Hey Barry:
I'm proud to be in a state where we don't sell out.
Meg tried to the tune of $160 million - no sale.
Go home and roll around in your money, Meg.
Leave us be.
Your pal,
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
USA: Top Heavy and Fallin
Hey Barry:
So, exactly where are we as a country today? It's a big question. And, the answer is not good Barry.
Basically we are a two class society, Barry.
The top 20% of RICH folks own 93% of the USA's financial wealth - total wealth less value of the house.
Read it here: http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html
Let me repeat that: the RICHEST 20% own 93% of total wealth.
Barry, most of the time 93% means ALL OF IT.
You an me - we aint got squat.
Let's look ahead and see what is likely to happen.
This condition cannot continue as it is.
Something's gotta give. We gonna tip over.
Where will we be after we fall, Barry? That's the question.
As an indication, I'm going to quote Kevin Phillips from his book WEALTH AND DEMOCRACY, 2002. Let's see if you can guess what country and time he is describing. Oh, I will change a few words here and there:
The country had "...come to be an extreme contrast of rich and poor...Our condition is one in which we have rich who loll at ease, or poor who beg, and we a lack middle class whom neither wealth nor poverty prevents their pursuing the rightful kind of business...."
This could describe San Francisco yesterday. Or England in the 1900's.
But it actually describes Spain in 1600 [Martin Gonzalez de Cellorigio]. Shortly after that was written Spain ceased to be an international power and was relegated to second class status as a country.
That's our future Barry.
The only way out is to change the income and wealth distribution so that we have a middle class.
Your pal,
So, exactly where are we as a country today? It's a big question. And, the answer is not good Barry.
Basically we are a two class society, Barry.
The top 20% of RICH folks own 93% of the USA's financial wealth - total wealth less value of the house.
Read it here: http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html
Let me repeat that: the RICHEST 20% own 93% of total wealth.
Barry, most of the time 93% means ALL OF IT.
You an me - we aint got squat.
Let's look ahead and see what is likely to happen.
This condition cannot continue as it is.
Something's gotta give. We gonna tip over.
Where will we be after we fall, Barry? That's the question.
As an indication, I'm going to quote Kevin Phillips from his book WEALTH AND DEMOCRACY, 2002. Let's see if you can guess what country and time he is describing. Oh, I will change a few words here and there:
The country had "...come to be an extreme contrast of rich and poor...Our condition is one in which we have rich who loll at ease, or poor who beg, and we a lack middle class whom neither wealth nor poverty prevents their pursuing the rightful kind of business...."
This could describe San Francisco yesterday. Or England in the 1900's.
But it actually describes Spain in 1600 [Martin Gonzalez de Cellorigio]. Shortly after that was written Spain ceased to be an international power and was relegated to second class status as a country.
That's our future Barry.
The only way out is to change the income and wealth distribution so that we have a middle class.
Your pal,
Supremes Keep Disclosure
Hey Barry:
While they did not exactly acknowledge a mistake or make amends, the supremes just upheld disclosure rules for political actors.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/11/01/national/w070520D46.DTL
Now you can have Attorney General Holder enforce the rules aggressively.
It's something we need Barry.
Your pal,
While they did not exactly acknowledge a mistake or make amends, the supremes just upheld disclosure rules for political actors.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/11/01/national/w070520D46.DTL
Now you can have Attorney General Holder enforce the rules aggressively.
It's something we need Barry.
Your pal,
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Marketing the Presidency: Obama - Stewart
Hey Barry:
Caught your talk on the Daily Show.
Here's a link: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2010/10/about-late-last-night-jon-stewart-presses-president-obama-on-the-daily-show-1.html
Overall great job on the show. And, overall great job on the Presidency - I agree with your assessment on the actions you have taken so far.
But, the discussion last night brings up a question: Why is the public perception of the accomplishments behind the reality?
The answer last night seemes to be that folks have expectations that the actions will happen in 18 months. That is why there is a drop in your popularity and approval.
That's OK Barry, as far as it goes, but I just don't think that's good enough.
I think part of your job is to manage expectations. And it seems that you have done a mediocre to poor job at that.
A related example can be found in marketing cars. In the 1980's people had low expectations of a car, so the poor 'quality' cars produced then matched the expectations and sold reasonably well.
Today, car buyers have much higher expectations when they buy a car. If a car does not have all the features buyers expect today, they judge it as a poor 'quality' car, although it may be ten times better than a car from 30 years ago.
The market's expectations of car 'quality' have moved a lot.
It is similar to people's expectations of a 'quality' Presidency. Those expectations have moved a lot since 2008. And that is due in large part to you, Barry Obama: you have raised people's expectations of what it means to be a 'quality' President.
The reason that I place quotation marks around the word 'quality' is that I believe that 'quality' is an elusive concept. The best way to measure 'quality' IMHO is to measure what are the expectations about the subject and to compare how the product - or the Presidency - compares to the expectations.
If I am correct in my belief that your raising expectations of your Presidency has contributed to the current lower approval ratings, then there are at least two possible approaches you might take.
One approach would be to lower expectations. This is what Bush was so good at. He created the expectation that he was a complete klutz; nobody noticed what he was doing because they were all marveling at the idea that he actually was able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
I think this would be a mistake.
Another approach would be to sell the positives more aggressively while noting the difficulties you had to overcome to achieve each positive.
For example, you might say this: 'My administration has successfully overcome fierce Republican resistance to increased government regulation and has created and passed financial reform that is really helping people. As only one example, today we are looking carefully at each bank's home mortgage foreclosure process to ensure that each bank follows the new regulations. This will have the effect of preventing many unfair and/or illegal foreclosures. It will also help prevent a second, more severe recession - the Double Dip that many of you are concerned about. And make no mistake, if we did not have the new legislation, we would have a double dip recession.'
If this approach makes sense, then it seems likely that your administration will need some more aggressive Public Relations people who specialize in marketing your Presidency.
One of the reasons that the financial regulation legislation passed is that you and your staff made it a priority, as compared to some other legislation which you did not make a priority and which did not do as well as a result.
Bottom line is this Barry - you gotta sell yourself harder. And, it won't hurt to get some professionsl PR folks on the team - market your Presidency the same way General Motors sells Cadillacs or Chevys.
We need you to do that, Barry.
Your pal,
Caught your talk on the Daily Show.
Here's a link: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2010/10/about-late-last-night-jon-stewart-presses-president-obama-on-the-daily-show-1.html
Overall great job on the show. And, overall great job on the Presidency - I agree with your assessment on the actions you have taken so far.
But, the discussion last night brings up a question: Why is the public perception of the accomplishments behind the reality?
The answer last night seemes to be that folks have expectations that the actions will happen in 18 months. That is why there is a drop in your popularity and approval.
That's OK Barry, as far as it goes, but I just don't think that's good enough.
I think part of your job is to manage expectations. And it seems that you have done a mediocre to poor job at that.
A related example can be found in marketing cars. In the 1980's people had low expectations of a car, so the poor 'quality' cars produced then matched the expectations and sold reasonably well.
Today, car buyers have much higher expectations when they buy a car. If a car does not have all the features buyers expect today, they judge it as a poor 'quality' car, although it may be ten times better than a car from 30 years ago.
The market's expectations of car 'quality' have moved a lot.
It is similar to people's expectations of a 'quality' Presidency. Those expectations have moved a lot since 2008. And that is due in large part to you, Barry Obama: you have raised people's expectations of what it means to be a 'quality' President.
The reason that I place quotation marks around the word 'quality' is that I believe that 'quality' is an elusive concept. The best way to measure 'quality' IMHO is to measure what are the expectations about the subject and to compare how the product - or the Presidency - compares to the expectations.
If I am correct in my belief that your raising expectations of your Presidency has contributed to the current lower approval ratings, then there are at least two possible approaches you might take.
One approach would be to lower expectations. This is what Bush was so good at. He created the expectation that he was a complete klutz; nobody noticed what he was doing because they were all marveling at the idea that he actually was able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
I think this would be a mistake.
Another approach would be to sell the positives more aggressively while noting the difficulties you had to overcome to achieve each positive.
For example, you might say this: 'My administration has successfully overcome fierce Republican resistance to increased government regulation and has created and passed financial reform that is really helping people. As only one example, today we are looking carefully at each bank's home mortgage foreclosure process to ensure that each bank follows the new regulations. This will have the effect of preventing many unfair and/or illegal foreclosures. It will also help prevent a second, more severe recession - the Double Dip that many of you are concerned about. And make no mistake, if we did not have the new legislation, we would have a double dip recession.'
If this approach makes sense, then it seems likely that your administration will need some more aggressive Public Relations people who specialize in marketing your Presidency.
One of the reasons that the financial regulation legislation passed is that you and your staff made it a priority, as compared to some other legislation which you did not make a priority and which did not do as well as a result.
Bottom line is this Barry - you gotta sell yourself harder. And, it won't hurt to get some professionsl PR folks on the team - market your Presidency the same way General Motors sells Cadillacs or Chevys.
We need you to do that, Barry.
Your pal,
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
The Rent Is Too Damn High
Hey Barry:
Jimmy McMillan wants to be Governor of New York.
