You know, if you're going to seize a house in a foreclosure, change the locks, cut off the power and water, etc....you just might want to check to make certain you're at the correct ***!!!** ADDRESS!
This story is a real nightmare.
From the 10 January Galveston News:
GALVESTON — A West End property owner is suing Bank of America Corp., asserting its agents mistakenly seized a vacation house he owns free and clear, then changed the locks and shut the power off, resulting in the smelly spoiling of about 75 pounds of salmon and halibut from an Alaska fishing trip and other damages.
Dr. Alan Schroit filed the lawsuit Monday in the 122nd State District Court in Galveston against the bank with which he has neither a relationship nor a mortgage.
*******
OhpleezeOhpleezeOhpleeze let this case make it to a jury!!!
Wonder what a jury of twelve Texans in Ron Paul's district will do to Bank of America in this situation? Punitive damages, anyone?
Too Big To Fail actually means Too Big To Be In Business.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
The Massachusetts Senate Race Is A Dead Heat
Scott Brown has pulled to a dead heat for the Senate seat vacated by the demise of Edward Kennedy.
(HT to Mish Shedlock, the beloved rabbi. You'll find him to the right.)
Late polling here.
OldSouth isn't rich, but he just tossed a few bucks into Mr. Brown's kitty, and would love to see others do the same.
Brown's election takes away the Democrat HopeyChangey lock on the Senate.
One week and one day until the election. Chin straps on, this will get interesting.
Expect Himself and assorted Kennedy family members to descend upon Taxachusetts this weekend.
Expect ACORN and their minions to be prowling as well, attempting to create chaos.
There are a LOT of angry independent voters out there in MA, and almost all will be voting for Brown.
Chin straps on.
The donation link is here.
(HT to Mish Shedlock, the beloved rabbi. You'll find him to the right.)
Late polling here.
OldSouth isn't rich, but he just tossed a few bucks into Mr. Brown's kitty, and would love to see others do the same.
Brown's election takes away the Democrat HopeyChangey lock on the Senate.
One week and one day until the election. Chin straps on, this will get interesting.
Expect Himself and assorted Kennedy family members to descend upon Taxachusetts this weekend.
Expect ACORN and their minions to be prowling as well, attempting to create chaos.
There are a LOT of angry independent voters out there in MA, and almost all will be voting for Brown.
Chin straps on.
The donation link is here.
Robert Reich Sez: Do The Math
Although OldSouth is certainly not a Democrat, he does not think that they all sport horns, cloven feet, and are irredeemable infidels rightly doomed to a warm Perdition. (A few notable ones, yes, but that's for another time.)
He reads Robert Reich regularly, because Reich provides balance, has an academic's demeanor, and has reasoned views, even if they are sometimes wrong. Reich is also not mean-spirited, which helps, and he's not afraid of disagreeing with the HopeAndChange crowd, which really helps.
With his economist's training, he thinks numbers (like words) have meaning.
And Reich's views are beginning to coincide with AngryMan Denninger. They both urge everyone to Do The Math, because simple math in historical context generally sheds the light of truth. 2+2 always equals 4, regardless of how one votes. It is one of God's gifts to His creation, imho.
In his most recent post, Reich does the math. It is not cheering, especially if one is a Democrat Member of Congress who voted for all the TARP, stimulus, health care, etc. Unemployment statistics, lately at 10%, mask the ugly reality that an increasing proportion of the work force is simply dropping off the governmental radar. Which means they'll drop off the income tax radar as well, sooner or later.
Here's an an excerpt, and I'll highlight a few phrases:
The most painful political truth for Democrats is the nation won’t possibly be out of this jobs hole by the presidential election of 2012, even if the recovery is vigorous. Do the math. In order to get out of the hole, we’d need an average monthly increase of 400,000 jobs between now and then. But even at the peak of the 1990s jobs boom, the highest we ever got was 280,000 jobs a month. At the peak of the last recovery, in 2005, we got no higher than 212,000 jobs a month. Bottom line: Obama will be going into an election year with a higher total level of unemployment than before the Great Recession. He will have to argue that, were it not for his policies, things would be even worse. Counter-factuals like this do not sit well on bumper stickers.
