Election 08' The Final Days

CT

In the final days of the election, the Obama and McCain campaigns are stumping hard in key battleground states as well as areas that were carried by the rival party. According to the Wall Street Journal, Obama has made forays into territory that is either traditionally Republican or voted for Bush in 2004. “Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama will pass through Nevada, Colorado and Missouri Saturday, after appearances in Iowa and Indiana Friday -- all states that voted Republican four years ago. He will be in Ohio Sunday, another Bush state, and Virginia Monday, where a Democrat has not won since 1964.”

Obama has also outspent McCain nearly 3 to 1 in a massive advertising blitz in the last days of the campaign. “From Oct. 21 to Oct. 28, the Obama campaign spent nearly $21.5 million on advertising, compared with $7.5 million by the campaign of his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain, according to the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project.”This advertising bombardment was mainly concentrated in Republican held states that are key to a Presidential victory. “More than 70% of that combined spending was in Republican states.”

McCain is doing some insurgent maneuvering of his own, trying to attack some long-established Democratic strongholds. This taken from the NY Times states, “Senator John McCain, the Republican nominee who is trailing in national polls, was making appearances in two states that voted Democratic in 2004, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.” Taking one or both of these states will be key for McCain to improve his chances for a victory. For McCain, though, this could be a problem, Obama has a commanding lead in these areas according to pollsters.” Obama leads in every state that Democratic Sen. John F. Kerry won four years ago, which gives him a base of 252 electoral votes of the 270 needed to win.” Victory in these areas is a necessity for McCain to erode Obama’s possible electoral vote count.

Nevertheless, one question remains, why is Obama pushing so hard in key Republican states if his margin of victory is comfortable? The polls in toss up states and states which voted Republican in 04’ are varying. Washington Post, "He also has leads of varying sizes in five states Bush won: Iowa, New Mexico, Virginia, Colorado and Nevada. Were he to win all of those on Tuesday, he would claim the presidency with 291 electoral votes.” There has been talk of internal polling results from both campaigns that has shown quite a different picture than what is being represented in the media. While this reason is somewhat plausible, the more believable explanation is that the Obama camp is leaving nothing up to chance.

Polling data has been less than efficient, but there is no denying that Obama is in the lead. Where there has been a problem is the determination of how much that lead really is. If McCain is in the 2-4% range, he still has a shot of being within the margin of error, anything past that and he is out of the race. Either way, we are going to be seeing history unfold in front of our eyes.

Picture credit to Wall Street Journal.

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The Wurzelbacher Effect

Cross posted on Conservative Badlands.

CT

To say the polls and the economy have been anything less than bipolar is an understatement. Fear and concern about the future are driving this election more than in anytime since the 70's, the reasons for all this trepidation is obvious though. What is not, is why the American population’s perception of Obama and McCain is so erratic? Obama’s lead continues to ebb and flow like the tide.



If you believe the lesser than reputable polling sources or the MSM, Obama has the election in the bag. However, what I don’t trust about their information is the margin of victory they are declaring. Here are some numbers from IBD and Rasmussen from the last eighteen days. I chose these two because of their reputation for accurate polling results, techniques, and continuity.

On Rasmussen, from the 17th-26th, Obama did not have much to worry about, IBD has a similar situation from the 17th-21st. Then, things started changing with people’s acuity of the election, what was it? On or around the 15th of this month was when we met Joe Wurzelbacher. The gentleman who, so unexpectedly but graciously, accepted the mission of confronting Obama on his policies. This encounter revealed Obama's true nature concerning; taxes, wealth, and redistribution.

The effect was not immediate as you can see by the polls. But Joe opened the door for the GOP to be able to hammer Obama with vids, ads, and even on some MSM outlets about his platform on taxation and wealth redistribution. This is the only factor I can see that has some legitimacy where the erosion of Obama's lead is concerned.

While the Ayers controversy is important with the Conservative base and purists, it has not been a concern to most Moderates and Independents. Thus, it has been a somewhat ineffective campaign tactic. However, Obama’s proven wealth redistribution philosophy is the common denominator between the above mentioned groups. You might even be able to include some Blue Dog Democrats in that number also.

There is also a fear that Obama and his Progressive cronies are going to increase government spending and raise taxes. This is a legitimate apprehension, with the bail out and the upcoming proposal of ANOTHER stimulus package, the question arises, “Who is going to pay for all of this?” The average American is not ignorant; they may not understand complex macroeconomic derivatives or know what the GCI (Global Competitiveness Index) is. But, they do know that raising taxes and raucous spending during a recession, or otherwise, is tantamount to economic suicide.

Rasmussen now has some interesting poll results out, it seems that the American voter is changing their mind about McCain v. Obama on taxes, “After several weeks of John McCain’s campaign attacks on Barack Obama’s tax plan and idea of “spreading the wealth around”, the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds voters trust McCain more than Obama on taxes, 47% to 45%.”

There is also a slight shift in opinion concerning who they trust more on economic issues, “McCain also has gained ground as the candidate to trust on economic issues. Forty-eight percent (48%) now trust the Republican hopeful more than the Democrat while 47% hold the opposite view.”

