There is a lot of hopelessness in America right now, just one year after the most hopeful time I can remember. So much has happened (or not happened, depending on your viewpoint.)

We have gone from the tears of joy at the President's election, to tears of sadness as we realize how little one person, even a president, can accomplish in Washington. We were naive about how long change would take, how much resistance to it there would be.

There is so much to be depressed about. The stimulus package has not worked as well as we had hoped it would. The Wall St. big wigs have learned from the financial crisis that "too big to fail" means they have a green light to do whatever the hell they want, rather than an obligation to conduct their businesses in a responsible fashion. More people are suffering from the lack of health care. More, including many of our own, have found themselves out of work - the unemployment rate the highest it has been in over 25 years. We've been asked to swallow the fact there will likely be no prosecutions for the deplorable, and yes, illegal behavior of the prior administration as it relates to torture. We are still involved in two wars, and having difficulty figuring out how to get out of them, while day after day more of our babies die over there with no clear goal in mind. The programs established to aid people in keeping their homes have been largely ignored by the financial institutions WE bailed out. We've watched in horror as the very people who CAUSED the financial crisis have been left to oversee the industry. Gays are still being kicked out of the military and unable to wed. The lobbyists appear to own the country lock stock and barrel. We are subjected to a daily barrage of the selfishness of the privileged class, grabbing more and more of the pie, without regard for those who have not even a sliver.

If you haven't slit your wrists yet,

 
 

Read more »

It is amazing how much there is going on out there in the world that gets missed. Or at least I miss it. Is it that way with everyone? And I'm even TRYING HARD to pay attention now. I wonder how much slips by those who aren't.

Do you know who Brooksley Born is?

In March of this year she won the "Profiles in Courage" award for her work on behalf of the taxpayers in 1998-1999, in spite of fierce opposition from the Federal Reserve, the Department of Treasury, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, in calling for new regulations and disclosures that would bring more transparency and stability to the complex financial transactions now infamously known as derivatives and swaps.  (Paraphrased from Caroline Kennedy's remarks when presenting the award.)

In light of the foxes who have been put in charge of the hen house after the financial institutions drove us to the brink of financial disaster, how little, if anything, has been accomplished in setting up regulations that will keep it from happening again, and the cavalier attitudes of those on Wall St. who are continuing their shameful behavior, we should all be in an uproar.

I realize that health care reform is taking top priority right now in most people's minds, and we should all be working for that. But all the hard work on insurance reform will be for naught if the lobbyists are able to keep us distracted from the biggest danger that is facing us today: the perilous financial situation our country is in, and the seeming lack of awareness of this fact by those who we trust with our financial well-being. Banking regulations are not sexy like health care reform. And they are more difficult to understand. But they are critical.

Why do I bring this up now?

PBS did a special called "The Warning"  that outlines how we got to where we are, in layman's terms, not from the perspective of the financial instruments themselves, but showing how our esteemed leaders aided and abetted the greedy Wall St. tycoons in their efforts to fleece America.

In it, they show how Brooksley Born, the then chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), became concerned about the lack of transparency and inadequate regulation of the financial instruments that ultimately caused the near collapse of the global financial markets. She took the battle to House where she was shut down by the likes of Alan Greenspan, Larry Sommers and Robert Rubin, who succeeded in stripping her agency of all regulatory authority over derivatives.

As a result of their refusal to heed her warnings, the country was subjected to what she called "her worst nightmare." And thanks to lobbyists, the threat to our country's well-being remains, with no promise of re-regulation in sight.

Please make time to watch this show. It is so interesting that it will be a fast moving hour, and open your eyes to a problem far more fundamental than health care.

I am anxious to hear your observations.

Hmmmmm. It appears that the worm may be turning...Seriously, did the insurance companies step on their wangers?

A few days ago the public option was on life supports, seemingly just days, or moments away from time of death being called.

Then the insurance companies produced a quick "study" that turned out to be cooked, threatened to raise everyone's health care premiums if the public option passed, and now all of a sudden I'm hearing optimism about the public option surviving everywhere I turn.

Even my husband, who hasn't been paying much attention to all of this, came in tonight and asked if I heard about the insurance companies pooping in their mess kits, and asked me for an update...

Is it possible? Did they over play their hand and start a bit of a backlash?