He calls his party: The Rent Is Too Damn High Party
Website: http://www.rentistoodamnhigh.org/
Why, because The Rent Is Too Damn High.
If I lived in New York, he'd have my vote.
Here's his message: Too many homeless vets and families - somthing is wrong in our country.
He is fighting the good fight.
Your pal,
Jimmy McMillan wants to be Governor of New York.
He calls his party: The Rent Is Too Damn High Party
Website: http://www.rentistoodamnhigh.org/
Why, because The Rent Is Too Damn High.
If I lived in New York, he'd have my vote.
Here's his message: Too many homeless vets and families - somthing is wrong in our country.
He is fighting the good fight.
Your pal,
Plutocrats March On
Hey Barry:
In case you don't know, the secret billionaires who are helping Rove are having an impact in the California Senate race.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/26/MNLI1G1P3G.DTL&type=politics
Sitting Senator Barbara Boxer is being hurt by negative ads funded by secret, outside groups. If she loses, the Senate will gain another RICH ex-CEO - Carly Fiorina.
The plutocrats march on.
Your pal,
In case you don't know, the secret billionaires who are helping Rove are having an impact in the California Senate race.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/26/MNLI1G1P3G.DTL&type=politics
Sitting Senator Barbara Boxer is being hurt by negative ads funded by secret, outside groups. If she loses, the Senate will gain another RICH ex-CEO - Carly Fiorina.
The plutocrats march on.
Your pal,
No Insurance - Too Bad Sucka
Hey Barry:
Now I don't know if your health plan will fix things like this or not. I surely hope so.
Friend of ours owns a small store selling imported specialty items after a career in retail in her home country. She has no health insurance.
Last week she felt very ill and went to the nearest hospital. Turns out she had acute appendicitus and nearly died.
A surgeon performed the operation.
The hospital discharged her after two hours in the operating room and no recovery time and is now suing her for $60,000.
Makes ya wanna puke.
Your pal,
Now I don't know if your health plan will fix things like this or not. I surely hope so.
Friend of ours owns a small store selling imported specialty items after a career in retail in her home country. She has no health insurance.
Last week she felt very ill and went to the nearest hospital. Turns out she had acute appendicitus and nearly died.
A surgeon performed the operation.
The hospital discharged her after two hours in the operating room and no recovery time and is now suing her for $60,000.
Makes ya wanna puke.
Your pal,
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Beaner and the Reps: Not Pretty
Hey Barry:
I have been thinking about Beaner and the Reps.
[First off, I don't mean to insult any folks of Hispanic heritage - the word is just too good a play on 'Boehner' to pass.]
My thinking is not pretty, Barry.
I don't know if you'll like it - after all you are a bi-partisan soul if ever there was one.
But Barry, the Reps is simply bad for the country. And, you are the President of all the United States and your job is to watch out for all of us.
I have been trying real hard to understand where they are coming from. And you know that is NOT an easy job Barry. That is something you know real well.
So anyway, here's what I come up with: the Reps want to kiss up to the billionaires.
God knows why, Barry, kissin up won't do them no good. No good at all. Never does.
If you kiss up to a billionaire, you won't get anything except a dirty mouth.
You will NOT get RICH.
First rule of being a billionaire - nobody gets RICH except a billionaire.
OK Barry, if you're squeamish, better pass up the rest of this right now. Y'all warned......
Let's say you are tongue rimming a billionaire because you think you will get RICH.
Think on it cousin: the best you will get is that the SOB does not let a big fart.
That's the best you can do.
So, I gotta ask Beaner: what y'all doin anyway? Yo is sellin out our country for a chance to kiss some billionaire's ass.
It just does not make any sense Barry.
No sense at all.
Let's move along to the elections.
And, let's suppose there is a whole bunch of folks who think that kissin up to the billionaires is a good thing for some ridiculus reason.
That will mean that you, Barry Obama, will have a Rep majority in one house or the other.
So Barry - what y'all gotta do is to stop them Reps from destroying the progress you have made. You have done some good things and now you will need to protect them.
It's not sexy Barry, it's politics down and dirty. But that's the hand you got Barry.
Please play it well.
Your pal,
I have been thinking about Beaner and the Reps.
[First off, I don't mean to insult any folks of Hispanic heritage - the word is just too good a play on 'Boehner' to pass.]
My thinking is not pretty, Barry.
I don't know if you'll like it - after all you are a bi-partisan soul if ever there was one.
But Barry, the Reps is simply bad for the country. And, you are the President of all the United States and your job is to watch out for all of us.
I have been trying real hard to understand where they are coming from. And you know that is NOT an easy job Barry. That is something you know real well.
So anyway, here's what I come up with: the Reps want to kiss up to the billionaires.
God knows why, Barry, kissin up won't do them no good. No good at all. Never does.
If you kiss up to a billionaire, you won't get anything except a dirty mouth.
You will NOT get RICH.
First rule of being a billionaire - nobody gets RICH except a billionaire.
OK Barry, if you're squeamish, better pass up the rest of this right now. Y'all warned......
Let's say you are tongue rimming a billionaire because you think you will get RICH.
Think on it cousin: the best you will get is that the SOB does not let a big fart.
That's the best you can do.
So, I gotta ask Beaner: what y'all doin anyway? Yo is sellin out our country for a chance to kiss some billionaire's ass.
It just does not make any sense Barry.
No sense at all.
Let's move along to the elections.
And, let's suppose there is a whole bunch of folks who think that kissin up to the billionaires is a good thing for some ridiculus reason.
That will mean that you, Barry Obama, will have a Rep majority in one house or the other.
So Barry - what y'all gotta do is to stop them Reps from destroying the progress you have made. You have done some good things and now you will need to protect them.
It's not sexy Barry, it's politics down and dirty. But that's the hand you got Barry.
Please play it well.
Your pal,
Let's Help RICH Create Jobs!
Hey Barry:
The RICH keep on sayin they'll create some jobs real soon now and that's why they should stay RICH.
You and I know thas jes a crock.
But, maybe we can help them out a little.
After all, they will feel so much better when they have really created some jobs instead of just talking about it.
Here's some history on how we can do that: when we look back at the 1950's we see that there were a lot of infrastructure jobs around - we were building roads and schools and bridges and airports like there was no tomorrow.
OK, that was a long time ago, but how did we get the money back then?
Simple answer - we put a 90% tax on high incomes and a 70% tax on estates. With that money we created the infrastructure that we still use today - except it's a little worn round the edges and needs some patching.
That's how the RICH can help create jobs and make our country better - we will tax them to get the money to pay for what we need.
And, we can help the Federal deficit as well - which is running about a trillion a year: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/10/24/national/w051643D79.DTL
After all, it only takes a taxing a few of the RICH to help balance the budget.
And, Barry, if the RICH don't like it, they can take their money and move to someplace where they will be welcome like Mexico or Somalia. [I don't mean any disrepect to those countries, but I'm guessing that RICH folks' money and sense of entitlement might actually help out there.]
We surely will NOT miss them here. Please encourage them to leave Barry. It's like Dear Abby says: 'It's time for a divorce when you'll be better off without them than you are with them.'
Your pal,
The RICH keep on sayin they'll create some jobs real soon now and that's why they should stay RICH.
You and I know thas jes a crock.
But, maybe we can help them out a little.
After all, they will feel so much better when they have really created some jobs instead of just talking about it.
Here's some history on how we can do that: when we look back at the 1950's we see that there were a lot of infrastructure jobs around - we were building roads and schools and bridges and airports like there was no tomorrow.
OK, that was a long time ago, but how did we get the money back then?
Simple answer - we put a 90% tax on high incomes and a 70% tax on estates. With that money we created the infrastructure that we still use today - except it's a little worn round the edges and needs some patching.
That's how the RICH can help create jobs and make our country better - we will tax them to get the money to pay for what we need.
And, we can help the Federal deficit as well - which is running about a trillion a year: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/10/24/national/w051643D79.DTL
After all, it only takes a taxing a few of the RICH to help balance the budget.
And, Barry, if the RICH don't like it, they can take their money and move to someplace where they will be welcome like Mexico or Somalia. [I don't mean any disrepect to those countries, but I'm guessing that RICH folks' money and sense of entitlement might actually help out there.]
We surely will NOT miss them here. Please encourage them to leave Barry. It's like Dear Abby says: 'It's time for a divorce when you'll be better off without them than you are with them.'
Your pal,
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Failing Banks: Who's Next?
Hey Barry:
As a rule, I don't publish links to commercial sites, but this site really caught my eye: http://web.investinganswers.com/land/is-your-bank-in-danger.asp?TP=665&ref=GAW&gclid=CP2E-uD24aQCFRxqgwodJSg7KQ
I don't know how good the information is, but the topic is very timely. If your deposits exceed the FDIC guarantees, then you will really want to read this report to see whether your bank may fail.
Your pal,
As a rule, I don't publish links to commercial sites, but this site really caught my eye: http://web.investinganswers.com/land/is-your-bank-in-danger.asp?TP=665&ref=GAW&gclid=CP2E-uD24aQCFRxqgwodJSg7KQ
I don't know how good the information is, but the topic is very timely. If your deposits exceed the FDIC guarantees, then you will really want to read this report to see whether your bank may fail.
Your pal,
Hittin the Fan
Hey Barry:
Looks like the fan is becoming unsightly.
