It's September 1, 2011. Obama took office two years eight months ago, plus a few days.
It's his economy, not Bush's.
From the Bureau of Labor Statistics, today:
Nonfarm payroll employment was unchanged (0) in August, and the unemployment
rate held at 9.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.
Employment in most major industries changed little over the month. Health
care continued to add jobs, and a decline in information employment reflected
a strike. Government employment continued to trend down, despite the return
of workers from a partial government shutdown in Minnesota.
Household Survey Data
The number of unemployed persons, at 14.0 million, was essentially unchanged
in August, and the unemployment rate held at 9.1 percent. The rate has shown
little change since April. (See table A-1.)
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (8.9
percent), adult women (8.0 percent), teenagers (25.4 percent), whites
(8.0 percent), blacks (16.7 percent), and Hispanics (11.3 percent) showed
little or no change in August. The jobless rate for Asians was 7.1 percent,
not seasonally adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) was
about unchanged at 6.0 million in August and accounted for 42.9 percent of the
unemployed. (See table A-12.)
The labor force rose to 153.6 million in August. Both the civilian labor force
participation rate, at 64.0 percent, and the employment-population ratio, at
58.2 percent, were little changed. (See table A-1.)
Oh, by the way, the final paragraph of the report shares this gem with us:
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for June was revised from
+46,000 to +20,000, and the change for July was revised from +117,000 to
+85,000.
20/46 is....43%. Thus that was a 57% miss on the estimate.
85/117 is...72%. Thus that was a 38% miss on the estimate.
There are people who went out and bought stocks based on those 'estimates'-- damn ya'll, there was euphoria in July!
November 2012 cannot arrive too quickly.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Quote Of The Day, From Jesse
There are moments when his prose turns luminous.
There are no sidelines, for everyone serves something, even if by default. The most significant choice we make is whom we serve, and to whom we therefore gradually bind ourselves. It is a terrible choice, with profound implications, but so often made with little thought, lightly, without a view to the consequences. We live on forever with whom we have served in this world.
There are no sidelines, for everyone serves something, even if by default. The most significant choice we make is whom we serve, and to whom we therefore gradually bind ourselves. It is a terrible choice, with profound implications, but so often made with little thought, lightly, without a view to the consequences. We live on forever with whom we have served in this world.
Present-Day Brownshirts Disrupt BBC Proms Concert Conducted By Zubin Mehta
And we'll get to see if the Beeb bows to pressure from thugs.
Since no one was arrested for repeatedly disrupting this concert that so many had been so eagerly awaiting, and paid good money to attend, it appears we have the answer already.
This isn't free speech or political expression.
It's thuggery, pure and simple, with the aim of seeing Jewish artists shunned, lest the poor downtrodden Palestinians disrupt and vandalize even more brazenly. There is a time for the billy clubs and handcuffs to be employed. This is one of those times.
Rather ironically appropriate that it occurred on 1 September, the last time a rabidly anti-Semitic regime decided to start a war and bathe the world in the blood of the innocents.
Since no one was arrested for repeatedly disrupting this concert that so many had been so eagerly awaiting, and paid good money to attend, it appears we have the answer already.
This isn't free speech or political expression.
It's thuggery, pure and simple, with the aim of seeing Jewish artists shunned, lest the poor downtrodden Palestinians disrupt and vandalize even more brazenly. There is a time for the billy clubs and handcuffs to be employed. This is one of those times.
Rather ironically appropriate that it occurred on 1 September, the last time a rabidly anti-Semitic regime decided to start a war and bathe the world in the blood of the innocents.
Lest We Fail To Remember: September 1, 1939
...in which the world plunged into madness. Officially, the war ground to a halt in August of 1945. OS is the son of a Marine who was being prepared for the ground invasion of Japan. In the wake of the battle for Okinawa, which claimed so many lives, the estimates were that it would require many many more men, and the campaign would stretch into 1947 or so.
So, that horror was avoided by the use of another horror, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and here sits OS, pecking away as a result.