Nate Silver at 538.com did a little "10 reasons" thing on the 20th on why the public option is probably gaining momentum...#1 being :

1. The tireless, and occasionally tiresome, advocacy on behalf of liberal bloggers and interest groups for the public option. Whatever you think of their tactics -- I haven't always agreed with them -- the sheer amount of focus and energy expended on their behalf has been very important, keeping the issue alive in the public debate.

Woohoo! That's us, huh???

I was home most of the day yesterday with the t.v. on MSNBC in the background and it seemed like there were many guests on talking about how close they are to getting the votes, and more optimism than I have seen in months.

Then as I sat down to write this post, I stumbled on the full speech the President gave from New York on the Organizing For America Webcast...the one the "mop" clip came from. Well, hell...if I had seen the whole speech before I did my whiny post yesterday, you wouldn't have had to prop me up. It is almost half an hour long, but if you haven't heard it, please take the time. It will remind you why we voted for him, and reassure you that he DOES know what he is doing.

We have an amazing President, and I can't believe I keep forgetting that.

Speaking about health care reform he said, "You Democrats...y'all are an opinionated bunch, and I like that about y'all...But now it's time to come together and get this done." He pointed out that of the five plans that have passed committee, pick the one you like least...it has provisions to stop people from being refused insurance because of pre-existing conditions, from having your insurance canceled because you get sick, and creates exchanges so you have bargaining power. That's the one you like least!

Broadening his scope he went on to say that we have a long way to go, but we've only been here for nine months. and "I'm not tired...I'm just getting started...I'm energized!"  Me, too!

What a difference a day makes...24 little hours.

I'm like a new person.

I was born of and raised by ostriches. Then I married an ostrich, and gave birth to and raised more ostriches. Therefore it has been difficult to pull my head out of the sand and pay attention to what is happening in the world. I mean, after all, it was a pretty comfortable life.

I was poor (by today's standards) growing up. My parents bought their first house for $19,000 using his G.I. Bill benefit. He worked at an auto parts store, and my mom stayed at home and ignored us kids as much as possible. We mostly fended for ourselves, except when we were "really bad." Then Mom pulled out the "just wait until your dad gets home card." He'd come home from a hard day at work, receive his instructions to spank us, and he did, without question. Everyone in our small world was pretty much just like us. No one had much, but we didn't know there was any other way to live. Seriously, my first recollection of "rich" people was watching "Dallas" on t.v

Read more »

Well, I just got back in after seeing "Capitalism: A Love Story" and like FlowerChild, my hair is on fire.

In the space of 2 hours and forty minutes I went from the "baby steps" I was encouraging earlier today to wondering if Chicken has pitchforks in bulk, or if I need to buy my own. At this moment, I'm ready for a revolution.

Now, I need to say, I have never been a Michael Moore fan. He has always been the face of the "libruls" in America to me, and not someone whose opinion I even wanted to hear, let alone ever thought I would agree with. Now he is my new hero.

The film is simplistic, but seems to be pretty accurate. I couldn't find much anything to disagree with, and found myself cheering (out loud, mind you) in the theater. My husband, the Libertarian, didn't even jab me in the ribs. Seems as if he couldn't find much to disagree with, either.

On the way home we had a discussion about Obama's Presidency and we pretty much agreed that he needs to step up to the plate and start cleaning house in Washington. If it makes him a one term President, so be it. In addition to the mundane things he has to do like get us out of Iraq and Afghanistan, and get us free from our dependence on foreign oil, and get our country back to work again, he needs to fulfill his promise of change. His promise of hope. If he doesn't, I believe this country will have lost it's best, and perhaps last, chance to correct it's course. 

Read more »

I am unable comment this morning on anything but my own past blog-posts. So, I'm troubleshooting as well...interesting morning at TPM.

It is happening in homes all over the country...family and friends at odds over the current situation. I would think we all know someone like this. It comes under the heading of truth being stranger than fiction. You just can't make this stuff up.

The following is a series of e-mails exchanged with my uncle...you know the one I introduced you to a few months ago. For awhile after the election he left me alone, but then he sent me a vile forward about one of the many crimes of Obama, the day of the health care speech. I sent him a link to factcheck.org debunking it, then in a separate e-mail, wrote  the following comment, then it was on. Interspersed with the direct back and forths was a barrage of 10 different forwards...you know the ones, accusing Obama of everything but murder...

