Saturday, June 29, 2013

Nobel Laureate: The U.S. Is The 'Naked Woman' Of The World Economy

question I put to Nobel Economics Laureate Robert Mundell last week. In an interview on the fringes of the Astana Economic Forum in Kazakhstan, Mundell did not pull his punches. One of the chief architects of Reaganomics and a lifelong advocate of trade liberalization, Mundell now raises a large question mark over the continued viability of free trade. “The United States can’t keep a completely open system if the rest of the world is less open,” he said.

comment:

This is not that recent an article, about a month old. Anyway, I came across the name as I was researching the so-called Lost Decade in Japan. Fingleton doesn't think there was such a thing, and that Japan has actually done quite well. I'm not so sure. But Japan may not have done as badly as America has. That's where he makes his comparison and on that one, I agree.

Anyway, a theory that I have been developing is the Oikophobia theory. America's elite really hates its own people. Instead of supporting us, they'd just as soon get rid of us if they could. That's why they want illegal immigrants. That's why they spy on us. That's why they want to take away our Bill of Rights. We're just a big pain in the neck to them. We're in the way. In some cases, they'll just pay us off, and keep us quiet while they replace us.

Real Gold Price

Real Gold Price

This site tracks what the real price of gold is. Currently, there's a premium on the Comex price. The theory goes as the physical and paper markets diverge, the premiums will get larger and larger until the gold cannot be bought at any price.

Update:

It looks like about an 8% premium on silver. Don't think the gold price premium is all that significant yet. This conclusion is derived not from this website, but rather from Kitco.

The real price is not that different from the Comex price. At least, not yet.

Update:

Just looking at the gold prices on Kitco. There does appear to be a premium after all. It's only about 1%. I looked at the 100 oz good delivery bar versus the comex. Comex deals with 100 oz contracts, so the comparison seems apt.

What's going on with gold?

Simple. It is being leveraged. It has become like paper currency in that regard.

What I mean by leverage is that only a small amount of gold controls a large amount of gold assets. Just like a bank account. For instance, if you deposit a thousand bucks in the bank, they keep on hand only a small fraction of that. The rest gets lended out.

The same kind of thing is happening with gold. Catch this quote:

If you have never taken delivery from the Comex, I suggest you give it a try. It's not easy. Even though the Comex is the primary price setting venue for Gold, the people in charge there have done their utmost to make it a huge hassle to take delivery. This is intentional. The promoters of Comex DO NOT want you to take delivery, but only gamble in their casino. If they win, great; if not, they can always pay you off in freshly printed casino chips (dollars) - just don't ask them for the Gold. If you did, the whole enchilada would come falling apart.[emphasis added]

It works just like a bank. If everybody wanted their money at the same time, it would be a bank run. The banks don't want you to do that. If you did, they couldn't operate.

Leverage is everywhere. Even in gold. That is, unless you are in physical gold, which cannot be leveraged any further. Got that? It may be hard to grasp, but remember this: they can't leverage it unless they've got some of it somewhere.

Now, get this:

The stunning activity of JPMorgan

Whilst many COMEX participants have been withdrawing gold from warehouses, one member has taken it to another level recently.

JP Morgan has withdrawing their gold. Why? Does it mean that they are selling it? Or just withdrawing it and putting it somewhere else? Then they can go short it and make it fall dramatically ( my hunch ). Got it? They can leverage the decline. Just keep it safely somewhere else and then short it and make a killing.

It may not have happened that way, but I am wondering why else would they sell, or in this case---withdraw.

"Gold is flowing from the West to the East"

comment:

The Chinese will be holding the gold when the excrement hits the air recirculation device.

Somebody ought to be thinking about that, but of course, nobody does that these days.

Published on Zero Hedge (http://www.zerohedge.com)

Henry Smyth: Is this the Rothschild Moment for Gold?`

By rcwhalen

Created 06/28/2013 - 11:43

Smyth: There seems to be an expectation that the end of QE will be bullish for the Dollar and therefore bearish for gold. My view is the end of QE will be bearish for all those asset classes which require QE for life support.

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-06-28/henry-smyth-rothschild-moment-gold

007 Goldfinger (1964) trailer

If memory serves, Goldfinger intended to manipulate the gold price by making it radioactive. So, I looked up isotopes of gold to see how that would work out. It turns out that radioactive gold wouldn't be radioactive for all that long. It would decay into mercury and from there, it might decay into something else before going stable.

In other words, he would succeed in destroying a certain amount of gold, but not necessarily all of it. It may not produce the dramatic effects claimed for the movie, but it is only a movie after all.

I've seen enough of the Zimmerman trial

No more comments after this one.

Frankly, I'm getting a bit impatient with the whole thing. I spent a bit more time than I should listening to "Dee Dee" and her mumble fest.

