Am I on my way to Hooverville? I'm retired and living off my Washington State public employees retirement fund pension. I was happy to learn that yesterday the fund took a $130 million loss due to the Lehman failure. Plus my home mortgage is held my WAMU. Oh Shit!
I'm sure this is happening to retirees funds all over the country both public and private. I'm a exception to the rule but, you probably know one of the biggest supporters of McCain is the over 50 demographic group. I think many of the white folks over 50 have a hangup about voting for a black man. Maybe the economic crisis will help them overcome their racism. So when will the over 50 crowd wake up and realize that we can't afford four more years of Republican economics?
Could this swing the State of Florida to Obama perhaps? Via: McClatchy
"The bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, a prestigious Wall Street firm, will touch Florida's pension funds and the state-run insurer because both hold its securities.
The State Board of Administration holds $322 million in Lehman stock and bonds. The SBA manages the state's employee fund and more than two dozen other funds, including assets for the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund and the Florida Prepaid College Plan.
Dennis McKee, a spokesman for the SBA, said the agency has an $84 million unrealized loss on its holdings.
About two-thirds of the securities are held by the Florida Retirement System, which includes the pension funds for local counties such as Miami-Dade and Broward. The rest is spread out in the catastrophe fund and the Lawton Chiles Endowment Fund, which helps fund Medicare.
McGee said because the SBA is such a substantial investor in the financial markets, with more than $159 billion in funds under management, the agency has a relationship with most of the large Wall Street houses.
The agency said it was trying to quantify its relationship with Merrill Lynch and American International Group, a major insurance company that is seeking a $40 million capital injection from the Federal Reserve Bank to avoid being downgraded by the credit rating agencies."
Here's the video that YouTube censored. Palin's third wave movement sees the world basically under the influence of demons that believers are to do battle against. Many in the movement believe that people can become "little gods or god like" by fasting purification and prayer. Do we really want someone this out there religiously with her finger potentially on the nuclear trigger?
In lite of the fact that the totally inexperienced Sarah Palin is now going to be a heartbeat away from becoming President, should McCain die, shouldn't the issue of McCain's health be put back on the front burner? Let's see those records Johnny Boy!
"There our next door neighbors" perky Sarah Palin told Charlie Gipson in her recent interview responding to a question about her understanding and qualifications to deal with Russia, should she become president. She'd "perhaps" go to war in defense of Georgia should they become a member of NATO, " I mean, that is the agreement when you are a NATO ally, is if another country is attacked, you're going to be expected to be called upon and help." The going to war part said in the tone of someone talking about baking a pie to take over to the neighbors.
On September 11th Russian bombers were welcomed to Venezuela by presidente Hugo Chavez. This is part of the tit for tat nature of the new American Russian global relationship. But one must ask oneself, aren't the Russians just responding in kind to American sword rattling and bullying?
Chavez and Venezuela really aren't the point here.
As much as I dislike Chavez for his anti American rants, one must admit that he often hits pretty close to home with an zinger or his nasty rhetoric about American foreign policies effect on OTHER people in the world. For some unknown reason, to Americans, it hits home with millions of people around the world who see the United States as the real global troublemaker here.
But were would they get that idea?
For some time now Russian Prime Minister and actual leader Alexander Putin has opposed Bush's plan to deploy the space based missile defense shield aimed at Russia and often referred to as Star Wars. That in addition to the long standing Russian objection to the scrapping of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty after Bush became our fearless leader in 2001 have stirred up the Russian leadership.
Fast forward to now where John McCain's and Sarah Palin's recent saber rattling "today we are all Georgians" remarks about the Russian response to the Georgian military invasion of disputed territory within it realm of influence. A remark made by McCain to score quick political points during our presidential election season with clueless low information and insecure American voters. America is propably not going to start a war with Russia over Georgia. Add Condoleeza Rice and Bush's incompetent bullshit to the mix and we're well on our way to the further breakdown of relations between two of the most powerful nations on earth. It also seems to me that Alexander Putin is about twice as smart as McCain, Palin, Bush and Rice put together.
But lets get back to the real cause and effect. It's not rocket science to imaging just how difficult it will be to actually deploy a missile defense system that's trying to destroy incoming warheads traveling a high speeds. Not to mention the astronomical cost of such a program that would further bankrupted this country. One would think a better course of action would be to use diplomacy to promote peace and understanding between nations instead of building more tension escalating boondoggle weapons systems.
Think of it like this: It's okay for the US to unilaterally invade a country halfway around the world but not okay for Russia to invade a country it has had centuries of share history and relations with that's next door. What would we do if Cuba suddenly invaded Puerto Rico or Cuba tried to join something like the old Warsaw Pact?