This has to be the explanation of why the polls are shifting, further closing the gap between McCain and Obama. Keep in mind, these are national polls, they represent voters on a national level, not regional. Internal state polling still has McCain at a severe disadvantage in key areas. Though, as a rule of thumb, when national polls tend to shift, in time the state polls usually follow. The question is, does enough time remain for McCain to recover the ground needed to be victorious?

Either way, win or lose, I am giving Joe Wurzelbacher credit for shedding some light on this issue. We have been so lost in the torrent of economic flooding I think people have forgotten how much taxation and spending actually effects the economy. This is why I am calling this phenomena “The Wurzelbacher Effect.”

-CT


"Happy Hunting!"

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Be Careful When PUMA-ing, You Might Get More Than You Bargain For

Also appears on Conservative Badlands

CT

A few days ago one of the contributors on Conservative Badlands did a piece called the PUMA Factor, it was a look at how this block of voters might be one of the groups to decide the Presidential election in 08’. It made me realize that I didn’t know much about their movement or philosophies, other than the obvious. PUMA means Party Unity My Ass and they were angry because HRC got lambasted in the primaries and there was a SERIOUS possibility of caucus manipulation. So, I had an out of the ordinary idea, I figured go into their virtual community and ask them if anyone would be interested in answering a few questions for this post. Well I got some takers.



Most of the PUMA’s that answered the call of the wild in my open thread were female but the composite of their whole movement, I imagine, is a little harder to determine. One very pleasant and intelligent woman, who goes by the SN, Angrynana said this, “Also, there is a mistake in thinking all Pumas and Puma types are older, white women. There are men, people of many religions, all races, gays and lesbians, young, middle-aged, and older Pumas. There are groups from the West and the East. There are Native American Pumas and African American Pumas.” I can honestly say I believe this assessment. Since there were about 18 million people who voted for Hillary in the primaries and the Democratic Party is noted for its pluralism, it makes sense they are a very diverse lot.

What I was more curious about was what brought them to this point and what were they going to do after the election. Their responses ranged from moving to the GOP, going Independent, to retaking the Democratic Party. Judging the answers, Ereizindian sums the majority of their thoughts up well, “If the Dem leadership continues to deprecate its members who were slandered and vilified in the primaries and GE, I shall become an Indie, possibly on my way to becoming a Republican.” This is not to say all of sudden they identify with the Republican or Conservative movement. For them, however, it will be a near strategic impossibility to retake the Democratic Party. It has slid too far into an abyss of identity politics and viral cult worship, it is no longer about issues, it is about one man.

Despite their obvious visceral anger towards the Democratic Party establishment a single theme reigned supreme in the great majority of their posts and emails. Helen put it best, “IT IS COUNTRY AND PRINCIPLES BEFORE PARTY.” I was absolutely, jaw droppingly, astounded to hear a Hillary supporting Democrat in Exile say this. These responses gave me the insight to look at them as I have never looked at a political opponent before, I saw Americans who care about their country. This got me thinking, who am I to judge whether they can love their country just because they are Democrats. Neither Republicans nor Conservatives have the copyright or moniker on patriotism. After all aren’t PUMA's demonstrating this by standing by our sides?

They have become apostates to their party but not their country, that speaks volumes to me. PUMA's have recognized that this is about America, not a singular person. They also understand this has nothing to do with the sweeping change and one man, little m, cannnot shoulder this all by his lonesome. That goal is far too lofty and enchanting to be anywhere near reality. Truth be told, he is neither Atlas nor Prometheus, even if he thinks he is.

In closing I would like to thank all of the ladies and gentlemen who so graciously accepted my invite to participate in this undertaking, I hope I did you justice. Sometimes we get reminders of things from unexpected sources and that is what the PUMA’s did for me. My suggestion to Republicans and Conservatives, alike, try and understand them. Politically we may need them as much as they need us, we are rapidly becoming a house that is acquiring vacancies and they may need a home. More importantly, they are Americans who love their country enough to look past partisan lines. That, my friends, is the miracle of being an American first.

-CT


“Happy Hunting!”

Pic cred to The Confluence, I violated some internet copyright laws by snagging them. Hopefully in the spirit of the post they won't mind.

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ATF Busts Up Skinhead Plot

CT

ATF disrupts skinhead plot to assassinate Obama

WASHINGTON – Federal agents have broken up a plot to assassinate Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and shoot or decapitate 102 black people in a Tennessee murder spree, the ATF said Monday Read more...

And so it begins. I have a feeling we are going to be seeing a lot more of this ignorance and depravity in the near future. I might have serious differences with Senator Obama on policies and even question much of his motivation, but this obvious stupidity is beyond belief. More importantly is the intention of killing innocent Americans who have nothing to do with the candidate. This is about race and that is it, plain and simple. It is absolutely disgusting. I hope they hang them up by their balls.

-CT


"Happy Hunting!"

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PUMA:Open Thread

1) What are your plans, as a PUMA, to do after the election if McCain loses or wins.

2) Do you intend on staying Dem, convert to Repub, or go Indie.

3) What motivated you to vote for McCain/Palin?