I'm sure I could have handled it better, but my blood pressure was rising with each new shot...maybe you could critique the exchange, and give me some suggestions for handling the next one (and it is SURE to come, unless I have finally been COMPLETELY disowned!)

My Comment:

I hope you caught the President's address....What an amazing man...
I can't remember the last time I was so proud of one of our Presidents. Ever.

His Response:

Read more »

Tensions are running high at TPM this weekend. There is a lot of conversation about what the Cafe is and who should be here and who shouldn't. Whether there is more value to some posts and posters than others...

I find it all a bit sad.

My understanding is that Josh intends for it to be a cyber "coffee house" where people mingle and discuss...We don't have to believe anything in particular, we can be wingnuts on either end of the spectrum or somewhere in between. We can be intellectuals or hillbillies, atheists, Christians,  Buddhists, gays, straights, blacks or whites, dressed in pajamas or suits and ties...it just doesn't matter.  We can discuss anything we want, it doesn't have to be all about the headlines of the day. I mean, after all, as important as it is, health care 24/7 can be a bit draining. All he asks is that we be relatively respectful.

Some people here are good at taking personal confessions and turning them into relevant discussions on the state of the country. Some want no more than to put their poetry out there for others to critique. Some are howlingly funny and can have you squirting coffee out your nose and onto the keyboard over the most ridiculous subject matter. Others are great, serious researchers and teachers. Still others just want to lob grenades and watch to see what kind of collateral damage they can do. Some seemingly have little purpose other than to take up space. I suppose it can be a little clickish at times, but, some of us just really LIKE each other. Anyway, it's a big Cafe, and there is room for all. No one "group" owns the place.

I've only been here a little over a year, so I don't know what it used to be like. Maybe y'all used to never talk about anything but politics and the REALLY important stuff. I know a number of people who were here when I first showed up have left to start their own blogs, others just disappeared. Some of them I miss and I visit them on their own sites from time to time. I thought others were just grouchy intellectuals that couldn't be bothered by the stupidity of the masses and although I miss their perspectives on occasion, I don't miss them. There are lots of new people, and many of them have made tremendous contributions.

The TPM Cafe is a constantly changing place, as would be a cafe in the real world. People move, tastes change...for whatever reasons, the patron's faces change over time. If you don't like what it has become, open your own, or move onto one that suits your needs. We are all here by choice. The trick is to join in where you want and ignore the rest.

I like the diversity of TPM ; the diversity of thought, of style, of subject matter. I lived in white, Christian, republican seclusion for far too long. Being here has opened up a whole new world to me. My being here may have diluted the intellectual purity of the site for some, but it caused me to grow in ways I never would have without it. And for that I'm grateful.

Thank you, Josh, for not making me take a test before accepting me here. 

Jeez, Louise...It's been awhile since I've heard this kind of caterwauling...In fact, the whining and sniveling about Obama not fighting hard enough (over a year ago) is what brought me here to begin with. And, yeah, it's a little like deja vu all over again.

I've never heard so much pissin' and moanin' over something that MIGHT happen. More stomach acid has been wasted over the imagined results of a bill that hasn't even been completed yet...

Did you guys really think that universal health care was going to happen this year? If you did, I want some of what you're smokin'. If you thought the public option was going to be easy to get, you are just as high. Think about it, people...We DO NOT have 60 votes in the Senate...The Bluedogs are Dems in name only. If the "gang of 16" vote with the repubs, we don't even have 50. So scream all you want, one way or another, compromises are going to have to be made, or you can just scream your way into maintaining the status quo.

There is nothing I would like better than to see EVERYONE have access to affordable health care RIGHT NOW. I'm not wedded to one single way of getting there, but I DO want to get there. However, I am realistic enough to know that it isn't going to happen overnight. The Repubs had 8 years to do something about this, and they did NOTHING. They did not make one single step in the direction of getting affordable health care for all.

So, we win the election...wouldn't really have mattered which Dem it was...Edwards, Clinton, Obama...All wanted to reform the health care system in the United States. And all would be facing the same resistance. None could make it happen on their own. I don't believe that either Edwards or Clinton would be one single step closer at this point than Obama is. In fact, I doubt that either one of them would have been even presenting ANYTHING this soon. They would be dealing with the economy, the wars. I believe it took a man like Obama to even be willing to tackle it all at once. Have mistakes been made? Possibly. Did he bite off too much at once? Possibly.

