No Runny Eggs

Blogging is stressful and can lead to death, at least so says this article.

I can’t say that I’m ready to die, 2 young sons etc. etc. but I’ve been at this blogging thing now for over two months, phew!

So, Shoebox, what are you going to do to keep your cardiologist at bay?

I’m going to DisneyWorld!

I’ll be out for the next week or so, don’t cry for me Argentina!

I now return you to your regularly scheduled host extraordinaire, Mr. Egg!

Obama seeks to affirm his patriotism

That’s the headline from this article  by the AP, that talks about how Barack has been inserting more patriotic statements in his recent speeches.

The article quotes the following as his “patriotic” statements:

I love this country not because it’s perfect but because we’ve always been able to move it closer to perfection,” he told an audience in North Dakota.

And in Montana: “It’s a country where … I’ve seen ordinary Americans find justice, where I’ve seen progress made for working families who need leaders who are willing to stand up and fight for them. That is the country I love.”

But are these really patriotic statements?

I’ll concede that these statements are factually accurate, but they don’t seem patriotic to me. They strike me as more of the “yeah but” kinds of statements that Barack uses when he tries to deal with an issue without making himself look like the leftist he is.

“…move it closer to perfection,” I wonder where on the perfection scale Barack thinks we are? By his statement I assume he thinks we’re at least at 1 but not at 100, but where between 1 and 100 are we? Factually, I would agree with Barack that we are not at 100 for the simple reason that much of the country still views abortion as a valid birth control method, but I digress….See, if Barack wanted this to be a patriotic statement he would have said something like,

“I love this country because it’s the best system in the world. While we may not be perfect, we have a process that allows us to make constant, peaceful strides to that end.”

You may say I’m playing with semantics and that’s true. However, wasn’t it Barack who kept talking about the importance of “just words?” Words and how you choose to use them say alot about the intent of the speaker.   Making a beginning declarative statement rather than starting by trying to establish equivalency, would have made this patriotic, putting it together as he did makes it “yeah but.”

“I’ve seen ordinary Americans find justice,”   Is Barack suggesting that it is unusual for “ordinary” Americans to find justice?   Is he suggesting that only the wealthy or well connected can be assured of justice in our country?   Again, start with a declarative statement,

“I love this country because we have the best justice system in the world, a system where regardless of your economic or social standing, you can expect justice to serve you.   And in those few instances where the system doesn’t work as it should, I’m proud that there are leaders who will step up and fight to correct injustice.”

Once last comment on “just words” and the Obama supporters who will tell me that I’m twisting his language.   These comments came not from off-the-cuff remarks.   These comments came from prepared speeches.   Off-the-cuff remarks like “I don’t want them to be punished by a baby,” show me the individual’s true heart on a topic as they haven’t had time to think through the words and craft them.   Statements may be mad in  factual error but when it comes to judgements,  they speak with their most prevalent thought on the topic.   However,  with  prepared remarks, words that are considered and crafted in a particular order, well, you don’t get the chance to say “but he really meant XXXXXX.”   See, if he had really meant “XXXXXX,” he would have  crafted “XXXXXX.”   Barack purposely chose not to use declarative, patriotic statements simply because he will not declare his patriotism.   How tough is it?  

Barack tried to distance himself from Jeremiah Wright’s hateful speech by saying he didn’t agree with it and then quickly added a “yeah but” by telling us that Wright had come out of a generation where this speech was acceptable and we needed to appreciate that.   Now Barack’s trying to tell us he’s patriotic, and it seems to me that he’s also trying to tell us that people are “patriotic” even if they don’t believe the US is the best country in the world.  

I have to admit, I was no fan of Bernanke. He appeared to have an ability, in his Congressional testimonies, to say things that caused unnecessary market gyrations. He  looked to be very late to the game in reacting to the subprime turmoil. He  seemed to me to be one of those guys who was probably very book smart but just didn’t have the business common sense to be a successful leader of the Fed.

I may have been wrong.

I’ve written about Bernanke and the Bear Stearns take out. While I’m still holding onto some healthy skepticism, each day that passes  in which  we don’t see another financial shoe drop, causes me to believe that that single transaction was a master stroke and saved the US a really awful experience of financial meltdown. there’s been a lot of consternation and wailing over this transaction, complaining that the Fed didn’t have the authority to do what they did because Bear Sterns wasn’t a bank. Again, I’ve written on that, and while I agree with the concern of the issue, I believed at the time, and Bernanke has stated in his recent testimony to Congress, that he felt it necessary to act on Bear Sterns to save the broader financial system.
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LEWISTON, Maine (AP) – Police are searching for a man accused of shoving an electric guitar in his and walking out of a store in Lewiston, Maine. Police say the theft occurred last week and they’re looking for three men. One of the men shoved a Fender Stratocaster in his pants and pulled a sweatshirt over the top. The other two acted as lookouts.All three can be seen on footage from video surveillance.Strangely enough, the music store has seen the method before. A man did the same thing in 2006 but was caught as he tried to walk out.

