America Needs Jimmy Stewart

Yesterday, the Christian Science Monitor asked “If we can require driver’s ed for teens, then why not voter’s ed?” It’s a good question, but it unravels when you start to ask what would be taught in that class. If you try to educate would-be voters on any of the actual issues involved in the current polls, you’ll be accused instantly of having an agenda: talk about the truth on Social Security and you’ll be called a liberal, if not an outright socialist, for example.

This Christmas, we decided to go ahead and watch the classic movie, It’s a Wonderful Life. You probably know the story: George Bailey runs a small bank in a small town in an honest and community-responsible way, and continually butts heads with the owner of the big, regional bank. Mr. Potter — unlike modern bankers — never actually does anything illegal, but he sure does some things that aren’t entirely *ahem* Christian. Thanks to the help of a friendly Angel, George gets to see what a mess the world would be without him.

At some point it occurred to me that It’s a Wonderful Life probably ought to be required viewing for Americans. Now, granted some people in the FBI thought it was communist propaganda. They thought everything was communist propaganda. But who can watch Bedford Falls transform into Pottersville and think that they are totally alone in the world? Who can watch the mess that unregulated monopolies [accidentally] create without thinking there is some necessary reigning in of big business? Who can really say it’s a bad thing for people to look out for one another in times of need?

Then I thought a little deeper, and realized that to balance out this movie’s religious overtones you really need more Jimmy Stewart. First, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, another Frank Capra directed film, featuring a naive new Senator coming up against The Way Washington Works. Not only does this demonstrate unfortunate truths about politics, it shows a genuine filibuster, and the power of pressure from voters.

Finish out the film festival with a much later Jimmy Stewart film, Strategic Air Command — and I don’t just say that because I have a soft spot for Carswell AFB in Fort Worth. It’s another great movie with strong themes of service to country and family, showing us what our Armed Forces are supposed to be about (hint: it’s not about blowing up brown people on the other side of the globe).

There you have it: 6 hours of classic movie viewing that every American should see on an annual basis.

In Closing: the Cult of Rand; the Germans think we’re insane; scientists disagree, so let’s throw them out of the discussion; everything’s illegal; reconsidering triclosan; look what the TARP covered up (interesting picture, and interesting banner in the background); economics of contempt; on personal responsibility; on job creation and the economy (I hope this is right); great patent; come on, the guy’s got a Nobel Prize; and a laugh.

Revisiting the BAMTOR Principle

Banks Always Make Their Own Rules, and this has been a banner week for demonstrating it!

You’ve heard of course about the lady who arrived at her second home to discover new locks and all her stuff missing, including her late husband’s ashes, right?

What about Deutsche Bank agreeing to pay a bunch of fines for helping wealthy Americans dodge their taxes?

Arizona and Nevada are both suing Bank of America over loan adjustments, and the Nevada AG has evidence that B of A has engaged in massive deceptive trade practices.

In California, Wells Fargo has been forced to admit that “pick a payment” was a bad idea and strongarmed into modifying a whopping 15,000 homeowners (sounds much more impressive if you say $2 billion in mortgages, doesn’t it?).

Meanwhile, the federal agencies that should be regulating the banks and protecting the citizens are protecting the banks from the citizens. The Federal Reserve has actually blocked new foreclosure regulations.

Even MarketWatch suggests that the banks have pulled on over on all of us.

We don’t just need rules for Big Banks, we need them to be forced to follow the law. Put a few bankers in jail, and I imagine the rest will be more likely to resist criminal activity.

In Closing: less American Pie; when Pat Robertson says to decriminalize pot, you know the War on Drugs is a failure; duh; security threat; Schneier; look, there’s never going to be a “get out of the security line free” card, so stop wishing for one!; gee, whoda thought?; good idea, wish somebody thought of it during the Clinton Administration; and idiot motorists drove through wet cement, getting stuck and delaying a project that would have been open in time for Christmas until probably Easter. Hope they’re real proud of themselves.

Oh Noes, BE AFRAID!!!1!

So as I was in the midst of my morning newscrawl, I came across the headline “Report: Terrorists may poison US food supply.” Well, it turns out that the DHS knew about “a possible credible terrorism plot that targets food products in the restaurant and hotel industry, though the threat is non-specific about time and location for the plot.” And truth be told the Jerusalem Post reports that “Al Qaida planned to poison US hotel buffets, salad bars.”

Nevertheless, be afraid! The Evil Terrorists are wanting to poison your food!!

Of course it seems obvious to me that if we gave a damn about food security and really thought terrorism from foreign terrorist organizations was a risk, the first thing we would do is make sure that illegal immigrants are not harvesting and processing our food! But no, even many latte liberals think we somehow need underpaid, undocumented workers to get food from the farm to our plates.

