Third Party & Independents Archives

Comprehensive immigration reform requires a one sentence act.

It is a felony to hire an illegal alien.

Until that happens, lawmakers are just kidding around.

That will not happen this year or any year.

DR
Generally a good post. The repeal of glass -steagel was,however not the first onthe stupid road to collapse. The Reagan Era relaxing of the rules governning S&Ls, with known results, and the changes that allowed people to use home equity as a tax free ATM also distorted the housing markets. Another broad cause of the decline was the overt policies that Rep administrations used to keep real wages flat or falling. Peole that make enough do not have as much trouble making payments on their mortages,obviously.
I hope you are right and the Dems do not get hit too hard this November. Logically they should not however there is a lot carefully spread opposition out there that is based on identity politics and fear. Not being tethered to reality does not matter to many.
Toward the end of your post you shifted gears. The federal government is running a very high deficit at this time for a very good reason and you know it. In a liquidity trap economy the ONLY appropriate response is massive government spending to stimulate and stabilize the system. It is not sustainable,of course, but the continued levels and even more are what is needed until sustainned unemplyment rates drop to somewhere around 5%. A slight uptick in interest from the fed in respose to the threat of wage inflation is another good indicator.NOT and inflation threat from energy costs spikes. That is the time to start getting serious about deficit control. Those,like the WSJ, that want to start now are engageing in Hoovernomics and useing the deficit for political ammunition at this point is reprehensible for those that understand economics and just stupid for those that don’t.

David, here in Colorado we had 11 choices for president and 2 for our representative in the House this past election cycle. Hopefully some of these independents that want to start at the top will decide to run for Congress this time out. I will give them serious consideration should they do so, but truthfully I don’t hold out much hope that I will have more choices for US rep and Senator.

j2t2, just posted an article in the last 24 hours on our VOID facebook page regarding a significant increase in challengers for the November elections. Sure hope some of them are in your neck of the woods. Choice is good when it comes to elections. Choice is generally good everywhere. Here’s the link.

gergle, that is hardly comprehensive. It ignores the black market jobs that will remain available. Doesn’t address what to do with those already here, either. I suggest looking up the word comprehensive, for meaning. Also, it doesn’t address other undesirables entering our country for other purposes than a job.

http://www.southbendtribune.com/article/20100504/NEWS07/100509764/-1/XML


This is interesting.

I went to vote and there were two people supporting Walorski. They were both Democratics.
Why would acting Democratics support Walorski? Were they against Donnally? I don’t think so. I think it was primary politics. Get your base to elect an unelectable opponent.

May I have a Libertarian, please? I hope the Libertarian party will put up some candidates in the Starke County Election. The Republican party didn’t. The only Republicans on the primary ballot are those who are currently holding office. What choice is that?

Walorski and Donnally are like two peas in the same pod.

If we don’t wake up this is the only option we’re going to get from now on.

Isn’t Ford the one that didn’t take the bailout?

If the auto industry is expected to pay it back shouldn’t the welfare industry be expected to pay it back as well?

OH! Gosh, what was I thinking?

Ya know what? d.a.n has been talking about the re-election rate for many years.

Let’s see what this year’s re-election rate is.

It’s too early to tell what the re-election rate will be, but I’m sure the media will let us know what it will be as the election comes nearer and nearer.

Did anybody hear anything about a North Korean attack on the oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico?

The report is about 2 weeks old. There’s not to many people who know about it.

BP said they will clean up the mess but they won’t take responsibility for the explosion. I wouldn’t either if I were them.

Well, Ok Then.
G’night Gracey!

DRR,

You’ve been watching too much TV…you, like news reporters and pundits, phrase it, “giving carte blanche to labor unions and corporations to campaign for or against candidates depending on how those candidates may favor the interests of those unions and corporations”, and, in so doing make it out to be equally offensive to be either or. Frankly, Unions are so weak and poor in today’s world, their impact on any but a few local elections, where they still hold sway, would be tiny. SCOTUS did no favors to Unions or Democrats with its finding. This might not have been true prior to Reagan and Sam Walton’s all out attacks on unions, but unions are basically just as dead in the water as those turtles and jelly fish in the Gulf.

David,

I suggest you might want to wake up to the fact that no immigration reform will ever be comprehensive, and that your, mine and congress’s use of the word is pejorative.

While my response was mostly sarcastic, it also contains an essential truth about the realities of immigration.

The fantasy of some congressional legislation that deals with perpetual black markets or that somehow through some other magic legislation, undesirables that are targets of Homeland Security now, will suddenly be stopped by a bill in congress, is mostly laughable. Checkpoint Charlie anyone?

