.
Older Americans now take over 8 prescription drugs a day to sustain their lives. All health care reform is going to do it make it easier and cheaper to take more prescriptions. But after spending a lifetime taking vaccines, booster shots, antibiotics, and maintenance drugs, all which contributed to poor health and higher insurance premiums, what can we do? I say stop taking prescription drugs. The only reason you have to is because you spent your life doing what they told you to do.
It is time we said enough is enough and started getting well rather than getting treated. But before we make such a dramatic step forward in survival you need to take The I Don't Need Creed. It goes something like this.
The I Don't Need Creed!
I don't need drugs for depression because I'm not depressed.
I don't need drugs to relax because I'm already relaxed.
I don't need drugs to sleep because I don't feel like sleeping.
I don't need drugs to wake up because I didn't take drugs to sleep.
I don't need drugs to have sex because, well, it's none of your business.
I don't need drugs for sore legs because I earned the pain.
I don't need drugs for aching joints because I played hard as a kid.
I don't need drugs for cancer because I just might not have it.
I don't need drugs to eat because I'm not hungry.
I don't need drugs to run the marathon because it's a stupid thing to do.
I don't need drugs for being tired because I'm not tired.
I don't need drugs for plastic surgery because I like who I am.
I don't need drugs just because I'm eligible for AARP.
I don't need drugs to stop smoking because I stopped.
I don't need drugs for brittle bones because they aren't brittle.
I don't need drugs for my teeth and gums because they don't hurt.
I don't need drugs for wrinkles because I laughed enough to earn them.
I don't need drugs for soft or brittle nails because they look just fine.
I don't need drugs for smooth skin because smooth is not me.
I don't need drugs for gray hair because I should be getting gray.
I don't need drugs for being left handed because ass backward is okay by me.
I don't need drugs for nightmares because I might learn a lesson.
I don't need drugs for headaches for glasses because I can see just fine.
I don't need drugs for moles or warts because they don't bother me.
I don't need drugs to think better because I think just enough.
I don't need drugs to be happy because my eyes are open.
I don't need drugs for self esteem because I'm not ashamed of who I am.
I don't need drugs for doing stupid things because I might need them all the time.
I don't need drugs to eat better because I'm already big enough.
I don't need drugs to diet because I can stop eating junk.
I don't need drugs for a cold because I was out in the rain.
I don't need drugs to feel well because I want to keep feeling well.
I don't need drugs for thin blood because I already bleed too much.
I don't need drugs for a stroke because I don't have one.
I don't need drugs for mosquito bites because they are supposed to bite.
I don't need drugs for tick or flea bites because I don't walk in the woods.
I don't need drugs for clean water to drink because all the water is dirty.
I don't need drugs to stop heartburn because I don't have it yet.
I don't need drugs to stop headaches because I can turn off the TV.
I don't need drugs for Alzheimer's because I don't remember having it.
THE END
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Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Janey Cutler New Susan Boyle of Britain
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As if Susan Boyle, the 49 year old sensation introduced to the world on Britain's Got Talent last year is not enough, yet another more senior talent has been discovered from the pubs of Golly Old England.
You may recall that Susan Boyle had the best selling album in the world in 2009, with 8.3 million worldwide sales, almost four times as many sales as country star Taylor Swift.
This year's competition features Janey Cutler, an 81 year old pub singer, mother of 7 and grandmother of 4, who wowed the judges. Check her out yourself on this Youtube video.
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As if Susan Boyle, the 49 year old sensation introduced to the world on Britain's Got Talent last year is not enough, yet another more senior talent has been discovered from the pubs of Golly Old England.
You may recall that Susan Boyle had the best selling album in the world in 2009, with 8.3 million worldwide sales, almost four times as many sales as country star Taylor Swift.
This year's competition features Janey Cutler, an 81 year old pub singer, mother of 7 and grandmother of 4, who wowed the judges. Check her out yourself on this Youtube video.
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Zombie Satellite Causes Astronomical Buzz
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I have been warning you of the dangers from increased solar activity. So far we have discussed the potential for auto malfunctions, cell phone disruptions, television signal jamming and even a failure of the power grid. Here is a story about more evidence of the power of the sun to change our lives.
by Claudine Zap
Don't be alarmed. High above your heads, a zombie satellite is on the loose. OK, actually, it won't really be a bother to us earthlings. Or at least to most of us. (More on that later.) But the rogue communications satellite is wreaking havoc in Earth's orbit and does threaten to interfere with signals coming from other satellites. Here's the backstory...
The communications satellite named Galaxy 15 lost contact with ground control after a solar flare probably fried its brain. As a story from the Christian Science Monitor reports, attempts from Earth to contact the satellite have been unsuccessful. But instead of just dying and drifting off, the satellite has continued to orbit the Earth, even though it refuses to receive instructions from its owner, Intelsat.
For the science nerds out there: The satellite is still on, with its "C-band telecommunications payload still functioning even as it has left its assigned orbital slot of 133 degrees west longitude 36,000 kilometers over the equator." Translation: Not good.
What's confounding scientists is that even though the satellite is toast, it continues to operate at full power, but with nobody telling it what to do. Why on earth we should care: The "zombiesat" (as its known in space talk) could steal a working sat signal, and interrupt programming for its customers. Yes, that means our television programs. The horror. As the blog Boing Boing points out, Galaxy 15 was one of the satellites that carried the Syfy channel's signal. And now it's met an end good enough to be its own Syfy show.
The Galaxy 15 is on course to mess with an SES satellite that transmits to Luxembourg. If it's any consolation to the good people of Luxembourg, officials are calling the situation "unprecedented."
The undead satellite has caused searches for "galaxy 15 satellite" to rise an astronomical 10,300% in the last week. Searches were also out of this world for "nasa satellite imagery," "satellite photo," and "nasa satellites." It's also caused people to wonder "how many satellites are in space." Not enough to bump into each other. Yet.
.
