Can The Financial Markets Be Saved?

Saving the financial markets has been at the top of the agenda of the Bush administration for the past couple of months, with literally trillions of dollars in taxpayer guarantees being used to support beleaguered Wall Street. But for millions of Americans, the real problem is the plunge in the value of their homes, which represent their largest asset and have been used to supplement their incomes during years of declining wages.

The crisis facing homeowners is real, and according to McClatchy News:

Housing Is Bad Enough, But Wait - It'll Get Worse

By Kevin G. Hall

WASHINGTON — If you think the housing slump can't get much worse, Martin Feldstein thinks that both home prices and the broader economy can — and very likely will — get a whole lot worse.

The Harvard University professor and former chief economic adviser to Ronald Reagan isn't part of the crowd that continually forecasts doom. For two decades, he's headed the National Bureau of Economic Research, which officially determines when U.S. recessions begin and end.

So when he spoke on Monday night at the annual dinner of the National Economists Club, a gathering of like-minded wonks, Feldstein's grim calculations were noteworthy.

"There are now 12 million homes in the United States with a loan-to-value ratio greater than 100 percent. That's one mortgage in four. The aggregate amount of that is some $2 trillion," said Feldstein. "If you look at the median (midpoint) loan-to-value ratio in that 12 million group of underwater mortgages — mortgages with negative equity — the median loan-to-value ratio is 120 percent." ...continue reading

Inside the Transition: Melody Barnes

An introduction to Melody Barnes, President-elect Obama's Director-designate of the Domestic Policy Council:

Obama and Bush Working to Calm Volatile Market

From the New York Times:

Obama and Bush Working to Calm Volatile Market

CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama sought to seize the reins of the economic crisis Monday as he and his new economic team worked closely with President Bush to inject confidence into the trembling financial markets, which rallied and erased most of last week’s losses.

The coordination between Mr. Obama and Mr. Bush was taking place among aides, as well as in direct talks about the rescue plan for Citigroup and unresolved details of the overall Treasury bailout plan. The president said his successor would be informed of every “big decision” that was made, adding, “It’s important for the American people to know that there is close cooperation.”

To calm anxious markets, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury plan to announce a major lending program on Tuesday to jump-start frozen loan markets, administration officials said. The Treasury had signaled earlier this month that it was considering such an action for consumer loans, but the action to be announced will broaden the program to include business debt. ....continue reading

Proposition 8 Exposing Dissent Within Mormon Church

Not all Mormons are opposed to same-gender marriages, nor all they all homophobic. As this article in the Boston Globe illuminates, there is considerable dissent within the church over its public support for Proposition 8, which changed California's Constitution in order to prohibit same-gender marriages.

Gay-Marriage Debate Roils, Unites Mormons

This has been a stormy year for Mormons in the United States. First, there was the candidacy of Mitt Romney for president, which brought to the surface a deep strain of anti-Mormonism in American culture. Then, there was the raid on a group of schismatic polygamists in Texas, which reminded America of Mormonism's uncomfortable history. And now, there is a wave of protest, rolling across the country from west to east, in which some gay rights advocates have targeted Mormons because of their church's support for a successful California referendum to overturn same-sex marriage.

Ironically, the protests appear to be helping repair a rift within Mormonism caused by the election. The church's outspoken support for Proposition 8 exposed an unusual level of disagreement in the ordinarily harmonious Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as the Internet facilitated grass-roots organizing by the minority of Mormons who support same-sex marriage. But a smattering of anti-Mormon acts since Election Day - the burning of a Book of Mormon, a mailing of packets of white powder to Mormon sites, and some anti-Mormon invective expressed on signs and in sloganeering - has helped rally a denomination with a long history of persecution.

...continue reading

One group of Mormons, "Hotter Than Saints", while not openly taking a position on Proposition 8, has nevertheless earned the reprobation of church leaders for its homo-erotic calendar, "Men On A Mission", which features 12 shirtless young men offered as "12 Reasons To Believe In God". A video promoting the calendar is below.

The Mother Of All Bailouts!

Federal regulators have agreed to bailout Citigroup, one of the world's largest banking companies by infusing it with $20 billion in new capital and assuming the liability for $300 billion in risky loans, largely extended in the form of residential and commercial mortgages.

