Monday - July 18, 2011
The Bad Ferry Godfather
Fervent faith in ferries fries frustrated folks? Ferry fracas fluffs faithful’s feathers? Foolish fatheads forge fiscal follies?
ROCKY HILL, Conn. (AP) A round of budget cuts in Connecticut is forcing the nation’s oldest operating ferry to close.
Historical archives say the Rocky Hill Ferry has been crossing the Connecticut River between the towns of Rocky Hill and Glastonbury continuously since 1655.
It is among two historic ferries that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration has put on the chopping block to close a $1.6 billion budget gap.
Historical documents say the ferry began with pole-operated boats run by families from the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
The state took over its operation in 1915 and Connecticut archivists say it has been in service longer than any other ferry in the United States.
Golly, maybe the government should have left this alone and let free enterprise provide a solution? No, actually I don’t think they could have. The ferry is actually considered part of the road I think, akin to a toll bridge.
The Rocky Hill - Glastonbury Ferry, owned and operated by the State of Connecticut and part of CT Route 160, passes between Ferry Lane, Glastonbury, to Meadow Road, Rocky Hill, during the warm half of the year: usually from April 1 until October 31, river conditions permitting. Usual hours of operation are Monday to Friday: 7:oo AM to 6:45 PM. On Saturday and Sunday it runs from 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM. Usual fees are: $3 per care (including driver) and $1 for each walk-on or biker. (Commuter discount rate with prior purchase of coupon book: $2 per car.)
The 356 year old vector originally was 2 guys with poles and a raft, but these days it’s a 60 foot barge and a little tugboat. According to Connecticut’s own DOT analysis the ferry moves an average of 300 vehicles a day annually, though it’s only open 7 months of the year. That’s 109,500 vehicles, plus pedestrians and cyclists, which means the little 1000 foot float across the river generates at least a quarter million dollars a year in revenue, perhaps as much as half a million. How much more than that does it cost to pay 4 to 6 bargemen and gas up a little 100hp tugboat? Too much, according to Governor Daniel Malloy, who plans to close this ferry and another one like it.
Problem is, there is no other way across. The state never built a bridge there, and the next nearest one is more than 8 miles up the river. Oops.
And speaking of up the river, it may actually be against the law for this little piece of history to be closed. Oops again!
Local and state officials met with concerned citizens in a standing-room only meeting at the Hadlyme Hall Sunday night to discuss the ramifications of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s proposed budget cuts. Malloy’s proposal includes cutting both the Hadlyme-Chester and Rocky Hill-Glastonbury ferry services to help balance the state budget, cuts some argue may be against the law.
Town and state officials, along with a group of concerned citizens, are looking into two state statutes. Statute 13a-252 guarantees the continued operation of the ferries and 13b-31d calls for a public hearing prior to altering or improving a state highway designated as a scenic road. Route 148 and the Connecticut River both fall under the scenic highway designation.
By law the ferries are registered historic structures and thus protected. Perhaps that’s a bit silly, but it’s the law nonetheless.
“It’s not about what ‘makes sense’,” said East Haddam First Selectman Mark Walter. “We have to fight this battle another way; we won’t win at a numbers game.”
Local folks gathered in several town hall meetings to protest the proposed closings. One local man, Edward Chiucarello, even had a protest song to sing.
Dave Scampoli, of the CT River Ferry Preservation Association, was in attendance, along with other board members, to help rally support to preserve the historically significant state ferries.
“There are so many other places to cut the budget,” he said, “the ferry (Rocky Hill-Glastonbury) is a connection back to 1655, before the United States, before the formation of Connecticut, before the Declaration of Independence.”
Connecticut law lets the state set the toll rates, but it says the ferries will be operated at the state’s expense. There is no law that ties the toll revenue the ferries generate to their operating expenses. Gosh, maybe they should do that. Or maybe raise the tolls a little? Or maybe try to renegotiate the bargemen’s contract? There are only 3 ferries in the whole state; how big a local do these guys really have, maybe 2 dozen members at the most? Local articles say the Rocky Hill ferry costs $345,000 per year to run, which means the revenue it generates just about balance it’s costs. If that number is the net cost to the state, then somebody is wasting money somewhere, though to be fair that could include non-amortized expenses like the new barge and the recent river dredging. Yeah, I’d raise tolls a quarter for bikes and 50¢ for cars.
Meanwhile CT Governor Malloy is getting a black eye from having to play the bad ferry godfather. Just wait till the real budget cuts start coming.
extra links in the comments area.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/18/2011 at 11:58 AM
Filed Under: • planes, trains, tanks, ships, machines, automobiles •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(1)
Permalink • Gas Too Costly? Blame The Weather
Doesn’t that just suck? It’s bad enough we have to pay more whenever Mid-East unrest increases, or a storm hits the Gulf, or when the seasons change. Now the price of gas will also be impacted by the weather in the Heartland. Oh, and it gets worse than that too. Ethanol is the most bold faced hustle that ever was, right up there with carbon credits.
