No Runny Eggs

The repository of one hard-boiled egg from the south suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (and the occassional guest-blogger). The ramblings within may or may not offend, shock and awe you, but they are what I (or my guest-bloggers) think.

Archive for October 31st, 2008

Which job is more honest?

by @ 19:53. Filed under Politics - National.

WCPO-TV in Cincinnati reports that ACORN canvasser Shari Bell was arrested for prostitution and drug paraphenalia possession Wednesday night. What is truly priceless is ACORN’s reaction to Bell’s unannounced absence from her ACORN job Wednesday (prior to her arrest) – they assumed she quit.

I almost turned this into an NRE poll, but discretion is the better part of valor cheap blogging.

Cartoon of the day – Air Obama edition

by @ 19:38. Filed under Politics - National.

From William Warren via Americans for Limited Government…

The Halloween Pumpkin Smash – 10/31/2008

by @ 18:12. Filed under The Morning Scramble.

It’s definitely not morning, and because it’s Halloween, it’s not even a Scramble…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0thH3qnHTbI[/youtube]

Since I can, and because Matt Abe warns us that we don’t know what we’ve got ’till it’s gone, it’s a 2-song Friday…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpHKo71bh0I[/youtube]

  • Related to that, Christian Schneider takes political stock of his life. If you read only one thing this weekend, read this. BTW, while I am a lowlife, I categorically deny I’m a scumbag.
  • Sean M. says to ignore the hype and remember the bombed-by-Germans Pearl Harbor. LET’S GO! COME ON!!! AAAHHHHHH!!!!
  • Now, on to your not-so-regularily-scheduled Smash. Soren Dayton explores the ACORN-Rathke embezzlement scandal that just so happens to involve Barack Obama’s first federal campaign.
  • Gregory V. Helvering points out that attempts to make things “fair”, as Obama wants to do with the tax code, merely makes things worse for everybody.
  • Stephen Green reports that $120K is the new “rich”. In succession, we have gone from increased taxes for those making over $250K to give welfare to the bottom 95% to tax cuts for those making under $200K to tax cuts for those making under $150K (while the Adjusted Gross Income 95th-percentile was just over $153K in 2006) to tax cuts for those making under $120K. Again, going to the AGI, the 90th-percentile was $109K in 2006, and given increases in income, should be $120K in 2009. Guess it’s 10% that won’t be getting welfare from Obama should he win.
  • Speaking of taxes, Bill Smith reports the Heritage Foundation has filed a request to TV stations to stop false ads from the Obama campaign that misquotes them.
  • Michelle Malkin found the reporters of 3 papers where the editorial board dared to not endorse Obama thrown under the Obamination Express. For those that want to compare this to the McCain campaign’s tossing of Maureen Dowd and Joe Klein, McCain tossed individuals (specifically columnists) for those individual’s actions and continued to talk to the reporters from those individuals’ employers, while Obama can’t so much as abide possibly-friendly people whose only crime was to work with those that dared oppose him. Remember what I’ve said about 110% fealty and the Left.
  • More from Soren Dayton – he found a link between Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner (D) and ACORN. Brunner refused to check the rolls in Ohio for fraudulent registrations, and ACORN has been flooding the rolls with (potentially-)fraudulent registrations.
  • Speaking of fraud, Warner Todd Huston reports Obama supporters illegally offered candy and water to those waiting in line to vote in Butler County, Ohio.
  • Rick Moran says that the “we didn’t know” defense will not be accepted should Obama and the ‘Rats win. Just because I can, it’s time for another song…

    [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBbk7t-mqDM[/youtube]