From the New York Times:

U.S. Approves Plan To Help Citigroup Weather Losses

By ERIC DASH

Federal regulators approved a radical plan to stabilize Citigroup in an arrangement in which the government could soak up billions of dollars in losses at the struggling bank, the government announced late Sunday night.

The complex plan calls for the government to back about $306 billion in loans and securities and directly invest about $20 billion in the company. The plan, emerging after a harrowing week in the financial markets, is the government’s third effort in three months to contain the deepening economic crisis and may set the precedent for other multibillion-dollar financial rescues.

Citigroup executives presented a plan to federal officials on Friday evening after a weeklong plunge in the company’s share price threatened to engulf other big banks. In tense, round-the-clock negotiations that stretched until almost midnight on Sunday, it became clear that the crisis of confidence had to be defused now or the financial markets could plunge further.

Whether this latest rescue plan will help calm the markets is uncertain, given the stress in the financial system caused by losses at Citigroup and other banks. Each previous government effort initially seemed to reassure investors, leading to optimism that the banking system had steadied. But those hopes faded as the economic outlook worsened, raising worries that more bank loans were turning sour. ...continue reading

Details of the plan can be found here.

Should Detroit Automakers Be Allowed To Fail?

There are many arguments in favor of allowing Detroit's "Big Three" automakers to fail, forcing them either into Chapter 11 (reorganiation) or Chapter 7 (liquidation) bankruptcy. No one can deny that GM, Ford and Chrysler have been environmentally irresponsible, promoting gas guzzling SUVs instead of investing in new, fuel efficient technologies so desired in today's market place driven by high gasoline prices.

Yet Detroit cannot be blamed for feeding America's fuel gluttony, anymore than McDonald's or Burger King can be held totally accountable for Americans' insatiable appetite for ever larger portions of unhealthy food. An American truism is that "bigger is better", whether it be cars, meals, homes, television screens, or the size of the local supermarket.

Nor can the United Auto Workers be held entirely to blame for the automakers' current financial straits. While it's true that union employee health benefits add an estimated $1,700 to the cost of each vehicle manufactured by the "Big Three", that's a cost imposed by our society's refusal to provide government funded, universal health care, a benefit enjoyed by workers in most other industrialized countries. Relieved of the cost of health care benefits, Detroits' automakers would earn roughly $900 per vehicle manufactured, as opposed to its current per vehicle loss of $800.

Former U.S. Senator and Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham makes a good case for saving Detroit in a column in today's New York Times:

For Detroit, Chapter 11 Would Be The Final Chapter

MANY commentators and members of Congress have declared that the best hope for the Big Three auto companies is to declare bankruptcy. Airlines have gone through bankruptcy and adjusted, after all, so why can’t carmakers?

This comparison is appealing, but flawed. Almost every carmaker that has ever gone bankrupt has disappeared for good. And there is no reason to believe the Big Three would not do the same. Chapter 11 filing would almost surely lead to liquidation.

Just as financial institutions depend on the confidence of those with whom they do business (as Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers discovered), automakers depend on the confidence of car buyers. To purchase a car is to make a multiyear commitment: the buyer must have confidence that the manufacturer will survive to provide parts and service under warranty. With a declaration of bankruptcy, that confidence evaporates. Eighty percent of consumers would not even consider buying a car or truck from a bankrupt manufacturer, one recent survey indicates. So once a bankruptcy proceeding got started, the company’s revenue would plummet, leading it to hemorrhage cash to cover its high fixed costs. ...continue reading

Detroit makes its own case in the following video:

Wal-Mart proves its patriotism

From the Boston Globe, via Arnie Arnesen, comes this incredibly reassuring story:

BENTONVILLE, Ark. - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has signed on to an Army Reserve program in which the company and the Army will work together to recruit and train people interested in serving in the military and working for the giant retailer. continue reading



This presents so many opportunities! With its vaunted purchasing power, Wal-Mart could save the Department of Defense billions by equipping and arming those reservists. Wal-Mart could contract with Chinese and Indian manufacturers for uniforms, weapons, ordinance, field equipment, and even GPS units and computers and other electronic devices which could then be dispensed to troops as they're called to duty. The cost savings would be phenomenal, not just because the goods would carry a much lower price than what the DOD normally pays through its "competitive" bidding process, but also because thousands of acres of storage facilities could be eliminated and the military would be on a more competitive, "JIT - Just In Time" procurement track.