Almost 40 percent of the jobless have been without work for over six months. That’s a record. People who have been out of the labor force for more than six months have a particularly hard time getting back in. Many never do.
What worries me most about all this is the trend line. If we were coming out of a recession with any potential strength in the job market, we’d at least see growth in the length of the average workweek. But there’s no sign of any growth. The average workweek held steady in December at 33.2 hours. Employers aren’t even giving their own workers more hours.
This is what Denninger is saying. Just slide over to 'The Market Ticker' to your right, and begin to sample his work. It is enlightening.
A convergence of opinion is beginning to take shape, which is really good news. The realities are now undeniable, and the Obama White House cannot effectively tar-and-feather anyone who disagrees with them, as the Clintons did. (And Bush isn't around to blame anymore.) Robert Reich served on the HopeAndChange transition team, and teaches at Berkley, for mercy's sake. He doesn't live his mom's basement, either...
Now, Reich thinks the Feds should be spending a LOT more money(e.g. printing even more), which OldSouth thinks is a terrible idea. But we're making progress, with everyone recognizing the nature of the problem and speaking in a more civil tone. Was it Dr. Johnson who opined about the prospect of being hanged?
If you're looking in on us from overseas, remember us in your prayers. This is going to take a long time to fix, and there is pain ahead.
He reads Robert Reich regularly, because Reich provides balance, has an academic's demeanor, and has reasoned views, even if they are sometimes wrong. Reich is also not mean-spirited, which helps, and he's not afraid of disagreeing with the HopeAndChange crowd, which really helps.
With his economist's training, he thinks numbers (like words) have meaning.
And Reich's views are beginning to coincide with AngryMan Denninger. They both urge everyone to Do The Math, because simple math in historical context generally sheds the light of truth. 2+2 always equals 4, regardless of how one votes. It is one of God's gifts to His creation, imho.
In his most recent post, Reich does the math. It is not cheering, especially if one is a Democrat Member of Congress who voted for all the TARP, stimulus, health care, etc. Unemployment statistics, lately at 10%, mask the ugly reality that an increasing proportion of the work force is simply dropping off the governmental radar. Which means they'll drop off the income tax radar as well, sooner or later.
Here's an an excerpt, and I'll highlight a few phrases:
The most painful political truth for Democrats is the nation won’t possibly be out of this jobs hole by the presidential election of 2012, even if the recovery is vigorous. Do the math. In order to get out of the hole, we’d need an average monthly increase of 400,000 jobs between now and then. But even at the peak of the 1990s jobs boom, the highest we ever got was 280,000 jobs a month. At the peak of the last recovery, in 2005, we got no higher than 212,000 jobs a month. Bottom line: Obama will be going into an election year with a higher total level of unemployment than before the Great Recession. He will have to argue that, were it not for his policies, things would be even worse. Counter-factuals like this do not sit well on bumper stickers.
Almost 40 percent of the jobless have been without work for over six months. That’s a record. People who have been out of the labor force for more than six months have a particularly hard time getting back in. Many never do.
What worries me most about all this is the trend line. If we were coming out of a recession with any potential strength in the job market, we’d at least see growth in the length of the average workweek. But there’s no sign of any growth. The average workweek held steady in December at 33.2 hours. Employers aren’t even giving their own workers more hours.
This is what Denninger is saying. Just slide over to 'The Market Ticker' to your right, and begin to sample his work. It is enlightening.
A convergence of opinion is beginning to take shape, which is really good news. The realities are now undeniable, and the Obama White House cannot effectively tar-and-feather anyone who disagrees with them, as the Clintons did. (And Bush isn't around to blame anymore.) Robert Reich served on the HopeAndChange transition team, and teaches at Berkley, for mercy's sake. He doesn't live his mom's basement, either...
Now, Reich thinks the Feds should be spending a LOT more money(e.g. printing even more), which OldSouth thinks is a terrible idea. But we're making progress, with everyone recognizing the nature of the problem and speaking in a more civil tone. Was it Dr. Johnson who opined about the prospect of being hanged?
