Prediction: Geithner Gone by April 1st

I can be wrong, but I want to be on record with this prediction.

Wednesday 3/19: Senator Chris Dodd blames the White House for changes to the executive pay restrictions in the recent stimulus plan, which allowed for the AIG bonuses. Dodd claimed to have no knowledge of the bonuses.

It wouldn't be terribly difficult for the White House to point the finger at Chris Dodd, due to his past record of unbelievable mortage deals from Countrywide, and receiving more political contributions from AIG in 2008 than EITHER presidential candidate.

But instead Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner admits to specifically asking for a loophole allowing for the bonuses to go through, claiming he was afraid the government would get sued otherwise. As if the government has never been sued. Heck, AIG has already sued the US Government over a tax dispute; talk about biting the hand that's holding the I.V.

It seems pretty clear that the administration has asked Geithner to fall on his sword for this one. He's not particularly popular, nor is he seen as competent. This presents a perfect opportunity for the President to identify a scapegoat while throwing a weak link under the bus.

I will refrain from saying anything too negative against Secretary Geithner, because I know people who have met the man and have had only good things to say about him as a person and his intelligence. Besides, the problem will not go away with him, nor will it until we are able to put a stop to the reckless government intervention that is taking a recession - a natural economic phenomena - and using it as an opportunity to transform the economic landscape of the wealthiest and freest nation in the world.

This AIG nonsense is just a ruse to distract us and channel our anger somewhere other than the government. Where's the outrage over Nancy Pelosi refusing to hold a vote over abolishing automatic annual Congressional pay raises? They've done such a great job too, shouldn't their pay increases be done away with?

But I digress. How about Jamie Dimon as the new Treasury Secretary? Nevermind the fact that's he's too smart to take such a job.

Congress says "Tax AIG Bonuses"

There should be no argument from anyone that it's pretty disgusting to see AIG take taxpayer money from you and me, and uses it to reward failure by giving out more bonuses. These guys should never have gotten a dime from the government. This systemic failure is total nonsense; if a company fails let them fail. As a small business owner, I know that if I can't keep my doors open I'm not getting any free money.

HOWEVER - Don't start cheering when Chris Dodd and Nancy Pelosi start talking about taxing these bonuses at such a high rate rate that they get all the money back. Or Barnie Frank saying "We should start exercising our ownership rights." or that "We should take over the company."

The government was stupid enough to give these losers money - no strings attached. You can't change the rules after the fact. And by supporting the government into doing targeted taxing, you're walking down ANOTHER slippery slope. How long before they decide that other companies or industries should also be taxed extra, for whatever reason they see fit? What happens when they go after you?

Next time, let them fail. You can't expect a failed company to take money from the government and be successful. How many success stories are there of people who took welfare money and started a successful business with it?

Incidentally:
Chris Dodd and Barack Obama Top Recipients of AIG Contributions
Will they get taxed excessively on this too?

Churchill not Welcome in the White House

Why are we trying to buddy up with Russia and Iran while snubbing the UK?

I know this sounds like the start of a joke, but this a true story from earlier this week.

Barack Obama and Gordon Brown recently met and exchanged gifts. Mr. Brown gives the President "a pen holder carved from the timbers of the sister ship of the one the White House desk is made from and a first edition of a seven-volume biography of Winston Churchill"

Pretty thoughtful.

Obama's gift: 25 DVD's of classic American movies selected by the American Film Institute (AFI).

Don't get me wrong, I like old movies. But all I could find on Amazon and eBay was AFI's top 100 movies. What happened to the other 75? If I had to guess: The movies with Ronald Reagan and Charlton Heston were removed. After that went any movies that made capitalism look good.

But then again, what did Gordon Brown expect? A few weeks ago the President removed a bust of Winston Churchill from the Oval Office, loaned to the US from the UK after 9/11. It was another thoughtful gesture; a symbol of a man that stood for freedom and opposition to tyranny during some of the darkest days the free world has ever experienced.