(No, he's not guilty of that horror, but he is a bit haunted by the thought that he is its beneficiary.)
It was madness, completely avoidable madness. A world deciding that 1914-1918 had not spilled enough blood, that a do-over was necessary.
And, after August 1945, we found ourselves in a world forever on the verge of war, mainly in the name of some Utopian scheme or another, be it racial, religious, political, economic, national, or some toxic blend of elements of the list. For the most part, at least here, not outright war, but most certainly an uneasy quasi-peace.
So, here we sit, seventy-two years later, praying for wisdom and grace to not be dragged down that dark tunnel once more. As the parent of a young man, watching other young men born in his same year, returning in coffins to shattered parents, OS prays for mercy for us all; that somehow Providence will provide us grown-ups in positions of leadership, sober souls who understand (and care) that the decisions they make mean death or life for millions.
So, that horror was avoided by the use of another horror, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and here sits OS, pecking away as a result.
(No, he's not guilty of that horror, but he is a bit haunted by the thought that he is its beneficiary.)
It was madness, completely avoidable madness. A world deciding that 1914-1918 had not spilled enough blood, that a do-over was necessary.
And, after August 1945, we found ourselves in a world forever on the verge of war, mainly in the name of some Utopian scheme or another, be it racial, religious, political, economic, national, or some toxic blend of elements of the list. For the most part, at least here, not outright war, but most certainly an uneasy quasi-peace.
So, here we sit, seventy-two years later, praying for wisdom and grace to not be dragged down that dark tunnel once more. As the parent of a young man, watching other young men born in his same year, returning in coffins to shattered parents, OS prays for mercy for us all; that somehow Providence will provide us grown-ups in positions of leadership, sober souls who understand (and care) that the decisions they make mean death or life for millions.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Bank of International Settlements Report: Ya'll It Ain't Just The Tea Party Types Warning Us About The National Debt!
HT Adam Smith Institute, who do a great job each and every day.
On a daily basis now, it seems, the attacks are being launched against those of us who insist that our government is out of control, and that the spending and borrowing path we are on will destroy the culture. The 'racist' word is a popular one, followed by 'redneck', 'ignorant', 'hateful', 'stupid', all delivered with that particular "I graduated from an Ivy League School, therefore you dare not question me." sort of sneer we've all come to accept as simply part of the package from Duh Left.
However, Adam Smith Institute passes on to us word of a scholarly study commissioned by the Bank For International Settlements, in effect, the mother-ship of central banking.
This paper, entitled The Real Effects of Debt, was delivered at Jackson Hole last week. While the world was waiting breathlessly for word from Helicopter Ben about whether he intended to climb back into his Chinook and scatter more funny-munney-hunny upon the gathered crowds, these geeks were delivering the unvarnished truth about the children in charge of our governments, both in London, Washington, and the capitols of Europe.
Stephen G Cecchetti, M S Mohanty and Fabrizio Zampolli are not redneck, racist, ignorant, unwashed, stupid AstroTurf TeaBaggers. They are scholars, presenting the plain truth that neither Obama, LittleTimmy,or most of Congress wish to hear: this simply cannot be allowed to continue without destroying our civilization.
It's not about race or class, ya'll. it's about simple, inexorable math.
Given the benefits that governments have promised to their populations, ageing will sharply raise public debt to much higher levels in the next few decades. At the same time, ageing may reduce future growth and may also raise interest rates, further undermining debt sustainability. So, as public debt rises and populations age, growth will fall. As growth falls, debt rises even more, reinforcing the downward impact on an already low growth rate. The only possible conclusion is that advanced countries with high debt must act quickly and decisively to address their looming fiscal problems. The longer they wait, the bigger the negative impact will be on growth, and the harder it will be to adjust.
Here's hoping that Biden will open his yap and call someone a bad name after they quote this paper, and then use the paper to finally humiliate him into silence.
Until we insist upon a culture that will not tolerate this irresponsibility from its leadership, we will struggle as an economy.
Let's git after it, ya'll. No time like the present.