If you're looking in on us from overseas, remember us in your prayers. This is going to take a long time to fix, and there is pain ahead.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
The Horizontally Challenged Soprano Has Begun To Vocalize
The anecdote (perhaps apocryphal) goes like something this: The old-time city mayor was attending the opera, which he hated. One of his aides, noticing his exasperation, suggests they slip out quietly. The crusty old mayor replies, 'It ain't over until the fat lady sings!'
Well, for Gordon Brown, The Horizontally Challenged Soprano Has Begun To Vocalize.
Today's Daily Mail helps stick the wooden stake in his political heart.
Stick a fork in 'im.
He's done.
Well, for Gordon Brown, The Horizontally Challenged Soprano Has Begun To Vocalize.
Today's Daily Mail helps stick the wooden stake in his political heart.
Stick a fork in 'im.
He's done.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
The Good News Imbedded In The Bleak News
Denninger is the quintessential Angry Man of our time, only he isn't some goofball middle-aged guy living in his mom's basement ranting about how unfair the world is in general, and to him in particular.
This man knows his math, his history, and knows how to make a chart that demonstrates both math and history.
Recently, he shared his reasoning that there is no real economic recovery. He lays out his reasoning here. And his chart.
He tells us that until The Consumer begins to spend again, we're not in for much of a recovery, and he's probably right on that point. The Consumer is not out buying stuff. He's busily paying down debt as fast as he can. An 18% year-over-year drop in consumer credit. That's some 14 billion dollars gone away from last year, i.e. money not spent on goods or services.
That's not good news for anyone looking for things to turn around quickly, out here in the real world, on-the-ground economy.
But it really is good news, because as families dump their debt, (hopefully to zero), they will begin to buy again, with cash. Their lack of fear of the future just might bring some sense of confidence back, cuz people who aren't deeply in debt can face the world knowing that they need never be hostages again.
They will also develop a lack of tolerance for their elected representatives, who think that restraint of spending is for losers.
And that could be the really good news!
This man knows his math, his history, and knows how to make a chart that demonstrates both math and history.
Recently, he shared his reasoning that there is no real economic recovery. He lays out his reasoning here. And his chart.
He tells us that until The Consumer begins to spend again, we're not in for much of a recovery, and he's probably right on that point. The Consumer is not out buying stuff. He's busily paying down debt as fast as he can. An 18% year-over-year drop in consumer credit. That's some 14 billion dollars gone away from last year, i.e. money not spent on goods or services.
That's not good news for anyone looking for things to turn around quickly, out here in the real world, on-the-ground economy.
But it really is good news, because as families dump their debt, (hopefully to zero), they will begin to buy again, with cash. Their lack of fear of the future just might bring some sense of confidence back, cuz people who aren't deeply in debt can face the world knowing that they need never be hostages again.
They will also develop a lack of tolerance for their elected representatives, who think that restraint of spending is for losers.
And that could be the really good news!
'Scuze Me, But We Seem To Have Misplaced...
528 billion dollars.
The US government sold a whole boatload of debt last year, and inquiring minds looked on in some real amazement as each auction went off without a hitch.
So they kept on inquiring, and noticed something worthy of inquiry in the 2009 auctions:
No one seems to know who bought some 520 billion dollars worth of government debt.
It wasn't foreign interests. They bought the biggest block, nearly 700 billion dollars worth.
Then there is The Fed, who bought some 286 billion.
Then there is the amorphous 'Household Sector', who account for some 528 billion dollars.
But, it's not clearly defined who the 'Household Sector' actually is, and that's what inquiring minds want to know. $528 billion is still a lot of money, even here in the Land of Hope and Change.
So, if you trip across it, make sure you let the proper folks know. They might be missing their 528 billion in T-Bills. I know I sure would.
The US government sold a whole boatload of debt last year, and inquiring minds looked on in some real amazement as each auction went off without a hitch.
So they kept on inquiring, and noticed something worthy of inquiry in the 2009 auctions:
No one seems to know who bought some 520 billion dollars worth of government debt.
It wasn't foreign interests. They bought the biggest block, nearly 700 billion dollars worth.
Then there is The Fed, who bought some 286 billion.
Then there is the amorphous 'Household Sector', who account for some 528 billion dollars.