I have been warning you of the dangers from increased solar activity. So far we have discussed the potential for auto malfunctions, cell phone disruptions, television signal jamming and even a failure of the power grid. Here is a story about more evidence of the power of the sun to change our lives.
by Claudine Zap
Don't be alarmed. High above your heads, a zombie satellite is on the loose. OK, actually, it won't really be a bother to us earthlings. Or at least to most of us. (More on that later.) But the rogue communications satellite is wreaking havoc in Earth's orbit and does threaten to interfere with signals coming from other satellites. Here's the backstory...
The communications satellite named Galaxy 15 lost contact with ground control after a solar flare probably fried its brain. As a story from the Christian Science Monitor reports, attempts from Earth to contact the satellite have been unsuccessful. But instead of just dying and drifting off, the satellite has continued to orbit the Earth, even though it refuses to receive instructions from its owner, Intelsat.
For the science nerds out there: The satellite is still on, with its "C-band telecommunications payload still functioning even as it has left its assigned orbital slot of 133 degrees west longitude 36,000 kilometers over the equator." Translation: Not good.
What's confounding scientists is that even though the satellite is toast, it continues to operate at full power, but with nobody telling it what to do. Why on earth we should care: The "zombiesat" (as its known in space talk) could steal a working sat signal, and interrupt programming for its customers. Yes, that means our television programs. The horror. As the blog Boing Boing points out, Galaxy 15 was one of the satellites that carried the Syfy channel's signal. And now it's met an end good enough to be its own Syfy show.
The Galaxy 15 is on course to mess with an SES satellite that transmits to Luxembourg. If it's any consolation to the good people of Luxembourg, officials are calling the situation "unprecedented."
The undead satellite has caused searches for "galaxy 15 satellite" to rise an astronomical 10,300% in the last week. Searches were also out of this world for "nasa satellite imagery," "satellite photo," and "nasa satellites." It's also caused people to wonder "how many satellites are in space." Not enough to bump into each other. Yet.
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Where has the News Media been? - Of course Incumbents are Threatened this Year!
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After what seemed like a stunning defeat of Republican conservative Senator Bob Bennett in the Utah caucus to determine primary candidates the national media suddenly realized that all incumbent members of Congress could be an endangered species this fall.
What kind of idiots write for the news media? These are the same people who declared the national Tea Party movement dead at first, and then decided it was overrun by right wing radicals. Of course one of those right wing radicals was beaten up by left wing SEIU thugs but the media tends to overlook those kinds of facts.
But the fact of the matter is the news media, in particular the left leaning media, was dead wrong in doing a post mortem on the Tea Party just as they were dead wrong in believing the Tea Party was some kind of Republican plot. The Tea Party are Americans, Independents, Republicans and Democrats, who believe Washington, DC has lost touch.
They are the little people who know the corruption in our nation's capitol is so deep that the conflict of interest running rampant between politicians and special interests cannot be controlled, it must be eradicated. No politician is above the law and the people are fed up with the lame excuses from politicians, the conflicts of interest, the favoritism and the partisanship.
The Tea Party is sick of politicians who have excuses for what is not being done and who keep piling up greater and greater national debt, now projected at about $20 trillion under Obama and the Democrats. Bailouts, deficit spending, reckless bureaucracies and growing government are the enemies of the Tea Party people because politicians have demonstrated they do not have the decency, honesty or fortitude to fight for the people.
All incumbents are threatened in spite of the ignorance of the news media. What the media have accomplished with their constant efforts to manipulate the news and cover up for the crooks is to alienate themselves from the public as well as the politicians. No one believes in the integrity of the media nor should they.
News in America is advertiser based. We get the best news money can buy and quite frankly, their best is simply not good enough. All polls show that as politicians continue to lose credibility so do the news media who cover the politicians.
For over a year the people of America have let their disgust with existing politicians be known. For almost two years we have been writing about the growing discontent in the nation and the shift of Independents as well as conservatives from both parties into an anti-incumbent mood. The shift continues to grow and as it grows all incumbents are becoming targets.
There can be no doubt that high taxes, deficit spending, increased debt and bailouts are the enemy of the people. If incumbents participated in any of these actions there time may be limited. It is a long overdue purge of the partisan, corrupt politicians in Washington. Keep spending money, keep ignoring the growing debt, keep crooked campaign laws in effect and you may very well be seeing the end of you career in politics.
.
After what seemed like a stunning defeat of Republican conservative Senator Bob Bennett in the Utah caucus to determine primary candidates the national media suddenly realized that all incumbent members of Congress could be an endangered species this fall.
What kind of idiots write for the news media? These are the same people who declared the national Tea Party movement dead at first, and then decided it was overrun by right wing radicals. Of course one of those right wing radicals was beaten up by left wing SEIU thugs but the media tends to overlook those kinds of facts.
But the fact of the matter is the news media, in particular the left leaning media, was dead wrong in doing a post mortem on the Tea Party just as they were dead wrong in believing the Tea Party was some kind of Republican plot. The Tea Party are Americans, Independents, Republicans and Democrats, who believe Washington, DC has lost touch.
They are the little people who know the corruption in our nation's capitol is so deep that the conflict of interest running rampant between politicians and special interests cannot be controlled, it must be eradicated. No politician is above the law and the people are fed up with the lame excuses from politicians, the conflicts of interest, the favoritism and the partisanship.
The Tea Party is sick of politicians who have excuses for what is not being done and who keep piling up greater and greater national debt, now projected at about $20 trillion under Obama and the Democrats. Bailouts, deficit spending, reckless bureaucracies and growing government are the enemies of the Tea Party people because politicians have demonstrated they do not have the decency, honesty or fortitude to fight for the people.
All incumbents are threatened in spite of the ignorance of the news media. What the media have accomplished with their constant efforts to manipulate the news and cover up for the crooks is to alienate themselves from the public as well as the politicians. No one believes in the integrity of the media nor should they.
