Has France swung too far to the right - farther in fact, than the United States under President Obama? According to Pierre-Alain Muet, a Socialist Party member of the French National Assembly, the United States and the rest of the world is leaving Sarkozy's France behind by embracing FDR's program of restoring equality to income distribution and keeping savings banks out of the … [Read more...] about France Must Relearn Lessons of Roosevelt’s New Deal Tax Policies: Le Monde of France
Republicans Missed Opportunity with Obama
Like many bloggers, on November 4, 2008 I was feverishly watching election results come in and manically trying to live-blog something of importance from what information I had available to me. It was a good night, regardless of what side of the ideological street on which you happened to be set up. It was good because watching election results roll in on a contest as heralded … [Read more...] about Republicans Missed Opportunity with Obama
GOP’s Cantor Balking On House AIG Bonus Tax Recoup Plan?
Ever see someone do the political limbo (versus Limbaugh)? Watch this: The bill's legality does sound questionable, but the issue is big enough and voters that angry that politicos will want to make a statement and let the courts decide if it's legal or not. But Cantor here does an adept politico limbo... This could be a tough vote for those who decide to take the Rush … [Read more...] about GOP’s Cantor Balking On House AIG Bonus Tax Recoup Plan?
Battlestar Galactica – Series Finale
"The Best Show on TV" has their final episode tomorrow night. I have watched this groundbreaking show from the very beginning and have been hooked in front of my television screen every week. The writing is superb, the plot lines are intriguing and when they kick up the juice for a little "fraking" action, the special effects are off the charts. Some of my favorite … [Read more...] about Battlestar Galactica – Series Finale
Defense Potpourri #1
With a new administration and fresh national defense policies, continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and tight defense budgets, there continue to be important daily developments in this area. Under the heading "Defense Potpourri," I plan to periodically summarize some of the most important and interesting news items, as long as there is interest. AIR REFUELING TANKER … [Read more...] about Defense Potpourri #1
Quote of the Day: Is Geithner On Borrowed Time Or Should He Get More Time?
Should Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner be on borrowed time -- or should he be given more time? In our political quote of the day Andrew Sullivan weighs in and, after looking at four key points, writes: Frankly, I see some screw-ups here, but I can also see a strategy that strikes a pretty good balance between competing demands of getting enough Wall Street cooperation to … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: Is Geithner On Borrowed Time Or Should He Get More Time?
House AIG Payback: House Considering Tax To Get Back 90% Of Bonuses
Is AIG about to get payback versus payout from the House and from the Justice Department? It seems that way amid reports that the House will likely vote on a proposal to tax the controversial bonuses given to the bailed out corporate giant as Attorney General Eric Holder looks into ways to recoup hefty rewards given to the failing company's executives: The House will vote … [Read more...] about House AIG Payback: House Considering Tax To Get Back 90% Of Bonuses
Office Depot Lying to Customers?
PC World: [F]ormer Office Depot employees claim the company has widely told its workers to do things such as adding optional service plans onto clearance items without telling customers. One source says associates would accomplish this by altering pricetags in Photoshop to make the base price look a hundred dollars higher, thereby giving the store the credit for selling the … [Read more...] about Office Depot Lying to Customers?
Great News! Military to Get Star Trek Style Phaser Cannons!
Ok... they're not actually phasers, but we are going to be seeing some seriously big honking lasers. Northrop Grumman has apparently broken one of the technological barriers to development and built a laser with more than 100 kW output which should pretty much fry anything in its sights. Huge news for real-life ray guns: Electric lasers have hit battlefield strength for the … [Read more...] about Great News! Military to Get Star Trek Style Phaser Cannons!