Read it here: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-20/fed-s-weight-joins-mortgage-investor-bid-for-relief.html
Mortgage investors - who actually bought the paper behind the loans - want some action from banks. It could cost those banks which did not proceed carefully up to $180 billion.
Watch HUD Secretary Donovan address the issue on 10/20/10 here: http://www.bloomberg.com/video/63870482/
If itsa choice between the banks and the economy - bye bye banks.
Hang in there Barry, we need you.
Your pal,
Looks like the fan is becoming unsightly.
Read it here: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-20/fed-s-weight-joins-mortgage-investor-bid-for-relief.html
Mortgage investors - who actually bought the paper behind the loans - want some action from banks. It could cost those banks which did not proceed carefully up to $180 billion.
Watch HUD Secretary Donovan address the issue on 10/20/10 here: http://www.bloomberg.com/video/63870482/
If itsa choice between the banks and the economy - bye bye banks.
Hang in there Barry, we need you.
Your pal,
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Gettin Round the Supremes
Hey Barry:
Maybe there's a way around the Supremes decision that allows corps and unions to spend money in elections without disclosure.
Here's a method to require better disclosure of who actually pays for ads by enacting a state rule. Read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/19/EDQ01FUCH4.DTL
My memory is that the Reps voted down the law requiring disclosure, but maybe the states can do it on their own.
Your pal,
Maybe there's a way around the Supremes decision that allows corps and unions to spend money in elections without disclosure.
Here's a method to require better disclosure of who actually pays for ads by enacting a state rule. Read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/19/EDQ01FUCH4.DTL
My memory is that the Reps voted down the law requiring disclosure, but maybe the states can do it on their own.
Your pal,
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Don't Sell Us Out
Hey Barry:
Part of your job is to keep track of things that can change our future. And, here's one right now: seems some big Chinese companies want to get into the middle of our telecommunications business.
And, Barry, mebbe its jes me, but there aint no such thing as a Chinese company that does things internationally without the direction of the government - they jes do NOT let any company mess around in foreign policy or military strategy. We could learn a lesson there, ya think?
It has the potential to be a bad idea and ya gotta watch it real careful. There are some things that are just bigger than economics.
Read it here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704300604575555121880239064.html
Your pal,
Part of your job is to keep track of things that can change our future. And, here's one right now: seems some big Chinese companies want to get into the middle of our telecommunications business.
And, Barry, mebbe its jes me, but there aint no such thing as a Chinese company that does things internationally without the direction of the government - they jes do NOT let any company mess around in foreign policy or military strategy. We could learn a lesson there, ya think?
It has the potential to be a bad idea and ya gotta watch it real careful. There are some things that are just bigger than economics.
Read it here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704300604575555121880239064.html
Your pal,
Friday, October 15, 2010
Big Oil Goes To College
Hey Barry:
Seems a lot of big universities are just a little too cozy with big oil.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/15/BAHR1FSR2B.DTL&type=newsbayarea
Exactly what we dont need - big corporations dictating research topics at our famous schools: Stanford, UC Berkeley, etc.
Y'all probably caint do nuthin, but itsa fact worth rememberin.
Your pal,
Seems a lot of big universities are just a little too cozy with big oil.
Read it here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/15/BAHR1FSR2B.DTL&type=newsbayarea
Exactly what we dont need - big corporations dictating research topics at our famous schools: Stanford, UC Berkeley, etc.
Y'all probably caint do nuthin, but itsa fact worth rememberin.
Your pal,
Bankers Have No Shame
Hey Barry:
Turns out them bankers are takin food from the mouths of babies on welfare.
Hard to believe - read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/15/MN5S1FRNI4.DTL&type=newsbayarea
Your pal,
Turns out them bankers are takin food from the mouths of babies on welfare.
Hard to believe - read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/10/15/MN5S1FRNI4.DTL&type=newsbayarea
Your pal,
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Tax the RICH
Hey Barry:
The RICH is our problem. Now Robert Reich [http://robertreich.org/] has been saying the exact same thing, except he says he is a class 'worrier' and not a class 'warrior'.
He sayin that because he thinks that somehow the good ol U S of A will spontaneously rise up and restore a better balance between the RICH and the rest of us. After all, we have done it before.
What he means is that we have RAISED TAXES on RICH folks before. By RAISING TAXES on the RICH, we have leveled the playing field and made a better country in the past.
So, les look at some facts to see if he is right.
OK, so far as the marginal federal income tax rate on the highest earners goes, score one for RR.
That rate was 91% from 1955 to 1963, then it dropped to under 40% from 1987 to 2003, where it stood at 35%. Read it here: http://www.truthandpolitics.org/top-rates.php
Incidentally, 1955 to 1963 were some pretty good years for growth and jobs in the U S of A.
So lets look at inheritance taxes in the USA. What do we see there: we see that the top inheritance tax rate was between 70% and 90% from 1936 to 1996.
Read it here: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2004/01/estate-taxes-an-historical-perspective
Now that rate is zero.
Score two for RR.
OK, then, what's it all mean.
It means that Congress and the voters were less corrupt/blinded/bamboozled than they are now.
It means that in our recent history we have taxed RICH people a lot and that the economy was better at the time we were taxing the RICH.
But, when we talk bout that today, we get a s...storm of bombast, bribes and lies that take our eye off the ball.
So, Ima guessin that make me a class 'warrior' in RR's definition. I don feel like one, I jes feels like Ima tellin the truth. Well, if tellin the truth make me a 'warrior', so be it.
Here one of da biggest lies we gonna hear: If we put the inheritance tax back on, there will be a lotta poor farmers who will lose the family farm they tryin to pass on to their families.
Thas jes a crock. First off, when we talk about RICH, we are talkin about billionaires, not some family farmers. Im all for making the inheritance tax apply only to RICH - estates more than a billion. That way saves the family farm. Let folks have couple hundred million - no problem. Its the big guys I worry about.
Here another big lie we gonna hear: If we tax RICH folks they won't create jobs and the economy will suffer.
Thats another crock. RICH folks dont create jobs - they buy T bills and such. Jobs are created by small businesses started by middle class folks. Takin away the big fortunes will make more jobs because middle class folks will have more income and will start more businesses.
OK Barry, you got a lot on your plate.
Don let this one slip on by.
We needs ya here.
Your pal,
The RICH is our problem. Now Robert Reich [http://robertreich.org/] has been saying the exact same thing, except he says he is a class 'worrier' and not a class 'warrior'.
He sayin that because he thinks that somehow the good ol U S of A will spontaneously rise up and restore a better balance between the RICH and the rest of us. After all, we have done it before.
What he means is that we have RAISED TAXES on RICH folks before. By RAISING TAXES on the RICH, we have leveled the playing field and made a better country in the past.
So, les look at some facts to see if he is right.
OK, so far as the marginal federal income tax rate on the highest earners goes, score one for RR.
That rate was 91% from 1955 to 1963, then it dropped to under 40% from 1987 to 2003, where it stood at 35%. Read it here: http://www.truthandpolitics.org/top-rates.php
Incidentally, 1955 to 1963 were some pretty good years for growth and jobs in the U S of A.
So lets look at inheritance taxes in the USA. What do we see there: we see that the top inheritance tax rate was between 70% and 90% from 1936 to 1996.
Read it here: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2004/01/estate-taxes-an-historical-perspective
Now that rate is zero.
Score two for RR.
OK, then, what's it all mean.
It means that Congress and the voters were less corrupt/blinded/bamboozled than they are now.
It means that in our recent history we have taxed RICH people a lot and that the economy was better at the time we were taxing the RICH.
But, when we talk bout that today, we get a s...storm of bombast, bribes and lies that take our eye off the ball.
So, Ima guessin that make me a class 'warrior' in RR's definition. I don feel like one, I jes feels like Ima tellin the truth. Well, if tellin the truth make me a 'warrior', so be it.
Here one of da biggest lies we gonna hear: If we put the inheritance tax back on, there will be a lotta poor farmers who will lose the family farm they tryin to pass on to their families.
Thas jes a crock. First off, when we talk about RICH, we are talkin about billionaires, not some family farmers. Im all for making the inheritance tax apply only to RICH - estates more than a billion. That way saves the family farm. Let folks have couple hundred million - no problem. Its the big guys I worry about.
Here another big lie we gonna hear: If we tax RICH folks they won't create jobs and the economy will suffer.
Thats another crock. RICH folks dont create jobs - they buy T bills and such. Jobs are created by small businesses started by middle class folks. Takin away the big fortunes will make more jobs because middle class folks will have more income and will start more businesses.
OK Barry, you got a lot on your plate.
Don let this one slip on by.
We needs ya here.
Your pal,
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Killin the Goose
Hey Barry:
Y'all mebbe wonderin what is the big deal about this foreclosure mess anyway.
Some folks sayin that we jes gotta let the market take its lumps and move on.
But Barry, it aint that simple or easy. It aint about some poor shlub like yours truly who been sucker punched.
Nope, its about some big things.
An Barry, this here's a surprise - Im gonna agree with the billionaires on this. Normally they is jes wrong and bad for the country - this here's the exception.