  • Thomas Lifson reports that the Obama campaign may have thrown in the towel. I am reminded of the incident where a Democratic Assembly political playbook was supposedly left on a copier at the Capitol, but if the memo cited is authentic, it is an eye-opening read.
  • Slublog proves that those that live in glass houses travel on glass campaign planes whose undersides are coated with the residue of reporters tossed overboard shouldn’t toss out the “selfish” word. Yes, the campaign that refused to share its cash with the DNC, and whose supporters are on average less-charitable than those who oppose them has tossed out the “selfish” card.
  • Peter reports that Mitt Romney’s minions are in full Palin Derangement Syndrome mode. After all, Sarah Palin is the biggest and probably only roadblock to his nomination in 2012 under the Next In Line principle ascribed to by the Republicans since 1956, especially if John McCain and she win on Tuesday.
  • Katie Favazza brings good news from Iraq – through yesterday, there were no combat deaths in Baghdad and only 13 deaths overall in Iraq this month. Care to declare Iraq lost now, Obama?
  • Meanwhile, lawhawk reports we have reached out and touched killed Al Qaeda’s #4 in Pakistan. Care to say that Iraq is still a “distraction”, Obama?
  • Phil spotted October snow in London for the first time since 1922. While I don’t know whether Algore Goracle was in town, it did coincide with a House of Commons debate on Gorebal “Warming”. Timing is everything.

There’s more I could do, but I’m out of time, dammit.

Roll bloat – author edition

by @ 16:49. Filed under The Blog.

I still have to collate the newest blogs out of my feed reader and Twitter friends, but I do have to take some time to add Red S.E. Cupp. If you haven’t hear of S.E. Cupp, she is the co-author of Why You’re Wrong About the Right.

Christmas in October!

by @ 5:09. Filed under Economy.

Many malls and even Fleet Farm, moved to discount Halloween goods a week ago. They did this to make room for Christmas displays and merchandise. While many folks are already able to do their Christmas shopping, most of us wait until December 24th or 25th to deliver our Christmas gifts. Not so with the Treasury department!

After a ridiculous delay, considering we were all in “grave danger,” Treasury has finally gotten around to doling out its $700 billion dollar bail out. Over the past couple of weeks Treasury has struck deals with nine financial institutions including Goldman Sachs who Paulson used to work for.

You may remember one of the items I carped about in the “bail out” bill was that it gave Paulson incredible latitude in determining how, when and why to use the $700 billion. One would think that for that kind of money Congress would be just slightly concerned about how it would be used…but they really weren’t. Paulson had evidently convinced Congress that the problems were so complex and changing so rapidly that he couldn’t be held accountable to a fixed plan. Well, in the immortal words of Jeremiah Wright, “America’s chickens are coming home to roost!”

The United Steel Workers have been doing a little research, analysis and calculation on Paulson’s “investments.” One of his new found pets, Goldman Sachs, just happened to have a very comparable transaction just a couple of weeks back. You may remember the news when just 3 weeks ago Warren Buffet invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs. Turns out that his investment was very similar to the one that the Treasury made so the value should be similar too, right?

Wrong!

The analysis that the UAW  did showed that in just 3 weeks time while Buffet got paid interest of 10%, Treasury was only able to get 5%. Second, while Buffet got warrants (the ability to buy additional shares) that equal 100% of his original investment, Treasury was only able to get 15%…oh and it could be diluted down to 7.5%.

Using a well recognized financial analysis method for determining the value of these types of transactions, the UAW determined that Warren Buffet paid $5 billion, Treasury paid $10 billion for….just 3 weeks later a 100% premium! Does anyone remember anyone sounding the “all clear” in the financial markets that would warrant a 100% increase in valuation for Goldman Sachs in just 3 weeks?

I’m not normally a fan of union leadership. Most of what I see them doing is feathering their own nests at the expense of their membership. In this case, however, kudos to them for doing a little research and getting this information out.

May I remind you one last time that Paulson, and many of the people currently working for him are former employees of Goldman Sachs. As the UAW points out, neither Paulson or his employees have disclosed whether they are still shareholders of Goldman Sachs.

If the gift that Treasury gave Goldman Sachs is replicated in each of their deals, the $700 billion bail out, that wasn’t supposed to cost the taxpayer anything, contains at least, a $350 billion gift!

Merry Christmas Wall Street! I hope you remember all of us come Kwanzaa

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