic team in place and has called a press conference for tomorrow to see what it can do to buttress business confidence.

What I'd like to know is what can Obama's team do that $700bn didn't? Nonetheless, Reuters didn't get the entire article wrong, just 90 percent of it. They did publish the comments of a skeptic:

Doug Kass, founder and president of hedge fund Seabreeze Partners Management, said Tuesday's 300-plus point rise was an "Obama bounce, not an Obama rally. I think that all we are going to see is what we've basically seen now."

Kass said the economic fundamentals are deteriorating, giving him reason to keep selling stocks short.

"My plan is to expand my short book," Kass told Reuters in a telephone interview late Tuesday. "It's growing clear that the recession is going to have a shelf life unlike the last recessions in both scope and duration."

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Gov. Schwarzenegger Campaigns for McCain-Palin In Ohio

Courage, Conviction, Self-Sacrifice-- Vote for John McCain November 4th.