I would love to see the video. Either the description of “in his pants” is overly generous or this guy has some really odd pants.

The son of a retired widower has placed an advertisement looking for someone to have a few drinks with his father at a local pub for seven pounds (nine euros, 14 dollars) an hour.Jack Hammond, 88, and his son, Michael, will begin interviewing candidates for the position soon, after Michael posted the advertisement at their local post office in Hampshire, southern EnglandThe elder Hammond used to go to his local pub four times a week in Barton-on-Sea, Hampshire, with his neighbour, but had to stop the practice recently when he moved into a nursing home closer to the rest of his family.

“When you put an advertisement in a post office for 25p you don’t expect anything to come of it, so the response has been amazing,” Michael, a chef, said.

They have ruled out hiring a woman, as Michael Hammond said his father, a retired electrical engineer, would be uncomfortable having a drink with a woman he did not know, and are hoping to find “a gentleman who is not too bombastic and enjoys a nice pint” with an interest in engineering or golf.

“Dad will be going out with some of the candidates next week but we are going to do it properly, as he is vulnerable,” Michael added.

“It’s got to be the best job in the world.”

At a townhall meeting in Johnstown, PA yesterday, Barck Obama made the following statement:    

“When it comes specifically to HIV/AIDS, the most important prevention is education, which should include — which should include abstinence education and teaching the children — teaching children, you know, that sex is not something casual. But it should also include — it should also include other, you know, information about contraception because, look, I’ve got two daughters. 9 years old and 6 years old. I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals. But if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby. I don’t want them punished with an STD at the age of 16. You know, so it doesn’t make sense to not give them information.”

There are sooooooooo many things I want to YELL at Barack right now.   Here are a few:

Barack, you talk about teaching values and morals, that’s great.   However, your teaching needs some updating because you have left out the end part where if you live short of values and morals, there are CONSEQUENCES!   Let me enlighten you on the difference between”Punishment” and “Consequence.”   “Punishment” is something that is done to you, “Consequence” is the result of something that you have done.   I understand how you easily confuse these concepts as you believe that you are being “punished” for standing by Jeremiah Wright when in fact you are suffering the “consequences” of your action of continuing to support his black liberation theology.
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Following the less than respectful response he received at the National’s home opener:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHUAsTrl4JI[/youtube]
President Bush announced his resignation with the following statement: (more…)

But it will require some intelligence!

Saw this article today talking about an agency that was hired to provide assistance payments to Katrina victims.  

Now, other than a smarmy “You’re doing a great job Brownie!”, I won’t take the easy path and denigrate the stupidity of yet another bureaucracy.   Nor will I call into question their intelligence when they managed to pay the maximum payout of $150,000 to people who didn’t qualify at all for the program.   I also won’t cast aspersions on their integrity just because the only way this “leaked” out was that they had to put out a contract to hire a collection firm to help them get the money returned.

I will give them the benefit of the doubt because they had a

“sense of urgency in paying Road Home applicants, and ICF knew applicants might eventually have to return some money.”

Here however is the money line of the article:  

Brann pointed out that 5,000 collections cases would represent a 4-percent error rate for the Road Home that is “quite good for large federal programs.”

Let’s see, the current Federal budget is $3.1 trillion dollars.   If 4% of that is just “error”, we have $124 Billion we should be able to take out of the budget just by hiring a few people that are smarter than your average fifth grader!   Of course Brann thinks 4% is “quite good”, probably representing an “A” or “A-” in government speak.   If that’s so, the average error rate is probably more like 6% – 7% or around $200 Billion dollars.

The current budget deficit is estimated to be around $400 Billion. I think we’ve just found a way to cut that in half!

A moment of silence please for Mr. Egg and the team who shall not be named.

Bucky Badger RIP

Since last fall we’ve heard a lot about “subprime” mortgages.   We’ve seen their troubles impact the housing, stock, and financial markets as well as cause consumers to feel less like spending.   We’ve heard about them and seen their impact but other than some passing references, I haven’t seen specifics about what these loans look like.

I found this article  today that gives some really frightening insight to what a typical subprime loan and  borrower  looks like.  

Warning:   what I am about to share is not for the financially faint of heart!
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This is a MUST read!

 I can add no more to this other than to say, Amen!

"You have all heard the racist and anti-American outbursts of my pastor Rev. Wright. They are all inexcusable. His speeches have forced me to reexamine my long association with Trinity United Church of Christ. And so it is with regret that I must now leave that church.

Read it all Here!

SurveyUSA  released a poll last week that surveyed nationally, the public’s sense of the current economic situation.

Amongst the survey findings:

Only 9% believe the current economy is strong.

70% believe there could be a run on the banks (the survey was taken 2 days after the Bear Stearns arrangement)

While 46% have worries about losing their home and 81% have some worry about the ability to pay their bills,  56% believe the Federal government should not get involved in bailing out home mortgages.

They took a favorable/unfavorable poll on Alan Greenspan and Ben Brenanke.   Greenspan had a favorable/unfavorable of 26%/15%, Brenanke 7%/14% (I wish they would have asked if people even knew who they are/were.)

