The Big Cram Session

Not since their school days have Americans ever seen a person cramming so much information into one study session, hoping to learn history and current events at breakneck speed.

However, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is no ordinary student ... and she's preparing for no ordinary test. Without conceding she has no knowledge of foreign policy, the Republicans have set up meetings with Palin and nine international leaders.

These meetings include time with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. There is also a crash course planned with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger ... who is a personal friend of Palin's running mate, Senator John McCain.

Attempting to spin these meetings in the best light, Republican campaign officials claim Palin is no different from recent candidates who possessed very little -- if any -- knowledge about foreign policy before taking office. They point out that other governors moved into high office with just a tiny amount of knowledge of the world around them.

In the last 40-years there have been three governors who became president ... Jimmy Carter of Georgia, Ronald Reagan of California, and Bill Clinton of Arkansas. There have also been two governors who became vice president ... Spiro Agnew of Maryland, and Nelson Rockefeller of New York.

It is that political spin on the matter that brings up some concerns. In the past the Republican party has been skilled at putting a good spin on things ... it got George W. Bush elected, and re-elected. However, the party of Lincoln and Reagan, blew it this time around. If somebody needs remedial classes, don't do the tutoring in public view.

Having Palin go for meetings at the United Nations is like sitting her on the street corner wearing a dunce hat. Schedule these meeting out of the view of cameras and reporters. Have private meetings in embassy buildings, or just about any other location that is less visible. Where did Palin and McCain meet for their first get-together? There was no media there for that meeting.

In a recent interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson, Palin admitted she had never met a head of state. It would be surprising if she had met with the leaders of other countries. Her political experience has been as an alderman, mayor, and now a governor with less than 2-years on the job. However, Palin also told Gibson she is "ready" and did not question her own ability and experience to be vice president and, if necessary, president.

"I answered him 'yes' (when McCain offered the position) because I have the confidence in that readiness. And knowing that you can't blink. You have to be wired in a way of being so committed to the mission, the mission that we're on, reform of this country, and victory in the war. You can't blink. So, I didn't blink then even, when asked to run as his running mate," Palin told Gibson.

Maybe Palin will blink -- at least once -- when she realizes there are more issues at hand than just "reform of this country and victory in the war." This country is facing an economic crisis where much of the money to resolve this predicament is coming from China. Also there is an energy crisis facing the United States. Palin tried to use that to her advantage, stating Alaska -- where she is governor -- produces nearly 20% of the U.S. domestic supply of energy. On it's face, that sounds pretty good. However, according to the Energy Information Administration, the United States imports 66% of its oil from foreign sources ... meaning that 20% to which Palin referred, isn't very much.

Fact is, neither democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama nor Palin have extensive foreign policy experience because of their limited background in government. Obama has seven years experience on the state level, and three years in the U.S. Senate. Palin spent four years as a city council member in Wasilla, Alaska, then six years as mayor of that city, followed by the last 21 months as governor.

Truth is, McCain and democratic vice presidential candidate Senator Joe Biden have much more experience than Obama and Palin combined.

It's okay to admit one needs to learn more, and it's okay to get the necessary lessons. Be that as it may, when running for political office there is a right way and a wrong way to present it to the public in general, and voters in particular.

Obama did it right by delivering a message to screaming crowds in Berlin. They may or may not have understood what he was saying, but he came off looking good ... very presidential. That's an excellent example of political spin.

Palin did it wrong. Meeting one-on-one with foreign leaders at the United Nations didn't look very vice presidential. Then to make matters worse, she announced she would take no questions from reporters, then wanted to have no reporters in the room; only a a pool photographer and pool videographer. Finally the republicans allowed a reporter in the room, but not before the entire country -- and the world -- knew of the blunder.

It is a very good thing that the election is just 41 days away. Any longer and the candidates may implode much the same way as the U.S. banking system.

" .. or so this news junkie thinks!"