But when he made the promises he made, we were not in the middle of an economic meltdown. He could have just said, "I'm sorry. In light of the position we find oursleves in, it will be impossible to tackle health care this year. We'll try again when the economy improves and people are a little less frightened about spending all this money." But he didn't. He plunged ahead, knowing that it would be better to get the ball rolling, than to just let all these people continue to suffer, without at least trying. 

So now, here we are. No one knows what is going on. We are fighting and threatening and pissing and moaning, and we don't even know what the bill looks like yet. The House dems say they won't vote for a bill that does not have a public option. A large portion of the Senate says they won't vote for a bill that does. The repubs have managed to convince a whole mess of people that that the dems want to turn this into a Socialist country. I can hardly quit laughing hearing the oldsters on medicare (and their children who would be paying their bills if they weren't) saying that they don't want the government involved in their health care....HELLO????? Death panels? How dare they scare people like that...A 90 year old woman going up to her representative with tears in her eyes, asking him not to put her out on the ice floes...they should be ashamed.

And we're fighting with each other, blasting OUR GUY at the top of our lungs...the repubs have got be getting their rocks off on this one.

I know, we have our principles. We are in the right. We won, we deserve to get our way. I know all that. But at what point do we just say, okay, the ball is rolling. We're not going to get everything we want. We maybe aren't going to get even most of what we want. But we are going to get SOMETHING, and it is going to be more than we would have gotten if we hadn't tried. Are they crumbs? Maybe. Does it just stick in your craw? I hope so. But what is the alternative? Are you just going to take your marbles and go home? Are you going to vote for someone other than Obama in 2012 to show him just how pissed off you are? Well go ahead. And then we'll have yet another 1 term president and we'll be back at the mercy of the frickin' repubs again...Gee, I'm sure looking forward to that.

This would be a different story if the Dems were united, but they aren't. What the hell good does it do for the President to rant and rave in public if he doesn't have his guys backing him?

I'm sorry, I don't care how strong a President you are, you can't FORCE the members of your own party to vote with you. Do you really think he isn't doing everything that can be done through back channels? I refuse to believe it. The Prez wants a win on this...

An amazing amount of progress has been made in a relatively short amount of time. Many, many people are working to come up with the very best plan we can get through, in spite of the fact that many, many are working towards keeping the status quo.

Yelling at and threatening Obama isn't going to get us what we want. It's our own damn party we need to be convincing. Those of you who have Blue dogs for reps, need to be twisting their arms. Those of us whose reps are in line need to be twisting their arms to twist the arms of the Blue Dogs. Because at this point, we can't even get reconcilliation. Write letters, send faxes, slap on bumper stickers, attend town halls, put out your "Yes We Can" yard signs, talk to your friends...But for God's sake don't abandon our President at a time when he needs us so badly. We can't afford to weaken him. We need him just as badly as he needs us, maybe even more. If he does not get re-elected, he will be fine. He won't make the difference he wanted to make, but he and his family will be fine. We will have yet another Republican President...will you and your family be fine?

From our vantage point it LOOKS like Obama could be doing more. But, that's the way it looked last July. And yet he stuck to his game plan and won. He was right. Why are you all so quick to assume his tactic is wrong this time? Can you just allow for the possibility that he knows what he is doing?

Let's give Obama his 8 years before we get out our pitchforks...maybe by then we won't need them. 

 

I found this in my in-box this morning. I've seen it before in several different forms, and have always thought it was a sweet story, but for some reason, today it hit me as something that I wanted to share with all of you.

These can be depressing times. There is so much wrong with the world, with our country, and some of our fellow citizens are behaving in ways that are almost unimaginable. Although I belive that man is basically a pretty horrid creature by nature, I also believe we are capable of being better if we try.

Take just a moment to forget all the fussing and fretting. The politics and discussions will still be here when you come back. I don't know if this story is true or just exists in a writer's mind, but I thought it was worth a few moments of your time. Enjoy.

 

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window. The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene. One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man could not hear the band - he could see it in his mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days and weeks passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the world his friend had desribed. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window besides the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, 'Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you.'