Look, I know what some people might be thinking. That I am against the black man. Wrong. What inspires my impatience is that this really isn't a white-man black-man thing with me. To the extent that the white folks are letting themselves get dragged into this thing, then that is the extent of the white-black aspect of it. But the event itself had nothing to do with the white man. As a white man, I've been dragged into this far enough.

So, here's the thing as I see it. What we don't know is the truth of what happened. The one and only person who knows exactly what happened that night is George Zimmerman. Anybody else who's testifying only saw parts of the event, or not at all. There are those who heard things, but that isn't entirely clear either. The night was dark. Even if someone was there watching the whole thing from start to finish may have missed something important because it was dark.

No. Witnesses can only get you so far. In order to get as close as you can get to the truth, you need to hear from Zimmerman. He has the right to refuse to go on the stand, or refuse to answer questions. But to me, that doesn't make him look innocent. It makes it look like he's hiding something.

My bottom line is that he goes on the stand. The rest is inconclusive. The white man has no dog in this hunt.

Why Black People Understand Rachel Jeantel by Christina Coleman

Globalgrind via Drudge

quote:

But maybe the reason white people don't understand Rachel Jeantel has something more to do with white privilege then, what they would call, Rachel's capricious nature.

comment:

Who's on trial here---white people, or George Zimmerman, who identifies as Hispanic? Is that what this trial really is about to some of these people? It's all about "white privilege", not about two people who happen not to be white. There weren't any white people involved in this case.

Friday, June 28, 2013

On the filibuster in Texas

There was something that I almost forgotten about. I want to comment briefly upon the subject of the filibuster and the immediate aftermath.

The comment will be short because time is short and I don't know much about it.

A few things. This morning, being somewhat uninspired by the news, I went over to the left wing site, The Mahablog, to look around.

When I was there, I noticed that she took exception to Governor Perry of Texas and called him an "asshole".

Without too much further detail, I would suspect this is for calling the Texas Legislature back into session after the filibuster against an abortion bill. The bill was something to the effect of regulating late term abortions, those after 20 weeks, if memory serves.

It has been established recently that there has been some misbehavior in abortion clinics ( Gosnell Trial ). It certainly appears reasonable to have some regulation of abortion clinics.

Secondly, there was Obama's reaction. He praised the filibuster. This gives the impression, along with the Mahablog, of unreasonableness on the issue. What's the problem with some regulation? If they are so concerned about the youngsters, why not be concerned about the murder of live children being born in an abortion clinic?

That's about all. There's this tendency toward extremism on the left these days.

Impressions from Zimmerman trial

Been working for the last couple days, so I haven't been following this as closely. Therefore, it is more of an impression than a conviction based upon first hand knowledge.

My impression remains that the prosecution is screwing up this case.

There may be good enough evidence to convict Zimmerman of a lesser charge if they played it right. It would be a slam dunk for a biased jury, and it would stand a chance for a truly impartial jury.

Here's the problem with Zimmerman's defense, as I see it. He got out of his car and he continued to follow Martin even though he was warned not to do that. In my opinion, he had to have gone about 100 feet or so towards the location where the fighting occurred. He had ample opportunity to return immediately to his car. By itself, this isn't enough, but it puts him at risk of the mens rea of recklessness that would be required for a conviction ( this is a bit of speculation here, of course ). The last part, which may be a clincher, is what he said to Martin just before the fighting began. This is disputed, so if it cannot be cleared up, there's a big hole in that scenario ( which is not where the state is going anyway ). So, if the case were prosecuted as an involuntary manslaughter case, Zimmerman can be faulted with not identifying himself as a watchman. It then comes down to whether or not he asked what he is accused of asking which was "what are you dong here", as opposed to "what are you talking about" which was in response to Martin's question of "why are you following me".

Now, the state could have portrayed this as a step-by-step process that resulted in the tragic outcome. The fault for Zimmerman would have been to make a series of mistakes which led to an escalation of the hostilities. But that is still not enough for a conviction. For a conviction, Zimmerman would have had to initiate the hostilities in some way. It may not have been too aggressive, but if it were in any way aggressive, like trying to hold him up by grabbing his arm or what have you, Martin may have hit him. In my view, if Zimmerman did anything like that, he would have been liable. But no evidence like that exists that I am aware of. Not that it couldn't exist, but the state is not trying to find such evidence.

The state is pursuing a bridge too far. Evidence may exist to get a conviction, but the way in which the state is pursuing the case leaves that possibility unexplored. Even with a lesser charge, it wouldn't be easy for the state to win this case, but it is virtually impossible with the way they are going now.

My impression remains that the state is going to lose this case.

Thursday, June 27, 2013

In a world of bullshit

comment:

Lies, lies, lies. Everywhere and all the time. We are being drowned with lies.

