Dopey Endorses McCain-Palin

Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs

The seven dwarfs always left to go work in the mine early each morning. As always, Snow White stayed home doing her domestic chores.

As lunchtime approached, she would prepare their lunch and carry it to the mine.

One day as she arrived at the mine with the lunch, she saw that there had been a terrible cave-in. Tearfully, and fearing the worst, Snow White began calling out, hoping against hope that the dwarfs had somehow survived.

"Hello!...Hello!" she shouted. "Can anyone hear me? Hello!"

For a long while, there was no answer.

Losing hope, Snow White again shouted, "Hello! Is anyone down there?"

Just as she was about to give up all hope, she heard a faint voice from deep within the mine, singing . . .

"Vote for McCain/Palin!! - Vote for McCain/Palin!!"

Snow White fell to her knees, crossed herself and prayed, "Oh, thank you, God! At least Dopey is still alive!"

The Great Palin Speaks Again

When asked this week about her foreign policy experience and Alaska’s proximity to Russia by Katie Couric of CBS News, The Great Palin explained:

“That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and on our other side, the land — boundary that we have with — Canada. It’s funny that a comment like that was kind of made to — cari — I don’t know, you know? Reporters ...”

“Mocked?” said Couric.

“Yeah, mocked,” said Ms. Palin. “I guess that’s the word. Yeah.”

Actually, I think the word that she was trying to say was caricature. It means to depict by exaggerating the person's unusual or distinctive qualities. I think The Great Palin's foreign policy experience is particularly unusual. Don't you agree? But I digress, asked to explain the geographic point, The Great Palin honored us by saying:

“Well, it certainly does, because our, our next-door neighbors are foreign countries, they're in the state that I am the executive of.”

And thus was born a Great Palin Proverb -- To see is to know. Whatever The Great Palin sees, she knows. But the doubting Couric continued and asked Our Great Palin if she had ever been involved in negotiations, for example, with her Russian neighbors. And The Great Palin responded to the doubting Couric:

“We have trade missions back and forth. We — we do — it’s very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the airspace of the United States of America, where — where do they go? It’s Alaska. It’s just right over the border. It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to — to our state.”

And so it came to pass that The Great Palin proclaimed that she would save us from the Evil Putin.

Did I say that her running mate is 72-years old?

All hail The Great Palin!

The Bailout is a Bad Idea, Part IV

Too stressed out to read, then listen to this story why the bailout is bull:

• NPR Interview
• Economist: Bailout Makes Little Economic Sense
  Morning Edition, September 26, 2008 · One opponent to the $700 billion financial rescue plan is Allan Meltzer, a former Fed economist and a professor at Carnegie Mellon university in Pittsburgh, Pa. Meltzer tells Steve Inskeep he's against the proposal because he thinks if Wall Street created the problem, then Wall Street should solve it.

Want to Know Why McCain has Been Hiding Palin

Read the article if you want to know why McCain has been hiding Palin and wants to cancel her debated with Biden next week:

• New York Times article
  
  A Question Reprised, but the Words Come None Too Easily for Palin
  Gov. Sarah Palin’s answer was surprisingly wobbly when asked what she meant in citing Alaska’s proximity to Russia as foreign affairs experience.

Soon To Be Infamous Statements

Remember these:

"I have great, great confidence in our capital markets and in our financial institutions. Our financial institutions, banks and investment banks, are strong. Our capital markets are resilient. They're efficient. They're flexible." -- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, March 16, 2008

"Our policy in this administration -- laws shouldn't bail out lenders, laws shouldn't help speculators." -- President Bush, May 19, 2008

"Our economy has continued growing, consumers are spending, business are investing, exports continue increasing and American productivity remains strong. We can have confidence in the long-term foundation of our economy...I think the system basically is sound. I truly do." -- President Bush, July 15, 2008

Got any others?

Republi-Con Reality

9/11, Iraq, secret prisons and torture, Katrina, North Korea, Iran, budget deficits, etc., no matter, it is always someone else's fault. Is it just me, or are Republi-Cons (members of a group formerly known as the GOP) delusional?