Thoughts that come to mind after reading the story...

        *There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own

                 situations.

        *Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.

        *If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can't buy.

 

Okay, you can go back to the yucky stuff now, and hopefully with the goal of enriching someone else's life today, and maybe again tomorrow, and the next day...

 

 

Yep, I'm obese. It's such an ugly word. It's hard for me to write it. I prefer overweight, but by definition, since I weigh more than 20% more than I should, obese is the correct term. At 5' 3" I should weigh about 125. So any more than 150, and I'm there. I'm so embarrassed I can't even tell you the exact figure, so let's just say I have more than 25 and less than 75 to lose.

I am a health conscious person. I do not smoke, and drink lightly. And I am not sedentary. How did this ever happen to me?

My mother was hugely overweight for as long as I can remember. I felt so sorry for her. Trying on clothes was a major ordeal. She never looked good in anything, and I can remember thinking to myself "it's okay Mom, I love you anyway..."  Back in those days I don't think I realized that the fried bread and canned frosting on saltines we ate before Dad got home (and hid the evidence in the outside trash) were responsible for both her weight problem and the beginnings of my awful eating habits. All I knew was that I was a skinny kid, and no matter what, I'd NEVER be fat. By the time she died at the age of 63 (it was an accidental death - not weight related) she weighed about 325 and required a special casket. By then I was already clinically "obese."  You would have thought that the need for a special casket would have sent me for a needle and thread to sew my lips shut.

Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. When I was still a skinny person, I knew I had the genes, that nurtured properly, would lead me into a life of obesity, but hey, I was thin, I could eat whatever I wanted and never gain weight, so what the heck? And besides, cheese and french fries for dinner followed by a hand-packed pint of Baskin and Robbins  (1/2 chocolate mint, 1/2 jamoca almond fudge) was soooo much fun!

Fast forward a few years...After the babies were born and that weight lost, I hit 30 and the descent into obesity began in earnest. I had awful eating habits and it was finally beginning to show. I began an exercise program, but the eating habits stayed the same. I never ate breakfast, and rarely lunch. I didn't start feeling hungry until mid-afternoon, when I'd eat whatever was fast and handy. Then I'd graze the rest of the day and into the night. No 5 cheeseburgers, or anything so obvious...just nibbling. Constant nibbling. Even becoming a vegetarian didn't effect the weight issue.

Every once in awhile I'd get sick of myself and diet the weight off, never quite getting to where I wanted to be, but close, then I'd gain it all back...again and again and again. Each time the top weight got a little higher, as did the lower.

Now, I'm not a stupid person. I get that what I put in my mouth has a direct correlation to the fat on my butt. I could write the book about what to eat, when to eat it. I eat almost all organic food, and very little junk food. And if you want to compare calories, I doubt that I eat as many in a day as you do anymore. I have just lost and gained my way into metabolic hell. At this point my body could turn a banana into a pound of fat. But, even at that, if I upped my exercise, cut back just a bit on the intake and spread the calories out over the whole day instead of cramming them into a few hours, I could get the metabolism going and get this issue licked once and for all.

So why is it so hard? I've come to the conclusion that I don't have a weight problem, I have a self care problem that manifests itself through weight (borrowed that from Oprah!) But self care is something I can address if I want to badly enough. 

What about those others who either don't get it because of lack of education or are too poor to buy fresh foods, so they eat off the high fat, high salt, high sugar value menu at their local fast food place, or just live in an area where fresh foods are hard to find? What about the ones that are so stressed out that their only comfort is food? If this weight thing is so hard for me, I can only imagine how difficult it must be for them!

Let's face it, for many food is an addiction just as powerful as nicotine or drugs, or alcohol. But, you can't just stay away from food. Somehow you have to make peace with it. And that, combined with our sedentary lifestyles is a disaster in the making.

With obesity comes dangerous health issues that could easily sink the whole health care situation in America if it is not addressed. A whopping amount of money is spent each year in treating weight related diseases.  I am still healthy right now. But eventually, if I don't get my weight down, I WILL become a drain on the system. It only makes sense that regardless of whether we get single pay, insurance reform or more of the status quo, this issue is going to have to be dealt with, and hopefully before a staggering number of people, including way too many children, develop the diseases.