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

Professor Henry Higgins from The Music Man can be heard singing his song across the nation with the line that goes ... "we've got trouble, we're got terrible, terrible trouble!"


Unfortunately that song doesn't go with only the movie. Unfortunately, that line goes with the state of the U.S. economy.


The dollar is down, the price of crude oil is up, the stock market is down, the price of gold is soaring, and President George W. Bush says "the whole world is watching." Those were his words as he began nudging Congress to pass his proposed $700-billion bank bailout package.


That bailout was announced  -- with every little detail -- over the weekend. That bailout -- again -- is $700-billion ... that's a seven followed by eight zeros ... $700,000,000. While the plan has been on the table for a couple of days, Americans are beginning to survey the proposal and are now beginning to panic. There are fears the bailout plan may be too expensive to fix the problem, will cause the deficit to increase, and drive up inflation.


Average Americans don't fully understand the problem. They just know they are having difficulty making ends meet. Filling the family car with gas is getting more difficult. Going to the market for groceries produces culture shock with big jumps in the prices of bread, milk, produce, and most everything else. It's getting difficult for Americans to pay their variable- rate mortgages, to pay their credit card bills, to see their doctors and buy their prescriptions.


Americans are looking for answers, and are frustrated with what they are hearing. They see a $7-billion bailout from their lame-duck Republican president, and a Democratic controlled Congress which wants compromises before passing the bailout bill. According to an Associated Press story posted on iwon.com, this is "the worst financial meltdown since the Great Depression." And it will get worse before it gets better, because the bailout may not be a quick fix.


The Associated Press reports economists at Merrill Lynch who say, after the Resolution Trust Corp. was established in 1989 to stop the savings and loan crisis, it took a year for the stock market to hit bottom, two years for the economy and three years for the housing market.



The big bailout plan is meant to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. The plan will allow the government to buy mortgage related assets from American companies and foreign companies with access to these assets. The bottom-line is for the government to buy these securities at a discount, hold them, then sell for a profit.


So far, the battle between the president and the Congress centers on two points ... 1) bankruptcy reform to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, and 2) compensation to executives when their companies get government bailouts.


While Wall Street watches, the president plans, the Congress wrangle for compromise, and two men fight to become the next President of the United States, everyday Americans are struggling. Everyday Americans are worried ... everyday Americans are waiting for answers as they ponder the November election and their futures ... everyday Americans are patiently waiting for their nation to get back on track ... and everyday Americans want their leaders to fix what is broken.


".. or so this news junkie thinks!"









  

Remedial Economy 101

For the better part of the past week, American's are hearing the economy is in a free-fall and the government is tossing tons of cash at the crisis which might not end anytime soon.

But what does that mean ... what does it really mean?

Joseph Stiglitz, 2001 Nobel Prize winner in Economics and Columbia University professor, explained the current situation rather simply in a commentary posted on cnn.com. 

"President Bush famously said, a little while ago, that the problem is simple: Too many houses were built. Yes, but the answer is too simplistic: Why did that happen?

"One can say the Fed failed twice, both as a regulator and in the conduct of monetary policy. Its flood of liquidity (money made available to borrow at low interest rates) and lax regulations led to a housing bubble. When the bubble broke, the excessively leveraged loans made on the basis of overvalued assets went sour.

"For all the new-fangled financial instruments, this was just another one of those financial crises based on excess leverage, or borrowing, and a pyramid scheme.

"The new 'innovations' simply hid the extent of systemic leverage and made the risks less transparent; it is these innovations that have made this collapse so much more dramatic than earlier financial crises.

Stiglitz believes there are other key factors to the present crisis, including the lack of proper regulations, a tax-cut in 2001 which did not stimulate the economy, the Iraq war which contributed to soaring oil prices, the drop in household savings in which Americans began living on borrowed time and money, as well as financial institutions which mismanaged risk by misallocating capital. 