News in America is advertiser based. We get the best news money can buy and quite frankly, their best is simply not good enough. All polls show that as politicians continue to lose credibility so do the news media who cover the politicians.
For over a year the people of America have let their disgust with existing politicians be known. For almost two years we have been writing about the growing discontent in the nation and the shift of Independents as well as conservatives from both parties into an anti-incumbent mood. The shift continues to grow and as it grows all incumbents are becoming targets.
There can be no doubt that high taxes, deficit spending, increased debt and bailouts are the enemy of the people. If incumbents participated in any of these actions there time may be limited. It is a long overdue purge of the partisan, corrupt politicians in Washington. Keep spending money, keep ignoring the growing debt, keep crooked campaign laws in effect and you may very well be seeing the end of you career in politics.
.
Elena Kagan - Supreme Court Nominee - Deserves the Nod
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President Obama nominated a third woman to the US Supreme Court and this time he has picked a winner. For whatever reason he ran the risk of alienating his own liberal base by nominating one of the most personable people possible and perhaps because of her absence of a paper trail, meaning a load of written judicial decisions, our politicians seem to be concerned about her lack of litigation and judicial background.
However, such background is not required to be nominated and Kagan has demonstrated throughout her life that she is a highly intellectual, well grounded and broadly experienced woman well deserving of being the youngest to currently serve on the Supreme Court. You try graduating from Princeton, Oxford and Harvard Law school with honors.
She was the first female Dean of Harvard Law School breaking down the barriers to one of the most male dominated bastions in America. Her outstanding record there included being accused of balancing the philosophical bias of Harvard professors, she actually recruited conservatives to bring about balance.
She was a teacher and comes from a family of teachers including two brothers and her mother. There are already underground rumors about her which has no place in the nomination process. Her record as a Dean, teacher, White House counsel, domestic affairs specialist and Solicitor General give her a broad range of experience not normally found on the Supreme Court.
More than anything else she brings a ready smile and a wit, something missing in most federal appointments, along with a dedication to protecting the Constitution. Obama did her no favors in saying she would be an advocate against corporate bad guys, totally uncalled for and even the Washington Post blasted him for his poor choice of words. A good Supreme Court justice will set aside their own bias in ruling in support of the Constitution. Obama is supposed to be a Constitutional lawyers though his comments have got him in trouble before.
There is no indication Kagan will do anything but defend the Constitution and there is nothing more we can ask of a Supreme Court justice. We believe she is an excellent choice.
We also encourage the Republicans on the committee that must confirm her to avoid the partisan politics that often undermine the nomination process and not let the process revolve around ideological issues but be based on her ability to stick to the Constitutional interpretation role expected of the Supreme Court.
Give her a chance to help balance the court with reason and make history with the third current woman to be appointed to the court. Maybe with three women Justices facing him at the next State of the Union Obama can be more presidential and not take cheap shots at the independent court.
.
President Obama nominated a third woman to the US Supreme Court and this time he has picked a winner. For whatever reason he ran the risk of alienating his own liberal base by nominating one of the most personable people possible and perhaps because of her absence of a paper trail, meaning a load of written judicial decisions, our politicians seem to be concerned about her lack of litigation and judicial background.
However, such background is not required to be nominated and Kagan has demonstrated throughout her life that she is a highly intellectual, well grounded and broadly experienced woman well deserving of being the youngest to currently serve on the Supreme Court. You try graduating from Princeton, Oxford and Harvard Law school with honors.
She was the first female Dean of Harvard Law School breaking down the barriers to one of the most male dominated bastions in America. Her outstanding record there included being accused of balancing the philosophical bias of Harvard professors, she actually recruited conservatives to bring about balance.
She was a teacher and comes from a family of teachers including two brothers and her mother. There are already underground rumors about her which has no place in the nomination process. Her record as a Dean, teacher, White House counsel, domestic affairs specialist and Solicitor General give her a broad range of experience not normally found on the Supreme Court.
More than anything else she brings a ready smile and a wit, something missing in most federal appointments, along with a dedication to protecting the Constitution. Obama did her no favors in saying she would be an advocate against corporate bad guys, totally uncalled for and even the Washington Post blasted him for his poor choice of words. A good Supreme Court justice will set aside their own bias in ruling in support of the Constitution. Obama is supposed to be a Constitutional lawyers though his comments have got him in trouble before.
There is no indication Kagan will do anything but defend the Constitution and there is nothing more we can ask of a Supreme Court justice. We believe she is an excellent choice.
We also encourage the Republicans on the committee that must confirm her to avoid the partisan politics that often undermine the nomination process and not let the process revolve around ideological issues but be based on her ability to stick to the Constitutional interpretation role expected of the Supreme Court.
Give her a chance to help balance the court with reason and make history with the third current woman to be appointed to the court. Maybe with three women Justices facing him at the next State of the Union Obama can be more presidential and not take cheap shots at the independent court.
.
Friday, May 07, 2010
UK Election Winner David Cameron Can't Get No Satisfaction Either
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Now we know where the sometimes confusing results of the elections in America come from, the UK. Only in America can you win the popular vote and lose the election (Bush-Gore 2000). So much of America is influenced by the old British Empire it is only appropriate our elections are as well.
Yesterday, on the 45th anniversary of the writing of the rock anthem I Can't Get No Satisfaction" by the legendary British invaders the Rolling Stones, the UK election ended with winner David Cameron singing I Can't Get No Satisfaction. Just like the Bush victory in 2000, this election ended in titillating controversy, what the British call a hung Parliament.
The 2000 election ended November 7 with Florida being a contested state and three rulings later by the US Supreme Court on December 12, Bush was officially declared the winner. Gore won the popular vote but Bush won the electoral vote and presidency.
In the UK the Conservatives knocked Prime Minister Brown out of the top spot by capturing around 306 seats in parliament to 258 for Brown's party but they were short of the 326 needed to take control of the government. Now the Conservatives have to cut a deal with the third place Liberal Democrat party, 57 seats, to share the victory or Brown, the loser, might just remain as Prime Minister under his government.