So once again we are back to the issue of personal responsibility. I can't make our leaders support single pay, or force them to reform the insurance industry, or make people be doctors so we don't have to ration care. But I CAN take responsibility for myself, get this weight off and do my part to consume fewer of our health care assets so they can be available for those who REALLY need them. And, I can model healthy eating habits for my grandchildren.

I hope all the rest of you who are obese (or even just overweight) or are abusing your bodies in equally destructive ways (ummmm smoking comes to mind) will join me in starting a more healthful way of living, in preparation for whatever the new health care program is going to be.

And Lis, I didn't eat the cookie! 

 

 

Did I miss something? Did anyone see anything on msm indicating there was a single pay rally yesterday? There's not even anything on the TPM front page is there? What is up with that?


***Edit:  If you have seen or heard any coverage at all, could you please provide link?

This is one of those posts that requires a fairly long preface, so bear with me here.

I will not make the egotistical assumption that all of you know my history, but to save those of you who do the excruciating pain of going into the full bio, let me say "I've come a long way, baby."  My thinking has been so changed since arriving at TPM exactly one year ago yesterday, I hardly recognize the woman I was then. I was a non-thinking sheep, staunch Republican whose mind was closed to anything said by a Democrat. Now, I am a Democrat who fights everyday to avoid becoming a non-thinking, staunch Democrat whose mind is closed to anything said by a Republican. In other words, for really the first time as an adult, I am trying to learn as much as I can and make a decision based on reality, or at least as much reality as it is possible to have when all your information comes from people who have biases, regardless of whether those biases are ill-intentioned or not.

I have admitted on many occasions that I am troubled by the notion of "single pay" although I've warmed to it over the months. I see people struggling with illness and an inability to afford health care. The idea of anyone dying in America because they can't afford a doctor, or losing their homes because of the overwhelming costs of health care brings me to tears, literally. My compassion sometimes overrides logic, and I have gotten to the point where I am almost ready to throw caution to the wind and support single pay. Almost.

I've participated in several discussions here about the pros and cons of single pay vs. reforming the insurance industry. My hesitation about single pay has always been the expansion of the government's role in our health care. I have always been, and continue to be wary of the government. I do not trust our elected officials as far as I can throw them. I have more faith in President Obama than I have ever had in any president before, but trust? I'm not completely there. The point is, our elected officials have done little to inspire my confidence. In truth, the more I pay attention, the more convinced I become that the "republicrats"  do not have the country's best interests at heart, let alone ours as individuals, but rather, their own selfish interests. Be it power, money, sex...they all want something other than seeing this country be the best it can be for ALL of its citizens.

I see most of our elected officials and most, if not all the big wigs in the insurance/pharma/medical arena (as well as most, if not all CEOs of ALL corporations, but that is best left for another post) as being akin to a highly aggressive melanoma. Rather than being simply parasites that latch onto a host, then milk it just enough to get what it needs, but leaving the host healthy enough to survive, these CANCERS just greedily eat away until the host is dead, in spite of the fact that they will die as well (but it'll be a helluva party until then!)

So then, it is no wonder that after reading the essay I will present just a little further down, I find myself rethinking my rethinking. This is not an easy essay to read (It's not hard reading, just hard to ignore the snipes to get to the meat.) It is obviously written by a person who has much disdain for the left and the current administration. I was only able to get through it because I promised my husband I would read the whole thing with an open mind. I almost couldn't get through the third paragraph (the first two were pretty funny.)  As much as I want to disregard the whole essay, it contains some uncomfortable (possible/probable) truths that I think we need to at least examine before we cast them off, in spite of the partisan rhetoric I abhor.

I am tempted to give you a few teasers, but I would truly like to have a discussion on the essay itself, with people who have taken the time to read it. THE WHOLE THING. But I will give you the disclaimer at the end so you can get a taste of the writing style of the author, a man by the name of Clifford S. Asness, Ph.D. (Managing and Founding Principal AQR Capital Management, LLC.