In Closing: Amen; maps; food stamps; 308.7M; student loan debt; Dave Johnson is on a roll; CEOs; temps; and WTF.

Derezzed

Two quick thoughts this morning and then the closing bits.

First, I did see Tron: Legacy over the weekend. Now, even the best reviews consider the plot a little bit difficult to follow. Without giving up any spoilers, I found this criticism to be unfair. Granted, I did myself a favor and popped the original in the DVD last weekend. What I think has happened is that to really appreciate what is going on requires more background knowledge than most of the audience had. You had to have some idea what happened in the original Tron. You had to have a passing knowledge of 2001. Being well versed in Star Trek helped. Remembering The Matrix Trilogy would be good. Blade Runner should be a movie you’ve seen. You had to know who Jules Verne was. In addition to a diverse literacy in Science Fiction, you also needed a moderate modicum of computer knowledge. Tron’s actions are explained by his one line: “I fight for the user.”

Jeff Bridges’s redux of Kevin Flynn draws strongly on The Dude from The Big Lebowski, and he adds surprising depth to the dual character of Clu particularly in the final scenes. Bruce Boxleitner does an excellent job reprising his role as Alan from the original Tron. Olivia Wilde makes a credible, innocent yet tough Quorra. Garrett Hedlund holds his own against an amazing cast, an amazing situation, and amazing effects. Oh, and the Daft Punk soundtrack freaking rocks.

My second quick thought is in regards to Social Security, a proven poverty-preventing program that does not contribute one red cent to the national debt, but that politicians would like to gut anyway. There is a nasty rumor that the State of the Union Address will include calls to gut the program: Click here to tell the President you think that’s a crappy idea.

In closing: “We can’t let 9 year olds have abortions!”; More “pro-life” hypocrisy; no, really, a 30 year old law designed to prevent discrimination did not suddenly cause foreclosures in the last 5 years; at least violent crime is down (until we peasants start getting desperate); I guess the Feds should keep an eye on all of us!; duh; health insurance is nothing like auto insurance; and how come Dubya couldn’t find just one of these guys to talk about at the State of the Union Address in 8 years??

No Santa! Don’t Do It!

Today’s post courtesy of my neighbors. On a serious note, though, you have got to read this. No wonder Santa’s thinking of jumping. Please remember those in need this holiday season, and please help if you can.

In Closing: “The world’s biggest banks are still hugely overextended” (but heaven knows we can’t do anything about it); don’t tell the Republicans, but hundreds of thousands of unemployed people are applying for thousands of low-paying jobs; and Reaganomics Redux.

Shorties Carpenter’s The Thing

Medical Breakthrough: 2 Hour tuberculosis test. Imagine being able to treat people now without risking that you’re treating something non-existent, and without waiting months to be sure.

When the Cows Come Home: Quite literally.

I owned one once: Bungalows.

On the President and the Economy: ‘Nuff said. Maybe we could use some good old fashioned labor uprising. And where are we going to get the jobs we really need out of tax cuts?

I am Lawful Evil: Heh.

Right On: Essential elements of filibuster reform.

About Effing Time: “You know, maybe we should hold banks to some sort of minimum capital standards!”  D’ya think??

Speaking of the Banks: Refreshing Candor.

Dave Nails It: “Can’t get by on $250K? Try leaving your bubble!”

One of the Smarter Things I’ve Read about Yesterday’s Court Ruling: Remember, only the individual mandate has been thrown out.

Worth Thinking About: I don’t agree with all of it, but these are things we need to think about.

I love Radly Balko: In an intellectual way of course. On the TSA and ACLU.

The 99ers: read this.

Hope for Following the Law: cracking down on firms that just turn employees into contractors.

Fail: The War on Drugs.

Robert Reich: Enthusiasm Gap.

That’s it for today. Keeping it Short but sweet.

On Being a Responsible Consumer

I grew up in a household that values the power of the consumer. I have never crossed a picket line. My father refused to so much as ride in a Mercedes because of what the company did in World War 2, before he was born. I’m not sure, but I think when Mercedes bought Chrysler, he sold his 10 year old New Yorker in favor of a Ford. He had purchased it used. I have at least forgiven VW for things done over 60 years ago.

Alright then. Just about the time that Wal-Mart (mostly) rehabilitated it’s corporate image, Target got itself in hot water with the liberal/progressive communities with ill-considered campaign donations, and stayed there after some Halloween ads that were considered in poor taste by Parent-Americans. Ok, fine, looks like Wal-Mart has moved to be the lesser of two evils, at least until the other day when they “teamed up” with the Department of Homeland Security to “catch terrorists” (remember, terrorists do “suspicious” things). Clearly, no officials from the DHS have ever actually been inside a Wal-Mart.