Sound complicated? Try explaining the US electoral college to the British.
The UK Conservative Unionist party is the center-right leaning party, the successor to the Tory party. You won't find many unions in America leaning center-right. The Labour party of Brown and previously Blair is center-left leaning, more like the American democrats and unions. But the Liberal Democrat party is the center left socialist liberal party, more like the far left in America.
Since Cameron and the Conservatives did not get a majority they have to cut a deal with the Liberal Democrats in order for Cameron to become Prime Minister. That would be like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck forming a coalition with Keith Obermann and Chris Matthews. Sounds more like a nuclear reaction.
Then
and now
Anyway, if no one can form a coalition then the Queen is stuck with figuring out who to ask to be the next prime minister and form a new government. She can get along with anyone since she has had 11 PMs from Winston Churchill to Gordon Brown but her 12th might be the toughest task.
By the way, the endorsement of American Idol's Simon Cowell at the last minute of David Cameron did not seem to be enough to get the Conservatives the majority. So now we wait and see if the British have any better luck than we did in 2000 and finally get a new PM.
.
Now we know where the sometimes confusing results of the elections in America come from, the UK. Only in America can you win the popular vote and lose the election (Bush-Gore 2000). So much of America is influenced by the old British Empire it is only appropriate our elections are as well.
Yesterday, on the 45th anniversary of the writing of the rock anthem I Can't Get No Satisfaction" by the legendary British invaders the Rolling Stones, the UK election ended with winner David Cameron singing I Can't Get No Satisfaction. Just like the Bush victory in 2000, this election ended in titillating controversy, what the British call a hung Parliament.
The 2000 election ended November 7 with Florida being a contested state and three rulings later by the US Supreme Court on December 12, Bush was officially declared the winner. Gore won the popular vote but Bush won the electoral vote and presidency.
In the UK the Conservatives knocked Prime Minister Brown out of the top spot by capturing around 306 seats in parliament to 258 for Brown's party but they were short of the 326 needed to take control of the government. Now the Conservatives have to cut a deal with the third place Liberal Democrat party, 57 seats, to share the victory or Brown, the loser, might just remain as Prime Minister under his government.
Sound complicated? Try explaining the US electoral college to the British.
The UK Conservative Unionist party is the center-right leaning party, the successor to the Tory party. You won't find many unions in America leaning center-right. The Labour party of Brown and previously Blair is center-left leaning, more like the American democrats and unions. But the Liberal Democrat party is the center left socialist liberal party, more like the far left in America.
Since Cameron and the Conservatives did not get a majority they have to cut a deal with the Liberal Democrats in order for Cameron to become Prime Minister. That would be like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck forming a coalition with Keith Obermann and Chris Matthews. Sounds more like a nuclear reaction.
Then
and now
Anyway, if no one can form a coalition then the Queen is stuck with figuring out who to ask to be the next prime minister and form a new government. She can get along with anyone since she has had 11 PMs from Winston Churchill to Gordon Brown but her 12th might be the toughest task.
By the way, the endorsement of American Idol's Simon Cowell at the last minute of David Cameron did not seem to be enough to get the Conservatives the majority. So now we wait and see if the British have any better luck than we did in 2000 and finally get a new PM.
.
The Wall Street Near Melt Down - Was It Greed, Manipulation or Cyber Attacks?
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Yesterday I was watching CNBC when in a six minute span the economic world nearly collapsed and then slowly made it's way back from the precipice of catastrophe to settle at a loss of 347 points. It was amazing how the stock market gurus once again totally lost control of the world financial markets, only this time in just six minutes, and then breathed a sigh of relief that we only lost a half a trillion dollars in value in one day.
Let me put that in a form you might understand. Let's say the foundation of the market is 7062 which is the market low during the recent recession reached in February 2009. That was down from a high of 14,161 in October 2007. That means 7062 is the modern foundation of the market, as low as it goes without a depression. This was after the housing, banking, auto and insurance collapses.
When the market opened yesterday it was at 10,868, a decent recovery from the low a year earlier. About 2:46 pm it was down about 300 points, a rather precipitous drop for the day. In the next six minutes the floor fell out from under the market as the Dow dropped 998.50 for the day, the largest one day drop in history. It happened so fast the trading machines could not keep up with the panic.
That means there was a 26% loss of the increased value of the stock market since it hit bottom in February a year ago. Six minutes and a 26% loss, which equaled over ONE TRILLION DOLLARS! If you were standing in front of your house and instantly over one fourth of your house disappeared, only to have a little over half of the loss reappear during the next 90 minutes, would you feel good about it?
Wall Street thinks we should feel good only part of the house disappeared. They think we are fortunate the loss for the day was only about half a trillion dollars rather than one trillion. I say they are nuts. These are the same people who failed to see the recession coming. The same people who lost over half of the value of our 401k and other retirements funds. The same ones who cost us over $6 trillion in home equity between 2007 and today.
What they aren't telling us is who profited from this market manipulation. It certainly did not just impact on the stock market. Someone, you listening Obama, needs to check the pattern of manipulation in currency and commodities markets as the stock market was having a bout of temporary insanity. Someone made billions if not more money in those few short minutes and the politicians better find out who.
As of today's open, the Australian dollar, the euro and the Canadian dollar are all down 4% over just two trading sessions. The Swiss franc is down 2.5%. The yen is up almost 5%. None of that is close to normal market volatility. In the commodities market gold is up a staggering $40 during the same period. Billions of dollars were made in these transactions, by whom? All the media attention was on the stock market but the big bucks were made in the currency and commodities markets.
Even the drop in oil futures has been breathtaking. Oil futures reached a high for the year just Monday and then dropped $9 a barrel since. Remember, in this day of no morals or ethics in the economy the big boys make just as much profit when commodities lose value as when they increase in value. Goldman Sachs is one of the masters at oil price manipulation. There is absolutely no justification for oil reaching new highs earlier this week as demand is down, inventories are up and the future world recovery is weak.