"This is Cliff speaking now. AQR's legal department would like me to add that I am criminally insane and barred by an order of rhetoric protection from speaking on AQR's behalf. Anyone trading on my advice, or a client, consultant, employee or Iraqi insurgent thinking he has been wronged by my attitudes or opinions can have a $250 out-of-court settlement right now if you'll sign a waiver, otherwise we'll break you. Oh, and we lied about the $250, but seriously, we will break you. Please note, nobody can predict where markets will go in the short-run and sometimes even the long-run. When I point out individual things in the marketplace that I think are strange, or wrong, it doesn't mean I have the perfect answer or can easily make money from it for my clients, for myself, or certainly for you reading this essay! Furthermore, if you read one guy's opinion and do anything based solely on that, you are an idiot. Next, as the legalese above alludes to, the actual funds and accounts AQR manages are run using models that may or may not agree with what I'm writing herein, particularly as our models will generally have a shorter time horizon than the things I'll be writing about. Listen to me at your own risk! If you choose to read what I write please only use it as one input for you to critically evaluate in your decision process.

Finally, my style is to write very aggressively and passionately about what I believe. So unless you are a libertarian/objectivist, small government and free market loving, socialist hating, value investing geek you probably won't agree with everything or anything I say. If you find the way I say it insulting, I'm sorry about the first few words you couldn't help reading, but if you read a moment past that (in this disclaimer or later), it is on you. I agree we need to censor things occasionally but only to protect children and madmen (and of course the children of madmen). If you believe in censoring anything else short of a nuclear secret you'd probably look good in hobnail boots and the crooked cross. Thanks for listening."


So, What do you think guys? Is there any of what he says that we need to consider before heading forward? Or is this just propaganda? And if you believe it is, why do you think so? Even though a lot of what he says makes sense, I don't know this guy. I value your opinions.





 

I am a born mediator. I don't know if this is a curse or a blessing. I can see both sides of most issues, and have few beliefs that are set in concrete. I put myself in the other people's shoes, try to look at it from their perspective and often come to a compromise in my own mind. On any given subject I start out feeling one way, then as I get more information my feelings "develop," sometimes in the most unexpected direction. I guess to some, this makes me wishy washy, but I consider it realistic. I would rather change my position than defend something I no longer find defensible.

I also am usually slow to anger (my husband would dispute this claim, but he knows all my launch codes  and uses them far too regularly, so he doesn't count.) I think the mediator/slow to anger things are related, something to do with being able to understand another's point of view making it less likely that you'll flame out...we'd have to ask Thera about that.

So, anyway, for quite some time now, I've been working up what my son calls "a case of the ass"  ...a situation where you find yourself so pissed off you can barely think. When I start to feel one of these episodes coming on, my default reaction is to think about all the positives involved, which usually defuses my anger and then I can proceed with a rational discussion with myself. 

That strategy isn't working this time. In fact, I'm having such a hard time coming up with positives that I'm bringing it to you guys, so you can (as Rachel would say) "talk me down."

So here's my problem. "US." Not individuals, but the collective "we" that make up America. There are plenty of good people in this country. If I ever doubted that, being here at TPM would have shown me differently. We are radically different in our thinking sometimes, but there is no doubt that many really good people post here. And so it is in the larger population. But as a whole? Our country? We're a mess.  Much of it is the fallout from the previous administration, but some of it we've been bringing on ourselves for a long time.

My "case of the ass" started out as a mishmash of thoughts about the country circling the drain financially and ethically, wandered through the minefields of racism and religion, and, after "breathing" as Missy suggested last night, seems to have settled on what it means to be a Patriotic American. (BTW for those of you who already have trouble sleeping, going to bed with a half started rant on your blog entry page DOES NOT contribute to better sleep!)

To some, being a "Patriotic American" is nothing more than the bumper sticker philosophy of "America: Love it or leave it."  In order to be patriotic, you just have to accept and defend everything "she" says or does. Attack Iraq just because we want to? No problem. Torture? If it gets us what we want, why not? Allow financial institutions to rape, pillage and plunder our financial futures (as well as the rest of the world's,) then have the taxpayers pay their way out of bankruptcy to the tune of billions, slap them on the wrist, then allow them to continue business as usual? No problem. Stand by and watch as millions go without affordable health care, children living in abject poverty, our educational standards going down the toilet because it is just too expensive to educate poor/minority children? No problem. Allow lobbyists to "own" our elected officials? No problem. Vilify a black candidate for President as a terrorist, Muslim, probably not even a citizen? No problem. Hope his Presidency fails? Hell yes! California going down the tubes...oh well..."You don't want to pay higher taxes? We'll show you what small government looks like and see how well you like it, meanwhile so many are going to suffer. Why should we politicians have to work together to make your lives easier? We have our jobs, our health insurance...Suckers!" (Watch out you rest of America...you are following in our footsteps!) There are just so many issues lately that really have me mad.