Published on Zero Hedge (http://www.zerohedge.com)

Guest Post: Secrets And Lies

By Tyler Durden

Created 06/27/2013 - 17:37

Goebbels noted, "it thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State." But Goebbels has been superceded. Repression is so last century. Why repress when you can simply drown it out. All it takes is for the media outlets to be owned by a few powerful and like-minded friends. A few media moguls and corporate giants, whose plastic pundits raise their voices while the dolly bird presenters flash their thighs. It's all so full throttle and frantic, and charged with desire and greed. Anyone who disagrees is a conspiracy theorist. Anyone who breaks ranks is a whistleblower and whistleblowers are domestic terrorists, dysfunctional loners with personality problems and axes to grind. When the truth is vilified, hunted, gagged and goaled, then the State has chosen to go to war with the nation.

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/node/475790

Britain Banning U.S. Bloggers On The Basis of Ideology

Roger's Rules via Instapundit

A spokesman for the Home Office welcomed the ban on Geller and Spencer, explaining: “The UK should never become a stage for inflammatory speakers who promote hate.”

comment:

I don't know about Spencer, but Geller doesn't promote hate. More bullshit.

Whacker whacked

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/06/26/texas-carries-out-its-500th-execution-since-182/

Hurray for Texas. Let's fry 500 more.

Trying to avoid the bull when it's raining down in torrents

The BS is EVERYWHERE.

Scotus? BS
EROI? BS
Gold Selloff? BS
QE tapering? BS
Politics? BS
Conservatism? BS
Liberalism? BS
Libertarianism? BS

Is this world we live even capable of truth anymore?

Vetoing Democracy

NRO

quote:

Chief Justice John Roberts has done it again...His majority 5-to-4 opinion in California’s Proposition 8 case — throwing the issue back to California because plaintiffs lacked standing to argue in his court — is as bizarre as his Obamacare decision...Has the initiative process in 26 states now been fatally undermined?

comment:

This so-called conservative court really missed a HUGE opportunity here. What a disaster.

Once again, the liberals get what they wanted even though this isn't necessarily a slam dunk win for them.

Why do conservatives think that they have to be 100% punctilious about rules when the left sure isn't? The left has such terms as "hyper-technical" to describe encumbrances they like to ignore. Why not just rule on the damned merits of the case? Why the hell can't they just do the right thing for once?

EROI projections for Marcellus Shale gas

energygeopolitics

quote:

EROI is a measure fo the quality of energy, and the quality of an economy is directly related to the quality and quantity of energy available to run it. Here is a table of the EROI values of various sources in use today:

comment:

Interesting chart. Note that nuclear is lower than shale gas. ???

That's a bit questionable. A commenter asked about Candu reactors. The author replied that it maybe in the thousands ( as compared to 85 for shale gas)--- but that is "controversial". Controversial with who?

Barnett: "Federalism marries liberty in the DOMA decision"

scotusblog.com

quote:

States are free to define marriage as they wish (subject to Equal Protection and Due Process clause restraints), and the fight over “gay marriage” will continue in the states for years

comment:

Doesn't look like a sweeping endorsement for the right of same sex marriage. But note that liberals are going to get what they wanted anyway. It's a matter of time before they impose this upon the nation the same way they did for abortion.

QE uber alles

comment:

Article claims that QE will never end. Smoke and mirrors to cover up the smoke and mirrors.

Published on Zero Hedge (http://www.zerohedge.com)

Guest Post: The Dark Side Of The QE Circus

By Tyler Durden

Created 06/26/2013 - 19:13

There may come a day soon where the markets sell off if one of the whiskers in Big Ben's beard is out of place. Or perhaps if his tie is a bit crooked. Or maybe we end up with Janet Yellen as the next puppet in charge over at the local banking cabal and we fret about her hairdo. I don't know, but one thing that is for certain is that this central bank so wants to be loved and we are so under psychological attack with all of this QE nonsense that it isn't even funny. QE is the endgame. ZIRP was only the beginning. QE, or monetization (which they'll never call it because of the negative connotations), is the heroic measure applied to an already dead system. Our system, for all intent and purposes, died in 2008. It ceased to exist. The investing, economic, and business paradigm that has existed since is drastically different than its predecessor despite all the efforts being made to convince everyone, including Humpty Dumpty, that it is in fact 2005 all over again.

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-06-26/guest-post-dark-side-qe-circus

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Very busy day today

Not much time to catch up. Heard about the same sex marriage decision. No comment as of yet.

Just read about the Zimmerman trial's action for today. Based upon what he said, it still doesn't look good for the state. However, I didn't see it today, so I'm basing it all on what the article says.