On a daily basis now, it seems, the attacks are being launched against those of us who insist that our government is out of control, and that the spending and borrowing path we are on will destroy the culture. The 'racist' word is a popular one, followed by 'redneck', 'ignorant', 'hateful', 'stupid', all delivered with that particular "I graduated from an Ivy League School, therefore you dare not question me." sort of sneer we've all come to accept as simply part of the package from Duh Left.
However, Adam Smith Institute passes on to us word of a scholarly study commissioned by the Bank For International Settlements, in effect, the mother-ship of central banking.
This paper, entitled The Real Effects of Debt, was delivered at Jackson Hole last week. While the world was waiting breathlessly for word from Helicopter Ben about whether he intended to climb back into his Chinook and scatter more funny-munney-hunny upon the gathered crowds, these geeks were delivering the unvarnished truth about the children in charge of our governments, both in London, Washington, and the capitols of Europe.
Stephen G Cecchetti, M S Mohanty and Fabrizio Zampolli are not redneck, racist, ignorant, unwashed, stupid AstroTurf TeaBaggers. They are scholars, presenting the plain truth that neither Obama, LittleTimmy,or most of Congress wish to hear: this simply cannot be allowed to continue without destroying our civilization.
It's not about race or class, ya'll. it's about simple, inexorable math.
Given the benefits that governments have promised to their populations, ageing will sharply raise public debt to much higher levels in the next few decades. At the same time, ageing may reduce future growth and may also raise interest rates, further undermining debt sustainability. So, as public debt rises and populations age, growth will fall. As growth falls, debt rises even more, reinforcing the downward impact on an already low growth rate. The only possible conclusion is that advanced countries with high debt must act quickly and decisively to address their looming fiscal problems. The longer they wait, the bigger the negative impact will be on growth, and the harder it will be to adjust.
Here's hoping that Biden will open his yap and call someone a bad name after they quote this paper, and then use the paper to finally humiliate him into silence.
Until we insist upon a culture that will not tolerate this irresponsibility from its leadership, we will struggle as an economy.
Let's git after it, ya'll. No time like the present.
Boehner Reminds The One That The Grownups Are In Charge Of The House
The Obama White House is run by hustlers, pure and simple.
John Boehner won't be rolled on this one.
Read and enjoy. No comment needed.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
EEOC v. Old Dominion Truck Line: Why November 2012 Cannot Come Quickly Enough
File under: Just can't make this stuff up.
The federal government has sued a major trucking company for its firing of driver with an admitted alcohol abuse problem.
Alcoholism is classified as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the suit maintains, and therefore employees cannot be prohibited even from driving 18 wheelers due to their histories of abuse.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which filed the suit against the Old Dominion Freight Line trucking company on August 16, noted that while “an employer’s concern regarding safety on our highways is a legitimate issue, an employer can both ensure safety and comply with the ADA.”
So, the management, who work for the stockholders, and answer to the insurers and departments of transportation in each state their trucks operate, are obligated to pay for rehab of an admitted alcoholic truck driver, and then put him behind the wheel again? How's about a spell of rehab, a year of employment loading trucks, and and then termination with six month's severance. That gives our boy some nineteen months to get/stay sober, and decide what to do for his next job. In the meantime, please, somebody, pull his commercial driving license! Please!
Almost all drunks relapse. Many go to residential treatment centers two or three times before putting together a long stretch of sobriety. This guy has a looong way to go, and very little chance of success, seeing as he would have been the person who went to the EEOC and cried about his maltreatment. How'z that for taking responsibility for one's recovery?
What could possibly go wrong? When that fatal crash occurs with that driver, does the surviving family get to sue the EEOC for demanding he be put behind the wheel?
Note to self--stay well behind or ahead of Old Dominion trucks in the future. That driver may be behind the wheel.
The federal government has sued a major trucking company for its firing of driver with an admitted alcohol abuse problem.
Alcoholism is classified as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the suit maintains, and therefore employees cannot be prohibited even from driving 18 wheelers due to their histories of abuse.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which filed the suit against the Old Dominion Freight Line trucking company on August 16, noted that while “an employer’s concern regarding safety on our highways is a legitimate issue, an employer can both ensure safety and comply with the ADA.”
