Posts Made By: James McSheehy

I think Republicans may be misreading these results. Yes, their folks won, but IMO those victories do not translate into a groundswell of support for the GOP. We recently visited some friends in California and we attended an informal gathering of eight families. The conversation turned to the economy and there was a palpable sense of fear among many of these people. Fear that they would lose their homes, fear that they could no longer save for their kids' education or their retirement, and fear that no one in the state or federal governments gave a flip about their plight. About half were equally angry at the banks because they could not renegotiate their underwater mortgages and none of the stimulus spending had any impact on their predicament. I was surprised to hear so many of them willing to discuss their finances (or lack thereof) openly with strangers. Kolyfonia?

Now this is anecdotal, but what I saw and heard that evening was anger and resentment in a group of upper middle class Americans who feel disenfranchised and cheated by their government. I'm guessing many if not most of these folks voted for Obama last year. This is an ugly situation, and it does not bode well for any incumbents. If the 2010 elections don't bring some change, I think we could see bullets flying in 2011.

Don't encourage a political fashion trend we all might one day regret. 8)

Later she was heard to say:

"Just look carefully, I only want you to look carefully. Do not repeat the lies of liars. Do not become like them. Once again, I blame Fox News before it ascertains what takes place. Please, make sure of what you say and do not play such a role."

"I can say, and I am responsible for what I am saying, that the Republicans have started to commit suicide on the steps of the House. We will encourage them to commit more suicides quickly."

"The GOP infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds on the steps of Congress. Be assured, our majorities are safe, protected."

Scott Satko said:

So...if say, the hot water heater breaks, or the AC breaks, who pays for this? Typically when one is renting from a landlord, you would call the landlord, who would then be responsible for fixing the problem. Will this responsibility now be dumped on the taxpayers?

Good question -- sounds like we need a new bureaucracy to deal with it, union workers of course to turn the wrenches. A budget of oh say, $10 billion a year (to start) should cover it. 8)

Shims on the dovetail? The pointing models like TPoint will accommodate small orthogonality errors, but only for one tube.

Rod Kaufman said:

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-na-seniors-healthcare6-2009nov06,0,4854487.story?track=rss
It's interesting to note the AMA believes compensation for providers will be higher under the Democratic bill than reimbursements from medicare.

And that's going to save money, right? LOL

Call me cynical, but in this endorsement I see two large, bloated organizations getting ready to feed at the trough of the public treasury.

Many people were shocked by his press conference yesterday. The networks went to it live assuming the President would make a statement about the shootings. Obama started by giving "shout outs" to one of the audience members and yucking it up for three minutes. Then he addressed the deaths in a tone that many saw as flip and insincere. Un-frikken-believable!

Does this man have a soul? Are his advisors retarded?

What part of "we're broke" don't you understand? Have you looked at the unemployment statistic? Have you noticed the general insolvency of the large banks and GSEs? The frikkin' federal government is running trillion-dollar deficits -- forever. There is no money for this health care bill, and passing it in spite of the economic circumstances is beyond folly. Where do you think we will get the resources to provide the care it mandates, the tooth fairy?

It will be interesting to see what happens to his numbers when he announces 35,000 more troops are headed to Afghanistan. His base was already unhappy that Obama didn't immediately arrest Bush and Cheney and pull the troops out of Iraq. I wonder if any of them actually have the huevos and intellectual honesty to protest the Obama administration's conduct of the wars?

From what I see, this "recovery" is walking on eggshells. For an unbiased view of how things are going in consumerland, just look at the YOY sales tax receipts. It isn't a pretty picture considering how much money the feds are pumping:

Sales tax receipts, October 2009 vs. October 2008:

Georgia: -18.2%.
Missouri: -24.4%
Illinois: -15%
Iowa: -9.1%
Texas: -12.5%
Nevada: -24.1%
Rhode Island: -6.6%
Arkansas: -8.4%
California: -9%

This reminds me of a teenage kid who volunteers to mow the lawn and straightens up his room, right before asking if he can take the car on a weekend road trip with his buddies. Do they really think the American electorate is that stupid?