Not only that, but Wal-Mart could serve as the nation's military recruitment centers, administering tests, physicals, and background checks to ensure that no one of questionable moral or political character somehow found their way into the ranks of the military or in the aisles of their stores. It would reinforce America's confidence in Wal-Mart's commitment to "America".

Imagine, too, how safe Americans will feel shopping in Wal-Mart when its employees are all heavily armed and properly vetted, and know how to respond in case of a Chemical, Biological or Radiological Attack! Terrorists wouldn't dare venture anywhere near a Wal-Mart store, assuring Americans that they can fulfill their patriotic duty to shop.

So many possibilities, so little time to consider them all. I really must put my "snark" device on overdrive.

The Socialists Are Coming -- And They Are Us

WARNING! WARNING! THE SOCIALISTS ARE COMING! BARACK OBAMA WANTS TO SPREAD THE WEALTH!

Of all the scare tactics employed in this election season, this latest gambit by the McCain-Palin ticket is among the most ludicrous, and would be amusing if it were not for the seriousness with which some people are fearing Armageddon.

Come on, people. Sharing the wealth has always been an American tradition. Sometimes it’s achieved through the largesse of individuals. On other occasions religious and charitable organizations undertake the task of distributing generous donations collected from individuals and businesses. And frequently, we rely upon government to assist us in spreading around the wealth.

Nor is our socialization limited to sharing the wealth. We’re also a nation given to sharing risk and to collectively carrying the burden of catastrophe or disaster. That’s a major part of what defines us as a civilization.

In a little over a month our community will unite behind one of the most incredible annual acts of generosity in which each of us takes pride - the Annual WLNH Children’s Auction. Literally hundreds of local residents volunteer their time, energy and money to this charitable endeavor, and hundreds more anxiously await the opportunity to bid on items they don’t necessarily want or need, frequently donating them back for resale, or providing them for use by other charitable organizations and groups.

This year each of us will be asked once again to pay a share of our income to support the County Nursing home, committed to ensuring our elderly a safe, secure and healthy life no matter their economic or familial circumstances. I’ve not met anyone who believes we should turn these people out on the streets to fend for themselves.

Each month thousands of seniors in the Lakes Region rely upon a check arriving in the mail from Social Security. Get the name? Social Security? It’s socialism, my friends. We’re all asked to contribute a portion of our income to ascertain that seniors and the disabled are not abandoned to poverty. All of us contribute during our working years to support those generations that came before us, and we expect that ensuing generations will continue that tradition.

And what is Medicare but socialized medicine? Again, we all contribute to the pot because we don’t believe being old should mean being denied health care services that are beyond one’s ability to pay.

Let’s look at insurance. All insurance. The purpose of insurance is to share the risk and the costs. It’s a socialization of risk. I’ve driven an automobile for over forty years, dutifully paying my insurance premiums which have amounted to tens of thousands of dollars. Yet the only claim I’ve ever filed cost the carrier $450 and that was in 1970. Nevertheless, I still regard insurance as an important expenditure.

Rarely does a day pass when I don’t traverse at least a segment of our streets and roadways, crossing bridges, passing beneath viaducts, all on a complex network built by shared contributions.

When I awaken in the morning the first thing I do is flip on the kitchen light and brew a pot of coffee, trusting that electricity will flow into my home unless some dastardly storm or errant vehicle has somehow interrupted the transmission system. Like you, I share in the cost of supporting the nation’s electrical grid, aware that it’s highly unlikely that I’d be able to generate my individual energy needs without incurring monumental expenses.

Within minutes of pouring my first cup of coffee I’m greeted by the outdoor sounds of children heading off to school, another collective cost that we share. Yes, our schools are expensive, consuming a large slice of our local tax dollars, yet few of us fail to recognize that public education is a necessary and valuable investment, providing lifetime rewards.

Over the past five years New Hampshire has sacrificed 23 lives in Iraq and another five in Afghanistan. Laconia residents have contributed in excess of $30 million to the costs of the wars. It’s a collective burden, borne most heavily by those families who’ve lost loved ones, yet apportioned to all of us.

