Sunday, April 29, 2012

Who's Crying Now?

Can't these assholes ever do the right thing? This week,  the Stop The Student Loan Rate Hike Act Of 2012 was on the congressional agenda. http://www.thenation.com/blog/167552/congress-needs-act-stafford-loan-rate
And you have probably guessed that Bitch McConnel was crying that "the only reason Democrats have proposed this particular solution is to get Republicans to oppose it, to cast a vote that they think will make us look bad." What he said was important, because he finally gets it. Republicans don't only look bad, they act bad. Their self-serving agenda is visible to everyone. Their solution to the rate hike legislation is eliminating the prevention and public healthcare fund created by Republic enemy # 1 President Obama's evil 2010 healthcare reform. The only thing Republicans can do to pay for anything is gut the Affordable Healthcare Act. There is no talk of Nancy Pelosi's suggestion to use the subsidies that would go to the oil companies to pay for it. We all know that the oil companies aren't hurting at all for cash, not only do we subsidize them with our taxes, but also at the pump.
At a time when most unemployed people are blamed for not having the "right" degree for their misery, a college education is more important than ever. If you want to get out of poverty, you need an education. Haven't the students that would pay more for their student loans, been victimized enough? First by the economy, they can't get jobs to pay back the loans and now the interest rates go up. Why are they only passing the legislation for a year, then the rates go up again. What is this? Subprime student loans? Why is that the only solution to pay for things is with money that goes to healthcare, or robbing the Social Security fund?  Looking at the Pentagon's budget isn't even suggested, and no one is going to raise taxes on the wealthy who don't have to consider a loan for college.
The legislation is going up for a vote on May 8th. This time the solution to pay for this rate hike THAT DOESN'T HAVE TO HAPPEN is to close a loophole that allows wealthy Americans who make over $250,000 to avoid paying medicare taxes on their earnings. Now we all know we should get out the tissues, there are going to be a lot of tears over this.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Double Dip Depression and U.K. Recession

According to what I have been reading about the economy, the U.K. has gone into recession again. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/apr/25/eurozone-crisis-live-uk-double-dip-recession
The feared "double dip". In America, we have supposedly been out of depression recession for quite sometime now however, I just don't buy it. Mostly because I can't afford to.
IF we ever got out of the depression recession, personally, I have seen no evidence of it. I find it almost laughable that Bernanke says the Fed will act if needed. The actions of the Fed and their quantitative pleasing easing, has been woefully inadequate, Bernanke, a Great Depression scholar, has proven that he has no vision, and if he studied the Great Depression, did he do it online?
My experience tells me that the Fed only acts to save banks. I guess that's supposed to trickle down on people like me and it has, in the form of innocuous fee's, check kiting, holding of funds for whatever subjective time the banks dictate and banks not cashing checks drawn from the same bank unless you are a customer. I guess I'm not the only one held hostage by the banks. Bernanke is too, and Geithner, Paulson, the list is endless. If the UK is in depression recession again then we probably won't be far behind, since they are our biggest client ally. What really is laughable is the notion of the "free market"=bailout for banks. Everyone else can lose their job, get foreclosed on, be robbed of social security they paid for and it's your own fault you live in poverty you lazy moron. Too bad you didn't get the "right" degree, now your almost $100,000 in debt, thanks to sky high tuition costs and student loans from predatory banks. If you still have money in Skank Of America or Wells Forgo, do yourself a favor and go to the local community bank and get an account there. Stop supporting the "too big to fail" banks because they are in the business of making sure you do.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

The Secret Service Can't Keep A Secret.

Secret service agents hired hookers in Cartegena, Columbia. http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/21/2761664/secret-service-sexcapade-has-also.html
 I guess we're supposed to believe it's the first time this has ever happened, if only the agent who hired the hooker had paid what he owed her, no one would be the wiser. Now the cheap bastard is going to pay big time. Darrel Issa, head of the Oversight committee is outraged and wants a full investigation. This is the guy who held a congressional hearing on women's health, and didn't invite any women. So now we've got another scandal the GOP is salivating over, in order to keep us from looking at the real issues, like the economy and jobs. The Pentagon is investigating, Homeland Security is investigating, so now we have all  this man power, tied up in this stupidity. Please Secret Service, appoint more women. You don't hear a thing EVER about women hiring prostitutes. This is just more fodder for the GOP trying to make it look like this was all President Obama's fault. The only thing that's really the Presidents fault is that he didn't clean house and get all of the Bush administration's cronies out of Washington when he was elected. Because of that, the culture of corruption flourishes, with no end in sight.
Now lets look at something more interesting in Iran. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/22/iran-reverse-engineer-spy-drone I wrote about this in December. I knew this loss of technology was going to bite us in the ass. General Amir Ali Hajizadeh is now bragging that they are fully "dominant" over what they call "sections and programs of this plane". So far we don't know if Iran has a nuclear weapon and then we hand them a drone. This is a way bigger problem than whore's in Cartegena. But who would know with all the crying that's going on about men continuing to support the worlds oldest profession.
Israel is a pretty aggressive power with a nuclear weapon. If Iran really can build a drone out of what we handed them (Really? There's no kill switch on the thing, so it blows up before it gets into the wrong hands? I bet Iran's drone will have one.) we have the makings of a third world war.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