Let's hope the Karl Marx bust hasn't yet arrived.

Kerry Angry over Bank's Extravagent Spending

Sen Kerry targets bailout bank over golf soiree

"I'm sick and tired of picking up the newspaper and reading about another idiotic abuse of taxpayer money, while our country is on the brink," Sen. John Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, said in a statement released to Reuters.

The hypocrisy and irony! A Massachusetts Democrat who voted for the most massive increase in government spending, that's due to wreck not only the economy, but the economy for our next generation is sick and tired about some bank's abuse of taxpayer money?

Reading this makes me harken back to this anti-drug commercial from the 1980's:



Kerry: Who taught you how to waste money like that?
Banker: I learned it by watching you, Senator!

Nationalizing Troubled Banks - not such a bad idea?

At first glance, the thought of nationalizing troubled banks (namely BankofAmerica and CitiGroup) sounds ludicrous, but after some careful consideration, that may be exactly what we need to do, to get rid of them for good, nice and fast.

We have all been to the DMV before, perhaps interfaced with the IRS and other govt agencies and services. We are all accustomed to the "govt service" that we are forced to deal with, when interfacing with govt entities and services. Everything from the long lines, extremely slow and poor service makes us all cringe anytime we have to deal with them. Picture for a moment, the same style service and operation at your nearest bank, something you deal with daily, weekly or monthly.

You are probably saying to yourself, " no way! I would immediately withdraw my money and place it someplace else.. non govt owned." Multiply that logic x 100, x 1000 x 1,000,000 people in the exact same position you are in.

That's precisely what would happen, if the govt were to nationalize the troubled banks. A bank is only as good as the deposits it holds. Without any deposits, the bank is worthless. A nationalized bank, would literally cause a run on the bank, turning that bad bank into a non-bank and wiping them out for good. Together, the govt, their decision to nationalize the bank and the useless management struture that is still in place would give us exactly what we have been waiting for. It would do away with these troubled, worthless banks in a much more effective way.

We all know the govt is not capable of running anything. We saw what happened with the "GSE's" Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac. They couldn't even run a profitable company.. and we are to expect them to turnaround a bad bank and make it profitable? I'm sure you are laughing just as I am.

I think that's what we really need. Bad bank nationalization. Sure, it wipes out the common stock holders, perhaps even the preferred and bond holders.. but it sure beats pouring trillions more into the system, realizing it didn't work, and wiping out the tax payers in the process.

Inflation Up - This is a Surprise?

Wholesale Inflation Takes Biggest Jump in 6 Months

To those of us with common sense - meaning us peasants not living in DC - this was a long time coming and it's just the beginning. The headline states inflation is at its 6 month high. Well, what did we start doing about six months ago? Here's a hint: it involved the Federal Reserve and a giant printer. Yes! We started printing money like it was going out of style.

The primary cause for inflation occurs when the government prints an excess supply of money. Just like anything else, when you have an excess of anything it becomes less valuable. That's why diamonds are so precious and dirt is dirt. When there's excess money, prices shoot up. This phenomena that many of us learned in college (or even high school) economics is called a demand-pull.

According to the article: "Despite the big jump in wholesale prices in January, economists do not believe inflation is on the verge of becoming a problem, given the country's deep recession."

Oh really? These must be the same economists who thought credit default swaps and sub-prime mortgages were a great idea. Inflation is up a little as a result of a few hundred billion dollars printed over the Summer, how will inflation react to the trillions of dollars in bailouts, stimulus, and "Fed injections" that have been pumped out since then? All of these programs have a ripple effect, and if we continue down this dangerous path of irresponsible government nanny-ing, we're going to see 2008 and 2009 as the good old days, when if we saw a dollar bill on the street we'd actually bother to pick it up.

Keep it up Congress, we'll start stocking up on toilet paper; a more valuable currency.

Chuck Schumer - The Poster Boy for Term Limits

Watch this 16 second clip, and you'll see a senator who's so out of touch with his constituency you have to wonder how this guy manages to get re-elected term after term.