Barack Obama has come to the conclusion that too much of the shared burden has fallen upon the middle class, and that for eight years the Bush administration has shifted much of the onus onto future generations, compiling nearly $5 trillion in debt that will be a millstone around the necks of our children and grandchildren. That kind of irresponsibility must stop.

We face serious and expensive problems, from two wars to crumbling infrastructure, and from energy dependence to a financial meltdown. Fixing these problems is going to be costly and necessary. And it can’t be done by bankrupting the middle class.

So yes, the wealthiest among us are going to have to pay a bit more. That’s the American way. We’re all in this together, sharing the same ship of state. It’s time to set aside the petty bickering and senseless name calling and recognize that each of us has a responsibility for our nation’s future. And if John McCain is so opposed to sharing burdens perhaps he should give up his government funded health insurance and disability pension. After all, he and his wife are worth an estimated $150 million.

Are you better off than you were four years ago?

Ron Howard's Call to Action

Teacher suspended for racist comments about Obama

The Amazingly Deceitful Jeb Bradley

By Susan Bruce

By far and away, the most amazing deceit in yesterday’s AARP debate (And Jeb gave us plenty to choose from) was his "stance" on Social Security. First, he told us that he opposed Bush's plan to privatize Social Security. Then in a follow-up question, asked very clearly to learn if he was sincere, he was asked if he supported “carve out” measures. Carve out means diverting some Social Security funds to private accounts. To that, Jeb said that all options had to be on the table, and we needed a bipartisan get together to figure it out. So - within a ten-minute span, he was against privatizing...and then it was an option on the table. I was stunned - and I've heard Jeb Bradley speak more times than I can remember.

During the debate, Jeb said numerous times that Carol had cast the deciding vote on taking the August vacation. Carol pointed out early on that those ads were run in the district of every freshman Congressman - so in other states, a different person cast the deciding vote. Carol finally asked him if he knew that those ads were run in other states with other names, and he weaseled out of it by saying "well you voted for it, so you were part of the deciding."

It was clear from the beginning of the debate that Carol had voted twice against the bailout bill, yet Jeb continued to claim all the way to the end that Carol voted with her party 100% of the time. She listed votes (including FISA) when she went against the leadership, but he continued repeating it. The Republicans sitting in front of me were snickering at his obvious lies toward the end of the debate.

On Medicare Part D, Jeb said he is proud that he voted for it, and spoke about what a great thing it was for seniors. He failed to mention the donut hole, and how great that is. Carol said that seniors certainly needed a prescription drug benefit, but she didn't favor giving the drug companies a bigger benefit than seniors. She pointed out that the bill specifically forbid negotiating for lower prices, the way the VA is able to, which has led to huge increases in some drug prices.

Carol emphasized that the 2006 Congress was stuck trying to clean up the mess Jeb and the previous Congresses left behind. Jeb tried to blame rising unemployment, energy costs, the financial problems etc. on Carol and the last 2 years. I don't think that people bought that. Folks are smart enough to know that we didn't get here in less than 2 years.

Jeb continued to try to blame Carol for nebulous tax increases that he seemed to be inventing as he spoke. For all of Jeb's talk about the need to work together in a bi-partisan way, he certainly wasn't leading by example.
Jeb closed by saying that supporting the middle class doesn't mean supporting a government run health care system. He also said, "I'm glad we could have a friendly debate. You all know me, and you know what I've done - like keeping the Shipyard open." At that point, a group in the back of the room laughed at him.

Jeb has learned nothing in 2 years. He didn't even have a handful of people doing visibility when I got there. He got stuck in talking points, just like 2006, where people in the audience snickered at him. The only difference between 2006 and 2008 is that Jeb has adopted the kind of meanness that John McCain has brought to the Republican Party. He was snide, he told obvious lies, and he was visibly mean spirited. It wasn't pretty. I'm embarrassed for Jeb, who at least came across as a decent guy in 2006. Carol has it right; he said he'd do anything to win. Sadly he's begun to prove it.

McCain's supporters reveal the dark underside of humanity

Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin are dangerous. They've moved beyond being mere liars and crooks to stoking violence and fascism.

In viewing this video I was immediately reminded of film clips I've seen of Hitler's Brown Shirts. McCain is intentionally appealing to peoples' most base fears and prejudices, inciting hatred and creating an incendiary atmosphere that borders on treasonous.