Thus the implosion of Lehman Brothers, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and AIG (American International Group). Now it is the American people -- through the federal government -- who are footing the bill for these setbacks ... to the tune of $816-billion to bolster the present financial situation. Unfortunately, the blood-letting may not be over. There are said to be rough roads ahead for Washington Mutual and Wacovia.

The Federal Reserve is actively working to infuse foreign money into the American financial system. One infusion of cash may come from China which is being encouraged to work with Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley is one of only two remaining independent investment banks in the United States.

"Fear is driving this market, not facts, not the fundamentals of so many great American companies," declared Jim Cramer of CNBC. "At times like this, when you're overwhelmed with panic, it helps to know the history," he added.

"What did it feel like today (Wednesday, 9/17/08) ... it felt like 1987 .. it felt like 1990, when the fear was palpable and the market was getting crushed .. pulverized," he stressed. However, this is not a precursor to a recession or a depression, at least not according to Cramer. He points out that this is not consumers who are withdrawing money from both commercial banks or savings and loans. Rather, he explains, this is a case of a run on investment banks by hedge funds.   

All of this has become one of the major points of contention in the 2008 presidential campaign. Both Republican candidate Senator John McCain and Democratic candidate Senator Barack Obama quickly produced new television commercials, looking directly into the camera to address the American voters.

"End the 'anything goes' culture on Wall Street with real regulation that protects your investments and pensions.  Fast track a plan for energy ‘made-in-America’ that will free us from our dependence on mid-east oil in 10 years and put millions of Americans to work. Crack down on lobbyists – once and for all -- so their back-room deal-making no longer drowns out the voices of the middle class and undermines our common interests as Americans," said Obama.

"We need strong and effective regulation, a return to job-creating growth and a restoration of ethics and the social contract between businesses and America. Important questions remain to be answered by Wall Street. Did executives mislead investors and regulators about the severity of the problem? We must investigate whether or not there was misrepresentation on part of the company executives. If there was, there must be penalties," said McCain.

As if Americans needed one more example of an economy in trouble, the auto industry may be getting ready to ask for $25-billion in government-backed loans. This measure is now being discussed with the U.S. House of Representatives, according to Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, (D-MD).

Thanks to the 2007 Federal Energy Legislation, auto makers may tap $25-billion in low-interest loans to retool and modernize their manufacturing facilities. However, with the American auto industry at its lowest point in 30-years, General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler are seeking to double that dollar figure to $50-billion. 

Whether the current financial crisis has been brought about the George W. Bush administration, Wall Street, or consumers, the only certainties in this calamity are that 1) both presidential candidates will push the blame on others, 2) both presidential candidates claim to have the plan for recovery, and 3) Americans are trying to keep their jobs, their homes, and their cool.

" ... or so this news junkie thinks!"

 

Politics Becomes Pop Culture

A funny thing happen on the way to the White House ...

Only 49 More Days ... 

try to decide who will get your vote ... a vote is a terrible thing to waste.

" ... or so this news junkie thinks!"

When Will Everyone Learn?

What part of "evacuate" and "get out of town" do people not understand?

Three years ago the residents of New Orleans were told to get out of town before Hurricane Katrina roared ashore causing the Great Army Corps of Engineers Flood of 2005. People stayed, deciding "to ride it out." Many died, many risked their lives to save the stubborn, and many were in miserable conditions ... all because residents would not -- or could not for a variety of reasons -- heed the warnings. Hurricane Katrina was the most expensive natural disaster in the history of the United States ... totaling $100-billion, according to about.com.

Over Labor Day weekend South Louisiana was threatened with what New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin termed the "mother of all storms." As a result, roughly 2-million people evacuated from the Crescent City and its surrounding parishes. Gustav was no friend to South Louisiana, but was not the evil twin of Katrina. Gustav's insured damage loss may reach $10-billion, according to California-based Risk Management Solutions Inc.