Ethanol futures climbed to the highest price in more than three years in Chicago as a heat wave blanketing the Midwest threatens the corn crop.
The grain-based additive gained as temperatures reaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius) move across the corn-rich U.S. Midwest. Ethanol is made mostly from corn in the U.S., with one bushel making at least 2.75 gallons.
“It certainly is related to the grain market,” said Rich Nelson, director of research at Allendale Inc. in McHenry, Illinois. “Though corn didn’t close at its highs, people are expecting higher prices due to the heat right now. The way ethanol is priced, which is off of corn, the two are directly tied together.”
Denatured ethanol for August delivery gained 3.6 cents, or 1.3 percent, to settle at $2.873 a gallon on the Chicago Board of Trade, the highest price since June 27, 2008. Futures have gained 78 percent in the past year.
...
On a spot basis, an average ethanol mill in Iowa is making 20 cents on every gallon of the fuel, while a typical plant in Illinois is pocketing 26 cents, according to Ag TraderTalk, a Clive, Iowa-based online grains information service.
More Corn Now Used For Ethanol Than For Food
Amid all the talk of budgets, tax laws, and debt last week, one telling nugget of government data went unnoticed: The Agriculture Department last week estimated that this year, for the first time ever, America will use more corn for ethanol than for any other purpose.
Last week, the USDA published its regular report “World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates,” which calculates that in the current corn “marketing year” (September 2010, through the end of August 2011), 11.43 billion bushels of corn will be consumed in the United States. As usual, a small fraction will be used for food or seed: 1.4 billion bushels, or 12.1 percent of the total. Also, as usual, a sizable chunk will be fed to farm animals: 5 billion bushels, or 43.7 percent. But for the first time, the largest chunk will be turned into ethanol: 5.1 billion bushels, or 44.2 percent.
So, the single biggest use of corn in the United States is now highway driving.
Congressmen of both parties are putting on a show of rolling back federal subsidies for this alcohol fuel, but these proposals have the backing of the ethanol industry because they would actually increase taxpayer support for ethanol.
Last month, South Dakota Sen. John Thune, R., and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D., proposed the Ethanol Reform and Deficit Reduction Act. The bill ends the most famous ethanol subsidy, a handout to ethanol blenders called the “Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Incentive.” While the government accounting books treat the VEETC as if it were a tax credit against the fuel excise tax, it is really just a transfer payment from the Internal Revenue Service to anyone who blends ethanol with regular gasoline. Blenders simply fill out a form stating how much ethanol they mixed with gasoline last month, send it to the IRS, and then wait for a check amounting to 45 cents per gallon. You can get this credit even if you pay zero excise tax.
Historically, this blender’s subsidy boosted ethanol demand by bringing down the effective price of a gallon of ethanol. But the 2005 energy bill created an ethanol mandate, requiring refiners to use a certain amount of ethanol every year. The 2007 energy bill expanded the mandate, and in 2011, refiners are required to use 13 billion gallons of ethanol. This mandate now sets demand, with the tax credit having little or no effect.
For more on the phony reforms, the false “fuel saving” plans that actually increase demand, etc, read this.
Bad enough, but it still gets worse:
Posted by Drew458
on 07/18/2011 at 09:23 AM
Filed Under: • Oil, Alternative Energy, and Gas Prices •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Sunday - July 17, 2011
Better Than A Dillon Catalog
Anyone who owns one of the Big Blue Machines knows what I’m talking about. Dillon Precision makes the best and the most expensive ammunition reloading presses on the market. Great tools, guaranteed forever for free no matter what, but pricey. And when you buy one you get sent their little catalog every month for the rest of your life. It’s called the Blue Press, and comes taped closed, and always features an amazingly gorgeous and curvy model on the cover fondling some firearm. It almost looks like porn, because it is. Gun porn I mean. Ok, you get a couple more pictures of the cover model inside, but that’s all. The rest is reloading gear and tactical rifle parts. And that’s all the sexy Dillon delivers, other than the 2 large format calendars they sell every year. Really large format. One for the half of the company that makes reloading machines, and another for the half of the company (Dillon Aerospace) that makes the mini-gun for the military. Both calendars feature plenty of jaw dropping good pictures, but no sleaze.
Gosh, what a surprise: guys find themselves attracted to lovely young women looking dangerous while not wearing much clothing. Who’da thunk it? The calendars sell like mad. Actually they sell out, fast, every year.
I saw a post at Vilmar’s. He didn’t mention it, but he had posted one of the pictures (stolen from Theo’s of course) from this year’s Hot Shots Calendar. To the best of my knowledge Hot Shots has no product for sale other than the calendars. They follow the same theme as Dillon Precision, girls with guns, but donate half the money they get to the UK Help For Heroes foundation, which helps out wounded and disabled vets. Good show.