One can only hope that wiser heads in the Republican Party exert pressure on McCain to halt his destructive campaign before it erupts into tragedy. Otherwise, all Republicans will be held responsible for the acts and behavior of these frightened people fueled by the inflammatory rhetoric of the leaders of their party.




Send a link to this to your family, friends and neighbors, whether they be Democrats, Republicans or Independents. We must stop McCain's and Palin's assault on civility and the rule of law and encouragement of a mob mentality.

The American Insult

By Lynn Lagasse

While the focus of attention, debate and criticism continues to center primarily around Sarah Palin, the real issue remains obscure and less tangible to many voters, that being John McCain’s selection of a Vice-Presidential running mate. His motivations stridently defended are a thinly veiled disguise for political grandstanding intended to bolster up a floundering campaign.

Palin’s nomination while pandering to the base, targeted disaffected Hillary supporters yearning for a woman on the ticket and a means to defuse the groundswell of criticism and suspicions of elitism over the discovery of McCain’s eleven or so houses. (Really, after the first five or six does it really matter how many he has?) In this ill advised, unprepared and inappropriate choice, John McCain has dealt the American electorate the ultimate insult and in doing so has revealed his true colors. Motivated whole-heartedly by self-promotion and personal aspirations, John McCain chose marketing over substance, selling out his party, his constituents, his supporters and the American people, not to mention Sarah Palin herself, who is in way over her head but too afraid to blink.

As a campaign strategy, Sarah Palin’s obvious appeal is her astounding success story juxstaposed on a backdrop of “everyman” credentials complete with small town upbringing, beauty queen good looks, working-class lifestyle and family values. When this well woven storyline began unraveling over a daughter’s teen pregnancy and a quarter million dollar annual income the campaign managed to diffuse attention from these facts, by shifting greater focus to Ms. Palin’s maverick credentials, feisty attitude and tomboyish appeal as an avid hunter and outdoors enthusiast. While her well documented hunting exploits are especially appealing to sportsmen, I do not personally know a single hunter whose experience includes hunting from an airplane, helicopter or any other aerial device short of a tree stand, which most real hunters find far too exotic and elitist.

Sarah Palin’s role is more spokes-model for the McCain campaign, providing the perfect vehicle for connecting with average folks by delivering up a brand of plain speak and homespun zingers that John McCain could not possibly pull off. As a matter of fact, Sarah Palin barely gets away with it but she seems to combine all the right qualities of base appeal, gutsy feminism and “uncut gem in the rough” to turn out crowds of so-called supporters but I wonder how many are really supporters or just curiosity seekers.

Hell, I’d be tempted to attend a rally if she came to town just for the sheer novelty of seeing her in person. Chances are I probably wouldn’t find the marketing of Sarah Palin as deeply offending if there were a substantive, informed, prepared Vice-Presidential nominee behind the façade or if she were not so “in your face” with the sassy, girl-next-door, plain speak which I am positive has been coached to grating perfection on the Straight Talk Express.

The last time I heard the expression “Golly-gee,” was on a rerun of the Andy Griffith Show or Gomer Pyle and I can honestly say, I’ve never heard those words used in real life until they came out of Sarah Palin’s mouth. The gosh darnit, geewiz, down-home, back-slappin’, “gettin’ folksy with ya’ll” routine was already wearing thin on me when the final blow was delivered.

An apparent attempt to connect with us common folk down here on Main street, at the kitchen table or wherever else we ordinary people are storied to be found, the McCain campaign has come up with catchy nicknames for the American electorate which Sarah Palin used in addressing us during last week’s debate when she said, “for all you Hockey-Moms and Joe Six-Packs”. My blood immediately began to boil not because of the words used per-se, but because their meaning disclosed the darkest of truths about the McCain campaign. In those words a revelation of how John McCain and the Republican Party view the average American citizen became crystal clear.

These one-dimensional, unsophisticated, over-simplified characterizations describe who the McCain campaign thinks they are speaking to when they ask for your vote. To anyone who remains undecided I say, John McCain does not deserve your respect for his politics, your consideration for his candidacy and least of all your vote for our country’s highest office.