So far no one on Wall Street or in the Regulatory offices is taking the responsibility or blame. Of course not. Besides, it wasn't their money they were losing, it was ours. However, this is a clear case of the extreme vulnerability of the markets to cyber attacks. When you become dependent on machines and the market trading is driven by machines, and when you require the Internet to make sure the greedy money from all over the world can get into the market instantly, then hacking into such a system with today's lack of cyber security is child's play.
Why no one in the media or Obama administration is discussing the potential for a cyber attack as the cause of the massive market disruption is beyond me. Cyber security is the greatest threat to our financial system, far greater than the greed of Wall Street. Today such security does not exist. Just ask any intelligence agency because all of them including the Department of Defense have had their secure systems hacked.
Wake up Washington, the dangers to our financial system are only just becoming obvious. Did we forget that Osama Bin Laden once said bring down the financial system and you bring down America? Both the criminal networks and terrorists have recruited the best cyber minds in the world, not to mention foreign governments who would love to see American capitalism collapse, and their primary target in the world is the American economy. If we remain asleep at the switch much longer the train wreck they could cause in our economy could be far more powerful than any car bomb or limited nuclear attack.
.
Yesterday I was watching CNBC when in a six minute span the economic world nearly collapsed and then slowly made it's way back from the precipice of catastrophe to settle at a loss of 347 points. It was amazing how the stock market gurus once again totally lost control of the world financial markets, only this time in just six minutes, and then breathed a sigh of relief that we only lost a half a trillion dollars in value in one day.
Let me put that in a form you might understand. Let's say the foundation of the market is 7062 which is the market low during the recent recession reached in February 2009. That was down from a high of 14,161 in October 2007. That means 7062 is the modern foundation of the market, as low as it goes without a depression. This was after the housing, banking, auto and insurance collapses.
When the market opened yesterday it was at 10,868, a decent recovery from the low a year earlier. About 2:46 pm it was down about 300 points, a rather precipitous drop for the day. In the next six minutes the floor fell out from under the market as the Dow dropped 998.50 for the day, the largest one day drop in history. It happened so fast the trading machines could not keep up with the panic.
That means there was a 26% loss of the increased value of the stock market since it hit bottom in February a year ago. Six minutes and a 26% loss, which equaled over ONE TRILLION DOLLARS! If you were standing in front of your house and instantly over one fourth of your house disappeared, only to have a little over half of the loss reappear during the next 90 minutes, would you feel good about it?
Wall Street thinks we should feel good only part of the house disappeared. They think we are fortunate the loss for the day was only about half a trillion dollars rather than one trillion. I say they are nuts. These are the same people who failed to see the recession coming. The same people who lost over half of the value of our 401k and other retirements funds. The same ones who cost us over $6 trillion in home equity between 2007 and today.
What they aren't telling us is who profited from this market manipulation. It certainly did not just impact on the stock market. Someone, you listening Obama, needs to check the pattern of manipulation in currency and commodities markets as the stock market was having a bout of temporary insanity. Someone made billions if not more money in those few short minutes and the politicians better find out who.
As of today's open, the Australian dollar, the euro and the Canadian dollar are all down 4% over just two trading sessions. The Swiss franc is down 2.5%. The yen is up almost 5%. None of that is close to normal market volatility. In the commodities market gold is up a staggering $40 during the same period. Billions of dollars were made in these transactions, by whom? All the media attention was on the stock market but the big bucks were made in the currency and commodities markets.
Even the drop in oil futures has been breathtaking. Oil futures reached a high for the year just Monday and then dropped $9 a barrel since. Remember, in this day of no morals or ethics in the economy the big boys make just as much profit when commodities lose value as when they increase in value. Goldman Sachs is one of the masters at oil price manipulation. There is absolutely no justification for oil reaching new highs earlier this week as demand is down, inventories are up and the future world recovery is weak.
So far no one on Wall Street or in the Regulatory offices is taking the responsibility or blame. Of course not. Besides, it wasn't their money they were losing, it was ours. However, this is a clear case of the extreme vulnerability of the markets to cyber attacks. When you become dependent on machines and the market trading is driven by machines, and when you require the Internet to make sure the greedy money from all over the world can get into the market instantly, then hacking into such a system with today's lack of cyber security is child's play.
Why no one in the media or Obama administration is discussing the potential for a cyber attack as the cause of the massive market disruption is beyond me. Cyber security is the greatest threat to our financial system, far greater than the greed of Wall Street. Today such security does not exist. Just ask any intelligence agency because all of them including the Department of Defense have had their secure systems hacked.
Wake up Washington, the dangers to our financial system are only just becoming obvious. Did we forget that Osama Bin Laden once said bring down the financial system and you bring down America? Both the criminal networks and terrorists have recruited the best cyber minds in the world, not to mention foreign governments who would love to see American capitalism collapse, and their primary target in the world is the American economy. If we remain asleep at the switch much longer the train wreck they could cause in our economy could be far more powerful than any car bomb or limited nuclear attack.
.
Thursday, May 06, 2010
"Houston, We've had a Problem" - BP Gets Help - America responds as Well
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When the BP headquarters in Houston got word from the Deepwater Horizon oil platform there was an accident on April 20, 2010, it was almost 40 years to the day since the worst accident in the Apollo space program history took place on April 13, 1970.
That fateful message came from Apollo 13 as it streaked toward the moon under the command of James Lovell and an equipment malfunction never before encountered faced the scientists, engineers and computer jocks working to conquer space. It took the greatest mobilization of minds and the greatest American outpouring of prayer but by April 17 the crippled spacecraft had miraculously been safely landed back on earth.
Today, 40 years later, we face a similar impending catastrophe and once again it will take the greatest minds of scientists, engineers and computer jocks, along with the greatest outpouring of public support and prayer to avoid an even greater disaster.