Here’s another shot of Lucy Pinder from that calendar. Nice rifle. Great smile. This is by far the tamest picture in the whole thing.
The 2012 calendars will feature a less military, more girls from video games motif - cosplay with guns!! - and are available for pre-order now. Not cheap, but half the cash goes to a good charity. About $30 delivered to the USA, but only about £13 in the UK.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 11:06 PM
Filed Under: • Eye-Candy • Guns and Gun Control • Military •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Tired
In addition to my regular Sunday jobs, I spent quite a few hours today repairing laminate office furniture. You know the stuff - it’s mostly made from MDF, then covered over with that slightly ivory colored not-quite-Formica™ thin laminate. It does the job, it holds up for a couple of decades, and it’s pretty easy to keep clean. But after those couple of decades have gone by, the laminate glue starts to get brittle, and then the slightest bang can start the pieces peeling off. My customer can’t afford new furniture in the office right now, so I got the call to try and fix things up.
I did a bit a research, and got a quart can of the DAP Weldwood gel contact adhesive. The stuff is really ugly; it looks like boogers dissolved in alcohol. Who cares what it looks like? This product works. I chose it because it was designed to work on vertical surfaces, and it does excel at that. Brush a good coat on the base MDF and another on the peeled off laminate. It does NOT drip. Even great big blobs of the stuff just sit there, even when upside down. Spread it out evenly. Wait 15 minutes, then carefully put them together. Press and roll. It sticks like rubber cement on triple steroids. Awesome. Just make sure the pieces go on nice and straight, because they are not coming apart again, ever, once you’ve got about 2” attached. And be extra careful of the edges; trimmed laminate is razor sharp. Yeah, it smells like hell too, and probably burns like napalm. So don’t be foolish with it. I had the doors open and the A/C blasting and the fans running flat out, and it still stank the whole place up so much I had to walk away for half an hour and go get something to eat. By tomorrow morning the smell should have lessened a whole lot, and by Wednesday the cement will have fully cured. Then I can come back, trim up any squeeze out dribbles with a razor knife, and go over the whole thing with Goo-Gone or Oops or one of those adhesive solvents. Not to clean up my mistakes, I don’t think I really made any. But to clean off all the tape residue where the workers had held the edges on with clear tape for several years.
That’s the economy we’re in; a fairly steady doctor’s office is pinching the pennies until they scream, and is willing to invest $25 in parts and $100 in my labor to keep some old junk furniture going for a few more years. When I took a break and went down the road to get some food, I found that the local Burger King had gone out of business. When the heck has that ever happened? And this place is in a densely populated town, right by the side of a local highway that probably sees 20,000 cars a day go by. It’s not like the BK was off in the woods behind Osh Kosh.
Times are tough, even for those folks who are still earning a good buck.
A quart can of the DAP Weldwood gel is about $15, and that’s enough to glue about 2 normal kitchens worth of cabinets and countertops. $8 gets you a pint, which will do a whole good sized countertop should that be necessary. Most of the other brands and styles of laminate contact cement only come by the gallon and sell for $35-50. I used a brush and cleaned things up with mineral spirits, but you could use a 4” paint roller if you can find the right kind of roller. Then just toss it out. That’s cheaper than buying a quart of mineral spirits and spending the time - lots!! - to get all the glue out of a paint brush.
I’m pretty impressed with this stuff. It can be used on a lot more than just MDF and laminate. Glues wood to metal to cloth to glass to plastic to whatever. My customer is paying for this, but doesn’t want the can lying around his place, so it’s mine when the project is done. I’ve got quite a number of little repairs here I could give it a try on, starting with the door panel trim on my car. Hey, times are tough for those of us who don’t have the big bucks coming in too.
Personally, I blame Obama. Pinko bastard.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 10:07 PM
Filed Under: • Daily Life •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Hell Comes To East London
This is not a joke.
You do have to take the Star and Anjem Choudary with a pinch of salt sometimes, as to how powerful that group really is. But I have no doubt that this is what Hizb ut Thahrir, Talibat Jam and all the other much more powerful groups really want.
HARDCORE Islamists have vowed to ban booze and mixing between the sexes in new Sharia law enforcement zones across the UK. The move will see specific areas flooded with thousands of stickers saying “no gambling”, “no music or concerts”, “no porn or prostitution” and “no drugs or smoking”.
The posters declare: “You are entering a Sharia controlled zone – Islamic rules enforced.”
The radicals will kick off their controlled zones in the London borough of Waltham Forest later this month. They also claim their hardline rules will be policed by thousands of “Sharia cops” on the streets. Preacher Anjem Choudary has called the scheme an alternative to government attempts to combat violent extremism under the Prevent strategy.
OTOH - voices in the wilderness? Cambridge protest against sharia.