But, it's not clearly defined who the 'Household Sector' actually is, and that's what inquiring minds want to know. $528 billion is still a lot of money, even here in the Land of Hope and Change.
So, if you trip across it, make sure you let the proper folks know. They might be missing their 528 billion in T-Bills. I know I sure would.
Friday, January 8, 2010
OldSouth's Disclaimer
OldSouth is gratified to see that readers from far-flung places are checking in to read his ramblings.
Since we live in an age of too many lawyers, and too many idiots who are their potential clients, I've posted the following disclaimer at the bottom of the page, and here for the record, just in case someone might claim they missed it.
Here we go:
Since he tends to rant at times about things economic, OldSouth wishes to remind you that he is the last person on earth you should look to for economic advice, and he sure as shootin' is not handing any out, in any form, directly or indirectly. He's doing well to keep his own enterprise together, and has no wisdom to offer about yours.
If you read something here, and are inspired to buy or sell something, or launch a new business, or get married or divorced, or whatever, and things don't work out well, I'm not the person to blame. You probably are; but sometimes, things just don't work out like we plan. Don't ask me how I know this.
If you are inspired to do something because of something you read here, and something happy results, feel free to tell your friends and neighbors.
If you can't understand this plain language, you need to be doing something else with your time anyway, like earning your GED.
[end of disclaimer]
God bless us everyone, and may He always preserve and bless the State of Tennessee, and the United States of America.
The Unanticipated Obvious Question
The Wall Street Journal chronicles the continuing self-destruction of the once grand Chrysler Corporation.
In May, Randy Painter and his nine siblings were taken aback to learn their 65-year-old family business—two Chrysler Group LLC dealerships in Nephi and St. George, Utah—would be terminated as part of the auto maker's restructuring. The dealerships, opened by their grandfather and father, respectively, were historically profitable and had long been an integral part of their small communities. Since June, they have struggled to convert their stores into used-car dealerships—and, like many rejected dealers, they still question the logic behind Chrysler's decision.
Let's remember Spring 2009: President Hopey-Changey and company rammed a pre-packaged 'bankruptcy', which violated much of the federal code, through the court of a willing judge, and what remained of Chrysler was handed to Fiat, in a no-cash transaction. The bondholders, who held bonds that told them in black-letter type they were first in line in the event of a bankruptcy, were shoved to the end of the line, behind the UAW. Many of the dealers, the ones tasked with selling the vehicles, were told that their franchises were being revoked arbitrarily, and in some cases, handed arbitrarily to other dealers; in one case, the franchise was handed to a dealership ACROSS THE ***!!!*** STREET from the former dealership.
Without notice. Without compensation. They were simply told to take a hike. Hope and Change have spoken.
Many of these dealers were multi-generation family businesses in smaller cities around the country. You know, the people who for eighty years had provided jobs, funded the local charities and churches, sponsored the softball teams, etc. etc.
All gone. You guys go away, even if you were making good money. Hope and Change have arrived, and your services are no longer needed. TV screens across the land were filled with the images of devastated family business owners standing in front of their empty dealerships sporting Chrysler signs, some of them freshly purchased a few months before, at the insistence of Chrysler Corporation.
Then comes Cash-for-Clunkers. Toyota wins, Ford wins, even GM sells some, and Chrysler sales barely move. Then things got worse.
Even the press release hacks at Chrysler had to admit the truth at the bottom of the page after several paragraphs of optimistic verbiage.
Did anyone, anywhere in President Hopey-Changey's staff ever anticipate the potential car buyer's obvious question:
In May, Randy Painter and his nine siblings were taken aback to learn their 65-year-old family business—two Chrysler Group LLC dealerships in Nephi and St. George, Utah—would be terminated as part of the auto maker's restructuring. The dealerships, opened by their grandfather and father, respectively, were historically profitable and had long been an integral part of their small communities. Since June, they have struggled to convert their stores into used-car dealerships—and, like many rejected dealers, they still question the logic behind Chrysler's decision.