When ya think about where does the money come from - all the money in the whole country - ya could do worse than readin THE MYSTERY OF CAPITAL, by Hernando De Soto.
His point is that Western countries like the good ol US of A create a lot of wealth - money - because they have created a system that lets a banker in New York be certain that Sammy Smith really does own the house in Kansas City that he wants a loan on. And with that system the banker can make Sammy a loan and sleep at night.
And because the banker can sleep, then he is willing to value Sammys house at the price that Sammy can afford to pay the loan on, lets say mebbe $200,000.
That mean that Sammy can borrow against his house and buy some stuff or buy another house.
That's the way it used to be, say five years ago. Different today. And Barry, the difference is your problem to solve.
Here's the difference:
But, jes suppose that the NY banker can NOT be sure Sammy owns his house. Then what will he lend Sammy. Answer = zip, nada, zero.
Then what is Sammy's house worth. The same - zip, nada, zero. Mebbe he can find sum fool that'll pay him $5,000 and gamble that he really owns the house. But, and this is the big point Barry, aint no banker gonna lend nuthin on Sammy's house without his being sure who owns it.
OK, then, so what is this wonnerful system that creates all this money. Its the title insurance system. This is the companies that track all the history of Sammy's house to be sure that Sammy really owns it. Then that company writes an insurance policy that says: Yes, Sammy really owns the house.
And thats what the banker needs to make a loan.
Thats all good, but here's what is happening now: The crooked bankers have made such a mess that some title insurance companies are refusin to write insurance on Sammys house. And that gonna mean that no banker will lend on Sammys house. And that gonna mean that Sammys house is worth exactly zero.
See, the bankers job is to provide clear documents to the title company so they can be sure of ownership.
Here's where the crooked bankers come in - today's banks have been so cheap/crooked/lazy [y'all can choose your own word here] that they have failed to provide title companies with clear documents.
That gonna mean that the entire wealth of the country is headin down the drain in a big hurry.
Talk bout killin the golden goose - these criminal banks have jes bout done it for all of us.
OK so whatta we gonna do.
Heres what ya gotta do Barry:
First: Ya gotta create an interim guarantee for the title companies so's they can keep insurin Sammy's house.
Most Important, second: Ya gotta force - I mean FORCE - them crooked mother banks to provide clear and legal docs on all the houses they think they own.
Its the only way out of this particular mess Barry.
Ya gotta be real hard and some of them boys gotta do time.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Y'all mebbe wonderin what is the big deal about this foreclosure mess anyway.
Some folks sayin that we jes gotta let the market take its lumps and move on.
But Barry, it aint that simple or easy. It aint about some poor shlub like yours truly who been sucker punched.
Nope, its about some big things.
An Barry, this here's a surprise - Im gonna agree with the billionaires on this. Normally they is jes wrong and bad for the country - this here's the exception.
When ya think about where does the money come from - all the money in the whole country - ya could do worse than readin THE MYSTERY OF CAPITAL, by Hernando De Soto.
His point is that Western countries like the good ol US of A create a lot of wealth - money - because they have created a system that lets a banker in New York be certain that Sammy Smith really does own the house in Kansas City that he wants a loan on. And with that system the banker can make Sammy a loan and sleep at night.
And because the banker can sleep, then he is willing to value Sammys house at the price that Sammy can afford to pay the loan on, lets say mebbe $200,000.
That mean that Sammy can borrow against his house and buy some stuff or buy another house.
That's the way it used to be, say five years ago. Different today. And Barry, the difference is your problem to solve.
Here's the difference:
But, jes suppose that the NY banker can NOT be sure Sammy owns his house. Then what will he lend Sammy. Answer = zip, nada, zero.
Then what is Sammy's house worth. The same - zip, nada, zero. Mebbe he can find sum fool that'll pay him $5,000 and gamble that he really owns the house. But, and this is the big point Barry, aint no banker gonna lend nuthin on Sammy's house without his being sure who owns it.
OK, then, so what is this wonnerful system that creates all this money. Its the title insurance system. This is the companies that track all the history of Sammy's house to be sure that Sammy really owns it. Then that company writes an insurance policy that says: Yes, Sammy really owns the house.
And thats what the banker needs to make a loan.
Thats all good, but here's what is happening now: The crooked bankers have made such a mess that some title insurance companies are refusin to write insurance on Sammys house. And that gonna mean that no banker will lend on Sammys house. And that gonna mean that Sammys house is worth exactly zero.
See, the bankers job is to provide clear documents to the title company so they can be sure of ownership.
Here's where the crooked bankers come in - today's banks have been so cheap/crooked/lazy [y'all can choose your own word here] that they have failed to provide title companies with clear documents.
That gonna mean that the entire wealth of the country is headin down the drain in a big hurry.
Talk bout killin the golden goose - these criminal banks have jes bout done it for all of us.
OK so whatta we gonna do.
Heres what ya gotta do Barry:
First: Ya gotta create an interim guarantee for the title companies so's they can keep insurin Sammy's house.
Most Important, second: Ya gotta force - I mean FORCE - them crooked mother banks to provide clear and legal docs on all the houses they think they own.
Its the only way out of this particular mess Barry.
Ya gotta be real hard and some of them boys gotta do time.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Friday, October 8, 2010
Adult Bankers!
Hey Barry:
Some bankers - amazingly - act like grown ups.
Will wonders never cease.
But watch out for da catch - them bankers don do nuthin for free. Meantime, be happy for the bone they throwin.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/09/business/09mortgage.html?src=me
Your pal,
Some bankers - amazingly - act like grown ups.
Will wonders never cease.
But watch out for da catch - them bankers don do nuthin for free. Meantime, be happy for the bone they throwin.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/09/business/09mortgage.html?src=me
Your pal,
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Secret Billionaires Buy Rove
Hey Barry:
Good ol boy Rove sells hisself to some billionaires.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/1005/Karl-Rove-group-spends-big-in-Election-2010-but-is-it-legal
Now y'all gotta fight mega bucks as well as the standard Rep mouthwash.
Keep up the good fight Barry, jes forgit the bi-partisan stuff.
Y'all can go back there when the Supremes see the light and change they law bout lettin corps buy elections.
Your pal,
Good ol boy Rove sells hisself to some billionaires.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/1005/Karl-Rove-group-spends-big-in-Election-2010-but-is-it-legal
Now y'all gotta fight mega bucks as well as the standard Rep mouthwash.
Keep up the good fight Barry, jes forgit the bi-partisan stuff.
Y'all can go back there when the Supremes see the light and change they law bout lettin corps buy elections.
Your pal,
AmChams Sell You Out
Hey Barry:
Turns out the Supremes open a nasty box when they let corps buy elections. Now the American Chamber of Commerce is actively seeking money from foreign corps to help it buy elections and create a corporate state. Ifn they win, then we'd have something like national socialism - jes hush yo mouth now, never you mind that it dont work.
Read it here: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/report_chamber_raises_hundreds_of_thousands_from_f.php
It's against the law, but that don matter.
Itsa nightmare Barry, we is hopin y'all on it.
Your pal,
Turns out the Supremes open a nasty box when they let corps buy elections. Now the American Chamber of Commerce is actively seeking money from foreign corps to help it buy elections and create a corporate state. Ifn they win, then we'd have something like national socialism - jes hush yo mouth now, never you mind that it dont work.
Read it here: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/10/report_chamber_raises_hundreds_of_thousands_from_f.php
It's against the law, but that don matter.
Itsa nightmare Barry, we is hopin y'all on it.
Your pal,
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Jes Caint Stop Stealin
Hey Barry:
Them Wall Streeters at Chase bank is so greedy they have mebbe shut down the entire USA housing market for good.
Read it here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/03/business/economy/03foreclose.html?src=busln
Here's an update showin how them bankers jes cannot be trusted: http://www.truth-out.org/shock-therapy-wall-street-jpmorgan-suspends-56000-foreclosures-gmac-and-boa-many-more63803
This can really kill the whole economy, Barry, y'all gotta work on a fix quick like.
Regulation too good to these boys, they gotta go to jail.
Holy cow, it jes dont stop.
Your pal,
Them Wall Streeters at Chase bank is so greedy they have mebbe shut down the entire USA housing market for good.
Read it here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/03/business/economy/03foreclose.html?src=busln
Here's an update showin how them bankers jes cannot be trusted: http://www.truth-out.org/shock-therapy-wall-street-jpmorgan-suspends-56000-foreclosures-gmac-and-boa-many-more63803
This can really kill the whole economy, Barry, y'all gotta work on a fix quick like.
Regulation too good to these boys, they gotta go to jail.
Holy cow, it jes dont stop.
Your pal,
Friday, October 1, 2010
OOOOOoops, Sorry for the 4 Billion!
Hey Barry:
Some traders in Kansas tried to sell 4 BILLION of some thing - who knows what.
What happened, you ask: here's what - the market crashed.
How did some rubes in Kansas get 4 billion of anything anyway.
Holy cow Barry, ya gotta fix this.
Your pal,
Some traders in Kansas tried to sell 4 BILLION of some thing - who knows what.
What happened, you ask: here's what - the market crashed.
How did some rubes in Kansas get 4 billion of anything anyway.
Holy cow Barry, ya gotta fix this.