What most people didn't get, because it has not been widely or correctly reported in the American press, was that Georgia actually provoked the action by invading the disputed territory of South Ossetia. Here a excerpt from an editorial in the Guardian:"First, History seems to indicate that Russia certainly has some legitimate reasons to claim influence over these disputed areas like "the majority of the 75,000 Ossetians are pro-Russian, and have long been angling to join North Ossetia, which is part of the Russian Federation. Second, many Ossetians have now got Russian citizenship and passports. This is a dispute that predates both the Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili, and the Putin era. Fourth, rushing to the aid of separatists was a precedent set by the west in Kosovo. Russia gave us fair warning of the consequences."
Also there is evidence that Georgian pro American leader Mikhail Saakashvili would rather internationalize this crisis by fanning the old East West cold war flames. Apparently there is some evidence that a McCain operative been egging him on. It certainly gives McCain a stage to play the look I'm the experience military guy we need in a dangerous world role.
If so, then it maybe time for a union. Here's a video from the friendly folks who support the Employee Free Choice Act with some important information.
You better wake up because now the fascist Republican Party is fucking with your right to vote! If there isn't a national outrage about this shit there certainly should be.
Republican party organizations and operatives have apparently commenced to engage in the wide ranging Carl Rove tactic of attempting to suppress Democratic Party voters nationwide. It’s a tactic known as voter caging.
In the battleground State of Ohio and several other battleground states reports are surfacing of the Republican tactic to cage Democratic Party voters. In case your not aware of what exactly it is, it’s the practice of contacting registered Democrats usually through the mail with such things as dummy pre-election request for absentee ballots or other election related information. The mailers also contain a DO NOT FORWARD request for the post office if they should be, for any reason, undeliverable. Another variation of the tactic is to ask the voter to verify they are eligible to vote or not by checking a obscure box on the mailer should it actually be returned to it's Republican operative source. If the check box is overlooked or mark as ineligible the information is then used later to challenge the voter’s eligibility with local election officials.
There are several variations of the tactic using a mailer that's returned to the Republican Party source and then used to claim that a voter it was sent to is not properly registered because of an invalid address change or other trumped up reason that may be required in the voter's home state or county in order for them to be considered eligible voters.
I would think that the average voter isn't that aware of all the intricacies of remaining eligible to vote in their particular location. But they better get informed about it now and verify that they are eligible before the election because the Republicans apparently plan on challenging your right to vote if you've moved and not corrected your address or otherwise given them a reason to do so based on your local election laws.
As unbelievable as it seems, there are also reports that Republicans are mailing to lists of foreclosure victims knowing that they are not at the address the mailer is sent to because they lost their freaking homes. Once again when the mailer is returned to sender the undeliverable ballot is used to claim the voter is not properly registered. This is a double insult because the Republican economy is responsible for most of these middle class folks losing there homes in the first place. Kick them while they’re down should be McCain’s new slogan not Country First.
This is a effective tactic for the Republicans in battleground states because it can be used to reduce Democratic votes enough to change the outcome of the election in a close race. The tactic is not just effective with the top of the ticket but also helps in down ticket races. In the last gubernatorial election in 2004 in Washington State the eventual Democrat winner Chris Gregiore won by less then 1000 votes after Republicans had some success suppressing votes by challenging eligibility.
The bottom line is Republicans are not really interested in making sure everyone right to vote is protected. They are more interested in suppressing your votes on technicalities, especially if you’re a registered Democrat. Winning is everything with these especially sleazy Republican scumbags evidently, even if it means disenfranchising voters who would normally be consider eligible to vote.
Is this type of shit what our forefather fought and died to protect? I think not!
John McCain and Sarah Palin like to tell everyone they are against congressional earmarks because supposedly they're a waste of the taxpayer money. One would think that such lies would be a outright hypocrisy given the fact that under Palin's watch as mayor of the town of Wasilla and Governor of the State Alaska she help lead the nation in eating from the government trough. This video from TPM makes that point all to well. Wake up America!
Sorry no more mister nice guy from me with this woman.
If elected it's sure starting to sound like Sarah Palin will bring be her new rich white trash lifestyle to the White House apparently. Where she'll probably spend most of her time trying to pass laws that tell you what you can and cannot read.
All we'll need then is a double wide on the white house lawn and a couple of broken down big wheel trucks parked nearby. Maybe a snarling dog on a chain. That's if she got the time after making sure we're all ready for the end of the world. The end will be near if we finally elect this Jerry Springer show reject.
The ABC report below on her attempt to intimidate her hometown librarian into removing books from the library should be required viewing for all. Your next.
I remembered this photo of a sign someone put up about two years into Bush's "get them dead or alive" bullshit talking bravado. What the fuck is wrong with the people in this country that they would want to replace such a loser like Bush with a carbon copy John McCain now joined by a religious fanatic whose closer to 1850 in her thinking then anything to do with the future.
But, where the hell is Osama Day 2534? Happy 9/11 America.
Informed Comment has a interesting take on the McCain speech and mind set. That McCain is trying to have a do over of the VietNam war. In this version America's military wins and McCain is vindicated.