So, the management, who work for the stockholders, and answer to the insurers and departments of transportation in each state their trucks operate, are obligated to pay for rehab of an admitted alcoholic truck driver, and then put him behind the wheel again? How's about a spell of rehab, a year of employment loading trucks, and and then termination with six month's severance. That gives our boy some nineteen months to get/stay sober, and decide what to do for his next job. In the meantime, please, somebody, pull his commercial driving license! Please!
Almost all drunks relapse. Many go to residential treatment centers two or three times before putting together a long stretch of sobriety. This guy has a looong way to go, and very little chance of success, seeing as he would have been the person who went to the EEOC and cried about his maltreatment. How'z that for taking responsibility for one's recovery?
What could possibly go wrong? When that fatal crash occurs with that driver, does the surviving family get to sue the EEOC for demanding he be put behind the wheel?
Note to self--stay well behind or ahead of Old Dominion trucks in the future. That driver may be behind the wheel.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Obama's Drunk Uncle Onyango Arrested In Boston: Why Was He In This Country In the First Place?
If we need a portrait-in-miniature of the Obama administration and its progressive homeboys, this is it.
From the Boston Herald:
President Obama’s accused drunken-driving uncle — who was busted after a near collision with a Framingham cop — has had a valid Social Security number for at least 19 years, despite being an illegal immigrant ordered to be deported back to Kenya, the Herald has learned.
The president’s 67-year-old uncle, Obama Onyango, has had a valid Massachusetts driver’s license and Social Security number since at least 1992, said Registry of Motor Vehicles spokesman Michael Verseckes.
Onyango, whose sister, Zeituni Onyango, made headlines when it was revealed she was an illegal immigrant living in public housing in South Boston, was wobbly legged, “slurring” and had “red and glassy eyes” when he was pulled over at 7 p.m. Wednesday on Waverly Street in Framingham.
As someone who has witnessed (in his family) the expense and stress incurred by people who steadfastly adhere to immigration law in order to build their upright lives in this wonderful country, this episode is offensive beyond words. There is one law for my family members, and another for the ne'er-do-well illegals that constitute The One's extended family.
But beyond that, it demonstrates Obama's simple incompetence at solving simple problems. Uncle Onyango is a drunk, and he's not going to get sober. Fair enough. Most don't. He's also here illegally, and a deportation order has been issued.
A competent person in Obama's position concludes: Uncle Onyango will drink himself into oblivion wherever he lives. So, let's make sure he is quietly returned to Kenya. I (Obama) have some wealth, and the ability to get things done. Let's rent him a flat in a nice safe part of a city, where the local authorities can keep an eye on him (they can be bought, you know), and arrange for a modest monthly stipend to keep him fed, his booze supply plentiful, and the occasional hooker to keep him happy. In a few years, he'll be dead, and in the meantime, he'll just be another old drunk in Kenya.
Obama could do this on his own dime, not spending one penny of public or donor money. He could even buy the plane ticket-one way to Kinshasa.
This is what a competent President would do--outcome for Uncle would be essentially the same, but the law would be adhered to in the US, and Uncle could not possibly be a distraction or embarrassment fourteen months ahead of the election. A President has other fish to fry, like war and peace, the economy, etc. etc.
November 2012 cannot arrive soon enough.
From the Boston Herald:
President Obama’s accused drunken-driving uncle — who was busted after a near collision with a Framingham cop — has had a valid Social Security number for at least 19 years, despite being an illegal immigrant ordered to be deported back to Kenya, the Herald has learned.
The president’s 67-year-old uncle, Obama Onyango, has had a valid Massachusetts driver’s license and Social Security number since at least 1992, said Registry of Motor Vehicles spokesman Michael Verseckes.
Onyango, whose sister, Zeituni Onyango, made headlines when it was revealed she was an illegal immigrant living in public housing in South Boston, was wobbly legged, “slurring” and had “red and glassy eyes” when he was pulled over at 7 p.m. Wednesday on Waverly Street in Framingham.