Just one thing---just because the evidence supports Zimmerman, it doesn't mean that he will be acquitted. We all know what happened in the OJ trial. A jury can do just about anything.

Zimmerman trial could be setup for LA Riots Redux

Why is this case going so badly for the State of Florida? Why? Could it be by design? Could the intention be to lose on purpose so as to inflame racial tensions?

The reason for this line of thinking is that there are parallels with the Rodney King case in the early nineties. In that case, the media played the beating over and over again, which aggravated racial grievances to the extent that the only outcome that could keep the peace was a guilty verdict. But the state went after a more serious charge in which the evidence could not support a conviction. So, there was an acquittal and the subsequent riot.

One may get suspicious that such an event was planned and was intended to bring about that very effect.

This evidence in this case may support an involuntary manslaughter conviction. But such a case would imply no racial animus, which would relegate it to the back burner as political fodder. So, the case has to be hyped so it can be exploited politically.

Now, I don't know jack squat about Florida law. Maybe they don't have such an option there. But it would seem that there should be one, so I am assuming that such an option does exist and is not being followed. There is simply no political incentive to do the obvious thing and pursue the case with lesser charges so as to have a better chance to win it. The incentive is to hype the case and to lose it, so as to make the charge of racism and extract tribute for the racial spoils system. Even if they win a conviction here, which seems unlikely, they can't lose. They get their racial spoils, but not without some of it own racial blow back. As a State victory here would seem tainted given the rather poor performance so far in this trial.

Zimmerman Trial Day 2 – Analysis of State’s Witnesses

Posted by Andrew Branca , Legal Insurrection

quote:

Today can only be characterized as an utter debacle for the prosecution in Florida v. Zimmerman. Besides the testimony of a couple of highly professional law enforcement witnesses, the testimony of the the other State witnesses ranged from signing George Zimmerman’s praises, to acknowledging the utility of following a suspicious person from a distance, to being utterly discredited by razor sharp cross-examination of the defense.[ emphasis added]

comment:

I didn't catch all of the testimony, so this filled in a few blanks.

Another point is that the "left-to-right" movement may be more important than I thought when I heard it. At any rate, the defense totally destroyed that witness' credibility.

Finally, the part that I emphasized above is the only thread that the state can hang its case on. But that would only be useful in a lesser charge of manslaughter. But why should a manslaughter case be national news? It wouldn't be, so that's the point. The state is taking part in a rabble rousing effort to get the black community outraged at a not guilty verdict, should that be the outcome. Furthermore, if Zimmerman's name was Gonzales, and not the "white" name Zimmerman, this case would be harder to demagogue.

All in all, a disgraceful performance.

How asteroid mining could add trillions to the world economy

yahoo

Peter Diamandis, Planetary Resources' CEO, estimates that an asteroid 98 feet long could contain as much as $50 billion in platinum, and might also yield water for human consumption, or for producing hydrogen fuel.

comment:

This article makes me think of a reason to settle Mars. Since Mars has a much weaker gravitational field, getting to space is a lot easier. Moreover, since Mars has water and carbon dioxide, fuel can be made. This makes Mars a natural for a base for mining operations as mentioned in this article. Now, for any space venture to succeed in the long run, an economic basis must be found. This could be it for one on Mars.

Gold took overnight shot

Not being written about very much, though.

I caught a brief news snippet while scanning Free Republic. A short comment to this is this dichotomy between physical and paper gold. It bears repeating that a lot of paper gold gets traded which isn't even backed by real gold, which really means that it isn't gold at all. The paper currency is the one that people see, the physical market is the one people don't see. So, it looks like gold is a sick asset. Nobody seems to bother to notice that the whole world economy is sick from too much paper currency. Just saying.

Fructose risk factor for metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension

Foodconsumer

quote:

Z. Khitan and D. H. Kim, the authors of the report, from Marshall University Joan Edwards School of Medicine in Huntington, WV, USA say that uric acid resulting from uncontrolled fructose metabolism is the risk factor for metabolic syndrome and diabetes mellitus.[emphasis added]

comment:

My uric acid is high and I drink too many Cokes which have a lot of fructose. Damn.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Did Zimmerman chase down a fleeing Martin?

Law of Self-defense

quote:

Below is a Google Earth image of the relevant community. I’ve marked the front and rear entrance to the complex (mentioned in Zimmerman’s non-emergency call to police), the location of Zimmerman’s car, as well as where the attack took place. All of these locations are marked as consistent with the facts in evidence.

comment:

After reviewing Zimmerman's call to the police and the map provided in the above link, it is really hard to see how the prosecution can prove that Zimmerman chased down Martin. In fact, it is compelling evidence that Martin must have waited for Zimmerman so as to ambush him.