My favorite quote is by Ayn Rand:

"We can evade reality, but we cannot evade the consequences of evading reality."

Reality is catching up with the Republi-Cons.

The Great Palin Has Spoken

In just her third interview in three weeks (hope she's not breaking a sweet), Palin, who I predict will dubbed the Accidental President if something should happen to her 72-year old running mate, said this about the bailout rescue bill:

"Not necessarily this, as it’s been proposed, has to pass or we’re gonna find ourselves in another Great Depression. But there has to be action taken, bipartisan effort — Congress not pointing fingers at this point at ... one another, but finding the solution to this, taking action and being serious about the reforms on Wall Street that are needed.”

Did this women graduate with a degree in communications-journalism? Has anyone actually seen the diploma?

Did I say that her running mate is 72-years old?

All hail the Great Palin!

Would Be Funny If It Wasn't So True

More bailout humor:

• Editorial cartoons:
• Ed Stein, The Bailout, Simplified,
• Ann Telnaes, Robbing Us Blind,
• Pat Oliphant and Bruce Plante on Bush and Cheney's mission accomplished.
• Lat night humor:
• Stephen Colbert on the bailout: "This is one of the most important, irrevocable economic decisions we will ever make. Let's make it in a state of panic."
• Jon Stewart asked John Oliver: "Is this economic icing, then, sort of the turd icing on this administration's [expletive]-cake, if you will?"
• Jay Leno: "Oh, more bad news from President Bush. Remember those rebate checks from a few months ago? He wants them back. Yeah! We need to give that money to rich people on Wall Street. They need it more than you do!"
• Jimmy Kimmel: "President Bush made a farewell speech in front of the United Nations General Assembly. You know, the President is not an eloquent speaker, but I thought he spoke quite powerfully today, especially at the end of his speech when he looked out at all the delegates representing all the nations of the world and . . . said, 'Can we borrow some money?'"

The Joke's on Us

An email (with a few changes) from a friend:

What was the reason given for developing the Department of Energy during the Carter administration? We have spent multi-billions of dollars in support of this agency and I am willing to bet not one person who reads this will remember the reason given. It was very simple:

"Promoting America’s energy security through reliable, clean, and affordable energy."

Don't believe it.... read their mission statement.

Now, haven't they just done a bang up job of fulfilling their mandate??

In 2008 the DOE budget was $24.2 billion. Money well spent, NOT!

Note: For years, I've advocated GRAC, the Government Reform and Realignment Committee, to reform government.

Con Job by the Republi-Cons

Have you received an email claiming that Democrats created the financial crisis and referencing an article at Bloomberg? This is just Republi-Con (new name for the group formerly known as the GOP) propaganda in an attempt to rewrite history.

First, the author of this article is Kevin Hassett, an adviser to McCain's camapign. Hassett, you might remember, wrote a book published in November 2000 titled Dow 36,000, in which Hassett and James Glassman argue that "that stocks have been undervalued for decades and that, for the next few years, investors can expect a dramatic one-time upward adjustment in stock prices. Why? While Wall Street has focused on valuation measures such as P/E ratios, it has virtually ignored how stocks can work as cash engines."

Undoubtedly he was asked to write this piece by Rick Davis, McCain's campaign manager. Davis was paid $180,000 by Freddie Mac, even though Davis did not do much substantive work for the company in return for the money. Guess Davis is trying to earn his pay now.

The S.190 bill was sent to committee in 2005, by, yes, that is right, the Republi-Cons. McCain didn't even join the until 10 months after it was sent to committee. And it was never considered an important bill, only four senators joined in the bill.

Finally, not two months ago McCain said he was for less government regulation.

I once admired John McCain. But he has bought into the main stream Republican hypocrisy, and as typical for Republicans, can't accept responsibility.

UPDATE: Davis was also paid $30,000 a month from 2000 to 2005 by the so-called Homeownership Alliance, an advocacy organization that he headed and that was financed by Freddie and Fannie to fight regulation.