"McCain's convention speech positioned him as John Rambo. The popularity of the Rambo: First Blood 2, historian Melani McAlister argued in her Epic Encounters, derived from the way it allowed its hero, a betrayed veteran, to fight the Vietnam War all over again and to win this time. McAlister suggests that the popularity in the United States of Israeli macho operations such as Entebbe derived from this same Rambo complex, a desire to compensate for the humiliating defeat of the United States by the Vietnamese and their Chinese and Russian allies.
McCain dwelled at length on his years as a prisoner of the Vietnamese and even adverted briefly to having been broken by torture. The rage and abasement of that moment when he signed a confession of war crimes and denounced the United States."
McCain has spoken of his breaking before, as in an October 12, 1997 60 Minutes interview that his critics sometimes misquote:
"Sen. McCAIN: I m--made serious, serious mistakes and did things wrong when I was in prison, OK?
WALLACE: What did you do wrong in prison?
Sen. McCAIN: I wrote a confession. I was guilty of war crimes against the Vietnamese people. I intentionally bombed women and children.
WALLACE: And you did it because you were being tortured...
Sen. McCAIN: I...
WALLACE: ...and you'd reached the end of the line.
Sen. McCAIN: Yes. But I should have gone further. I should have--I--I never believed that I would--that I would break, and I did."
Turn around is fair play when it comes to scaring the shit out of voters. This ad about John McCain's risky decision to place a inexperienced holy roller end times hockey mom a heart beat away uses some Republican playbook fear tactics to put his choice of Sarah Palin in perspective. It asked the question. What other impulsive and gimmicky national security decisions could McCain have up his sleeve if he is actually elected?
This is quite unbelievable. journalists had their cameras and computers confiscated after being stopped while walking on a city street in St Paul. The odd thing about it is that in the end no charges were filed and apparently their property was returned.
The fact that Sarah Palin's daughter is having an out of wedlock baby is not the point. The point is that Palin whole-heatedly supports positions on teen pregnancy, abortion rights and sex education that may force your daughter into the same predicament of an unwanted pregnancy. Alaska is number 3 in the nation in teen pregnancy birth rates.
Studies have found that abstinence only educations is a not effective in stopping unwanted teen sexual activity and pregnancies. This could be your pregnant daughter if Palin is elected and allowed to influence future attempts to lower teen pregnancy rates through such things as sex education programs. The United States led the way amongst modern nations in it's lack of proper sex education for teens. No wonder we also lead most of the world in teen pregnancy and unhealthy approaches to human sexual activity.
Sarah Palin maybe Annie Oakley and a fine human being, even if she is obviously too inexperienced in foreign policy to be elected Vice President, but what Democrats and Independents need to focus on is that this woman is more dangerously to the right of even John McCain on many important family values issues that would effect how you and your children live in a so called modern society.
In the wake of mounting evidence that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was not properly vetted and that she is becoming a continuing distraction, the McCain campaign announced today that she will be dropped from the ticket and replaced with the just located corpse of Mount St. Helens Volcano mountain man and independent thinker Harry Truman.
"If this place is gonna go, I want to go with it, 'cause if I lost it, it would kill me in a week anyway", Harry said while killing a bottle of Oly the last time he was seen. Known as a survivalist, outdoorsy man and free thinker when he was alive he championed much of the same political ideology of the now deposed Palin. His well known refusal to move off the rumbling volcano demonstrated the same staunch closed minded-ness and determination that Palin has demonstrated on such things as not giving a woman control over her own reproduction rights and not allowing sex education in the schools. Plus he was known to own lots of guns.
Actually it's comedian Sara Benincasa impression of the perky VP candidate Palin. Benincasa nails the voice mannerisms and makes you feel creepy at the thought that the real Palin is not so far from the fictional one she plays here who could become a heart beat away from filling in for Pops McCain should he not take his Geritol.
The Northwest and Seattle once were a hotbed for the labor movement and the other radical organizations fighting for workers rights, better working conditions and power. Many middle and lower class workers were more then happy to join a union and as a member fight for better conditions. The general attitude about workers general struggle with business was looked at differently by most workers.
Union power began to diminish over the years and by the 1970's with the growth of corporate power and influence and control of the government weakening worker protections and labor laws to such an extent that organizing began to suffer extensively.
This together with the enormous shift from an industrial and manufacturing society to a service white collar based economy hurt labor membership. White collar workers were easily frighten about potential conflict with their employer and most employers would not hesitate to use tactics to intimidated employees who may consider starting a union. Especially with government refusing to enforce the law that was meant to protect their organizing.
Organized labor's own internal corruption problems and inability to modernize it's out of date message also added to the problem of attracting new generations of members.
"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration." Abraham Lincoln
Washington State has always been among the states with the highest number of workers per capita who were members of unions. It was more unusual for a worker not to be in a union then to be unrepresent not that many years ago.
Am I on my way to Hooverville? I'm retired and living off my Washington State public employees retirement fund pension. I was happy to learn that yesterday the fund took a $130 million loss due to the Lehman failure. Plus my home mortgage is held my WAMU. Oh Shit!