Your pal,
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Runnin Wall Street
Hey Barry:
As an American I'd truly like to be bi-partisan and see the good in the Reps. But, y'all knows I aint Mary Poppins and the Reps is full of it. All they mouthin is bad for the country - is only good for the RICH.
Now thats what we know, Barry - we know that.
So ya gotta run against that.
And, it really works, Barry. Runnin against Wall Street gets votes. Sumbuddy was runnin gainst a Tea Bagger and havin a hard time. Then she started runnin against Wall Street and tyin her opponent to the bankers. The campaign turned around.
Well I forgot the xact race, mebbe it was in Oregon - don remember.
Point is, its what wins the elections.
Your pal,
As an American I'd truly like to be bi-partisan and see the good in the Reps. But, y'all knows I aint Mary Poppins and the Reps is full of it. All they mouthin is bad for the country - is only good for the RICH.
Now thats what we know, Barry - we know that.
So ya gotta run against that.
And, it really works, Barry. Runnin against Wall Street gets votes. Sumbuddy was runnin gainst a Tea Bagger and havin a hard time. Then she started runnin against Wall Street and tyin her opponent to the bankers. The campaign turned around.
Well I forgot the xact race, mebbe it was in Oregon - don remember.
Point is, its what wins the elections.
Your pal,
Monday, September 27, 2010
RICH = Monopoly
Hey Barry:
You're probably like me, jes as soon not make them billionaires any richer.
But, y'all doin it every day, jes like the rest of us.
See, ting is this - billionaires don get they bucks unless they get a monopoly on sumthin. A monopoly is when ya gotta go to one person to get what you want.
An, here's what bad bout monopoly. It aint jes that they can charge you more for what you want - cuz you got nowhere else to go - they HAVE to charge you more.
Hold on pardner, y'all might be sayin, whattya mean they HAS to charge more.
Now, I can splain all the reasons they HAS to charge higher prices, but it gonna take ten or twelve hours and you don got that time - I don't either. So, Ima gonna give few examples and a link to sumbuddy who has that explanation on the web:
http://tutor2u.net/economics/content/topics/monopoly/monopoly_profits.htm
Here sum examples - rite now I'm typing in microsoft text editor. Which means I hadda pay Bill Gates. [Except actually I don't cuz my copy is from a friend - score one for our side]. Last time I looked Bill Gates is bout the biggest billionare on the planet. An he greedy and he a monopoly. The EU sued him cuz he's a monopoly.
Here how he work: I loved Windows 98 - worked fine, did every thing I wanted and didn't crash every ten minutes. But now you caint use that no more cuz MS Corp does not 'support' it. Which means that none of the current programs gonna work on good ol 98, which means ya gotta buy a new program - from hisself, Bill Gates.
Gotta another personal thing bout Billy - years ago I wrote a book, lotta work an lotta fun. Nobuddy wanted to publish it cuz it wasn't very good. It was a labor of love. Point is this: I wrote it in some program - wordperfect or sum such, an when I turned around, Uncle Billy had bought the program and didn't 'support' it no more. Now I cain't even read my book cuz its in that dead program.
Les move on to the the oil companies. You drive round - you support big oil. An itsa oligopoly - which is a monopoly with friends. Once in while ya might see some gas station open up and charge real low prices cuz they wanna make friends or use the gas price as a loss leader.
They gonna last a week wid dat idea. Here's what gonna happen. Big oil marketing rep gonna come round an say - 'ya know you cain't buy no more gas unless you raise the price. Itsa free country an you can do what you want, but you will charge the price we decide or you won't get gas.'
Nother thing bout big oil - they say the prices are set by the 'market'. Thas a crock. Nex time prices getta little low cuz they too much gas around, they gonna be a refinery shut down because of 'maintnance'. And, surprise, surprise, the price gonna go back up cuz they a 'shortage of gas'.
OK, you can find your own examples. You can make it a game for the kids.
Point about it is this: we all paying so much to support the billionaires that we caint buy any stuff. An if we caint buy any stuff, the economy gonna stay bad.
Thas where we is right now.
An thas another ting thats' bad about the RICH - they stealin so much from us that we is too broke to support the economy.
Ya gotta fix the system Barry, so the monopolists go away.
Your pal,
You're probably like me, jes as soon not make them billionaires any richer.
But, y'all doin it every day, jes like the rest of us.
See, ting is this - billionaires don get they bucks unless they get a monopoly on sumthin. A monopoly is when ya gotta go to one person to get what you want.
An, here's what bad bout monopoly. It aint jes that they can charge you more for what you want - cuz you got nowhere else to go - they HAVE to charge you more.
Hold on pardner, y'all might be sayin, whattya mean they HAS to charge more.
Now, I can splain all the reasons they HAS to charge higher prices, but it gonna take ten or twelve hours and you don got that time - I don't either. So, Ima gonna give few examples and a link to sumbuddy who has that explanation on the web:
http://tutor2u.net/economics/content/topics/monopoly/monopoly_profits.htm
Here sum examples - rite now I'm typing in microsoft text editor. Which means I hadda pay Bill Gates. [Except actually I don't cuz my copy is from a friend - score one for our side]. Last time I looked Bill Gates is bout the biggest billionare on the planet. An he greedy and he a monopoly. The EU sued him cuz he's a monopoly.
Here how he work: I loved Windows 98 - worked fine, did every thing I wanted and didn't crash every ten minutes. But now you caint use that no more cuz MS Corp does not 'support' it. Which means that none of the current programs gonna work on good ol 98, which means ya gotta buy a new program - from hisself, Bill Gates.
Gotta another personal thing bout Billy - years ago I wrote a book, lotta work an lotta fun. Nobuddy wanted to publish it cuz it wasn't very good. It was a labor of love. Point is this: I wrote it in some program - wordperfect or sum such, an when I turned around, Uncle Billy had bought the program and didn't 'support' it no more. Now I cain't even read my book cuz its in that dead program.
Les move on to the the oil companies. You drive round - you support big oil. An itsa oligopoly - which is a monopoly with friends. Once in while ya might see some gas station open up and charge real low prices cuz they wanna make friends or use the gas price as a loss leader.
They gonna last a week wid dat idea. Here's what gonna happen. Big oil marketing rep gonna come round an say - 'ya know you cain't buy no more gas unless you raise the price. Itsa free country an you can do what you want, but you will charge the price we decide or you won't get gas.'
Nother thing bout big oil - they say the prices are set by the 'market'. Thas a crock. Nex time prices getta little low cuz they too much gas around, they gonna be a refinery shut down because of 'maintnance'. And, surprise, surprise, the price gonna go back up cuz they a 'shortage of gas'.
OK, you can find your own examples. You can make it a game for the kids.
Point about it is this: we all paying so much to support the billionaires that we caint buy any stuff. An if we caint buy any stuff, the economy gonna stay bad.
Thas where we is right now.
An thas another ting thats' bad about the RICH - they stealin so much from us that we is too broke to support the economy.
Ya gotta fix the system Barry, so the monopolists go away.
Your pal,
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Who The RICH?
Hey Barry:
Chops to Forbes, they name the names and show the dollars.
Find the list here: http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/10/billionaires-2010_The-Worlds-Billionaires_Rank.html
It's from March, but a good list - pretty sure none of em are on welfare yet.
Mebbe I get some time, I'll copy the names. Meantime, enjoy,
Your pal,
Chops to Forbes, they name the names and show the dollars.
Find the list here: http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/10/billionaires-2010_The-Worlds-Billionaires_Rank.html
It's from March, but a good list - pretty sure none of em are on welfare yet.
Mebbe I get some time, I'll copy the names. Meantime, enjoy,
Your pal,
Why RICH Bad - Everywhere
Hey Barry:
Jes another reason RICH are da problem: Big ol UN conference on helpin the poor - BUT, they aint no poor there. Jes mo RICH.
Read the article here: http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/Africa-Monitor/2010/0923/At-UN-elites-mull-Millennium-Development-Goals.-Did-the-poor-weigh-in
Speechless, Barry, jes caint say a word.
Your pal,
Jes another reason RICH are da problem: Big ol UN conference on helpin the poor - BUT, they aint no poor there. Jes mo RICH.
Read the article here: http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/Africa-Monitor/2010/0923/At-UN-elites-mull-Millennium-Development-Goals.-Did-the-poor-weigh-in
Speechless, Barry, jes caint say a word.
Your pal,
Monday, September 20, 2010
Fraidy RICH
Hey Barry:
Seems that even Krugman is noticin that the real RICH are a little fraid.
Itsa sign that y'all doin good.
Keep the pressure on - jes mebbe they gettin the message.
Itsa simple message - the RICH is the problem and they gotta go.
Don matter where they go, jes get outta the way and let us live in peace.
Don need they money, don need they cruelty.
Aint nobody gonna weep when they go.
Your pal,
Seems that even Krugman is noticin that the real RICH are a little fraid.
Itsa sign that y'all doin good.
Keep the pressure on - jes mebbe they gettin the message.
Itsa simple message - the RICH is the problem and they gotta go.
Don matter where they go, jes get outta the way and let us live in peace.
Don need they money, don need they cruelty.
Aint nobody gonna weep when they go.
Your pal,
Friday, September 17, 2010
Tellin the Truth - Scary
Hey Barry:
Good on y'all for puttin Elizabeth Warren where she can so some real good.