The English Defence League (EDL) is a far-right street protest movement which opposes what it sees as the spread of Islamism, Sharia law and Islamic extremism in England. The EDL uses street-based marches against what it labels as Muslim extremism.
Sign me up. I’ve always been a sucker for crusader graphics. And good broadswords.
Three people have been arrested after scuffles broke out as the English Defence League and anti-fascists marched in Cambridge.
Police estimate 300 people took part in the EDL march. A similar number representing United Against Fascism (UAF) and the TUC took part in a counter march in the morning.
Because UAF is actually a leftist pro-sharia group; anyone who opposes multi-culti, England for the English, and laying down for pisslam is a fascist racist, doncha know. TUC is kinda the AFL-CIO, deep in bed with UAF. It’s a multi-union governing body that assigns the talking points and the marching songs, like the Horst Wessel.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 12:19 PM
Filed Under: • RoPMA •
• Comments (5)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • A Late Crowder But A Long One
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 12:08 PM
Filed Under: • Humor •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Straight Up BS
They do? Really? Nobody asked me. And I bet they didn’t ask you either. And if the poll was even partially realistic, I guarantee you the question was NOT “Would you be willing to pay significantly more taxes to help the government balance the budget/reduce borrowing?”
And I double guarantee you that there was NO filter question before that one, that asked “Do you currently pay income taxes?”
Pure BS from the king BSer hisself.
Obama: Public is ‘sold’ on tax increases in a debt-ceiling deal
President Obama on Friday kept up the pressure on Republicans to agree to revenue increases in a deal to raise the debt ceiling, claiming 80 percent of the public supports Democrats’ demand for tax increases.
“The American people are sold,” Obama said. “The problem is members of Congress are dug in ideologically.”
Throughout the press conference, Obama blasted Republicans for ignoring what he said is the will of the American people by rejecting tax increases that would balance out spending cuts in a debt package.
...
Obama repeated his warning that the country is “running out of time” to avert a financial “Armageddon.”“We should not even be this close on a deadline,” Obama said. “This is something we should have accomplished earlier.”
The president’s press conference came the day after he wrapped up debt-ceiling negotiations at the White House and gave congressional leaders 24 to 36 hours to consult with members on a possible compromise. Obama is pushing for a sweeping package that would save $4 trillion over 10 years.
Obama said he is still pushing for a “big” deal to raise the debt ceiling by the Aug. 2 deadline despite the hardening of positions on Capitol Hill.
“I always have hope,” Obama said. “Don’t you remember my campaign?”
As far as I am concerned, any plan that any one of these crotch weasels comes up with that doesn’t trim off at least $750 billion PER YEAR is nothing more than ass gas.
And the whole crop of them ought to be fired anyway: they have failed to do their basic assignment: it is now 809 days that the federal government has been without a formal budget.
“The Senate has a legal obligation to pass a budget every year but has not done so for more than two years,” said Jenny Beth Martin, National Coordinator of Tea Party Patriots.
“Democrats have controlled the Senate and the White House since the election of 2008, and the House of Representatives up until this year. Certainly they could have passed any budget they desired, including one with tax increases and spending increases. But they chose to ignore the 800-day gorilla in the room because they don’t want to be on record supporting a budget that actually does what they want. Then the public could hold them accountable for their cowardly and irresponsible behavior in the face of national fiscal calamity.”
The Democrats have not even proposed a budget.
...
Back in May, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) stated, “There’s no need to have a Democratic budget in my opinion. It would be foolish for us to do a budget at this stage.”
Deeper thoughts on the whole spending thing; a short read here, with graphics:
Discussions by policymakers to increase the US debt limit are in the eleventh hour. Sadly, so far the circus of intense political posturing has avoided highlighting the real issue.
It is not the debt capacity of the US government that is of primary importance, nor how much will be cut from proposed federal spending over the next ten years. There is something fundamental at stake here and much more important to the future of the US. It will be made clear by the outcome of budget cuts, if any are finally made. It is, namely, the adversative relationship between the country’s public and private sectors, or to put it bluntly, the tax-eaters versus tax-payers.
...
The feathers are being plucked from the goose at a record rate. Government spending has become an even bigger force in the economy than when the US was on a war-footing during World War II. Never before has government consumed so much of the private sector’s wealth creation.The important conclusion to be made from the above chart is that Americans who produce wealth are getting squeezed. This picture of economic activity clearly illustrates that tax-eaters have never been more burdensome to wealth-producing tax-payers.
The above chart illustrates the great extent to which the US has become reliant upon socialist dogma.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 10:52 AM
Filed Under: • Economics • Government • Obama, The One •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Dirty Play At DOJ
Letter from Darrell Issa (R-CA) to Eric Holder, excerpts:
We have recently learned that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATF) has afforded potential witnesses for the Committees’ investigation into Operation Fast and Furious access to a shared drive on its computer system replete with pertinent investigative documents, including official ATF emails.