BTW, I have no issue with your political predictions re: the November polls, but as to the financial conditions, I still have the heebee geegee’s:

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/2271-Does-Anyone-Remember-1931.html

gergle, and well you should still have the heebee jeebies. We are like the boxer who has taken one too many hits to the head, and the next one will kill him.

The economy is recovering faster than anyone expected. But, our debt/deficit situation is such that if the government is forced to heap another trillion or 2 onto the deficit to offset the next jolt, the house of leveraged cards may well begin to tumble down. We are vulnerable. There is no getting around that most obvious of realities.

And the duopoly Party in Congress and the last two presidents brought us here. I fail to see any logic whatsoever in voting for either party or any Congressional incumbent. They must be forced to pay a price for their actions which we all must now suffer. Otherwise, it will continue to be business as usual on Capitol Hill.

David

The economy is recovering about as others have. Unemployment is a bit higher than usual. The problem is that government has grown much faster and will probably not ratchet down.

C&J, you couldn’t be MORE WRONG, about the pace of this recovery from a recession this severe. I suggest you research the data on the topic. Your opinion is grossly misinformed.

Even though this economic crisis is not over, we know for a fact that the next one is on the way and nothing we do will stop it. It might not be as bad as this one but it may not have to be if we don’t get our fiscal house in order.

jlw, so very true. So very true. There will be another. And we are not at all prepared or resourced to withstand it. It will result in large scale public resentment, possibly civil disorder, and either a deep cascading recession in the absence of deficit spending counter-measures, or massive deficit spending on top of deficit spending, which treasury buyers will not tolerate, any longer, and in turn will create another deep recession, of far greater duration.

We are not near the dire position of Greece, at this moment. But, we are only a few years more deficit spending away, or another economic shock away. I will be doing an article shortly on the lessons of Greece for the USA.

DR
The Greek problem has little to do with what happened in the US nor does it have much to do with deficit spending. It has to do with with a premature entry into the Euro that eliminated the options open to Greece to manipulate its currency to deal with the needs of its economy.Their options for a solution are very limited by the same thing. The least painful way for them is to increse their exports to the rest of Europe. The normal way for a country to do that is to lower its currency value. OOP! Can’t do that as their market uses the same currency. If you connect their troubles with overspending you will base your conclusions on fallacy.The lesson to be learned is not to give up flexibility and not much elese.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/05/european_socialism_is_bleeding.html

Total PIGS debt is $3.7T. Will/can China and Saudi pony up for that?

Gergle,
You said “The fantasy of some congressional legislation that deals with perpetual black markets.” Well, as an Unlearneed Unbridled Anti-Authoritarian Child of the 70’s by Freewill and Self-Nature I hope Amercias’ Democratic and Republican Civil, Political, and Religious Leaders take a few more generations to learn how to deal with the Goods and Services of the Black Market. Nevertheless, knowing they can be tamed using the Simple Knowledge of Man can we just say the word No means No?

C&J
Actually, the Black Market has grown to the point that it is interfering with theSocietal Market of Man. And why President Bush in 2005 may have thought he kicked the bucket far enough down the road. I do believe the Democrats and Repunlicans need to ask Americas’ Private and Public Sectors what is their ideas on the future. After all one can only own so much beyond their Basic Needs.

David,
Don’t be surprised if Uncle Sam can’t still pull a Rabbit of the Old Top Hat. LOL!

While Goldman may be the whipping boy for problems with off market CDOs and ratings agencies, the real problem Goldman presents to the market was exposed today.

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/2282-Mr.-President-Unplug-the-Fing-Computers.html

This is a completely unfair gaming of the market, in my opinion, and should not be legal, aside from the problems it may be causing in the markets.

Maybe that’s how there ripping us off!

Ya know? It doesn’t matter how hard you try, there’s always something that will make you stop and think again.

Maybe that’s how there ripping us off!

They are ripping us off! But that isn’t what the quote said, was it?

The quote didn’t make any sense at all.

How hard would it be for the fed to investigate this type of behavour in the market? Would the fed even be interested in investigating this kind of behavour in the market? Would a private investigator be interested in investigating these anomolies?

I think so.

Maybe some bigshot millionare will offer a reward for information leading to the discovery of illegal behavour related to these wild fluctuations in the market.

At last some regulation:
http://www.theonion.com/articles/new-law-forces-ceos-to-humbly-shrug-before-receivi,17380/

bills, your comment appears to not have a clue as to the history of the Greek debacle. It has everything to do with deficit spending and government borrowing, and wholesale refusal by Greeks to pay their taxes for decades.