The BP oil rig was pioneering deep water drilling reaching depths never before achieved, with the well going 35,000 feet below the ocean surface. If successful the technology would help make a giant leap forward toward American oil independence from foreign oil opening the way for billions of barrels of new, American offshore oil reserves for commercial production.
Far below the surface in pressures never before experienced, some 1,000 times more powerful than pressure on the water's surface, something went wrong and tragically, 11 experienced, dedicated oil veterans were killed as the rig exploded. Yet a more daunting task lie ahead, trying to cap a spewing well 5,000 feet deep and covered with 32,000 tons of debris from the rig that sank to the Gulf floor.
Washington politicians, as usual, immediately started finger pointing and issuing threats. Even White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs jumped into the bitter political environment with his reiteration of the threat by Obama's Interior Secretary Ken Salazar that Obama would "keep the boot on the neck of BP," a divisive and counterproductive ill-timed comment.
When faced with a technological crisis playing the blame game will never be a successful strategy. Some parts of the government responded, like the Coast Guard, but mostly it was more of the same from Washington. Politicians should keep their political shenanigans in our nation's capitol, we have work to do to help heal our nation on the Gulf.
Quietly, like Americans have always done when faced with a national crisis, the people set about the task of preparing for the worst and unselfishly offering to help. BP asked for the best minds from competitors like Chevron, Exxon, Shell, Conoco and Anadarko among others to help them devised a solution to the seemingly impossible task of stopping the 210,000 gallons a day of crude oil.
They came up with a plan never before attempted at such a depth to build and drop a 100 ton cone on the well 5,000 feet down. The first of three cones has been finished and it currently on the way to the site. By this weekend we will know if a major environmental disaster can be avoided.
But this doesn't just have national implications. There are over 8,300 offshore drilling rigs in operation around the world. All nations of the world will benefit from a successful response to this accident.
Offers of help have poured into the State Department from around the world as 13 nations and the United Nations have offered their people, equipment and resources to help stop the leak. U.S. neighbors Canada and Mexico are among those offering equipment and experts in containing and cleaning up the leak from the BP oil rig that exploded April 20.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Wednesday that the Coast Guard is evaluating the needs of the cleanup operation and will decide what, if any, aid to accept in the coming days. Also offering aid are Britain, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and the U.N. Environmental Program.
The response has also come from the people of America in ways the government, so caught up in political bickering, would never even consider. Hair salons from across the country have been collecting hair and sending it to the Gulf coast to be rolled into absorbent cloth and used to absorb oil that may reach the shore. Hair is a powerful absorbent and thousands of people are responding to this call for help.
Many others are flocking to the Gulf coast to help with the clean up of any oil that reaches the beaches and marshlands, to help with wildlife recovery and care, and to help in any way possible. These offers of help from the little people of America, people I refer to in my book The Joshua Chronicles as the "Raggedy People", the silent multitudes upon whom a new civilization will be built, reflect more of the spirit of America than politicians could ever hope to be.
They know the game of politics no longer works. They know now is not the time for blame but for hope, inspiration, dedication and innovation to overcome this potential disaster. Obama and Congress should be encouraging these efforts to help by the citizens, corporate community and other nations and save the blame game for later.
Today is the National Day of Prayer. Prayer works. It did for Apollo 13 and it can for the Deepwater Horizon crisis. If only our politicians would join together in prayer for the success of this massive international effort and this dramatic mobilization of the people we could all stand united in our purpose and maybe the prayers will be heard.
No one wanted this disaster to happen. BP has over 80,000 employees whose jobs are dependent on the oil being delivered safely. Millions of people are employed directly in the oil and gas industry and many millions more have jobs dependent on the oil industry. We all benefit from their efforts and our quality of life is much improved because of them.
America and Americans will help get us through this crisis, even if the politicians continue to stammer and sputter in Washington. It would be nice if our leadership would focus on the problem and help to mobilize and encourage those who are dedicated to solving problems, not compounding them. It would also help if they would attend their own Prayer Day activities and really listen to the message of the priests, ministers and rabbis. We are all in this together.
.
When the BP headquarters in Houston got word from the Deepwater Horizon oil platform there was an accident on April 20, 2010, it was almost 40 years to the day since the worst accident in the Apollo space program history took place on April 13, 1970.
That fateful message came from Apollo 13 as it streaked toward the moon under the command of James Lovell and an equipment malfunction never before encountered faced the scientists, engineers and computer jocks working to conquer space. It took the greatest mobilization of minds and the greatest American outpouring of prayer but by April 17 the crippled spacecraft had miraculously been safely landed back on earth.
Today, 40 years later, we face a similar impending catastrophe and once again it will take the greatest minds of scientists, engineers and computer jocks, along with the greatest outpouring of public support and prayer to avoid an even greater disaster.
The BP oil rig was pioneering deep water drilling reaching depths never before achieved, with the well going 35,000 feet below the ocean surface. If successful the technology would help make a giant leap forward toward American oil independence from foreign oil opening the way for billions of barrels of new, American offshore oil reserves for commercial production.
Far below the surface in pressures never before experienced, some 1,000 times more powerful than pressure on the water's surface, something went wrong and tragically, 11 experienced, dedicated oil veterans were killed as the rig exploded. Yet a more daunting task lie ahead, trying to cap a spewing well 5,000 feet deep and covered with 32,000 tons of debris from the rig that sank to the Gulf floor.
Washington politicians, as usual, immediately started finger pointing and issuing threats. Even White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs jumped into the bitter political environment with his reiteration of the threat by Obama's Interior Secretary Ken Salazar that Obama would "keep the boot on the neck of BP," a divisive and counterproductive ill-timed comment.
When faced with a technological crisis playing the blame game will never be a successful strategy. Some parts of the government responded, like the Coast Guard, but mostly it was more of the same from Washington. Politicians should keep their political shenanigans in our nation's capitol, we have work to do to help heal our nation on the Gulf.