...
As we understand it, the shared drive contains the documents that have been produced to the Committees through the course of our investigation, those made available for in camera review and possibly documents that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has not yet provided to the Committee. These witnesses had not previously seen many of these documents.
...
Allowing witnesses access to such documents could taint their testimony by allowing them to tailor their responses to what they think the Committees already know. Additionally, witnesses who gain access to documents they have not previously seen could alter their recollection of events. This practice harms not only our investigation, but also the independent investigation that you instructed the Inspector General to conduct.
In other words: the DOJ was either trying to make sure witness stories are consistent with DOJ talking points, or they were going through the back door to make sure everyone who was testifying was on the same page. Either would likely get the average citizen slapped with an obstruction or witness tampering charge in a state or federal court.
The hypocrisy here is egregious.
...
DOJ did exactly what they asked Issa’s committee not to do.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/17/2011 at 10:43 AM
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Government • Corruption and Greed • Guns and Gun Control •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Friday - July 15, 2011
not for children
This is about as perfect a mix as can be.
To make the audio book of this book for frustrated parents
they got Samuel L. “Snakes on a Plane” Jackson to do the voice-over. Funny, but non-stop profanity. Listen in.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/15/2011 at 12:15 PM
Filed Under: • Humor •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Thursday - July 14, 2011
just chillin
This guy comes home to his 22nd floor apartment after work, and finds his wife standing there naked. He’s sure she was cheating on him so he goes running around the house looking for the man. He searches everywhere and eventually gives up, admitting he was wrong to assume such a thing.
He goes out on the balcony for a breath of fresh air and finds someone hanging from the railing by his fingertips. So the husband starts stomping on the guy’s fingers. The guy falls but his fall is broken by some bushes. So the husband goes inside to look for something to throw down on him. He looks around and sees the fridge, so he drags it out and throws it off the balcony. Bulls-eye! Lifting the fridge over the railing was too much for his heart though, and he drops dead on the spot.
Well, at this time, Heaven was getting a little crowded, so God institutes a new rule saying that anyone who is admitted has to have had a stressful day the day they died.
One guy comes up to the gate of Heaven and St. Peter asks how his day went. So the husband tells of how he found out that his wife was cheating on him and he died of a heart attack. St. Peter agrees to let him in.
A second guy comes up to the gates and St. Peter asks how his day went. So the guy says, “Well, I was exercising on my balcony on the 23rd floor, and I fell, but luckily I grabbed onto the porch below mine. Then this guy comes out stomping on my fingers so I fall, but I landed in some bushes so I was Ok! And then to make it worse he throws a refrigerator on me!” So St. Peter lets him in.
By this time St. Peter is thinking, “I could get used to this new rule.”
A third guy comes up to the gate and St. Peter sits back in his chair and says, “Ok, tell me your story.” And the guy says, “Ok, picture this...I’m naked, right? And I’m in a refrigerator...”
Posted by Drew458
on 07/14/2011 at 11:37 PM
Filed Under: • Humor •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Hellena Handbasket
Saturday Update: Glad to see that the market did not panic, and just continued to slowly climb. Gold closed Friday afternoon at $1594.50, a solid 1/3 increase in just one year. Of course, one year ago at $1150 gold was still nearly 4 times higher than it was post-Y2k.
Your money is worthless. Today, it’s worth even less.
Prepare for the USA to get a credit rating downgrade. It’s coming. And now, today, in anticipation of that,
We are well and truly screwed.
Gold rallied to a record after Moody’s Investors Service placed the U.S. credit rating on review for a downgrade, U.S. debt-ceiling talks stalled and Europe’s sovereign crisis persisted, boosting haven demand.
Immediate-delivery bullion climbed as much as 0.5 percent to an all-time high of $1,589.80 an ounce, and was at $1,582.75 at 4:03 p.m. in Singapore. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s comments that additional stimulus may be needed also drove the metal’s ninth day of gains, the best run since April.
The U.S., rated Aaa since 1917, was put on review for the first time since 1995, on concern the debt threshold will not be raised in time to prevent a missed payment of interest or principal, Moody’s said. President Barack Obama walked out of a meeting with legislative leaders on raising the U.S. debt ceiling, according to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.
“Gold will benefit from the turmoil,” said Guo Hongjun, head of research at Haitong Futures Co., China’s largest futures broker by capital. “Another round of quantitative easing will hit the dollar hard, drive up prices of commodities including gold, increase inflationary pressures and slow the recovery.”
The contract for August delivery in New York also gained to a record, rallying as much as 0.3 percent to $1,590.80 an ounce. Cash silver jumped as much as 1.8 percent to $38.855 an ounce, the highest intraday price since May 11.