The Bailout is a Bad Idea, Part III

Another idea worth considering:

• Washington Post article
• A Bailout We Don't Need
  

But something needs to be done:

• Washington Post article
• What Keynes Could Tell Paulson
  

McCain is a Whiner

McCain suspends his campaign?!! Why all the whining about the economy, isn't it all just 'mental.' Let's ask Phil Gramm, McCain's former economic adviser.

It's a ploy because McCain is slipping in the polls.

I also suspect that McCain is attempting to cancel or postpone the VP candidate debate because Palin isn't ready. First McCain claims that he must return to Washington and suspends his campaign. Next he wants to postpone Friday's Presidential candidate debate. Finally, he will suggest rescheduling Friday's debate to next Thursday, when the vice presidential nominees are scheduled to face off.

Mission accomplished, Palin stays in an undisclosed location.

UPDATE: Told ya so, McCain wants to cancel the VP debate.

It's Déjà vu All Over Again

Does this economic crisis remind anyone else of the rush to war with Iraq? See

• Washington Post editorial cartoon

Should We Return to the Gold Standard

Should we return to the gold standard? Read:

• New York Times Op-Ed Contributor
  The Buck Stopped Then
  Since 1971, nothing has stood behind the American dollar except the world’s good opinion of the United States. And now, the world is changing its mind.

No Bailout Until They Say Sorry

Good idea, I second it:

• Washinton Post article
• The Words Left Unspoken in the Bailout Debate

(Not So Funny) Humor

This might be funny, if is wasn't so true:

• Late Night Comedians
  Jay Leno: "See, you know the way a bailout works? Here's the way a bailout works. A failed president and a failed Congress invest $700 billion of your money in failed businesses. Believe me, this can't fail."
• The St. Louis Post Dispatch editorial cartoon, Bush's new bullhorn moment

Fat Cats First

A good summary:

• Washington Post article
• Fat Cats First
  
• Looking back on the wreckage of the Bush era, there is one undeniable bright spot: It's been a very good time to be a fat cat. A consistent result of virtually every major Bush policy, from tax cuts to war, has been to enrich the already wealthy. The pinnacle of Bush's legacy may turn out to be a $700 billion bailout of the high-flying Wall Street firms that made enormous fortunes -- and rewarded themselves with billions in bonuses-- leveraging risky mortgage-backed assets. Now that those firms are in deep trouble, the Bush administration wants taxpayers -- many of whom are facing their own financial troubles -- to come to the rescue. And, in case there's any doubt that it's fat-cats-first with this White House, the news today is that Bush aides are balking at moves that would require companies accepting bailouts to cap executive pay, or give taxpayers equity for their contributions.
  

How Low Can He Go

The latest American Research Group poll has Bush's approval rating at 19 percent, matching that survey's all-time low.

Compassionate Conservative Plea to Help Needy Wall Street CEOs

Excerpt from Washington Post article:

Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson (R-Goldman Sachs) made the rounds of the talk shows on Sunday, pleading for financial executives to be allowed to keep their multimillion-dollar compensation packages even if their companies need to be rescued by the $700 billion federal bailout.

"If we design it so it's punitive and so institutions aren't going to participate, this won't work the way we need it to work," Paulson, whose net worth is said to be north of $600 million, told Chris Wallace on "Fox News Sunday."

The bailout is a con job by the Republi-Cons (group formerly known as the GOP).

No Questions From the Media in Media, PA

An article from the New York Times:

The Media Blackout: Nearly 40 Days and Counting

By Michael D. Shear
The country may have turned its attention to the economic crisis and a staggering $700 billion bailout proposal, but political operatives still have their eyes on other issues.

Among them, for the Democrats, is keeping track of how long it's been since the Republican presidential ticket has answered questions from the media. A Web site keeps track.

As of this writing, it has been 39 days and 22 hours since Sen. John McCain last held a news conference (despite having promised to hold weekly Q&A sessions with the press if he's elected). According to the Democrats, it's been 24 days and 11 hours since his running mate, Sarah Palin, held one.

Not the most important issue of the day, perhaps. But maybe the most ironic, given where McCain and Palin were Monday: In Media, Pa.

Where they didn't take questions.

Posted at 10:00 PM ET