Nuthin scarier than a 60ish blond woman with a big smile who speaks the truth.
Trick or treat, bankers.
Your pal,
Good on y'all for puttin Elizabeth Warren where she can so some real good.
Nuthin scarier than a 60ish blond woman with a big smile who speaks the truth.
Trick or treat, bankers.
Your pal,
Monday, September 13, 2010
Snowe, Collins and Brown
Hey Barry:
In his column of Sep 13, 2010, E. J. Dionne, Jr. [
http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/dionne/] nails it.
The Supremes messed up big time by lettin corps buy lections an laws.
The Senate can fix it, but three senators are standin in the way.
Time to call em out an fix this, Barry.
Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine and Scott Brown of Mass are lettin the right wing crazies tell em what to do.
Its bad for the country, Barry, jes bad.
Your pal,
In his column of Sep 13, 2010, E. J. Dionne, Jr. [
http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/dionne/] nails it.
The Supremes messed up big time by lettin corps buy lections an laws.
The Senate can fix it, but three senators are standin in the way.
Time to call em out an fix this, Barry.
Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine and Scott Brown of Mass are lettin the right wing crazies tell em what to do.
Its bad for the country, Barry, jes bad.
Your pal,
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Lead Dog
Hey Barry:
Itsa good speech on the conomy. Them bank weasels may be talking bout you like you a dog, but you da lead dog and they is seeing the same thing every day.
But, Barry, they is one thing y'all left out of the speech.
It bout them RICH. See, ifn y'all builds all the solar and creates new jobs an all, well our system gonna collect all the money in a few hands and make the RICH even richer.
History shows that every great government movement in the USA creates new RICH. You could look it up. So that's gonna be the challenge Barry. Ya gotta build the new jobs AND ya gotta take down the RICH.
See, the RICH is standin in the way of the money gettin to the middle. And, ifn you dont take them down, the middle wont get wot y'all tryin to give em.
Thas what you left out Barry. Takin down the RICH. Spreading the money around so jes a few don get it all.
Take em down Barry, take em down. We needs it.
Your pal,
Itsa good speech on the conomy. Them bank weasels may be talking bout you like you a dog, but you da lead dog and they is seeing the same thing every day.
But, Barry, they is one thing y'all left out of the speech.
It bout them RICH. See, ifn y'all builds all the solar and creates new jobs an all, well our system gonna collect all the money in a few hands and make the RICH even richer.
History shows that every great government movement in the USA creates new RICH. You could look it up. So that's gonna be the challenge Barry. Ya gotta build the new jobs AND ya gotta take down the RICH.
See, the RICH is standin in the way of the money gettin to the middle. And, ifn you dont take them down, the middle wont get wot y'all tryin to give em.
Thas what you left out Barry. Takin down the RICH. Spreading the money around so jes a few don get it all.
Take em down Barry, take em down. We needs it.
Your pal,
Sunday, September 5, 2010
On Workin
Hey Barry:
Y'all on the job machine. Lotsa good ideas for creatin jobs. Keep on it.
This is a big one - try to get it thru Congress - thas the hard part.
Here's a link:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/05/national/w070330D61.DTL
Your pal,
Y'all on the job machine. Lotsa good ideas for creatin jobs. Keep on it.
This is a big one - try to get it thru Congress - thas the hard part.
Here's a link:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/05/national/w070330D61.DTL
Your pal,
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Dirty Little Secret
Hey Barry:
Jeez, what a thing. Here we are tryin to save Afghanistan from the Tali and then dere's this.
Itsa a thing that turns your hair grey Barry, y'all sure ya want this job?
Seems lotta Afghan men keep little boys as sex playthings in their house.
An some of them men is in the government and the police.
Anyway, aint no secret no more - all our troops seein it.
Here's a link to the story:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/29/INF21F2Q9H.DTL
Barry, y'all gotta be sure we need a Tali free Afghanistan. If yo sure then keep at it. But, if yo not sure, then mebbe its time to think hard on this.
Here the question: why we sendin our kids to die protectin the rights of people we'd jes as soon watch die if they at home?
Don make no sense on the face.
Ima hopin there's some back story sumwhere I don know.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Jeez, what a thing. Here we are tryin to save Afghanistan from the Tali and then dere's this.
Itsa a thing that turns your hair grey Barry, y'all sure ya want this job?
Seems lotta Afghan men keep little boys as sex playthings in their house.
An some of them men is in the government and the police.
Anyway, aint no secret no more - all our troops seein it.
Here's a link to the story:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/29/INF21F2Q9H.DTL
Barry, y'all gotta be sure we need a Tali free Afghanistan. If yo sure then keep at it. But, if yo not sure, then mebbe its time to think hard on this.
Here the question: why we sendin our kids to die protectin the rights of people we'd jes as soon watch die if they at home?
Don make no sense on the face.
Ima hopin there's some back story sumwhere I don know.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Workin Down, Down, Down
Hey Barry:
All the things on your brain, I know its real busy up there.
But les think for a minute bout what its like to get a job today.
Itsa big job, Barry, aint easy atall.
Jes for the sake of it, les imagine that y'all lose the lection. I don want that to happen cuz we needs you there, but them Reps is real sneaky and they might git lucky. Who knows, is politics, after all.
Dere you are lookin for work. But, aint nobody gonna hire you. Think about it. Yo is used to big bucks, lotsa attention, and, face it Barry, y'all aint xactly mainstream. In this competitive conomy, the employers goes with cheap, mainstream and eager, not expensive an picky.
Gonna mean Michelle be poundin the pavement.
Here wot she'll see.
Lets say she tries for a sales job in a downtown Chi town retail store sellin clothes - she'll be real good at it, has a natural gift for fashion and talkin an all. Should be a breeze, right.
Not so fast.
Here an ad she mebbe likes:
"Can you name 3 of today's hottest designers? How about the current must-have
jeans? Have you ever done a celebratory dance when your Lucky magazine
arrived? (Don't worry, we won't tell anyone.) If so, we want you!
We are a fashion-obsessed, fun-loving retailer of high
quality new and recycled clothing. Currently, we're looking for energetic,
friendly and responsible people for positions at our store.
Sales Associates: PART TIME position. MUST BE ABLE TO WORK FRI, SAT, SUN.
Some retail clothing experience required. You will be selling to the public,
which involves keeping up-to-date on current fashion trends, fashionable labels, pricing,
and what our competitors are selling.
- Competitive pay [BTW: dis means $1.00 per hour above min wage]
- Reliable review schedule
- Significant discount on all merchandise
- A professionally oriented retail development program "
Sound good?
OK then, she needs to go the store's website and get her brain round some corp-speak and then take a test online. Here is some corp-speak right off a website with the name an details changed so's I don get sued:
"Passionate and motivated about working for a global brand and in the retail/fashion industry
Global, innovative thinker and learning agile with an open and inquisitive mind and an understanding of customers and brands
Demonstrated leadership qualities such as a strong point of view, willingness to take calculated risks and interpersonal savvy
An entrepreneurial spirit and a strong work ethic with a desire to work in a fast paced environment
Strong analytical and critical thinking capabilities as well as financial acumen
Persuasive presentation, communication and negotiation skills
Effective collaboration with peers and teams
Organization of multiple projects with effective prioritization and flexibility and an ability to execute with a sense of urgency and attention to detail
Minimum Qualifications
A 4-year degree or equivalent work experience is required.
For students, all majors are welcome to apply. A GPA of 3.0 or above is required. [BTW: dis means she gonna go gainst 20 somethings.]
For full-time internal applicants, a manager reference form is required to be uploaded with the application. Part-time and seasonal employees do not need a Manager Reference Form.
Additionally all full-time employees must have been in their positions for one year."
Still sound good. OK then.
Next she gonna take an online quiz of 150 questions. Questions gonna be things like dese taken from remembered tests and interviews:
'What would you do if your friend tells you that your supervisor is stealing merchandise?
What are your shortcomings?
What is a mistake you made in the last year? And, what happened because of that mistake?
What would you do if one supervisor tells you to do something that conflicts with what another supervisor tells you?"
The list goes on and on and it'll take her bout hour and half to finish it. Good advice on them quizzes - don think, jes answer the questions.
Oh, by the way - a computer gonna score your quiz. Thas cause they gonna get 200 quizzes to read. An aint nobody got time to read all that.
So, les say that the computer really likes Michelle. Thas good, but the computer gonna really like mebbe 5 or 10 other people too. Then a real person gonna look at the candidates and suggest interviewin two or three to the boss - who jes fired the person which created the opening in the first place cuz aint no bidness growin and hirin new folks. Wont even go inta why the person got fired inna first place.
So Michelle gonna be asked in for interview. There'll be a group of five folks doin the questionin. Probably from a script and they gonna rotate askin each question. The questions gonna be about how she works. Y'all gotta think like itsa audition, jes like you tryin for a movie role.
Now, if the job has any technical skill requirements you expect a written exam that's minimum of one hour long bout everything under the sun bout the job.
OK, les say Michelle passes the interview and aces the test.
She is qualified, that's all good; but, is she the right person? An that is different for every job. An there is no way to know.