Let's remember Spring 2009: President Hopey-Changey and company rammed a pre-packaged 'bankruptcy', which violated much of the federal code, through the court of a willing judge, and what remained of Chrysler was handed to Fiat, in a no-cash transaction. The bondholders, who held bonds that told them in black-letter type they were first in line in the event of a bankruptcy, were shoved to the end of the line, behind the UAW. Many of the dealers, the ones tasked with selling the vehicles, were told that their franchises were being revoked arbitrarily, and in some cases, handed arbitrarily to other dealers; in one case, the franchise was handed to a dealership ACROSS THE ***!!!*** STREET from the former dealership.
Without notice. Without compensation. They were simply told to take a hike. Hope and Change have spoken.
Many of these dealers were multi-generation family businesses in smaller cities around the country. You know, the people who for eighty years had provided jobs, funded the local charities and churches, sponsored the softball teams, etc. etc.
All gone. You guys go away, even if you were making good money. Hope and Change have arrived, and your services are no longer needed. TV screens across the land were filled with the images of devastated family business owners standing in front of their empty dealerships sporting Chrysler signs, some of them freshly purchased a few months before, at the insistence of Chrysler Corporation.
Then comes Cash-for-Clunkers. Toyota wins, Ford wins, even GM sells some, and Chrysler sales barely move. Then things got worse.
Even the press release hacks at Chrysler had to admit the truth at the bottom of the page after several paragraphs of optimistic verbiage.
Did anyone, anywhere in President Hopey-Changey's staff ever anticipate the potential car buyer's obvious question:
If they'll do this to their dealers, what will they do to me?
Ruh-Roh, Timmy! Even the East Coast MSM Types Are Calling Four Your Scalp!
Some years ago, a joke circulated with the opening line:
You know it's going to be a bad day at the office when...followed by a list of funny scenarios, such as Mike Wallace and his Sixty Minutes crew showing up at your door. (OldSouth is indeed, not young...).
So, Timmy: You know it's going to be a bad day at the office when...the Atlantic Magazine, that bastion of East-Coast-Old-Boy-WeAllWentToHarvardBrownOrYale-Liberal-Thought decides that your scurvy ass is a liability, and you are to be voted off the island!
Turns out that no one, and I mean not one member in this club, is amused by the news that you used the AIG rescue as a means of bailing out your bankster buddies while chair of the New York Fed.
Timmy, your mistake was that you over-reached. As long as the scams were relatively small, private, and no one in the club got hurt, it was ok. I mean, those poor schlubs in Flyover Country can be fleeced at will with blow-up mortgages and credit card scams. They vote Republican, if they vote at all, so they don't matter. But this mess lowered the net worth of the membership, not to mention the endowments of the Ivy League schools, where they donate heavily to reserve spots for their under-achieving fourth-generation legacy offspring.
You messed with the wrong people's money, and you are definitely off the invitation list, Timmy.
It is now only a matter of time, and the timing of the announcement. Timmy's toast, he just hasn't left the building yet.
Better get that book deal in place while you can, Mr. Secretary, assuming any New York publisher will return your calls.
You know it's going to be a bad day at the office when...followed by a list of funny scenarios, such as Mike Wallace and his Sixty Minutes crew showing up at your door. (OldSouth is indeed, not young...).
So, Timmy: You know it's going to be a bad day at the office when...the Atlantic Magazine, that bastion of East-Coast-Old-Boy-WeAllWentToHarvardBrownOrYale-Liberal-Thought decides that your scurvy ass is a liability, and you are to be voted off the island!
Turns out that no one, and I mean not one member in this club, is amused by the news that you used the AIG rescue as a means of bailing out your bankster buddies while chair of the New York Fed.
Timmy, your mistake was that you over-reached. As long as the scams were relatively small, private, and no one in the club got hurt, it was ok. I mean, those poor schlubs in Flyover Country can be fleeced at will with blow-up mortgages and credit card scams. They vote Republican, if they vote at all, so they don't matter. But this mess lowered the net worth of the membership, not to mention the endowments of the Ivy League schools, where they donate heavily to reserve spots for their under-achieving fourth-generation legacy offspring.
You messed with the wrong people's money, and you are definitely off the invitation list, Timmy.
It is now only a matter of time, and the timing of the announcement. Timmy's toast, he just hasn't left the building yet.
Better get that book deal in place while you can, Mr. Secretary, assuming any New York publisher will return your calls.
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