The Food Safety Working Group & HR 875
Obama Foodorama reacts to the announced formation of the Food Safety Working Group in the president's weekly address to the nation last Saturday: [I]t seems clear that rather than trying to re-invent the wheel at a moment in time when the American food system is in crisis mode, the White House is looking to coordinate all the resources currently available to monitor food … [Read more...] about The Food Safety Working Group & HR 875
The Fed End Game: Numbers
Earlier today I noted my skepticism of the Fed's plan to start printing money and buying treasuries. Yves Smith at Naked Capitalism has a detailed post that puts numbers behind my statement "Don’t get me wrong, the steps that they have announced thus far are not large enough to really change things one way or the other. This is merely a $300 billion (well $1 trillion with … [Read more...] about The Fed End Game: Numbers
IT’S TIME TO THROW GEITHNER UNDER THE BUS
No wonder Republicans have essentially opted out of participating in any government stimulus plans and turned on themselves as a distraction. They realize that their chances in November 2010 might be improved by just doing nothing. They know that by letting Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner run things, the banking and financial mess will drag out way beyond 2010 and the … [Read more...] about IT’S TIME TO THROW GEITHNER UNDER THE BUS
Obama And AIG: No More Mr. Nice Guy?
On a day when the initials "AIG" were becoming almost as familiar to the average American as the initials "MTV," President Barack Obama did a town hall meeting in Costa Mesa -- a meeting sure to get local media coverage, national coverage and provide sound bites galore for news shows, talk radio hosts and blog embeds. And one thing seemed clear before he left and once he got … [Read more...] about Obama And AIG: No More Mr. Nice Guy?
Yes, I Watch Rachel Maddow
On Monday night, Maddow invited counterinsurgency expert John Nagl to discuss Afghanistan in her 'Talk Me Down' segment. Nagl is a retired lieutenant colonel who commanded an Army battalion in Baghdad and wrote Learning to Eat Soup With a Knife, an influential analysis of American failures in Vietnam. In addition, Nagl worked with David Petraeus on Field Manual 3-24, the … [Read more...] about Yes, I Watch Rachel Maddow
U.S. and Pakistan
Two worthy reads on one of the U.S.A.'s most critical relationships - the one with Pakistan This one from the Daily Jang, translated from Urdu by the people at Watching America.com, and this one from the Guardian in England... (left untranslated from British English!) … [Read more...] about U.S. and Pakistan
Google Rules, A Biblical Interpretation
Ron Smith, a San Diego pastor, was reading What Would Google Do? the book by Jeff Jarvis. When he got to the New Ethic chapter, page 91, he saw a connection between the Google "rules" as articulated by Jarvis, and his work in the church. Behold, Google rules reinterpreted biblically: Make mistakes well. As I write my Doctorate I am learning that one of the most detestable … [Read more...] about Google Rules, A Biblical Interpretation
U.S. ‘Must Accept Reality of China’s Growing Strength’: Wen Wei Po of Hong Kong
Given the growing strength of China's military and the fact that the People's Republic of China is America's largest creditor, is it time for the United States to curtail its military surveillance in and around that nation? According to this editorial from Hong Kong's China-owned Wen Wei Po, Beijing recommends in part: "Washington should size up the situation and learn from … [Read more...] about U.S. ‘Must Accept Reality of China’s Growing Strength’: Wen Wei Po of Hong Kong
Boeing Unveils Its F-15 Silent Eagle—With Fifth-Generation “Add-Ons”
Boeing yesterday unveiled the F-15 Silent Eagle (F-15SE) which, according to Boeing, "... is designed to meet our international customers' anticipated need for cost-effective stealth technologies, as well as for large and diverse weapons payloads," and "The innovative Silent Eagle is a balanced, affordable approach designed to meet future survivability needs." While not a … [Read more...] about Boeing Unveils Its F-15 Silent Eagle—With Fifth-Generation “Add-Ons”
The Fed End Game
People are rightly outraged about the AIG bonuses [um, why not the Merrill Lynch ones that were far bigger and possibly involved outright fraud?] but the amounts involved in that are tiny compared to the size of our problems. I would agree that the bonuses themselves far outweigh their monetary value because they are reflective of an insular, entitlement mentality that has … [Read more...] about The Fed End Game
Chavez Tells Obama: ‘Align Yourself Toward Socialism with Us’: El Financiero, Mexico
Days ago, the wire services reported that Venezuela President Hugo Chavez invited President Obama to join him in 'socialism.' We translated this article from Mexico's El Financiero, which contains that quote along with some others. Chavez also explains why he thinks it correct that democratically-elected leaders remain in office as long as the people want to vote for them and … [Read more...] about Chavez Tells Obama: ‘Align Yourself Toward Socialism with Us’: El Financiero, Mexico