But here’s the one that made me go Huh?
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Toledo Blade:

"The question is at what point are we willing to get together and understand that doing many of these things are hard, that it’s going to require sacrifice from those of us who are lucky in this society to pay a little more in taxes, or to, if we’re going to drive a Suburban, then you know there may be a disincentive to doing it, and that’s where leadership comes in,"   Barack Obama February, 2008

Barack Obama wants us to sacrifice. His vision will “require” sacrifice. How long do you suppose Barck has had this vision for sacrifice?

Bloomberg reports information from Obama’s 2000 to 2006 tax returns.

March 25 (Bloomberg) — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and his wife Michelle gave $10,772 of the $1.2 million they earned from 2000 through 2004 to charities, or less than 1 percent, according to tax returns for those years released today by his campaign.

The Obamas increased the amount they gave to charity when their income rose in 2005 and 2006 after the Illinois senator published a bestselling book. The $137,622 they gave over those two years amounted to more than 5 percent of their $2.6 million income.

Let me see if I have this right……Obama, the man who calls us to “sacrifice,” and his wife, earned an average of $240,000 each year for the first 5 year period. During that same period, according to their spokesman: …”giving $10,000 to charity was as generous as they could be at the time.”

Let’s break this down:

$240,000/year earned, 2,154/year donated
$20,000/month earned, $180/month donated
$657/day earned, $6/day donated.

Do you think you could manage donating more than the value of 2 cups of Starbucks each day if you made $240,000 each year?

Don’t give me garbage saying either, “he’s up to 5% now,” or, “the national average is only 2.2%.”

Crap!

Obama is willing to be charitable with my income and expect my family’s “sacrifice” but not his own!  

Another situation where Obama’s words are “just words” as his own actions don’t bear out his own expectation!

Now that’s Audacity of Hope!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. military mistakenly shipped four fuses for nuclear missiles to Taiwan in 2006 and never caught the error, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, acknowledging an incident likely to rile China.The military was supposed to ship helicopter batteries to Taiwan, but instead sent fuses used as part of the trigger mechanism on Minuteman missiles. Taiwan returned the parts to U.S. custody last week.

I’ve got so many questions on this…

Do you think Taiwan had to call ahead to get a return authorization request for the fuses?

2 years. Do they still get a refund? Did they still have the receipt?

Based on the information now known, the four fuses, which do not resemble helicopter batteries,

Really? They don’t look alike? Who’d a thunk?

How long did they tried to install the the part labeled “battery” before they realized it didn’t look like the one they took out?

I’ve gotten plenty of stuff made in Taiwan that had instructions that, well…. let’s just say I can see how they could have confused a fuse for a battery.

Do you think the US military stores nuclear missile fuses in the same warehouse as helicopter batteries? I suppose it’s that whole hazardous waste thing.

The fuses, which send an electronic signal to the device that starts the nuclear weapon’s trigger process, are among a class of sensitive equipment that must be accounted for on a quarterly basis.

Walmart has figured out how to do their inventory accounting more frequently than once a quarter. Can someone send the area code for Bentonville, Arkansas to the Pentagon?

When Taiwan realized it had received the incorrect shipment, it notified the U.S. military. …But U.S. military officials did not understand the nature of the problem until last week.

What part of “Wrong part” do you think they were having trouble understanding?

Henry said there was no indication Taiwan tampered with the fuses before returning them.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight!   Has anyone checked Ebay to see if the schematics are available yet?

“Don’t tell me words don’t matter. ‘I have a dream’ — just words. ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal’ — just words. ‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself’ – just words. Just speeches.”

…Barack Obama

In a well publicized speech, Barack Obama tries to dodge the accusation that he is an empty suit with flowery language and nothing else.   He tries to equate his words to those of words that have formed the history of the United States.  

While Obama makes a valid point showing that well crafted words can encourage, challenge and motivate us, he misses a more important point that if all we had were these words, without the action that followed them, none of these words would be remembered.

And so it is now with Obama.   For the past ten days he has been using words to attempt to explain his affiliation with Jeremiah Wright and to distance himself from Wright’s hateful language.

Words like:  

"I reject them completely "” they are not ones that reflect my values or my ideals or Michelle’s."

or

"If I thought that was the repeated tenor of the church then I wouldn’t feel comfortable, but frankly that has not been my experience at Trinity United Church of Christ.”

Now it is found that Jeremiah Wright used his column in the chuch newsletter to reprint a Hamas hate manifesto, Obama uses these words:

“I have already condemned my former pastor’s views on Israel in the strongest possible terms, and I certainly wasn’t in church when that outrageously wrong Los Angeles Times piece was re-printed in the bulletin,”

Hey Barack, there is a point where words without actions mean nothing.   You have reached that point.   No one should believe another word about your alledged disgust with the positions of Jeremiah Wright until you not only talk about it, but denouce your affiliation with the church that has been the host of his hate messages for these past 20 years.  

If you don’t follow your words with actions, we can only assume that in fact, they are JUST WORDS!