Fortunately, the fact that Gustav weakened before making landfall, coupled with the massive evacuation, kept the death toll to eight individuals.

This past weekend federal, state, and local leaders along the Gulf Cost of Texas issued warnings that all residents of Galveston leave. It was strongly suggested residents of Houston -- the fourth largest city in the United States -- also get out of the way of Hurricane Ike. However, with more than 5-million residents, getting everyone out of the way quickly is almost impossible.

Many Houstonians stayed home, rationalizing they were more than 50-miles from the coast when Ike was predicted to make landfall. By the same token, many Galveston residents elected to ignore the calls to leave, despite a prediction from the National Hurricane Center that Ike had taken aim on their city ... a city that was predicted to be submerged before Ike had completely passed.

Why is it that people stayed? Wasn't the site of bodies floating in the flooded streets of New Orleans enough incentive to leave? Was it not enough to see the fear of individuals having to be plucked by helicopters off of rooftops? Did the misery of people begging for water and food not leave haunting visions? Is protecting one's property more important than protecting one's life? Is any possession worth risking the lives of rescue personnel?

Just three days into the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, it is suggested the monetary cost of the storm may reach $22-million ... according to Jeff Masters of Weather Underground, a commercial forecasting service. While Texas and Louisiana officials continue with search and recovery missions, there are already eight deaths attributed to the storm.

While Houston did not endure flooding the magnitude of New Orleans after Katrina, residents are still facing the misery experienced by residents of South Louisiana and South Mississippi. There is no electricity, limited gasoline, limited water and ice, and many Texans are sleeping in emergency shelters.

With the expert forecasting of storms, computer models which show anticipated tracks, and early warnings, why is it that residents still feel the need to "ride out" a storm? Of course there are the monetary costs involved with evacuations. Some residents will take advantage of free transportation and shelter lodging. Those with transportation, alternative lodging, and the money to evacuate can look at spending almost $1,000 to be away for a few days.

There has to be a better system. Those who "have" can move, and those who "have not" can move. But those who "don't have much, or enough" have trouble evacuating. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will assist individuals with hotel/motel bills during mandatory evacuations, but not those who evacuated to stay with friends and family ... leaving hotel/motel lodging for others. Being away from home involves transportation, gasoline, rooms, and meals. It's like an unplanned vacation with the same price tag and none of the fun.

There is also the wait for the last minute so as to spend the least amount of time away, and the least amount of money. But that produces the gridlock of millions leaving at the same time, crowding thousands of cars on a few roads all at once ... sort of like kicking over an ant hill and watching the ants scurry.

History has shown us that big storms don't come every year, but even one big storm every couple of years is tough. And with Katrina, Rita, and Ike all coming within a three year period, emotions are raw and psyches are bruised.

However, memories can be short-lived. When Gustav turned out to be more tame than expected, many South Louisiana residents believed their elected leaders "cried wolf," and cried too fast. That prompted many residents to claim they will defy the next evacuation order. But then what? Will history repeat itself? Will there again be bodies floating in the streets, and major rescue scenes, and human misery?

Some will stay and some will leave. Some will live and some will die. Some will praise, and some will condemn.

" ... or so this news junkie thinks!"

Second Verse Same As The First

Never before have so few, said so much, about so little ... making it time -- finally -- to say good-by to the lipstick on a pig non-issue, issue.

Let's call it what it really is ... a trick that backfired on the Democrats, and a strategy the Republicans have played as well as Yo-Yo Ma plays his cello.

Since Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama got this whole ordeal started, it has been like running on a treadmill ... running over and over and over without a change of scenery.

Tuesday Obama took a shot at his Republican opponents Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin. "You can put lipstick on a pig ... it's still a pig. You can wrap an old fish in a piece of paper called change. It's still going to stink after eight years," Obama said in Virginia.

