House Passes ‘Stimulus’ 244-188, Spites Face
Yet another stimulus bill has passed under supposedly “urgent” circumstances. “We don’t have a moment to spare,” Obama declared (perhaps pretending that he is the new George W. Bush). The last trillionesque-dollar stimulus was hurried through under much similar circumstances - though at that time, the House had enough sense to vote against it the first time. (For more “urgent” do-gooding by Congress, see Patriot Act.)
It used to be that there was enough wisdom in this country to not cut off your head to spite your face (e.g. spending our nation into insurmountable debt obligations and destroying the dollar to alleviate our borrowing and spending too much). Now it seems that anyone can be convinced to lop off their own head as long as they are pressured with the insistence that they are imminently and urgently ugly.
The U.S. economy certainly is ugly, and for our US Congress, there isn’t a moment to spare.
SEC Bans the Selling of Financials at a Loss
Under new SEC rules, selling of financial stocks for less than the price purchased is to be banned.
The SEC approved the ban, which will prohibit investors from reducing or selling positions in all publicly quoted financial companies at values less than the purchase price of those positions. The ban will remain in force until such time after the SEC publishes a review of selling rules.
Financial turmoil has brought about the recent ban, as financial institutions have come under pressure from widespread selling of positions in that sector. Sellers have been blamed for driving down the share price of AIG and Lehman Bros., the insurance and investment banking interests that have capsized during the past week.
The Government Takeover of Fannie and Freddie: Observations of an Unmitigated Disaster
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been taken over by the government. This is an economic calamity of unprecedented proportions. Let me offer a few observations.
First, Treasury Secretary Hank “Bazooka” Paulson should immediately resign. Over the past few weeks as Freddie and Fannie have stumbled through huge losses, Hank went to Congress and stumped for increased authority for regulation over the housing industry. The key feature of this plan was his brilliant idea to extend an unlimited line of credit to the struggling mortgage lenders. This is to say that Hank wanted the power to give infinite amounts of taxpayer money to the two private companies - the concept being that, if the Treasury were equipped with this “bazooka,” investors would have confidence restored in Freddie and Fannie’s securities and debt instruments. Magically, the bazooka would never have to be used, and the economy would be saved.
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Green Movement Alert: Metallic Oxides Causing “Ground Rainbows”
Let Vermont Go, Reason Against a Second Civil War
There has been a relatively recent political movement in the state of Vermont that it secede from the union - even garnering 13% popularity in that state, up 5% from last year. “The argument for secession is that the U.S. has become an empire that is essentially ungovernable — it’s too big, it’s too corrupt and it no longer serves the needs of its citizens . . .” Who can blame them?
Though the prospect of Vermont actually seceding is highly unlikely, it invokes the question: If Vermont peacefully secedes, would the U.S. federal government attack them?