So where am I supposed to shop? Albertsons apparently wants to get rid of unions; is it alright to shop at Smith’s or Von’s? Will it be acceptable next week? Even if I could afford to shop at Whole Foods, there’s still the scandal surrounding their purchase of Wild Oats. I could go down to the farmer’s market, but unlike those amazing markets in cities like San Francisco, there’s just not a whole lot available. This of course assumes that the vendors at my local farmer’s market aren’t practicing the exact same contemptible business practices of the worst factory farms. “Hey Mr. Farmer! You don’t mind if I drive on out to your farm and see if your workers are legal before I spend $3 on onions, do you??”

And now I’m supposed to get rid of my Amazon.com account because they decided that the rest of their clients were more important than one controversial one? Screw that!

Since I am clearly not allowed to shop anyplace convenient or close, that means I’ll be using a bunch more gas: do I buy it from the guys who polluted Alaska, the guys who poisoned the Gulf of Mexico, one of many that is stirring up Middle East unrest, or the Venezuelan “dictator”? How do I reconcile my bigger “carbon footprint” with avoiding businesses whose practices I don’t like? Do I buy the electric car from Japan, or the American one that unlocks all my doors and puts my life in danger every time I put it in park?

Things get even worse if you want to boycott products by a certain company. Let’s say for the sake of argument that Proctor and Gamble has done something you disapprove of: here’s everything you must avoid if you want to vote with your wallet! You’ll have an easier time getting by without Colgate-Palmolive’s products. If you decide you won’t give money to P&G, Colgate, or Unilever, give up any hope of cleanliness. Ever. We’ll just call you Pig-Pen. Unless you prefer “Dirty Hippie.”

And let’s not get started on banks! Even if you are willing to endure the hassle of changing banks, the only way to be sure your new bank won’t be taken over by one of the big players is to give up and bank with a “too big to fail” institution and just live with the BAMTOR Principle. It’s worse with mortgages: you can’t control who buys the note, you can’t control who your servicer is, and you may not be able to stop them from claiming you owe money even if you don’t.

So how exactly am I supposed to “vote with my wallet”?

I’m deadly serious about this. It has literally gotten to the point where I cannot avoid doing business with companies I don’t like. How can I possibly stick it to the Oligarchy when I can’t go a day and a half without giving them my money or using their products and services?

When Ted Kaczynsky starts to look sane, the nation has gone crazy.

Self-Serving Bunch of Asshats

Today, Bank of Asshat America said “Investors should be buying bonds in all categories of U.S. securitized debt, in part because the market will continue to shrink next year.”

Securitized debt. That’s bonds backed by things like real estate loans and leases.

Now let’s see, Bank Of Asshat, where might you come up with those? Perhaps from Countrywide??

How convenient that your analyst thinks we should buy the thing that you just happen to be selling. Very convenient.

In Closing: How enterprise crashed the economy; katsudon; too frustrated about the DINOcrats folding on tax cuts for people who don’t need them to say anything rational; Steven King will rip the throat out of your Twilight whiny sparkly vampires; bank failures; full one way, empty the other; you think Sarah Palin is bad?; jobless rate by level of education; young adult fiction; it never occurred to her that you might not be able to afford cereal and a banana (fine, b****, you adopt them all!); and this:
Rob Rogers

Prepare for Battle

Sargeant?

Yes Sir!

Assemble the troops for inspection.

ATTENTION POINSETTIA ARMY! This is Commander Potted Palm. The time has come to rise up! You’ve trained long and hard for this mission, and I see all of you are in your dress uniforms. Let’s get out there and make people believe that yes, we do indeed celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas in Las Vegas!

In closing: stopping terrorism with pork; Computer Engineer Barbie got a phone upgrade (and she’s reasonably priced); body image fail; a few items on employment, unemployment, jobs, and our clueless government; it’s hard to hate a benevolent dictator; stop trying to kill Social Security!; now we might be getting somewhere, a couple of Harvard Law Students suing the TSA; Fed lent trillions of dollars rather than admit that our biggest banks should have been taken over by the government as insolvent; even a Fed Governor says some institutions are “too big to succeed“; it’s been a good week for Senator John Ensign; please, some freaking sanity about the Bush tax cuts!; close the Washington Monument; a strategy so simple even a Democrat can do it; I’m wondering why I canvassed for that man; and finally, Kim Jong-Il looking at things. Enjoy.