Martin had a clear shot to safety once he disappeared from Zimmerman's view. That's when Zimmerman got out of his car and the officer taking the call said that "we don't need you to do that". To that, Zimmerman said "ok". It wasn't terribly long from that point to when the call is ended and the attack must have come almost immediately after the call was over.

The place is simply not that big. There wasn't that much time. But there was time to seek safety, if that is what Martin was doing.

In any case, it could not have been a long chase because the place is too small and there wasn't very much time. Martin had a head start and his house was only 400 feet away when Zimmerman lost track of him. Plenty of time for him to get home.

Spent most of day watching Zimmerman trial

Mostly quite boring stuff. But at the end of the day, there was a witness that just got hammered on cross examination. The prosecution's case was dealt a setback in my opinion.

The part that must have hurt the prosecution the most was when the defense lawyer, O'Mara, managed to get the prosecution witness, Bahadoor, to admit to signing an online petition. She didn't want to admit it until he showed it to her and got her to read it out loud.

Kaboom!

Marco Rubio, We Hardly Knew Ye

nro

quote:

DeMint also has a record as a top immigration hawk, helping derail the 2007 immigration bill. DeMint and his allies are shocked at Rubio’s change of heart.

comment:

Has Rubio screwed himself? There are those who think not. But he has started a shit storm on the right.

‘Flip-flops like this’: Sarah Palin calls out Sen. Rubio for supporting amnesty

‘Flip-flops like this’: Sarah Palin calls out Sen. Rubio for supporting amnesty

What flip-flop? This great big one:

If this shows anything at all, it shows that politicians cannot be trusted

comment:

You can bet your sweet bippy that Pelosi condemned Bush, but then she defends this?

As far as the heckling is concerned, they may be unhappy about this one thing, but it doesn't change their politics. They won't turn against Pelosi nor Obama.

Pelosi and Obama can be their usual duplicitous selves, and it won't make a bit of difference.

Published on Zero Hedge (http://www.zerohedge.com)

Nancy Pelosi Gets Booed And Heckled By Supporters For NSA Support

By Tyler Durden

Created 06/24/2013 - 21:06

You know it's bad for the establishment when Nancy Pelosi gets booed and heckled by her own supporters at a progressive gathering in her home state of California. It seems the actions of the criminals in control of these United States finally have become so absurd that the apathetic citizenry is being shaken from its long slumber.

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-06-24/nancy-pelosi-gets-booed-and-heckled-supporters-nsa-support

Corker

He looks like a conservative. He has been called a moderate.

Hmm. I'm going to borrow a phrase here. The GOP is like a box of chocolates, you don't know what you are getting.

It looks to me like the GOP is hopelessly divided. No wonder they do stupid stuff like yesterday.

.

Fun Factoid: 2013 Amnesty "Penalty" Less Than The 2007 Version

Ace of Spades HQ

quote:

Oh, one other fun factoid. Hoeven of Corker-Hoeven? Yeah, he got into the race for the Senate in 2010 when Democrat Byron Dorgan retired. Dorgan was a stanch opponent of amnesty.[ emphasis added]

comment:

So, those voting for Hoeven thought they were getting a staunch conservative in place of a Democrat? And he does this?

That link to Wikipedia confirms something that I thought previously. People will support somebody is deemed to have created prosperity. Hoeven got credit for the oil boom in North Dakota, but did he really have anything to do with that?

Secondly, if somebody would actually DO something helpful that would create prosperity, that would be the real ticket to winning an election. Not amnesty that will split the GOP and maybe the nation as well.

Washington keeps getting worse for whistleblowers | WashingtonExaminer.com

York: Rubio had 73% favorability amongst GOP before amnesty, now 58%

via Ace of Spades

quote:

This will be the most important piece of Senate legislation made possible by the Tea Party election of 2010 (think Hoeven and Rubio). Oops.

comment:

Treachery. No doubt about it. How did Rubio fool the Tea Party? Looks like Hoeven did too.

Secondly, why does Rubio still have the majority of the GOP with him?

This problem runs deep, it appears.

GOP Establishment: Stupid or Sinister?

Steve Deace, Townhall

quote:

These people would rather lose elections than lose control, and that’s why they keep doing over and over again what has proven to be a loser every time it’s tried. That’s why they accept the liberal media’s talking points on the death of the Tea Party or social conservatives at face value. To admit defeat or to admit you’re relevant would be the same as admitting you have power and influence over the process, and the minute they admit that they lose control.

comment:

The conservatives need to walk out on the Establishment. Just start a new party from scratch.

Monday, June 24, 2013

Bracken: What I Saw At The Coup

Short story of a coup attempt

comment

Interesting little story.

There's enough plausibility to it to make it quite believable.

There may well be enough crazies in the government to try something like this. Especially now.

Things are proceeding to the point where they just might try it.

However, it may not have the ending that this story has.