Fed Chairman Bernanke said the central bank is prepared to provide additional stimulus to bolster the U.S. economy, and warned a failure by Congress to raise the $14.3 trillion debt limit would send “shock waves” through the financial system.
I’m wondering if the country wouldn’t be better off Bernanke-free. This guy seems to get it all wrong, every time. My bet is gold goes even higher tomorrow, and closes close to $1700 Friday.
Yeah, and as we go forward - what is it now, 813 days without a federal budget??? - the clown posse in DC is arguing about raising the debt limit even more. Odingus is threatening that if the ceiling isn’t raised and more money is borrowed, then he’ll stop paying Social Security. But “don’t call my bluff on this” he is demanding of Congress. Huh?
Meanwhile, the John Wayne Bobbit Squad (our dickless Republicans in DC) are calling for a constitutional amendment to balance the budget ... as their 30 pieces of silver for allow the debt ceiling to be raised yet again. Morons. You should have put that one in in 2003, and then shown how your own party could restrict themselves to that level of spending, even during wartime. Now you look like a bunch of turbopussies.
Congressional Republicans are rallying behind a long-shot bid for a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget. But they’re divided over conservatives’ efforts to demand its passage as their price for backing any increase in the government’s borrowing limit.
Right in the middle of their brawl with President Barack Obama over extending the debt ceiling and hacking trillions from projected deficits, GOP leaders are forcing House and Senate debates next week over similar amendments requiring the budget to be balanced, starting no sooner than five years from now.
And even this threat is empty handed bullshit. Do it NOW assmunch, not 5 years down the road.
It’s all just smoke and mirrors anyway. The Repussylickans have already planned out their cave-in strategery, with the bottom line long term result being Mitt Romney as their 2012 candidate. Where upon he will take a monumental ass-whuppin. It’s all part of the plan, because the Right side of the aisle is just as elitist and just as Socialist as the Left side.
Fire the whole lot of them, take a big boxful of darts and throw them at all 50 State’s phone books. Whatever names get hit get to be Reps and Senators. Assuming that a) those hit aren’t felons or under the age of 35, b) they can prove that they are actually citizens, and c) they at least graduated high school. They couldn’t do any worse. Oh, and they serve one term, the government locks up their assets right now, guarantees their regular job on return, pays them $100,000 cash per year, no taxes, and if they take (or any relative takes) gifts or money from anyone or any PAC, they get shot. On the spot.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/14/2011 at 03:44 PM
Filed Under: • Commies • Economics • Government •
• Comments (4)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • is there a chance of an American default on debt?
I need this explained to me. I’m missing something here. I never thought about the USA and debt default. That was always “those other people.”
Lets start with the idea in mind that I am behind the curve when it comes to things economic. Oh I understand cause and effect and not spending more then one earns.
Too many credit cards (been there) and not able to pay all the bills. (been there)
Wanting things I couldn’t afford but bought em anyway. (done that)
I once bought two cars because I couldn’t make up my mind between the two, and liked em both. A lot. That’s all thankfully in the past.
Checking account even gets balanced. Well, only since I married and then someone smarter then me.
So lets assume cos we should, that some of you here know more about this and understand it better then I am able to. And while we’re at it. Why the hell do we have to shell out so much in foreign aid? Why do we have to give any away? Why isn’t American money (and Brit too) spent at home? How many little wars can America (and the UK) continue to fund?
Am I wrong in assuming that politicians on both sides are grandstanding and thinking ahead to elections more then they are thinking about the country? True, I ask because I have as little regard for politicians as I do for the criminal justice system in both our countries.
Here’s one view, in a conservative paper. Mostly conservative. Kind of scary.
America’s political system isn’t quirky, it’s dangerous
The US economy is close to default, yet the parties are still playing silly games.
By Ed ConwayFor the first time in its history, America is charging headlong towards a default. Don’t be fooled by how unlikely this sounds: unless there is a dramatic turnaround by August 2, the world’s largest economy will have to stop honouring its debts.
If it is hard not to find the idea faintly preposterous, it is only the latest episode in a farce which runs back for years. In the mid-1990s, the Clinton administration was forced to shut down parts of the federal government to keep the US economy afloat. For half of the current financial year, the Obama administration was forced to run the country on an extended incarnation of last year’s budget – rather as if George Osborne had decided in March to reprint last year’s document and present it to the House.
These silly episodes each derive from the same basic fact: that the world’s largest economy has a political system which is illequipped to manage a 21st-century economy. That it has taken a financial and economic crisis to bring this sharply into focus shouldn’t be entirely surprising – to adapt Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor, “it’s only when the tide goes out that you find out who’s been swimming naked”.