As a registered Independent for 30 years, I voted for John McCain in the 2000 primaries, considering him a man of principles, representing higher ideals in government and non-partisan politics. Admittedly a liberal leaning voter, I enthusiastically became a registered Democrat two years ago and now have absolutely no regrets, remorse or second thoughts about not supporting John McCain. How could anyone support a candidate who would trade our future, our security and our country’s best interests for personal gain, ego and self-promotion? John McCain is an insult to the intelligence of a nation and the dignity of its people.

My support and my vote goes to the candidate that respects the American voter and respects us enough to be honest, clear and straight forward about our circumstances and the difficult choices and sacrifices we will all have to make in the days ahead. The “Dumbing Down” of America encouraged and exploited by the current administration tells us that “The world is a scary place, we should fear evil doers and terrorists who would harm us - but not to worry, go about our business, live our normal lives, don’t be concerned with the war, the economy – they’ll take care of everything”.

Great leaders instead are straight with people, inspire people, ask people to participate in the solution, enabling everyone to be part of the process. I believe that Barack Obama is one of those great leaders who possess the qualities that inspire, unite and build up. In that, there is only one choice for us to make at a time where change in leadership is so desperately needed and only one candidate that can deliver on that tall order – our Democratic Presidential Nominee, Barack Obama.

The fundamentals of our economy are strong

Making A Choice

I’ve heard from many people commenting on how nasty and negative the Shaheen-Sununu race has become, and I concur that it's really despicable. You'd think both of these candidates are evil incarnate. Allow me to offer my opinion.

John Sununu is a decent man who simply is on the wrong side of the issues. He favors big business, has a long record of opposing corporate and financial regulation, and has consistently voted against legislation that would benefit working families, from an increase in minimum wage to an expansion of health care coverage. He's been unwavering in his support of George Bush, including Bush's horrific foreign policy and his devastating fiscal irresponsibility that has buried us in an oppressive $10 trillion debt. John simply does not reflect New Hampshire's values.

Jeanne Shaheen performed admirably as governor for three terms, working with Democrats and Republicans alike. She's a moderate voice in a nation and a state where too often the extremists are most vocal. I disagree with Jeanne on capital punishment, and I believe she missed an opportunity to change New Hampshire's unfair system of taxation that places an extreme burden on working families. But I also know that she embraces New Hampshire's values, from protecting the environment to expanding access to affordable healthcare, and from improving our children's educational opportunities to strengthening the Granite State's economy. She brings an incredible amount of common sense to the table, and offers a breadth of experience that will prove invaluable to New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate.

Let's not lose sight of the fact that all of our major candidates are decent people and do not deserve the abuse being heaped upon them. This even includes John McCain, for whom I’ve lost nearly all respect since he launched his campaign of lies and distortions, and abandoned all principles of integrity. While today he is but a hollow shell of the John McCain who earned the admiration of millions, one cannot discount his past contributions to his country, nor question his patriotism no matter how misguided he may be today.

I truly hope that voters will not be swayed by the extreme messages with which they’re incessantly being bombarded and will instead choose a candidate based upon his or her positions on the issues.

We are today confronted by serious challenges, from a crumbling financial system and a plunging economy, to global terrorism and two mismanaged wars. We’re being held hostage by our reliance upon foreign oil, and we’re despoiling our environment by neglecting the need for serious investment in alternative sources of energy.

Our infrastructure is crumbling, our health care system is in crisis, and our system of public education is in peril. Gratefully, New Hampshire and the nation are equipped to confront these challenges, possessing the resiliency and the creativity needed as we move forward.

What is clear is that we cannot afford to continue along the course we’ve been following for the past eight years. We cannot endure another decade of war and neglect or of allowing unbridled greed to sap the underlying strength of our economy and put at risk our savings, investments, pensions, and even the value of our homes.

Our state and our nation are at a precipice. How we vote this year will determine whether we plunge into an abyss of despair or leap to new heights of achievement. A vote for Republicans is a vote to “stay the course” - to continue on the path we’ve been following.

By contrast, a vote for Democrats will ensure a change of course. That doesn’t mean it will be an easy ride, nor that every trail embarked upon will lead to success. But what it does mean is that we’ll be free to explore new avenues, to navigate the future with confidence in our potential rather than retreating into the paralysis of fear.