In fact, there is a good chance that the company will just not hire anyone because nobody fits all their desires exactly. Or, there's also a good chance that the boss already knows who he's gonna hire - he just making himself look good by doing the process.
Or may be Michelle is lucky and knows someone and actually gets an offer: Congratulations!
That gonna mean she can now work for minimum wage plus dollar per hour selling jeans on the weekends.
OK Barry, thas the world we live in. Work hard on that lection and stay in DC - it's easier.
Your pal,
All the things on your brain, I know its real busy up there.
But les think for a minute bout what its like to get a job today.
Itsa big job, Barry, aint easy atall.
Jes for the sake of it, les imagine that y'all lose the lection. I don want that to happen cuz we needs you there, but them Reps is real sneaky and they might git lucky. Who knows, is politics, after all.
Dere you are lookin for work. But, aint nobody gonna hire you. Think about it. Yo is used to big bucks, lotsa attention, and, face it Barry, y'all aint xactly mainstream. In this competitive conomy, the employers goes with cheap, mainstream and eager, not expensive an picky.
Gonna mean Michelle be poundin the pavement.
Here wot she'll see.
Lets say she tries for a sales job in a downtown Chi town retail store sellin clothes - she'll be real good at it, has a natural gift for fashion and talkin an all. Should be a breeze, right.
Not so fast.
Here an ad she mebbe likes:
"Can you name 3 of today's hottest designers? How about the current must-have
jeans? Have you ever done a celebratory dance when your Lucky magazine
arrived? (Don't worry, we won't tell anyone.) If so, we want you!
We are a fashion-obsessed, fun-loving retailer of high
quality new and recycled clothing. Currently, we're looking for energetic,
friendly and responsible people for positions at our store.
Sales Associates: PART TIME position. MUST BE ABLE TO WORK FRI, SAT, SUN.
Some retail clothing experience required. You will be selling to the public,
which involves keeping up-to-date on current fashion trends, fashionable labels, pricing,
and what our competitors are selling.
- Competitive pay [BTW: dis means $1.00 per hour above min wage]
- Reliable review schedule
- Significant discount on all merchandise
- A professionally oriented retail development program "
Sound good?
OK then, she needs to go the store's website and get her brain round some corp-speak and then take a test online. Here is some corp-speak right off a website with the name an details changed so's I don get sued:
"Passionate and motivated about working for a global brand and in the retail/fashion industry
Global, innovative thinker and learning agile with an open and inquisitive mind and an understanding of customers and brands
Demonstrated leadership qualities such as a strong point of view, willingness to take calculated risks and interpersonal savvy
An entrepreneurial spirit and a strong work ethic with a desire to work in a fast paced environment
Strong analytical and critical thinking capabilities as well as financial acumen
Persuasive presentation, communication and negotiation skills
Effective collaboration with peers and teams
Organization of multiple projects with effective prioritization and flexibility and an ability to execute with a sense of urgency and attention to detail
Minimum Qualifications
A 4-year degree or equivalent work experience is required.
For students, all majors are welcome to apply. A GPA of 3.0 or above is required. [BTW: dis means she gonna go gainst 20 somethings.]
For full-time internal applicants, a manager reference form is required to be uploaded with the application. Part-time and seasonal employees do not need a Manager Reference Form.
Additionally all full-time employees must have been in their positions for one year."
Still sound good. OK then.
Next she gonna take an online quiz of 150 questions. Questions gonna be things like dese taken from remembered tests and interviews:
'What would you do if your friend tells you that your supervisor is stealing merchandise?
What are your shortcomings?
What is a mistake you made in the last year? And, what happened because of that mistake?
What would you do if one supervisor tells you to do something that conflicts with what another supervisor tells you?"
The list goes on and on and it'll take her bout hour and half to finish it. Good advice on them quizzes - don think, jes answer the questions.
Oh, by the way - a computer gonna score your quiz. Thas cause they gonna get 200 quizzes to read. An aint nobody got time to read all that.
So, les say that the computer really likes Michelle. Thas good, but the computer gonna really like mebbe 5 or 10 other people too. Then a real person gonna look at the candidates and suggest interviewin two or three to the boss - who jes fired the person which created the opening in the first place cuz aint no bidness growin and hirin new folks. Wont even go inta why the person got fired inna first place.
So Michelle gonna be asked in for interview. There'll be a group of five folks doin the questionin. Probably from a script and they gonna rotate askin each question. The questions gonna be about how she works. Y'all gotta think like itsa audition, jes like you tryin for a movie role.
Now, if the job has any technical skill requirements you expect a written exam that's minimum of one hour long bout everything under the sun bout the job.
OK, les say Michelle passes the interview and aces the test.
She is qualified, that's all good; but, is she the right person? An that is different for every job. An there is no way to know.
In fact, there is a good chance that the company will just not hire anyone because nobody fits all their desires exactly. Or, there's also a good chance that the boss already knows who he's gonna hire - he just making himself look good by doing the process.
Or may be Michelle is lucky and knows someone and actually gets an offer: Congratulations!
That gonna mean she can now work for minimum wage plus dollar per hour selling jeans on the weekends.
OK Barry, thas the world we live in. Work hard on that lection and stay in DC - it's easier.
Your pal,
Saturday, August 21, 2010
National Security - Trading It Away
Hey Barry:
Bout dis trade thing. We gotta watch it close. Course, wot that really means is YOU gotta watch it, cuz ifn you dont, we gonna slide down that hill even faster.
Here's Jeffrey Carr at Forbes bout givin away our jewels for some peas, jes like Jack in the Beanstalk.
http://blogs.forbes.com/firewall/2010/08/20/intels-mcafee-deal-a-national-security-nightmare/?boxes=Homepagechannels
Holy cow, Barry, don nobudy even THINK bout was good for us - foolish question, I know. Is all bout pilin up da cash.
You da cop Barry - only one we got.
Your pal,
Bout dis trade thing. We gotta watch it close. Course, wot that really means is YOU gotta watch it, cuz ifn you dont, we gonna slide down that hill even faster.
Here's Jeffrey Carr at Forbes bout givin away our jewels for some peas, jes like Jack in the Beanstalk.
http://blogs.forbes.com/firewall/2010/08/20/intels-mcafee-deal-a-national-security-nightmare/?boxes=Homepagechannels
Holy cow, Barry, don nobudy even THINK bout was good for us - foolish question, I know. Is all bout pilin up da cash.
You da cop Barry - only one we got.
Your pal,
Friday, August 20, 2010
National Security - 350 Years - Why RICH Bad, Part 11
Hey Barry:
This one's gotta couple parts. First - bout me. Second, more bout RICH.
First part: Sum y'all wonderin, - mebbe, mebbe not - who da hell dis guy anyways. Was he want?
Gonna tell ya.
Seems I got lotta family all over; most of 'em I don know an they don know me. Prolly better that way,
Anyways, when I's in school my old aunt tells me I's related pretty much directly to good ol John Adams through the Philadelphia Brooks - yeah, that John Adams.
First reaction - so what. That an two dollor gonna buy me a beer.
Then, few year later I get to wonnerin bout wot we doin to this country. Short answer: we screwin up.
Anyways, I watches an I learns bout tings and the more I watch the worse it gets.
Then another cousin does sum diggin an turns out we related to lotta Presidents: We had relatives on the Mayflower and they arived about 1621. Names Hicks, Edw. , Winslow, Sarah Odding and John Doane come up. Roger Sherman was a signer of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The presidents that come off of Sir Henry "Knight" Sherman were Taft, Hoover, George H Bush and George Walker Bush. That makes 6 presidents now!
There was a Hanson who was actually the first President of the Continental Congress, which makes him President before George Washington.
Well, thassa enuf of that - gets boring after while. Besides, family don make you rich, unless yo too RICH.
Point of it is this: I aint fraid of talking clear to anybuddy. I can talk on an even like level, an you might even listen.
Second part - we gotta be clear Barry. Why you think Ima goin on bout the RICH, anyways.
Here da answer to dat - here xactly why RICH is bad.
If'n folks gets too rich, then they can compete with the government. When that happens, we is cooked. There go 350 years of xperimentin wid helpin common folks do well rite down the drain.
Cryin shame is wot it is.
An, Barry, thas happenin right now. The RICH is buyin laws and buyin lections. An when they do, the lections an laws gonna make them RICHER and gonna make the rest of us poorer.
Barry, I know y'all all knows that. An I knows y'all tryin like hell to turn dat ship round in better direction.
But Barry - this is the test. It aint bout Reps vs Dems - it bout the RICH and the rest of us.
Keep on it, but mebbe move a lil faster, if'n yo can.
Your pal,
[Not an ex-President].
This one's gotta couple parts. First - bout me. Second, more bout RICH.
First part: Sum y'all wonderin, - mebbe, mebbe not - who da hell dis guy anyways. Was he want?
Gonna tell ya.
Seems I got lotta family all over; most of 'em I don know an they don know me. Prolly better that way,
Anyways, when I's in school my old aunt tells me I's related pretty much directly to good ol John Adams through the Philadelphia Brooks - yeah, that John Adams.
First reaction - so what. That an two dollor gonna buy me a beer.
Then, few year later I get to wonnerin bout wot we doin to this country. Short answer: we screwin up.