Quietly, like Americans have always done when faced with a national crisis, the people set about the task of preparing for the worst and unselfishly offering to help. BP asked for the best minds from competitors like Chevron, Exxon, Shell, Conoco and Anadarko among others to help them devised a solution to the seemingly impossible task of stopping the 210,000 gallons a day of crude oil.
They came up with a plan never before attempted at such a depth to build and drop a 100 ton cone on the well 5,000 feet down. The first of three cones has been finished and it currently on the way to the site. By this weekend we will know if a major environmental disaster can be avoided.
But this doesn't just have national implications. There are over 8,300 offshore drilling rigs in operation around the world. All nations of the world will benefit from a successful response to this accident.
Offers of help have poured into the State Department from around the world as 13 nations and the United Nations have offered their people, equipment and resources to help stop the leak. U.S. neighbors Canada and Mexico are among those offering equipment and experts in containing and cleaning up the leak from the BP oil rig that exploded April 20.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Wednesday that the Coast Guard is evaluating the needs of the cleanup operation and will decide what, if any, aid to accept in the coming days. Also offering aid are Britain, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and the U.N. Environmental Program.
The response has also come from the people of America in ways the government, so caught up in political bickering, would never even consider. Hair salons from across the country have been collecting hair and sending it to the Gulf coast to be rolled into absorbent cloth and used to absorb oil that may reach the shore. Hair is a powerful absorbent and thousands of people are responding to this call for help.
Many others are flocking to the Gulf coast to help with the clean up of any oil that reaches the beaches and marshlands, to help with wildlife recovery and care, and to help in any way possible. These offers of help from the little people of America, people I refer to in my book The Joshua Chronicles as the "Raggedy People", the silent multitudes upon whom a new civilization will be built, reflect more of the spirit of America than politicians could ever hope to be.
They know the game of politics no longer works. They know now is not the time for blame but for hope, inspiration, dedication and innovation to overcome this potential disaster. Obama and Congress should be encouraging these efforts to help by the citizens, corporate community and other nations and save the blame game for later.
Today is the National Day of Prayer. Prayer works. It did for Apollo 13 and it can for the Deepwater Horizon crisis. If only our politicians would join together in prayer for the success of this massive international effort and this dramatic mobilization of the people we could all stand united in our purpose and maybe the prayers will be heard.
No one wanted this disaster to happen. BP has over 80,000 employees whose jobs are dependent on the oil being delivered safely. Millions of people are employed directly in the oil and gas industry and many millions more have jobs dependent on the oil industry. We all benefit from their efforts and our quality of life is much improved because of them.
America and Americans will help get us through this crisis, even if the politicians continue to stammer and sputter in Washington. It would be nice if our leadership would focus on the problem and help to mobilize and encourage those who are dedicated to solving problems, not compounding them. It would also help if they would attend their own Prayer Day activities and really listen to the message of the priests, ministers and rabbis. We are all in this together.
.
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Obama's Perfect Storm - Will it Sweep Democrats Out of Office?
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As more and more attention turns to the midterm elections next November it is beginning to look like President Obama just might have created the Perfect Storm, a rare once every 100 years opportunity, for the Republicans to sweep the Democrats out of the leadership and majority in the House and Senate.
Perhaps confusing his narrow election win and high favorable ratings early in his term for a real mandate from the people, did Obama and his gang totally miscalculate the mood of the public for sweeping liberal reforms? Every day the prospect looks more likely.
First of all Obama never had a mandate, he just had a chance to show what he could do. When he got elected people were fed up with government, the direction of the country and the bleak economic future. The wave of frustration he rode was not a wave of support for his liberal agenda for change. Misreading the political tea leaves was the biggest mistake of his early presidency.
The Democrat majority in the House under Pelosi and Senate under Reid got caught up in the same false sense of euphoria and they promptly introduced Obama's legislative program which sent the conservative conscious public into toxic shock.
Too many promises were made by the inexperienced Obama before he got elected. Too many old time politicians surrounded him after he got elected. In their delusional euphoria and at the intense urging of their many special interests an avalanche of new legislation was proposed and the public watched the future of the Republic sinking into a bottomless liberal spending pit.
To his credit, Obama seemed to regroup and started backing off from his many promises and interest groups, what with him being the pragmatic professor and consensus builder he sees in the mirror. Although his ardent partisanship did not stop as he drifted toward the middle of the political spectrum, the public thought there might still be hope for this young upstart.
After bailouts to Wall Street, banks, AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the auto industry at a cost of trillions of dollars that we did not have, the people had enough. Though they still did not blame Obama entirely for the debacle, as Pelosi and Reid had taken center stage when Obama decided to remain on the sidelines of the legislative battles, all the proposed bills became the subject of increased public attention.
Obama, with the help of Pelosi and Reid, then slammed through the health care bill with a dubious legislative rule that prevented Congress from direct votes on the merits of the legislation. That was the last straw for the public, as Obama's agenda was increasingly becoming the greatest danger to the financial security of the nation.
In desperation the brakes were put on many jewels of the liberal agenda like cap and trade in energy, card check for the unions, green energy for environmentalists and massive new aid for schools. A second stimulus bill was put on hold.
At the same time the public concern for the now approved Obama health care bill continued to slide downward, in spite of the passage of the bill. In truth the bill never had a chance for broad public support in spite of the rosy outlook offered by the liberal mainstream media. But the bill, reflecting Obama's penchant for putting off controversy until far into the future, like after the 2012 election, had delayed the implementation of to many of the things people wanted in the bill.
While Obama went on the road to build public support for the new legislation people watched as detailed analysis of the new bill, something that did not happen during the debate, now discovered that element after element of the new bill would not be implement for years.
The old political trick used by the Obama gang was exposed. As a result the financial reform bill was stalled until meaningful changes could be made to assure the Obama people were not playing with the fine print. It remains in the Senate being debated much to the frustration of Obama.