Obama claims his remarks were not aimed at Palin who -- in her acceptance speech for vice president -- ad libbed a line in which she claimed the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull is lipstick. How about he take a lie detector test on that tricky claim?

Well, Obama's remarks brought about a swift scream of foul from McCain's campaign. The strategy for McCain's camp has been to keep the outrage going. Tuesday afternoon it was outrage over the remark. Wednesday it was outrage that Obama tried to deny the remark. Thursday it's remarks about how Obama is still taking shots in the dark over the comment ... this time for claiming McCain's people are trying to derail his campaign.

Somebody needs to tell Obama he's right ... McCain's folks are trying to keep Obama off track, and are succeeding. If he wants it to stop ... he needs to put on the brakes. He needs to quit his whining and get back on track. McCain needs to quit his whining, and quit running to the principal.

Both Obama and McCain are seeking the highest office in this country ... and owe it to the American people to talk about the real issues. Those issues are not lipstick on pigs, are not the ever-changing definition of the word "change," and not who is taking jabs at whom.

McCain, Obama, Palin, and Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden owe it to the American people to talk about what really matters. They need to talk about the two wars presently being fought on far-away lands. They need to talk about healthcare, education, social security, dependence on foreign oil, and clean energy.

These four people, who are asking for the trust of the American people, need to earn that trust ... and they have just 54 days in which to accomplish that goal.

" ... or so this news junkie thinks!"

Sticks And Stones

Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain spent five years sick, hungry, tortured, and often near death in a North Vietnamese prisoner of war camp.

He is a man of extraordinary strength who survived what lesser individuals would not survive. So why is he whining like a child while on the campaign trail?

There's an old saying that "all's fair in love and war," and often times the word "politics" is added to that phrase. So, here's the deal.

At the Republican National Convention, McCain's running mate Governor Sarah Palin, stated the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull is lipstick. It got a loud roar of applause from Palin's family and the rest of the party faithful attending the convention.

Surely she knew her biting speech that night could open the door to potential attacks from her Democratic opponents and their supporters. And Tuesday, when that lipstick line caused a verbal barrage from opposing nominee Senator Barack Obama, no one could be surprised ... least of all Palin and her political partner McCain.

In Virginia, Obama was mocking McCain's promise to bring change to Washington. He claimed McCain is just like President George W. Bush. And then the line of the day was uttered.

"You can put lipstick on a pig ... it's still a pig. You can wrap an old fish in a piece of paper called change. It's still going to stink after eight years," Obama said, as the crowd erupted into shouts and applause.

All of a sudden, like a little kid running to tattle to mamma, McCain's campaign shouted foul, called the remark "offensive and disgraceful," and claimed Obama owed an apology to Palin.

Somebody needs to remind McCain and his campaign officials what was taught in Political Science 101 ... winning is everything, and everything is fair game. Somebody also needs to remind the Republicans that one doesn't open a door, if one doesn't want the opponent to walk through that open door.

Obama claims the remark was not targeting Palin, but instead was directed to McCain's claim to being an agent of change and a maverick. Does anybody really believe that?

Truth is, this is a political campaign ... a fight to the finish to gain the two most powerful jobs in the United States. McCain, Palin, Obama, and Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden are seeking to become the leaders of the free world. Let's face it, these four people are in search of power and history. Consequently, they will do anything -- anything they can get away with -- to pander to the voters and win November's election.

To whine over the "lipstick" remark is petty, childish, and ridiculous. It is reminiscent of the principal reciting the pre-school rhyme of "sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me."

Do Americans really want a president and vice president who whine over words that bite? What will happen -- if McCain and Palin win -- when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says something nasty, or if Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi issues a threat to veto a White House backed measure? Will the duo call their mothers, dispatch the Secret Service, or call out an elite Army unit?

The Republicans need to grow thick skin and wait their turn to get even, because the Democrats will, sooner or later, do something upon which the McCain and Palin ticket will capitalize.

" ... or so this news junkie thinks!"