Today’s dilemma is stark.There is a legal limit on the size of America’s total sovereign debt of $14.3 trillion, and with the costs of the recession still weighing down the federal budget, that ceiling is due to be hit on August 2. The letter of the law says that at that point the country simply cannot borrow more, and so must either stop financing its debt (a sovereign default) or cut internal payments. Indeed, this week, Barack Obama told CBS News that payments to social security recipients, veterans and the disabled could simply dry up on August 3. “There may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it,” he said.
Unlike Greece or some of the other weakened eurozone states, the US is not facing default because of its inability to pay. Its overall debt levels are manageable, at least in the short term. The explanation for the crisis is purely political – the Republican-controlled House of Representatives refuses to increase the debt ceiling. This is economic illiteracy of the highest degree: because the limit is an arbitrary figure, it takes no account of the size, health or spending demands of the economy. The figure which policy-makers plucked out of the sky in 1917 when they first devised this wheeze was $5 billion, which is enough to fund today’s US military apparatus for all of three days.
Posted by peiper
on 07/14/2011 at 02:23 PM
Filed Under: • Economics • USA •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • whistle while you work
Alive. Just. In a manner of speaking.
This pix hasn’t anything at all to do with what I’m writing. I just thought I might inject some excitement in what might be a boring tale.
Once the electrician was done and gone I couldn’t put off a project delayed by at least a year. So now I am exhausted and wondering what the heck I’m still doing here, in a house that will never be restored because it’s beyond that, and even if it wasn’t, we couldn’t afford to do it.
Our windows are very old. They date from the time they were first installed. 1924. They are iron and they are seriously rusted. In some cases the smaller windows are frozen, no, fused is the better description. So every year I do what I can, scrape, sand paint etc.
But not last year. So things get worse and the work gets harder. Actually, I don’t mind the work so much. What else am I gonna do? And besides, I can feel like I’m accomplishing something. Started on one of the two kitchen windows yesterday morning, and still not done. Lets not even talk about the two rooms upstairs or the really larger one here in what doubles as dining and computer room.
When the mil was alive and kicking, I guess she didn’t have much to spend on upkeep. When it was done, it was really a matter of applying one coat of paint on top of another and I guess she thought that was all it needed. But she also had a bad habit of not seeing those things she wanted to avoid. She didn’t trust workmen and always tried to get things on the cheap. Well, she got that alright. Maybe I’m unfair in that assessment. After all, I wasn’t here at the time things were falling apart. Now, about all we can do it stick our finger in the dyke and try and hold back the flood.
I’ve pretty well scraped away what I could but in many places the rust on the frame is total. That is, you can not sand to bare metal because there is no longer any bare metal. I’ve also replaced the grouting around the one I’m working on.
Hopefully if I can get an early start tomorrow morning, get a ride to the paint store having discovered I have no primer or oil base for the wood parts inside and outside the house, I can finish that window and start on another easier one, before moving on to the next worst.
This is gonna take some time, and at the end of the day it’s about all I can do to stand up. And that damn knee isn’t helping matters any. Neither is the dog next door.
I read about bread soaked in anti-freeze being used. Might have to resort to that, because some folks just don’t give a damn if their actions and attitudes or their dogs disturb others.
It’s the same thing when people have outdoor parties late at night, and just can not enjoy themselves unless they have music amped at decibels that will be heard between here and Germany.
People really are not very considerate anymore. Have you noticed that?
Posted by peiper
on 07/14/2011 at 01:25 PM
Filed Under: • Personal •
• Comments (3)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Still Fast, Still Furious
I think for once I may have been a bit ahead of the curve with this Project/Operation GunWalker/GunRunner/Fast and Furious/Castaway thing. I see a lot more blogs catching on, and I’m hearing more and more about it on the news. Good. Keep the story out there. This thing is 1000 times worse than Watergate. It’s a 1000 times worse than a white stain on a blue dress and a bit of human humidor for your cigar. It’s “high crimes”, without the “misdemeanors”. Accessory to murder, acts of war against a sovereign nation, and a deliberate scheme to subvert the 2nd Amendment. Lying under oath and interfering with a Congressional investigation are small potatoes compared to those charges.
Funny thing is, I thought I was way behind the curve getting the story out. I’d heard about this nearly two years ago. When the far left was screaming that “90% of the guns coming into Mexico were from American gun shops”, I read on several gun forums that FFL dealers were having their arms twisted by the feds to make bulk sales to unlikely buyers. But it was all just rumor until somebody official huffed and puffed on the old Acme Thunderer. And now the story is out. Good. Keep it out. Demand action. Real action. Not another cover-up, not another whitewash. Close down the ATF. Fire Holder and prosecute him. And then let’s talk about the “I word”. Impeachment.
Two of many blogs, small and large, running part or all of this sordid tale:
http://ironicsurrealism.com/2011/07/10/proof-that-obama-ordered-and-holder-had-full-knowledge-of-operation-fast-and-furious/
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/%E2%80%98gunwalker%E2%80%99-deepens-agent-zapata-killed-by-gun-from-%E2%80%A6-texas/
Allen West calls for a special prosecutor. Me! Me! Me! Oooh oooh Mr. West, I want the job!!!!