As someone who has witnessed (in his family) the expense and stress incurred by people who steadfastly adhere to immigration law in order to build their upright lives in this wonderful country, this episode is offensive beyond words. There is one law for my family members, and another for the ne'er-do-well illegals that constitute The One's extended family.
But beyond that, it demonstrates Obama's simple incompetence at solving simple problems. Uncle Onyango is a drunk, and he's not going to get sober. Fair enough. Most don't. He's also here illegally, and a deportation order has been issued.
A competent person in Obama's position concludes: Uncle Onyango will drink himself into oblivion wherever he lives. So, let's make sure he is quietly returned to Kenya. I (Obama) have some wealth, and the ability to get things done. Let's rent him a flat in a nice safe part of a city, where the local authorities can keep an eye on him (they can be bought, you know), and arrange for a modest monthly stipend to keep him fed, his booze supply plentiful, and the occasional hooker to keep him happy. In a few years, he'll be dead, and in the meantime, he'll just be another old drunk in Kenya.
Obama could do this on his own dime, not spending one penny of public or donor money. He could even buy the plane ticket-one way to Kinshasa.
This is what a competent President would do--outcome for Uncle would be essentially the same, but the law would be adhered to in the US, and Uncle could not possibly be a distraction or embarrassment fourteen months ahead of the election. A President has other fish to fry, like war and peace, the economy, etc. etc.
November 2012 cannot arrive soon enough.
Monday, August 29, 2011
No Moral Hazard Here: BlackRock Wants To Create And Control Its Own Indexes, And Sell Securities Based Upon Them
Pshaw, ya'll! What could go wrong?
Besides...
IShares said in its application that neither the advisers to the funds nor the internal index provider would have the ability to manipulate a benchmark, in part because the company plans to set up “firewalls.” Each BlackRock index would be rules-based, composed of equity and/or fixed-income securities, whose methodology would be clearly disclosed, according to the application.
That'll take care of things, fer sure. No possibility of folks from one side of the wall having a friendly fishing trip with folks from the other side. That sort of stuff never happens, 'cuz it would be immoral...
And, when it all blows up, Little Timmy and Uncle Ben will simply make it all good with taxpayer money, and send the bill to our grandchildren.
No problem!
Besides...
IShares said in its application that neither the advisers to the funds nor the internal index provider would have the ability to manipulate a benchmark, in part because the company plans to set up “firewalls.” Each BlackRock index would be rules-based, composed of equity and/or fixed-income securities, whose methodology would be clearly disclosed, according to the application.
That'll take care of things, fer sure. No possibility of folks from one side of the wall having a friendly fishing trip with folks from the other side. That sort of stuff never happens, 'cuz it would be immoral...
And, when it all blows up, Little Timmy and Uncle Ben will simply make it all good with taxpayer money, and send the bill to our grandchildren.
No problem!
Labor In Wisconsin Believes In Inclusiveness (As Long As You Don't Belong To The GOP)
File under: Tempest In A Teapot, But Are We Surprised?
Wisconsin politics — which hasn't been pretty of late — has made its way into a local Labor Day parade. The organizers of the Wausau Labor Day parade announced they would not let Republican lawmakers take part in the Sept. 5 display. The parade is organized by 30 local unions.
Ya gotta' love dose union guyz...they do know how to win friends and influence people.
All the good the union movement did (and it did some good in its day, truly) is now swallowed up in invective and thuggery.
November 2012 cannot arrive soon enough.
Wisconsin politics — which hasn't been pretty of late — has made its way into a local Labor Day parade. The organizers of the Wausau Labor Day parade announced they would not let Republican lawmakers take part in the Sept. 5 display. The parade is organized by 30 local unions.
Ya gotta' love dose union guyz...they do know how to win friends and influence people.
All the good the union movement did (and it did some good in its day, truly) is now swallowed up in invective and thuggery.
November 2012 cannot arrive soon enough.