What A Dick

He just won't go away. Despite getting a new heart, this criminal proves he doesn't really have one. http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cheney-shows-no-sign-of-tiring-in-long-wyoming-speech-1st-since-heart-transplant-3-weeks-ago/2012/04/14/gIQAQEQ7HT_story.html
In this article he mentions some advice his doctor gave him in 1978. When Dick was concerned about his health and running in his first election, his doctor told him "Hell Dick, hard work never killed any body." This comment was not lost on me for a number of reasons. The most important one being the men standing behind him in the picture above. 6,000 American men and women worked hard and died in a war he lied to achieve. http://costsofwar.org/
 The other reason I mention his comment about hard work is the GOP's Puritan work ethic bull shit that people who are on public assistance or unemployment need in Romney's word's "the dignity of work." As if it's a dream come true to be so broke that you have to go through the humiliating process of applying for the TANF program. Romney, again, proves that he doesn't know shit about reality in this delusion. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/15/mitt-romney-mothers-welfare-moms_n_1426113.html
His comments in the HuffPo article are aimed directly at women and especially single mothers, who according to his beliefs can't have birth control or abortions or TANF. Life is sacred until it escapes the womb.
 It is very hard to support a family, with an unemployment rate as high as it is now, caused by a depression Bush and Cheney are ultimately responsible for. Another statement Dick made was this, "Don't let anybody tell you the enhanced interrogation program didn't work, it did." I didn't notice him giving example's of this program's success. There are many example's of why torture didn't work. http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/2011/05/03/five-reasons-why-torture-did-not-help-us-forces-find-bin-laden/
I thought one of the best quotes was how Romney was going to do a "whale of a job" as the new president. Kind of like "Heck of a job Brownie!"? Are you kidding me? Romney thinks Paul Ryan's budget is "marvelous". Which strips whatever shreds of a safety net this country still has. Meanwhile, our tax dollars paid for Cheney's heart transplant. The American people paid for this war criminals life saving surgery. I can only hope he will live long enough to be prosecuted.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Free At Last! So Long Santorum!

I believe there is a God, now that St. Santorum has finally stepped  down.
Thankfully, we will no longer have to hear his religious crap. I wonder if an angel from God finally gave him some sort of epiphany? Perhaps he told him to just stop or he would surely go to hell and not just stop off in purgatory for awhile. The symbolism of him appearing in Gettysburg is not lost on me, but really, shouldn't it have been Appomattox? The only real disappointment? I won't get to hear President Obama debate him. That would have been great fun. Now we are left with the right and  Romney, who is just as out of touch. Maybe soon he'll be touched by an angel and go away to Mormon country.
                                  Someone please free me from these persecuting religious freaks!
So Long Santorum!


Sunday, April 8, 2012

The Other Half Of The Sky

What Would Jesus Do?
It's Easter morning, and for the Catholic's around the world, services will be directed by a man. Except in Austria where Catholic priests are rebelling and allowing women to serve as priests. On Thursday the Pope spoke out against some "disobedient" Catholic priests who want change. Pope denounces rebel clergy who question church teaching on celibacy and ordaining woman | Mail Online
These priests have questioned the church's teachings on celibacy and women. There is a shortage of priests (except in South America and Africa) and the reasoning behind this disobedience is, if priests could marry, their would not be such a shortage. (however, their would be a price to pay, as the church would have to finance the priest's families.) Not to mention half of the population is being disenfranchised by an 85 year old man, who apparently has no concept that the world has changed, and women no longer want or need to be told how, when and where to pray, by a man who thinks he is the only one with a direct cellphone to God. In his statement on Holy Thursday, the Pope said these Austrian priests were being "selfish and disobedient" for wanting change and inclusion. Interestingly enough the statement also mentioned "the slow pace of institutions".
Yeah, a couple of thousand years seems pretty slow to me. I never did get where in the Bible it said that women couldn't be priests and priests had to be celibate, you couldn't use condoms or birth control, and little boys were up for grabs, literally. Let's not forget the millions or billions of dollars worth of priceless art and artifacts the Catholic church owns, while millions of the faithful starve and go without medical treatment in order for the Pope to wear his golden garments, red shoes and live in luxury. Unlike Jesus. When the Pope walks the walk, maybe then I'll go back to church. Here's my Easter Greeting to the Pope. Wake up. you are ignoring half of the population. Your church will continue to rot and decay until women take their rightful place in the RCC, and even then I'm not sure it will survive your selfishness. The leisurely pace of the Catholic institution is practically at a standstill and you have become irrelevant.
I still think there should be an Occupy the Vatican movement. Maybe those Austrian priests should consider it.


 

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Naked

I bet he's sorry he didn't use his turn signal.
The Supreme Court's recent decision to strip search people for something as minor as not using a turn signal is really frightening.
Last week, Justice Scalia seemed very concerned that, along with buying health insurance the government would force us to eat broccoli. God forbid! But it's okay to strip search people for traffic violations. There is some discussion about police using this power at their own discretion. I think they already have too much power.
I suffered a lot of unwanted attention from a local police officer who pulled me over anytime he wanted, just to chat. Yeah, really. It was scary, the last thing I wanted to do was piss off a cop. My daughter eventually called a local official to get him to stop harassing me. Thank God he couldn't strip search me for driving without a headlight. I wonder how many cops will use this decision for whatever purpose they want. This is a very depressing decision, especially if you have young kids who are driving.
After last weeks Supreme Courts interrogation of Solicitor General Verilli, I thought personal freedom was something the Supreme Court was interested in upholding, unless of course it means keeping your clothes on. This has to be THE MOST conservative Supreme Court in history. It's getting to the point where we are living in a police state. Which is exactly the way they want it.