Boy thinks he's a girl

http://m.nydailynews.com/1.1380731

There's no intellectual honesty here. There is supposedly a homosexual gene, but there's definitely a sex chromosome. A kid is born male, but that is trumped by what the kid thinks. Whatever the kid thinks goes, unless it's politically incorrect. For example, if this kid wanted to be male, but his parents wanted otherwise, what would the decision have been then?

Obviously in a bad mood

Why so negative this morning?

It comes down to basic character. The people who made this country had it. The people running it now do not.

The people running this country now have no honor and no integrity. Period. It is on display with what the Senate is about to do. Nobody with honor and integrity would act like this.

The government is spying on us like we are the enemy. Here's a government that no longer trusts it own people. Not a good sign, either. Perhaps there's good reason why the government doesn't trust its own people. We elected these creeps.

The Supreme Court might surprise me and do the right thing. But I'm not holding my breath. Further evidence of a degradation in our society. Same sex marriage would have been considered a joke 40 years ago. Less than one life time to sink this low.

The economy is a joke. I was going to link to another Zero Hedge post. It's like beating a dead horse, though. The evidence of decay is overwhelming.

Just read this morning that they've found some Mayan ruins. They are going to try to understand what happened to that civilization. It seems that all civilizations tend towards ruin at some point. It may be unavoidable, like old age and death.

I had some hope that this country might be different. I guess that must be why I am down this morning. That hope just looks like a self-delusion.

It gets darkest before the light? Or before going pitch black?

Next Big Future: Affordable, Rapid Bootstrapping of the Space Indus...

Next Big Future: Affordable, Rapid Bootstrapping of the Space Indus...: Nextbigfuture covered the Metzger et al plan for Affordable, Rapid Bootstrapping of the Space Industry and Solar System Civilization back in...

comment:

If things fall apart as I think could happen, none of this is going to happen. But it is a hopeful thing, and pathetic thing to look forward to.

It's the kind of thing that could be, but won't be. At least not in this country.

Democrats to Shut Off Debate On a Bill No One Has Read

Powerline

quote:

Schieffer went straight to the political question: isn’t it true that Republicans need to support amnesty, or else they will never win another election? It is remarkable how many people are suddenly concerned about the GOP’s electoral prospects....

comment:

This is a big week with a likely outcome in the Supreme Court with respect to same sex marriage. To me, it is undeniable proof that the country is falling apart. I suspect the Court will screw it up just like they did with Obamacare.

The Senate approves the Supreme Court justices. With a bill like this about to be passed, it is little wonder that the Court cannot do the right thing.

I guess everybody had better get used to it. Things are going to get a lot worse.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Nothing about this economy makes sense

comment:

It's like having two economies. Eventually, they will have to merge into one. Until then, very bizarre things about this economy can be observed.

Published on Zero Hedge (http://www.zerohedge.com)

This Is An Extraordinary Time

By Tyler Durden

Created 06/22/2013 - 19:30

It's as if we have two economies: the simulacrum one of stocks rising dramatically in a few months, and the real one of household earnings (down) and hours worked (down). It is difficult to justify the feeling that we are living in an extraordinary moment in time, for the fundamental reason that it's impossible to accurately assess the present in a historical context. Extraordinary moments are most easily marked by dramatic events such as declarations of war or election results; lacking such a visible demarcation, what sets this month of 2013 apart from any other month since the Lehman Brothers' collapse in 2008? It seems to me that the ordinariness of June 2013 is masking its true nature as a turning point. Humans soon habituate to whatever conditions they inhabit, and this adaptive trait robs us of the ability to discern just how extraordinary the situation has become.

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-06-22/extraordinary-time

Convenient relatonships to White House

One should question what one hears if what one hears isn't exactly objective. There's too cozy a relationship between this White House and the Media.

NBC’s Gregory asks Greenwald if he should be charged for aiding Snowden

Immigration Reform: Not Easy, But it IS Simple

Immigration Reform: Not Easy, But it is Simple

comment:

Consists of two parts 1) no more handouts and 2) secure the border.

The rest will take care of itself, says author.

On the Espionage Act charges against Edward Snowden

Glenn Greenwald, Guardian ( uk )

quote:

And that is precisely why the US government is so furious and will bring its full weight to bear against these disclosures. What has been "harmed" is not the national security of the US but the ability of its political leaders to work against their own citizens and citizens around the world in the dark, with zero transparency or real accountability. If anything is a crime, it's that secret, unaccountable and deceitful behavior: not the shining of light on it.

comment:

A boffo piece says a conservative guy of a liberal writer. One for the ages.

But the country should be up in arms, and it is not. We're in the deepest of trouble.

Larry Grathwohl interview about William Ayers,Obama's Mentor

This is rather chilling to listen to when you realize that these people are now in charge of this country.