It's all gotten me to wondering just exactly what it is that we Americans have to be so proud of (Outside of liberating a continent, but hey, that is getting to be pretty ancient history to be resting on THOSE laurels these days.)  Where did the arrogance of the last administration come from? Why is this Congress (the best chance we've had for progressive movement in decades) taking it's sweet time giving ANY indication it is going to make meaningful change, even though it was handed the mandate to do so? Certainly none of the above behavior makes me feel proud, and I can add much much more to the list...In fact, I was having a hard time coming up with much we should be proud of.

And then it hit me. What we have to be proud of is that we don't HAVE to accept or agree with everything she (America) says and does to love her. We have the RIGHT, no, the OBLIGATION to speak up when we see her behaving badly.  Sticking to the bumper sticker mentality..."America: change it or lose it." Much like with raising our children, if we love them (substitute America) we have the obligation to correct their behavior and guide them into being responsible citizens. There are very few places in the world where this is true. In spite of everything wrong with our country, we are FREE.

So yeah, the country is pretty much FUBAR'd at the moment. It is almost impossible not to be EXTREMELY pissed off at what our leaders are doing right now. It is almost impossible to not to be EXTREMELY pissed off at what many of our fellow Americans are thinking, saying and doing right now. But we are FREE to speak our minds. We are FREE to use our speech to attempt to change hearts and minds. We are FREE to attempt to change our country's course. We are FREE to become the compassionate world leaders we are capable of being. And using that freedom makes us Patriotic Americans. Accepting what we have now is not patriotic. It's just stupid.

Well...I feel better. I think I talked myself down. Thanks for listening.

 



 

I can't begin to tell you how heartsick, frustrated and downright pissed I am over the wussy behavior of the Democratic Party. I switched parties to show the Republicans how pissed off I was that they screwed the country for 8 years. So what do I do now, switch back? As least with the Repubs I expected to get screwed...What in the world possessed me to think the dems were any better? I can't believe I fell for it. I knew they were all a bunch of republicrats...the only difference between them was the name.

But somehow I let myself believe...I let myself believe that everything I used to think about the Democrats was not true. Senator Obama made me believe it. He made me believe that given a chance, the Democrats would do the right thing...Well, now they have the chance, and what are they doing? Cowering like a bunch of children in a thunderstorm, that's what! If they can't do the right thing NOW, when will they?

They have a golden opportunity RIGHT NOW. They can stuff the Republican agenda where the sun don't shine if they want to. What the %^$#%^**&^%$#@ are they waiting for?

They can give all Americans health care if they want to. I can't think of one single thing that is more important than that. Yet they are, instead, kowtowing to the pharma/medical/insurance lobbyists, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if affordable health care for all dies yet again.

They can reform the financial institutions and get regulations in place that will keep us from ever having to experience the near fatal collapse of the financial system we just went through, if they wanted to. But instead, more quickly that I EVER would have imagined, things are returning to to "normal," like nothing ever happened. The big boys are back to their old tricks, mortgage companies are telling people who are supposed to be benefiting from the new programs to pound sand, and all the Goldman Sachs alumni are preparing to laugh their way to the bank once again.

They could quickly dispense of "don't ask, don't tell" if they wanted to, but hell, why not lose another couple of hundred great folks who are continuing to get bounced out of the military first...what's the rush? 

I just don't get it...if the Democrats weren't going to do anything with the power they have, why did they want it so bad? What the hell was the point of electing President Obama if we were just going to continue to live in the world the Republicans built for us?

I know, Rome wasn't built in a day...but come on! Surely we should be seeing SOME momentum building by now. Surely our representatives shouldn't be attempting to lower our expectations already.

I KNOW we can take advantage of this unprecedented opportunity, but we can't do it without our Senators and Representatives...Why are they shaking in their boots and hiding under the tables? Why aren't they getting out there and MAKING what we voted for happen? And why do WE have to MAKE them do the right thing?