Anyways, I watches an I learns bout tings and the more I watch the worse it gets.
Then another cousin does sum diggin an turns out we related to lotta Presidents: We had relatives on the Mayflower and they arived about 1621. Names Hicks, Edw. , Winslow, Sarah Odding and John Doane come up. Roger Sherman was a signer of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The presidents that come off of Sir Henry "Knight" Sherman were Taft, Hoover, George H Bush and George Walker Bush. That makes 6 presidents now!
There was a Hanson who was actually the first President of the Continental Congress, which makes him President before George Washington.
Well, thassa enuf of that - gets boring after while. Besides, family don make you rich, unless yo too RICH.
Point of it is this: I aint fraid of talking clear to anybuddy. I can talk on an even like level, an you might even listen.
Second part - we gotta be clear Barry. Why you think Ima goin on bout the RICH, anyways.
Here da answer to dat - here xactly why RICH is bad.
If'n folks gets too rich, then they can compete with the government. When that happens, we is cooked. There go 350 years of xperimentin wid helpin common folks do well rite down the drain.
Cryin shame is wot it is.
An, Barry, thas happenin right now. The RICH is buyin laws and buyin lections. An when they do, the lections an laws gonna make them RICHER and gonna make the rest of us poorer.
Barry, I know y'all all knows that. An I knows y'all tryin like hell to turn dat ship round in better direction.
But Barry - this is the test. It aint bout Reps vs Dems - it bout the RICH and the rest of us.
Keep on it, but mebbe move a lil faster, if'n yo can.
Your pal,
[Not an ex-President].
Thursday, August 12, 2010
National Security - Why Rich Banks Bad - Part 10
Hey Barry:
Jes in case y'all wonderin xactly how them banks make they profits, read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/12/MN181ESKIO.DTL&tsp=1
Itsa hard to hol on to yo wallet when dealin wid a bank.
Enuf ta make a man cynical.
Your pal,
Jes in case y'all wonderin xactly how them banks make they profits, read it here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/12/MN181ESKIO.DTL&tsp=1
Itsa hard to hol on to yo wallet when dealin wid a bank.
Enuf ta make a man cynical.
Your pal,
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Good Ol Larry Feelin It
Hey Barry:
In his own words [makes ya wanna cry, don't it?]:
"To whom it may concern,
Many years ago, I put virtually all of my assets into a trust with the intent of giving away at least 95% of my wealth to charitable causes. I have already given hundreds of millions of dollars to medical research and education, and I will give billions more over time. Until now, I have done this giving quietly – because I have long believed that charitable giving is a personal and private matter. So why am I going public now? Warren Buffett personally asked me to write this letter because he said I would be “setting an example” and “influencing others” to give. I hope he’s right.
Larry Ellison"
From The Giving Pledge website: http://givingpledge.org/#larry_ellison
Your pal,
In his own words [makes ya wanna cry, don't it?]:
"To whom it may concern,
Many years ago, I put virtually all of my assets into a trust with the intent of giving away at least 95% of my wealth to charitable causes. I have already given hundreds of millions of dollars to medical research and education, and I will give billions more over time. Until now, I have done this giving quietly – because I have long believed that charitable giving is a personal and private matter. So why am I going public now? Warren Buffett personally asked me to write this letter because he said I would be “setting an example” and “influencing others” to give. I hope he’s right.
Larry Ellison"
From The Giving Pledge website: http://givingpledge.org/#larry_ellison
Your pal,
Sunday, August 8, 2010
National Security - Why Rich People Bad - Part 9: Larry Ellison
Hey Barry:
Good ol Larry really rich. So dat makes him a genius, rite?
Mebbe not so much. See, all's he gotta do is fire bunch people - then corp earnings go up and his shares are worth more.
Simple math - screw a family, grow your balance sheet.
Heres sum history on good ol Larry from the press:
'Oracle chops Sun HPC jobs'
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/05/sun_hpc_cuts_systems/
'Oracle's Larry Ellison Is Highest-Paid CEO of Decade'
http://www.dailyfinance.com/story/company-news/highest-paid-ceos/19569734/
'Global CIO: Oracle Layoffs Threaten Larry Ellison's Credibility - Ellison fires between 3000 and 9000 people'
http://www.informationweek.com/news/global-cio/interviews/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=225600372&pgno=1&queryText=&isPrev=
Sad part is dis: he not by hisself here.
How we get here anyways? Good way to get rich is ta fire people. Wot the hell.
Before we get all teary eyed bout them wonnerful billionaires giving sum to charity, les look real hard on how many jobs they killed to git the cash.
Luv to see a track on the BIG rich - how many grew jobs an how many killed jobs.
Mebbe we should go all Euro on them - put a big tax on firin folks so dat BIG rich makes money by letting people keep jobs.
Wotta revolutionary idea Barry - literally revolutionary. Was part of the revolution in Spain in the 1930's.
Sounds like we need it here.
Watta ya say Barry?
Make sense to you?
Your pal,
Good ol Larry really rich. So dat makes him a genius, rite?
Mebbe not so much. See, all's he gotta do is fire bunch people - then corp earnings go up and his shares are worth more.
Simple math - screw a family, grow your balance sheet.
Heres sum history on good ol Larry from the press:
'Oracle chops Sun HPC jobs'
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/05/sun_hpc_cuts_systems/
'Oracle's Larry Ellison Is Highest-Paid CEO of Decade'
http://www.dailyfinance.com/story/company-news/highest-paid-ceos/19569734/
'Global CIO: Oracle Layoffs Threaten Larry Ellison's Credibility - Ellison fires between 3000 and 9000 people'
http://www.informationweek.com/news/global-cio/interviews/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=225600372&pgno=1&queryText=&isPrev=
Sad part is dis: he not by hisself here.
How we get here anyways? Good way to get rich is ta fire people. Wot the hell.
Before we get all teary eyed bout them wonnerful billionaires giving sum to charity, les look real hard on how many jobs they killed to git the cash.
Luv to see a track on the BIG rich - how many grew jobs an how many killed jobs.
Mebbe we should go all Euro on them - put a big tax on firin folks so dat BIG rich makes money by letting people keep jobs.
Wotta revolutionary idea Barry - literally revolutionary. Was part of the revolution in Spain in the 1930's.
Sounds like we need it here.
Watta ya say Barry?
Make sense to you?
Your pal,
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Workin on the Home Front
Hey Barry:
Glad to read y'all still after the BIG money Barry - its how y'all gonna save the country.
The BIG cash guys makin a big stank that they all gonna sign a letter ta give away half or so of what they got, thas accordin to Buffet and Gates.
Read it here: http://givingpledge.org/
Aint' gonna make no difference ifn they do. I'd hate to be cynical, but it could jes be that they want some good press as y'all go about rewriting the tax codes.
In order ta make a difference they gotta give it all up to Uncle Sam - let em keep the chump change, like mebbe ten million or so.
That'll keep em off the streets, but wont let em buy no laws.
Turn dat ship round Barry - headin for the calm ports an outta the storms.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Glad to read y'all still after the BIG money Barry - its how y'all gonna save the country.
The BIG cash guys makin a big stank that they all gonna sign a letter ta give away half or so of what they got, thas accordin to Buffet and Gates.
Read it here: http://givingpledge.org/
Aint' gonna make no difference ifn they do. I'd hate to be cynical, but it could jes be that they want some good press as y'all go about rewriting the tax codes.
In order ta make a difference they gotta give it all up to Uncle Sam - let em keep the chump change, like mebbe ten million or so.
That'll keep em off the streets, but wont let em buy no laws.
Turn dat ship round Barry - headin for the calm ports an outta the storms.
We with ya Barry.
Your pal,
Sunday, August 1, 2010
US Military Needs Work
Hey Barry:
BIG money aint the only problem. The army and all need some work too. Stephen J. Hadley and William J. Perry worked it out here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/29/AR2010072905006.html
Here's their bottom line: 'We identified the five gravest potential threats to those interests likely to arise over the next generation: radical Islamist extremism and the threat of terrorism; competition from rising global powers in Asia; the continued struggle for power in the Persian Gulf and the Greater Middle East; an accelerating global competition for resources; and persistent problems from failed and failing states. '
And, Barry, fixin all that gonna mean puttin screws to the BIG money - thas the only place we gonna get the cash.
Get the money from the BIG money and fix the banks and the army. Ifn y'all dont do all that, we gonna sink slowly in the sunset, Barry.
Itsa big job Barry. We with ya. Keep at it.
Your pal,
BIG money aint the only problem. The army and all need some work too. Stephen J. Hadley and William J. Perry worked it out here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/29/AR2010072905006.html
Here's their bottom line: 'We identified the five gravest potential threats to those interests likely to arise over the next generation: radical Islamist extremism and the threat of terrorism; competition from rising global powers in Asia; the continued struggle for power in the Persian Gulf and the Greater Middle East; an accelerating global competition for resources; and persistent problems from failed and failing states. '
And, Barry, fixin all that gonna mean puttin screws to the BIG money - thas the only place we gonna get the cash.
Get the money from the BIG money and fix the banks and the army. Ifn y'all dont do all that, we gonna sink slowly in the sunset, Barry.
Itsa big job Barry. We with ya. Keep at it.
Your pal,
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