The Greek debacle has taken our stock markets down over 5% in the last week. But, they will recover. The importance of what is happening to Greece is what it portends for the U.S. since, we are on the same road they have been on.

To say it has little to do with deficits, the cause of their debt, is truly an ignorant comment.

DR
I do not appreciate being called ignorant,especially by one with such a poor grasp of macro-economics.Perhaps you should study the situation more before spouting off. The big problem for Greece is that they gave up the flexibility to manage their currency by joinning the Euro. Britain has a compareable deficit but is not in trouble. Why? They did not join the Euro. Spain has a similar problem to Greece and they were very tight with their deficit.Having a central currency without a central government is a mistake. Having a central currency without free flow of labor to correct wages is a mistake. You can certainly go ahead and write your post,but if you blame deficit spending and do not take into account the Euro problem it will be fallacy from the first word. It will also give amo to those that are aimming to adopt a Hoover approach to the US recovery efforts and plunge us into round two of the Great Recession. Look into it. I recommend todays NYT for a start.

Good url gergle. Corpocracy at work, IMO. Just anuther case where the little guy doesn’t count. The market has recovered without the individual small investor even being in the game. Just institutional trading going on. Erego a jobless recovery. For the most part the Corpocracy is tightknit and each knows what the other is doing as it relates to financials, innovation, lawsuits, etc. It’s like the ‘Emperor has no clothes’ yet nobody sees. Akin to legalized insider trading. Can you imagine the individual investor trying to play in that market?

Good response David. Maybe when the EU comes apart that will help provide a way out of this globalization thing. Only took 20 years to turn this nation from the most wealthy to the greatest debtor nation. You would think people would demand their politicos pay a price for the greatest xfer of wealth in history. We should vote out incumbents this time and every time. We should right some wrongs by creating a populist third party targeted solely at reform of government.

But, just as we saw in Britain, we are likely to re-elect the incumbents in the duopoly. To act so ignorant in the face of our history, Sammy Adams, Tommie Jefferson, etc, we deserve so better than the Greeks, IMO.

For sure, include Andy Jackson in my last response.

Let’s see, after the PIGS we will need to bail Fannie/Freddie again, then Calif, etc. Say, how much money does Chaina/Saudi have? Going to be Yaun and stretch time!

bills, I said your comment was ignorant. Clearly. If you choose to interpret that to mean YOU are ignorant, so be it. I have no control over how you see yourself through other’s words.

BTW bills, I have economics course at the master’s level, for your information. I also have philosophy of economics studies in my degree courses. Ignorant comments often beget more.

Here’s a helpful rule. Do not assume that which you do not know. A very good rule to live by. Then set about learning what one doesn’t know. The greatest ignorance is not knowing what one does not know. Knowledge flies by without notice to such persons.

Greece’s debt from deficits is precisely what the EU is negotiating floating. It is the heart of the Greek debacle. Even a cursory review of any business section of a newspaper or cable business program like CNBC, would inform one of that, without any economics education at all.

Your comment dug a hole of ignorance for itself. Bury it, and get past it.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/05/07/obamas_health_care_promises_already_busted_105494.html

“BTW bills, I have economics course at the master’s level, for your information. I also have philosophy of economics studies in my degree courses.”

Well, Mister Master, perhaps you can explain this link. Didn’t you support Obamacare?

Neretta9, of course I supported health care reform that would provide health insurance access to 30 million Americans who couldn’t get it from the private sector either due to rejection or lack of affordability. Have you no compassion?

Do you support federal tax dollars assisting all those Republicans in Tennessee devastated by the flood? Do you support the federal government spending tax dollars to contain and disperse the Gulf oil spread, threatening the livlihoods of all those good conservatives in those Southern States? If not, you have no heart, nor compassion for your fellow Americans. The health care reform was needed. It was a nowhere near what it should and could have been, and I consider it a shadow of the potential great bill it could have been. But, for all that is and was wrong with it, it will make an enormous difference for 30 million of my fellow Americans. I spent years in the medical field, and I care about fellow Americans when they suffer needlessly. Why didn’t you?

“Ignorant comments often beget more.” No doubt!

I certainly can’t match those credentials. All I have is an Associate and two bachelors. University of OZ, class of 2000.

Neretta9, A good article; makes an excellent argument for single payer or National Health Care. Kudos to Rand.

Bills, a good article from The Onion as well. It is good to know that there is still some good reporting being done in this country.

jlw,

University of OZ?