From HotAir:
Via our Townhall cousin Katie Pavlich, who makes an important distinction that’s occasionally been overlooked in all the Gunrunner/Fast and Furious coverage. Namely, they’re not the same program. Gunrunner is the ATF’s umbrella operation for selling guns to straw purchasers and then immediately busting them; F&F is the op that let those purchasers walk them across the border, where they ended up in the possession of cartels. It is true that Holder acknowledged the existence of Gunrunner in a 2009 speech in Mexico, but as Mike Riggs of Reason points out, there’s no evidence — yet — that Holder authorized or even knew about Fast and Furious.
From Pavlich’s post at Townhall, the money quote from Allen West, with video:
Congressman Allen West is calling for the removal of Attorney General Eric Holder by President Obama if a House Oversight investigation shows Holder was involved in the ordering of the deadly “Operation Fast and Furious.”
“Eric Holder has to be brought before an investigative committee and if those charges are warranted he needs to be held accountable but at least the President needs to realize that Eric Holder needs to be removed from the Department of Justice or else I believe President Obama is complicit and in approval of the actions of his Attorney General.”
Rock on, Congressman West (R-FL). And he’s black too!
And of course the far left digs into their bag of bumper sticker slogans and came out with their old chestnut “No Evidence!!”. How original.
Truth. That’s the “2%” I was talking about the other day. At some point GuWalker became GunRunner which got out of control and became Fast and Furious. Somewhere there is a paper trail. This is the kind of thing we used to call “scope creep” in the IT world, and I think it’s what the military calls “mission blurring”. But with all the bureaucracy, meetings, paper shuffling, CYA, and sign-offs going on in DC, there has to be a ton of documentation that shows where and when this happened and who gave it the nod. Come on, the damn thing had an OFFICIAL government project name fer cryin out loud. It DIDN’T just happen by accident. Everyone knew, and approved. So just like last time around, “no evidence!” is a mighty thin thread to hide behind.
Meanwhile, a town in New Mexico has fired it’s entire police force for their involvement in firearms and narcotics smuggling. Gosh, and every damn one of them is of “Spanish” heritage. Right.
New Mexico town dissolves police dept after gun smuggling scandal
The scandal-plagued, tiny New Mexico border town of Columbus is dissolving its police department and asking the county sheriff to protect its citizens.
An employee at Columbus City Hall confirmed to The Lookout that the police force has been dissolved. The Luna County Sheriff’s Office will now take over patrolling the town.
The town has been upended since federal authorities arrested Police Chief Angelo Vega, Mayor Eddie Espinoza, Village Trustee Blas Gutierrez and nine other residents for conspiring to smuggle hundreds of guns to drug cartels over the border in March. All of the accused have pleaded not guilty, and their trial is expected in October, according to the Las Cruces Sun News.
Posted by Drew458
on 07/14/2011 at 09:57 AM
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed • Guns and Gun Control •
• Comments (1)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Five Most Recent Trackbacks:
Once Again, The One And Only Post
(4 total trackbacks)
Tracked at iHaan.org
Thｅ advantage to having a guide with you is thɑt an expert will haѵe very first hand experience dealing and navigating the river with гegional wildlife. Tһomas, there are great…
On: 07/28/23 10:37
The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We've Been Waiting For
(3 total trackbacks)
Tracked at head to the Momarms site
The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We’ve Been Waiting For
On: 03/14/23 11:20
Vietnam Homecoming
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at 广告专题配音 专业从事中文配音跟外文配音制造，北京名传天下配音公司
专业从事中文配音和外文配音制作，北京名传天下配音公司 北京名传天下专业配音公司成破于2006年12月，是专业从事中 中文配音 文配音跟外文配音的音频制造公司，幻想飞腾配音网领 配音制作 有海内外优良专业配音职员已达500多位，可供给一流的外语配音，长年服务于国内中心级各大媒体、各省市电台电视台，能满意不同客户的各种需要。电话：010-83265555 北京名传天下专业配音公司…
On: 03/20/21 07:00
meaningless marching orders for a thousand travellers ... strife ahead ..
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Casual Blog
[...] RTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPL [...]
On: 07/17/17 04:28
a small explanation
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at yerba mate gourd
Find here top quality how to prepare yerba mate without a gourd that's available in addition at the best price. Get it now!
On: 07/09/17 03:07
DISCLAIMER
THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.
Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.
- Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
- Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
- Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
- Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.
Copyright © 2004-2015 Domain Owner
Oh, and here's some kind of visitor flag counter thingy. Hey, all the cool blogs have one, so I should too. The Visitors Online thingy up at the top doesn't count anything, but it looks neat. It had better, since I paid actual money for it.
RSS 2.0 
Atom 