Since being elected, Obama has vastly increased the power and scope of the government, and seeks to do more. Some of what I've been reading seems downright scary at this point. For instance, the NSA whistleblower is considered a spy and there's a crackdown in all Federal agencies in order to prevent anything like this happening again.

The scariest thing is that certain people that you may have thought to be conservative seem to be signing on to this. The revulsion is not with the spying on the public, but with Snowden. This gives Obama cover to try to arrest Snowden, which so far has failed.

Obama is not doing this for the benefit of the country. He is doing it for his own benefit. This country is in deep trouble.

Buchanan: Hispanic influx from immigration bill could break US into ‘two countries’

dailycaller

comment:

It's possible, I suppose, that the country will break apart this way. But nobody bothers to look for the reasons why there's so much immigration.

If you are going to kill off your babies, don't expect to keep your population intact. If you are going to promote homosexuality, don't expect to keep your population intact. Likewise, if you are going to put foreign born people ahead of your own people, don't expect to keep your population intact.

The policies of this government runs counter to keeping itself intact as a nation. So, it shouldn't be a surprise when that nation falls apart.

There's a commenter to that post who is a hard core leftist. This person keeps spouting that diversity is our great strength. The same person is trying to blame racism on the lack of assimilation. But assimilation did occur in the Jim Crow era, so assimilation seems to work better with the so-called racism than it does with the so-called tolerance.

Just goes to show you. The left is behind all of this. Why does the rest of the country just stand by and let it happen?

The left is just a small minority. Even with all this immigration, there are still a minority. If the rest of the country united against them, they'd be in trouble. But that is not happening.

No More Of This Crap

Says Glenn Reynolds. ??? Better get used to it. Unfortunately, there will be more and more of this crap because it is now the new normal. This is the way the government now does business. Trickery, deceit, and dishonor. What they create can only make a bad situation worse, and that gives them the excuse to do even more bad stuff like this immigration bill.

quote:

Given the length and complexity of this proposal, I think it is fair to say that not more than a handful of the senators voting on it on Monday—which is apparently when the vote is scheduled—will really understand it in any detail.

Right. That's the point. To trick, confuse, and bewilder. But not to solve any problems. That's the kind of government we have now.

We have a crisis of very bad government on our hands. Question is, can anything be done about it, or is it too late?

Tesla Motors to Provide Batteries for Freightliner Custom Chassis Electric Van - WOT on Motor Trend

Tesla Motors to Provide Batteries for Freightliner Custom Chassis Electric Van - WOT on Motor Trend

comment:

This is a bit dated, being at least two years old. The range given for this van is 100 miles, which seems rather short to me. For me, the bottom line would be about 200 miles. Otherwise, it wouldn't be worth it.

Numbers USA newsletter: The Schumer-Corker-Hoeven Amnesty Sham

Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

comment:

This is a trick in order to get the appearance of enforcement, when enforcement of the border is not intended. This bill will solve nothing with respect to illegal immigration. In future years, they will have to "fix" it again, as millions of illegals will once again be present in the country.

Dishonorable. Every single one of these Senators should be thrown out of office at the earliest opportunity.

If this country so desperately needs people that they have to pass this bill, why not just say so? Why all of this trickery and deceit?

YES, keep sending me Weekly Newsletters

NO, stop sending me Weekly Newsletters

"I write to express my strong belief that the success of any major legislation depends on the acceptance and support of the American people. That support can only be earned through full and careful consideration of legislative language and an open process of amendments."

-- Sen. Marco Rubio, Letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Pat Leahy, April 1, 2013

Late Friday afternoon, Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and John Hoeven (R-N.D.) filed a 1,190-page amendment, supported by Sen. Rubio and the rest of the Gang of Eight, that is a complete re-write of the existing amnesty bill. Handwritten changes were even added moments before its introduction.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has already scheduled a vote on the amendment for 5:30 p.m. on Monday.

Apparently, this is what Sen. Rubio calls an "open process" that can earn "the acceptance and support of the American people."

So what's in this monstrosity of an amendment? Our Capitol Hill team has spent the last 24 hours sifting through it, and they've already found several problems. Here's what one of the bill's lead sponsors said on Friday:

"It is $3.2 billion worth of technology, planes, unmanned aircraft, sensors--all on the border, spelled out in this legislation--that ensures we have a secure border. That must be met before there are any green cards, and that is where we start..."

-Sen. Hoeven, Senate Floor, June 21, 2013

Starting on page 17, the Schumer-Corker-Hoeven amendment goes on for 12 pages itemizing all the equipment that must be purchased for each border sector. Sen. Leahy called it a "Christmas wish list for Halliburton." But all you need to know is what's printed on page 30:

If the Secretary determines that an alternate or new technology is at least as effective as the technologies described in paragraph (3) and provides a commensurate level of security, the Secretary may deploy that technology in its place and without regard to the minimums in this section.

