Do Parallel Universes Exist?

Or did someone kidnap Blood-lust Billy?

This is the second week in a row that he seems to defend the workers who are getting refucked up the ass -- they made major concessions during the negotiations over the Chrysler loan guarantees, only to NOT see their efforts reciprocated by management, who got their raises and bonuses -- in the fight over loans to the automakers. Billy says that labor only accounts for 20% of the cost of making a car, so the proposed refuckyoucan fuckover of the UAW would only save about 2% per car.

His history of being wrong with virtually every fucking statement -- there's the possibility he could have been right about something, somewhere, sometime -- he ever made about Iraq, leaves me a bit skeptical regarding the content and intent of his statements. Sorry.

Thank Geeawwduh that John McShame can set us straight by reassuring us all that if we just outlaw earmarks and stop pork barrel spending, that all problems will be solved. They're the reason Boigobitch is so corrupt as well. Right; he's an alter boy at heart.

George F Will must just HATE it when Paul Krugman gets invited on by Steffulupugous. Krugman just shuts him up through being correct and sensible. He has to chew on his own tail by objecting to Bush ignoring Congress and the rule law (8 yrs too late) by possibly grabbing money that "should" go to the ban-sur-vest companies. Without questions being asked, no doubt.

Finally, FINALLY... thank you Gwen Ifill, for talking about unemployment in its real, correct terms: As those people who are not employed, and not merely as those who are collecting unemployment checks. Ten Million according to her -- up by three million from year ago -- have been unemployed for so long that they've given up looking. Yeah Baby. Kepp those unemployment number low: Do away with unemployment payments... out... to people.

And While You're Mourning Your 401-k... w/Updates

Think on this:

Brad DeLong beat me to it. Even if you have full faith in Henry Paulson, Intrade currently gives John McCain a 48 percent chance of being president. Are you willing to give essentially unlimited discretion over the use of $700 billion — with explicit protection against any review by Congress or the courts — to Phil Gramm?

Paul Krugman

De-regulation has been an abject failure, so lets de-regulate some more. Well obviously we just didn't de-regulate enough, or the right things, the right way, right? It's easier to believe this shit if you don't have or use your brain, but for those who do still try to use their's keep in mind:

This election -- as all are -- is about a lot more than just who sits in the chair with the "pass/veto" pen and gets chopper rides to camp every few weeks.

another bit from Krugman:

If George Bush stood up and said, "The world is flat," someone in the press would publish the headline, "Views Differ on Shape of Planet."

The press just WON'T (not can't) label facts and fallacies, not because of ethics, but because of profits.

The housing shell game

Reading a Krugman piece (h/t JP, as usual) about the housing bubble. The thing about bubbles is that they burst. Guaran-fucking-teed. The thing about the housing bubble is that it's bursting should have surprised no one. Damn, there was much hand wringing, and analyzing and over analyzing, and, and... no one did shit, unless you count standing back and doing nothing as doing something. "Free Market Solutions." Right, like "Compassionate Conservatism." and the easter bunny, and santa.....

One thing I was taught/learned/swallowed hook line and sinker in high school history was that when the Republican depression hit in the 1930's the wealth/money/property didn't disappear, it just changed hands. And a lot of it changed hands for pennies on the dollar. I remember having major "Hmmmm..." moments wondering how I could make a major snag when the next depression came around.

There's a whole city/culture of cards built with these bullshit mortgages. If the lenders slack off on their demands for payments, they can't make delivery on promised profits to the holders of the mortgage backed securities. (I admit to only knowing enough to be dangerous; I do not have a business brain) Law suits, etc in the making there. And in other ways over other issues. So the big question is: Who gets their ass bitten off? Do home buyers go homeless? Do banks fold? Does the Dow tank? Do foreign bans run for the hills and the dollar become worth less (than the Canadian dollar? or the Peso?) You only think you're ready; here it comes; the great shiftshaft:

...now that it has all gone bad, people with ties to the financial industry are rethinking their belief in the perfection of free markets. Mr. Greenspan has come out in favor of, yes, a government bailout. "Cash is available," he says - meaning taxpayer money - "and we should use that in larger amounts, as is necessary, to solve the problems of the stress of this."

Yup. Us little guys are going to have to run to the rescue of Citicorp, Chase, WaMu, and a host of other poor defenseless corporate leg breakers. Heaven forbid they don't have their millions, in order to let a buck or two trickle down here or there.

There are still going to be shit loads of people losing their homes. In Seattle, many, many rentals go for the same or more than a monthly mortgage payment; after your first/last/security/cleaning... Wait, that's pushing down payment prices.

Obviously, we who don't understand this shit need someone to look after us by holding on to properties and monitoring who gets in and who doesn't... I thought that's what mortgage apps did...?

The important thing is that all these houses that were in the hands of people who were living paycheck to paycheck, just hoping and dreaming and guessing the money would be there when they needed it, will now be in the hands of people who... ...trusted that those peoples' paychecks would be there? ???

Fuck it. Dubya approves; Greeny approves; it has to be right. After all, Dubya has that Harvard MBA and has his experience in the oil industry in Texas... to...

What.......everrrrrrr........