Indiana Families Vote With Their Feet And Vouchers, Head Toward Parochial Schools
And, should we be surprised?
SOUTH BEND, IND. — Weeks after Indiana began the nation’s broadest school voucher program, thousands of students have transferred from public to private schools, causing a spike in enrollment at some Catholic institutions that were only recently on the brink of closing for lack of pupils.
It’s a scenario public school advocates have long feared: Students fleeing local districts in large numbers, taking with them vital tax dollars that often end up at parochial schools. Opponents say the practice violates the separation of church and state.
In at least one district, public school principals have been pleading with parents not to move their children.
“The bottom line from our perspective is, when you cut through all the chaff, nobody can deny that public money is going to be taken from public schools, and they’re going to end up in private, mostly religious schools,” said Nate Schnellenberger, president of the Indiana State Teachers Association.
Under a law signed in May by Gov. Mitch Daniels, more than 3,200 Indiana students are receiving vouchers to attend private schools. That number is expected to climb significantly in the next two years as awareness of the program increases and limits on the number of applicants are lifted.
Let's get our bearings here: Tax dollars are extracted from the populace at the point of a gun. They are spent, in part, on schools that harm children. So, in making those dollars available to the families from which they were extracted at the point of a gun, and granting them the freedom to allocate those tax dollars as best they see fit for their children...this is not a public subsidy of anyone's religion.
It is a family-by-family free choice, to remove their children from harms' way, and place them in safe and productive schools. The parochials have the accreditation, and they have desks to fill. Little wonder the parents seek them out.
In three to five year's time, the public systems will have made some adjustments in order to be competitive, like safe hallways and literate teachers. Other, secular, schools will achieve accreditation. And, there will be families that decide they don't like the parochial school experience, and that there is no 'magic pixie dust' after all. Children who don't work don't achieve, period. Those families will drift back to the county school systems, where they won't feel so bad about being lazy.
The parochials will thrive, and maybe, just maybe, some of those great old neighborhoods will revive.
Everyone, except the NEA, will benefit.
Kudos to Mitch Daniels and the legislature of Indiana.
SOUTH BEND, IND. — Weeks after Indiana began the nation’s broadest school voucher program, thousands of students have transferred from public to private schools, causing a spike in enrollment at some Catholic institutions that were only recently on the brink of closing for lack of pupils.
It’s a scenario public school advocates have long feared: Students fleeing local districts in large numbers, taking with them vital tax dollars that often end up at parochial schools. Opponents say the practice violates the separation of church and state.
In at least one district, public school principals have been pleading with parents not to move their children.
“The bottom line from our perspective is, when you cut through all the chaff, nobody can deny that public money is going to be taken from public schools, and they’re going to end up in private, mostly religious schools,” said Nate Schnellenberger, president of the Indiana State Teachers Association.
Under a law signed in May by Gov. Mitch Daniels, more than 3,200 Indiana students are receiving vouchers to attend private schools. That number is expected to climb significantly in the next two years as awareness of the program increases and limits on the number of applicants are lifted.
Let's get our bearings here: Tax dollars are extracted from the populace at the point of a gun. They are spent, in part, on schools that harm children. So, in making those dollars available to the families from which they were extracted at the point of a gun, and granting them the freedom to allocate those tax dollars as best they see fit for their children...this is not a public subsidy of anyone's religion.
It is a family-by-family free choice, to remove their children from harms' way, and place them in safe and productive schools. The parochials have the accreditation, and they have desks to fill. Little wonder the parents seek them out.
In three to five year's time, the public systems will have made some adjustments in order to be competitive, like safe hallways and literate teachers. Other, secular, schools will achieve accreditation. And, there will be families that decide they don't like the parochial school experience, and that there is no 'magic pixie dust' after all. Children who don't work don't achieve, period. Those families will drift back to the county school systems, where they won't feel so bad about being lazy.
The parochials will thrive, and maybe, just maybe, some of those great old neighborhoods will revive.
Everyone, except the NEA, will benefit.
Kudos to Mitch Daniels and the legislature of Indiana.
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