When choosing a candidate this year the first question you should ask yourself is that posed by Ronald Reagan in 1980 - “Are you better off than you were four years ago?” The second question you should ask is “Is the country better off than it was eight years ago?”

If you can answer yes to both of those questions, you should vote Republican. Otherwise, the decision is clear.

Media Announces Bailout Of McCain Campaign

WASHINGTON, DC -- Acting to avert a possible crisis in the U.S. presidential election, the media today announced a bailout of Sen John McCain's (R-AZ) campaign. Cable news commentators scrambled to prop up the Senator's sagging poll numbers Friday as the fast-disappearing dream of a nail-biting horse-race threatened to bring down America's entire punditry system.

A senior CNN political analyst speaking on condition of anonymity said that the collapse of McCain's campaign could prove disastrous to the pundit industry. "A horse-race is vital to our bottom line," he said. "Without neck-and-neck poll numbers we can't maintain an air of suspense right up to election day, and our ratings will suffer. I could be out of a job by this time next week."

....continue reading

Do We Want An Actual, Ordinary American In The White House?

By Joanne Rosenfeld

Last Friday, Senator McCain picked Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate in the presidential election. Though I like to avoid voicing political or even moderately serious thoughts of mine, I simply can't help but react to this latest McCain blunder. About a month ago, Palin said she wasn't ready to discuss being VP because she didn't know what the VP did; moreover, she wanted to stay in her more "busy" and "active" job as Governor of Alaska. It's certainly saying something that she thinks being second in line to become Commander in Chief is a smaller, less-productive role than being governor of less than 700,000 constituents.

Governor Sarah Palin's resume includes two terms on City Council and two terms as Mayor of Wasilla, a town with a population of 8,500. This means that anyone who's been president of a mid-sized university for that length of time has as much experience as she does. She's currently only two years into her first term as Governor of Alaska, which by the way has a population of 670,000, or just over half the population of that sprawling land mass, Rhode Island. But thanks to the erudite leadership of John McCain, a person who's never been voted for by more than 120,000 people and has never worked in national politics, is now a potential leader of the free world.

Governor Palin is married to her high school sweetheart, who happens to be a competitive snowmobiler. I don't know what that is, but apparently it is in line with the activities of "ordinary" Americans. She has five children, the youngest of which is named Trig, like trigger, as in gun (!!). Sarah is applauded for having had Trig even though she and her husband were well aware he had Down Syndrome a few months into the pregnancy. That is not only a sacred and personal decision, it is one that takes both courage and resilience as a parent, and I do applaud her conviction in her beliefs. You see, when you have the freedom to choose, you get to display conviction to your own beliefs, not just the ones McCain/Palin would like to legislate.

A small part of me rejoices in this, the latest in a series of misguided campaign decisions, because now, I am certain, McCain will not be elected. No one can say in seriousness that Sarah Palin is ready to lead a nation (some are saying it out of a habit of making hypocritical statements, but that's a whole 'nother issue). Despite a strengthened belief in an Obama/Biden victory this November, however, I am still plagued by the worry of what-if.

What if McCain wins? Sure the idea of a woman in the White House is exciting on face value alone, but this particular woman will likely prove to be an incapable vice president for a number of reasons, chief among which is her startling lack of experience. When she does so, which she will, she risks hurting the cause of so many other aspiring female candidates in the years to come. If Kennedy hadn't been such a salient and capable president, no one would point to him as a shining example of religious difference in the Oval Office, thus encouraging the political careers of the many well-qualified Catholic, Jewish, etc. men and women who followed his groundbreaking presidency. And if Sarah Palin flops as she surely will do, she will become an all-too-visible and simply unrepresentative example of the kind of bumbling misdirection a woman will bring to the White House. I can just hear it now: "Don't bring any more in. Remember that Sarah Palin chick? What a mistake that was."

Considering the average life expectancy of an American male is 77 years old, it would simply be imprudent to ignore the possibility that 72-year-old will not make it thorough 4 years in the White House. What then? One would think McCain would make an extra effort to assuage such fears and concerns related to his age and health with his VP pick. I certainly assumed he would choose a person with a resume that rivals his own; someone whose years of experience on the national and even international level could prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he/she was ready to lead the second "VP" turned to "P". Instead, he picked Sarah Palin. We want a president who is in touch with ordinary Americans, sure, but do we really want an actual, ordinary American in the White House? We seriously, seriously do not.