Walt Disney and the Wizard have a university? :)

I found this:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028073/

Gergle:

Associate of Applied Science in Technicolor.

BS in Cartoonology.

BA in Wizardry.

Actually, I attended Shawnee State University. Named, much to the chagrin of the University, by the citizens of the community in recognition of our proud Shawnee heritage. Or, maybe it was in recognition of the fact that we stole the land from the Shawnee.

Shawnee is a popular name around these parts. Several businesses use it and we have Shawnee State Forest.

By the way, the article you linked to was informative. Did you notice that the writer was primarily blaming the bank bailout money.

The linking hasn’t worked for me in a couple of years. On occasion I have sought help from young computer savvy friends but it doesn’t work for them either. One friend said he thought my links were going straight into the WatchBlog archives rather that the post I was trying to link to.

It is the same for me with the personal info. Only on Blue Moon nights it works. The rest of the time I have to enter all my initials and email address.

Despite the help from my friends, I think my problems are linked to operator difficulty.

I grew up in Southwest Ohio, near an old Shawnee Village where Daniel Boone was held by Black Fish. I played in Shawnee Park and gathered crayfish in Shawnee Creek. My family is from Eastern Kentucky, near Morehead (Morgan/McGoffin County). I attended Tecumseh School in Kindergarten….and randomly, the Blue Moon is a famous restaurant/dance hall in the area. Coincidence? Or just a fellow Buckeye?

Hmmm. Curious what browser and operating system you are using? I just copy the url and paste.

I don’t agree with Denniger on everything. He believes the economic rebound is purely stimulus effect and there is no sustainable market. I do agree there needs to be a return to Glass Steagal, and some prosecutions, as well as fairer rules to make the markets stable.

He looks at long term debt and sees disaster. I think that is overly pessimistic, but not without some basis.

How could anyone in this country NOT be surrounded by Indian things? I was raised 40 miles from the last Cherokee nation, New Echota. Ten miles up the trail in N. Ga. live relatives who still own a hundred or so acres of a larger tract given to their great grandpa for working on the trail of tears. I’ve a son name Wilscot, after Will Scott, and Indian who died on the trail. Another son name Unaka and so on. Appalachian folks are right proud of anything Indian. Recently, a crew of Indians from Cherokee installed fiber optic infrastructure for broadband in parts of NC, Ga, and Tn.

Then, there was the Shawnee who, after his tribe tried to ambush and kill Washington, told his tribe that Washington would become a ‘leader of a great nation’.

On Bernake from Wash AP “We all know that getting a better-paying job is one of the main reasons to go to college. … But if you are ever tempted to go into a field or take a job only because the pay is high and for no other reason, be careful!” Ben Bernanke said in his commencement address.” Do we know why the latest terrorist didn’t make it on Wall St?

David wrote that without the stimulus joblessness might have reached 25%. I do believe that’s very close to what we have now.

A Corpocracy dude on cspan this AM urging the little guy to get back in the stock market. Apparently corporations don’t like just stealing from each other. Would you want to trade against those femtosecond computers?

Watching and waiting to see if voters will take it out on incumbents this time around. Greatest xfer of wealth in history, each family indebted by $100-200k, open borders in a recession, etc. Those who believe the Mexican drug war would cease immediately when the last stretch of fence went up, raise yer hand? Nope, the drug business is tooo good, going to be automated and zipped through any one of 26 checkpoints at 50mph. But, there’s other fish to fry, corporate personhood, money is free speech and such.

gergle,

I think “OZ” was a recent past series about prison life. It showed on HBO for two or three seasons. Perhaps jlw is talking about graduating from THAT university?…NOT!

The EU plans to put up $1T in reserves to ensure liquidity of EU banks through the ‘great recession’.

From AP: “Stocks rocketed higher Monday after European leaders agreed to a nearly $1 trillion rescue plan to avoid a major debt crisis and the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would also provide loans overseas.”
and,
“Aside from the Fed, other central banks, including the Bank of Canada, the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan are also involved in the dollar swap effort.”

Greeks worried about ‘their grandkids future’ and how another bailout loan will help them. One in five work for the goverment and their VAT will likely increase to 23%.

The U.S. is on the hook for about $8B of Greece debt through the IMF. U.S. banks are holding about $16B of Greece debt.

Interesting that the FED will make loans with money we don’t have to foreign banks. I, Ron Paul and millions would like the FED audited as to where the money goes but the Corpocracy is stalling bigtime.

Also, see a lot of action to take the pressure ($$) off BP. Should be noted that BP is Obama’s largest donor.

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