Suddenly another Obama promise is forced to center stage and again he is trapped. Arizona passes what Obama describes as a dangerous and flawed immigration bill. Finally the liberal media had another cause to champion and they promptly filled the airways and newspapers with vicious attacks on the state bill. Good old Harry Reid, in danger of being thrown out of his own Senate seat because of his Majority manipulations, then said he was bringing immigration reform to the national forefront.
Once again Obama, the Democrat leaders and the liberal media totally misread the mood of the public. Polls just released today indicate the public, by an overwhelming majority, support the Arizona state immigration bill that Obama and the Democrats condemned.
Here we go again. Thanks to the knee jerk reaction of the Democrats and media in unified opposition to the Arizona bill they are again standing in opposition to the public. Did Obama and the Democrats forget that the primary beneficiaries of their immigration bill are the illegal immigrants? Don't they understand that many of the current illegal immigrants already get better health care, food and may other forms of assistance that not even low income Americans qualify for?
The lack of health care reform activity, the focus on immigration and illegal immigration rights, the staggering national debt and the mountain of unfulfilled campaign promises are weighing ever heavily on the president and his campaign hopes of protecting his massive block of Democrats in Congress. It is a majority that has so far failed to do much of anything important to a public that is getting ready to go back to the polls.
If the president cannot stop the downward spiral of public support then America is going to do what it always does when the leadership is in doubt, they are going to elect a way to check the agenda and make sure that the first priority of Congress is fiscal integrity, something that has not happened under this president. The only viable conclusion is that Obama's Perfect Storm will bring about a Republican landslide in it's aftermath.
.
As more and more attention turns to the midterm elections next November it is beginning to look like President Obama just might have created the Perfect Storm, a rare once every 100 years opportunity, for the Republicans to sweep the Democrats out of the leadership and majority in the House and Senate.
Perhaps confusing his narrow election win and high favorable ratings early in his term for a real mandate from the people, did Obama and his gang totally miscalculate the mood of the public for sweeping liberal reforms? Every day the prospect looks more likely.
First of all Obama never had a mandate, he just had a chance to show what he could do. When he got elected people were fed up with government, the direction of the country and the bleak economic future. The wave of frustration he rode was not a wave of support for his liberal agenda for change. Misreading the political tea leaves was the biggest mistake of his early presidency.
The Democrat majority in the House under Pelosi and Senate under Reid got caught up in the same false sense of euphoria and they promptly introduced Obama's legislative program which sent the conservative conscious public into toxic shock.
Too many promises were made by the inexperienced Obama before he got elected. Too many old time politicians surrounded him after he got elected. In their delusional euphoria and at the intense urging of their many special interests an avalanche of new legislation was proposed and the public watched the future of the Republic sinking into a bottomless liberal spending pit.
To his credit, Obama seemed to regroup and started backing off from his many promises and interest groups, what with him being the pragmatic professor and consensus builder he sees in the mirror. Although his ardent partisanship did not stop as he drifted toward the middle of the political spectrum, the public thought there might still be hope for this young upstart.
After bailouts to Wall Street, banks, AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the auto industry at a cost of trillions of dollars that we did not have, the people had enough. Though they still did not blame Obama entirely for the debacle, as Pelosi and Reid had taken center stage when Obama decided to remain on the sidelines of the legislative battles, all the proposed bills became the subject of increased public attention.
Obama, with the help of Pelosi and Reid, then slammed through the health care bill with a dubious legislative rule that prevented Congress from direct votes on the merits of the legislation. That was the last straw for the public, as Obama's agenda was increasingly becoming the greatest danger to the financial security of the nation.
In desperation the brakes were put on many jewels of the liberal agenda like cap and trade in energy, card check for the unions, green energy for environmentalists and massive new aid for schools. A second stimulus bill was put on hold.
At the same time the public concern for the now approved Obama health care bill continued to slide downward, in spite of the passage of the bill. In truth the bill never had a chance for broad public support in spite of the rosy outlook offered by the liberal mainstream media. But the bill, reflecting Obama's penchant for putting off controversy until far into the future, like after the 2012 election, had delayed the implementation of to many of the things people wanted in the bill.
While Obama went on the road to build public support for the new legislation people watched as detailed analysis of the new bill, something that did not happen during the debate, now discovered that element after element of the new bill would not be implement for years.
The old political trick used by the Obama gang was exposed. As a result the financial reform bill was stalled until meaningful changes could be made to assure the Obama people were not playing with the fine print. It remains in the Senate being debated much to the frustration of Obama.
Suddenly another Obama promise is forced to center stage and again he is trapped. Arizona passes what Obama describes as a dangerous and flawed immigration bill. Finally the liberal media had another cause to champion and they promptly filled the airways and newspapers with vicious attacks on the state bill. Good old Harry Reid, in danger of being thrown out of his own Senate seat because of his Majority manipulations, then said he was bringing immigration reform to the national forefront.
Once again Obama, the Democrat leaders and the liberal media totally misread the mood of the public. Polls just released today indicate the public, by an overwhelming majority, support the Arizona state immigration bill that Obama and the Democrats condemned.
Here we go again. Thanks to the knee jerk reaction of the Democrats and media in unified opposition to the Arizona bill they are again standing in opposition to the public. Did Obama and the Democrats forget that the primary beneficiaries of their immigration bill are the illegal immigrants? Don't they understand that many of the current illegal immigrants already get better health care, food and may other forms of assistance that not even low income Americans qualify for?
The lack of health care reform activity, the focus on immigration and illegal immigration rights, the staggering national debt and the mountain of unfulfilled campaign promises are weighing ever heavily on the president and his campaign hopes of protecting his massive block of Democrats in Congress. It is a majority that has so far failed to do much of anything important to a public that is getting ready to go back to the polls.
If the president cannot stop the downward spiral of public support then America is going to do what it always does when the leadership is in doubt, they are going to elect a way to check the agenda and make sure that the first priority of Congress is fiscal integrity, something that has not happened under this president. The only viable conclusion is that Obama's Perfect Storm will bring about a Republican landslide in it's aftermath.
.
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