The greatest problem that I have with McCain's VP pick is that, once again, his decision has proven how misguided and illogical he is as a leader. Every move he has made in this campaign has been motivated by a follower's mentality: What do the voters want to hear? How do I get them to like me? What will make them like me more? A true leader works to change minds, inspire others, and move forward with an agenda he or she believes in and remains loyal to. Instead, McCain has become almost cartoonishly desperate for approval and support, lowering his standards, which should be presidential to the level of TMZ and perezhilton.com. This time, instead of carefully selecting a viable vice presidential candidate, he jumped a bandwagon that wasn't wound up with a soccer mom.

No one doubts this was a political decision; this is, after all, politics. But if McCain is after the women's vote, or more particularly, the vote of hardheaded Clinton supporters, he would have done better to align himself with someone who is not her ideological opposite. Women are not going to go after anything with boobs that moves like a drunk in a dive bar, and it is frankly both disturbing and insulting that McCain thinks otherwise.

We Deserve A George W. Bush Holiday

By Steven Borne

I propose creating a George W. Bush Day — a national holiday, the Friday of Thanksgiving weekend to be the new national election day, instead of the first Tuesday in November.

This day will become a day of remembrance — a chance to avoid repeating the historic national mistakes of the past eight years. Our past generations have enabled our great nation to be divided, the balance of governmental power distorted, our national identity betrayed and our economy crushed by debt and irrational economic policies. We are now obligated to right our nation and help make America, America again.

The economy can certainly absorb the influx of holiday shopping and more people will be home to vote or know sufficiently in advance to request absentee ballots. Holiday-focused shows, events, classroom content, sales promotions, etc., can all help drive educated participation and motivate the population to be more informed of the candidates and positions. We can build a national message that leverages our past mistakes (from both parties) to enforce the importance of education, participation and the role of the populace to mandate responsible, effective government.

This new holiday will encourage our schools and media to educate and emphasize the responsibilities of the electorate to maintain the health of our democracy. With all due respect to exceptional educators, the national evidence of the past eight years proves that our educational and media system has failed our democracy. There is no better learning example of what can go wrong than the George W. Bush administration and how we failed to prevent its actions. As we re-educate our nation, imagine the potential quiz questions.

n Of these six acts by the Bush administration, which one is actually permissible under the Constitution?

n True or false, Vice President Dick Cheney controlled and determined more executive and policy decisions than President Bush?

n What is the estimated level of global competitiveness America forfeited that is directly attributed to the No Child Left Behind program?

n Extra credit essay: Defend either statement using at least five reference points — "In presenting the justification for invading Iraq, the Bush administration was a) incompetent or b) intentionally lied to the nation?

We face a long, hard uphill climb. Only by acknowledging our collective failure and recognizing how national apathy enables single-minded individuals to manipulate a nation, can we begin to heal our nation and to rebuild our economic and national strength. George W. Bush Day, will stress the patriotic duty of every American to fight through the propaganda, misinformation, irrational logic, bias news sources and then to question everything by participating in the debate and discussion required for a healthy and evolving democracy.

Communism taught in school shows how intelligent and educated people accepted the misguided logic and rational of a communist government and how most chose to follow, rather than question or fight back. We learned how the mass majority in these countries were driven into a rut by the ruling powers and were incapable of climbing out. We had always assumed that America was immune to this type of behavior. Well, America has proven that we too, can be led into a national rut. America needs to acknowledge and constantly remind ourselves what happened during the George W. Bush administration. The many manipulative acts of this administration must never be forgotten. We can never ignore how the conservative faction took a large lever labeled "faith" and drove it deep into the nation where it touched enough of the populace so too many of us aligned behind the calculated power grab. Then the national outrage from the 9/11 attacks was leveraged to accelerate our democratic demise as more citizens were driven into a deeper national rut, executive power expanded, and the conservative agenda enacted.

Sarah Palin's Leadership Promise

Not enough attention has been paid to John McCain's rationale behind the choice of Sarah Palin as a running mate. Clearly he envisions an important leadership role for the athletic young frontierswoman whose vivacious energy adds spark and vigor to his lethargic leadership.