So, in the end, the DHS Secretary can do whatever he/she wants. One must wonder if Sen. Rubio regrets making this statement about the amendment on Thursday:

"We do not just say you have to deploy this technology, we tell you where you have to deploy it. We do not even leave that to DHS."

-- Sen. Rubio, Senate floor, June 20, 2013

The amendment's supporters have also boasted about how it will require construction of 700 miles of border fencing (as already required under current law).

"700 miles of fencing on the border. These are things Republicans have repeatedly asked for as part of securing the border. We have put them right in the bill."

-- Sen. Hoeven, Senate floor, June 21, 2013

"We actually say that, where it is possible, where the terrain allows it--there are places where the terrain does not let you build a fence, but where the terrain allows it, you have to put a fence there."

-- Sen. Rubio, Senate floor, June 20, 2013

Except, once again, the DHS Secretary doesn't have to build one inch of fencing if she doesn't want to. We found this provision on page 34:

Notwithstanding paragraph (1), nothing in this subsection shall require the Secretary to install fencing, or infrastructure that directly results from the installation of such fencing, in a particular location along the Southern border, if the Secretary determines that the use or placement of such resources is not the most appropriate means to achieve and maintain effective control over the Southern border at such location.

Furthermore, the amendment includes Schumer's stand-alone amendment that creates a new, permanent rolling amnesty. This would allow future illegal aliens who have overstayed their visas to apply for a green card as long as they have worked legally in the United States for at least 10 years before overstaying their visa. It's amnesty now and forever!

There are two other things we know for sure about the Schumer-Corker-Hoeven amendment. First, the bill will grant legal status and work permits to 11 million illegal aliens before any enforcement kicks in. Second, it will issue 22 million green cards to new legal immigrants in the first decade.

That means, as the CBO reported earlier this week, unemployment will go up and wages for American workers will decline under S.744 - regardless of Schumer-Corker-Hoeven.

Here are the Senators that have joined as cosponsors of the amendment: John McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Dean Heller (R-NV), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Mark Begich (D-AK), and Joe Donnelly (D-IN).

We've posted new faxes on your Action Board that urge your Senators to oppose the Schumer-Corker-Hoeven amendment. Please send them this weekend and then call your two Senators on Monday to urge them to oppose the Schumer-Corker-Hoeven amendment.

Thanks for all you do, and together we can still win this fight!

chris Chmielenski

Sat, June 22^nd

Poll finds little support for GOP who favor S. 744 bill to increase immigrant workers and give work permits to illegal aliens

Republican senators considering voting for the S. 744 immigration bill will find little support among the voters on whom they most depend for both Primary and General elections, according to a Pulse Opinion Research survey of 1,000 likely voters on June 17.

	roy beck
fri, June 21^st

Non-Partisan CBO Confirms Worst Fears of Schumer-Rubio-Obama Amnesty

Higher unemployment. Lower wages. Higher interest rates. Continued illegal immigration. That's what the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analysis concludes regarding the Gang of Eight's amnesty bill, S.744. In two separate analyses released on Tuesday, the CBO found that S.744 might have some long-term benefits on the U.S. economy, but in the interim, it will be a disaster for working Americans.

	chris chmielenski
wed, June 19^th

fri, June 21^st

FORMER BORDER AGENTS SAY 'BORDER SURGE' HIRING NOT OBTAINABLE WITHOUT RISK, INEFFECTIVE WITHOUT INTERIOR ENFORCEMENT

Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and John Hoeven (R-N.D.) are preparing a so-called "border surge" amendment for the comprehensive amnesty bill (S. 744) that would add 20,000 Border Patrol Agents in ten years as a precondition for distributing green cards to illegal aliens. But the National Association of Former Border Patrol Agents (NAFBPO) says it would take at least 20 years to identify, train and hire that many Agents unless the process shortchanges proper training and background checks.

wed, June 19^th

Day-Long Event Stirs Opposition to Comprehensive Amnesty Bill

A group of House and Senate Republicans held an extended press conference and rally on the East steps of the Capitol to rail against the comprehensive amnesty legislation under consideration in the Senate. They were joined by talk show host Glenn Beck and the Heritage Foundation's Robert Rector, the author of the definitive long-term cost analysis on the Senate bill.

tue, June 18^th

Senate Votes Against Enforcement Before Amnesty

In two separate votes today, the Senate voted to prioritize an amnesty for the nation's 11 million illegal aliens over enforcement of existing laws. Amendments offered by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) were defeated mostly along a party-line vote. Both amendments would have required the federal government to enforce laws already on the books before granting amnesty.

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