If there is anything you would like to add, please feel free, as I stated any input is great, thank you for your time.

-CT

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Special Forces strike into Syria

CT

Seems American special forces flexed their muscles in Syria proper.

DAMASCUS, Syria – U.S. military helicopters launched an extremely rare attack Sunday on Syrian territory close to the border with Iraq, killing eight people in a strike the government in Damascus condemned as "serious aggression."

The article goes on to say,

"We are taking matters into our own hands," the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the political sensitivity of cross-border raids.

The Syrian government of course condemned the preemption,

"Syria condemns this aggression and holds the American forces responsible for this aggression and all its repercussions. Syria also calls on the Iraqi government to shoulder its responsibilities and launch and immediate investigation into this serious violation and prevent the use of Iraqi territory for aggression against Syria," the government statement said."

My problem with the Syrian government is they are acting like they are totally innocent and have no regional control. There is ample evidence of them at least turning a blind eye to these insurgent operations which is allowing them to continue. But, the debate will rage and people will still have their opinions since unilateral preemption is such a touchy subject.

-CT

"Happy Hunitng!"

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You don’t need a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

CT

All the talk about the Obama-Ayers connect is intriguing. Not because of Ayers or Obama, but the history of the Weatherman and the SDS (Students for a Democratic Society). I must admit, I have a had a morbid fascination with their history prior to this controversy. Maybe it was growing up in the 70’s and watching to many Dirty Harry movies, you know hard-ass cop against the weed smoking, RPG wielding, commie, dust heads.

Because Ayers is such a prevalent figure in this election I am not going to spend to much time on the SDS, this is not meant to undercut their historical relevance to the Weatherman.

SDS came into existence in 1960, before this it was known as SLID (Students League for Industrial Democracy). They were the most notable and powerful organization of the New Left, Hippie take over of Liberalism. In the start, their rhetoric was primarily focused on the banning of anti-communism, which they saw as wholly undemocratic. They also blamed the United States paranoia concerning Russia as the biggest obstacle for nuclear disarmament.

With the escalation of the Vietnam war in 1965 the SDS went on the move, severely changing its tactics to more protests and allowing any one in including communists. This strained relations with some of the older Left organizations. There numbers grew but it was in 1969 at the SDS national convention they split due to internal squabbling. It was out of this the Weathermen were born. A pamphlet was passed out at the convention with a lyric from a Bob Dylan song, “You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,” which inspired their name.

The Weathermen’s first act was a series of riots in Chicago known as the Days of Rage, in October of 1969. It was simultaneous with the trial of the Chicago Eight. Since the Weathermen felt that militancy was necessary and would garner more results than peaceful protest rioting was just a natural progression.

The Days of Rage was basically about making the American public “wake up” to their country’s complacency towards its involvement in Vietnam. Overall about 200-300 hundred protesters rioted through the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago. But the riot was dismantled by the authorities. Two days later the Weathermen launched another riot in the Loop, Chicago’s main business district, but the police were ready and the riot only lasted about 15 minutes.

The Weatherman became even more radical after the December 1969 raid of Fred Hamilton’s home, a noted leader of the Black Panther movement. In which he and another man, named Mark Clark, were killed and four others wounded. The Weathermen issued a declaration of war against the United States government and changed their names to the Weather Underground Organization. They continued on their terrorist campaign with bombings of the Pentagon, the Capital building, banks, and police stations.

In March of 1970 in Greenwich Village in New York, while preparing to bomb a non-commissioned officers dance at Fort Dix, one of the nail bombs that was going to be used detonated prematurely. This resulted in the deaths of three members of the WUO.

In the early 70’s the WUO shifted to a more Marxist-Leninist approach and published Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-Imperialism. There were about five thousand copies produced and spread around the nation. It was also hailed by Leftist newspapers and even appeared in bookstores.

On another interesting note the Weathermen were responsible for the September 1970 prison break of Timothy Leary. The Brothers of Eternal Love, an LSD distribution ring, paid them $20.000 to break him out of jail.

In 1971 the Citizen’s Commission to Investigate the FBI broke into one of the Bureau’s Pennsylvania offices and stole hundreds of files containing information about the subversive actions of Leftist groups, including the Weathermen. This was the catalyst for the end of, COINTELPRO, an FBI counterintelligence operation Later in 1973 the FBI proceeded with the 'Special Target Information Development' which meant sending agents in to directly penetrate the Weathermen organization. But due to prohibited tactics agents used any charges against the Weathermen were to be dropped. Basically the Weathermen no longer had to remain underground and would face minimal charges if they turned themselves in.

After the 1976 conference called “Hard Times” the Weathermen dissolved. This was due to fracturing between them and other racially motivated Leftist organizations. Also, the East Coast wings of the Weathermen felt there was a lack of commitment to violence, by other members. This casued strain in the leadership. Over the next few years members would either turn themselves in or join other radical organizations. But a “peaceful” wing of the WUO still exists and it is called the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee.

Cred to Wiki info necessary to fill in the blanks I could not provide. Believe me there would have been a lot of them. Here is the link to the article I drew from for this shortened version, Weathermen. Try some reads on COINTELPRO and the SDS, very interesting also.


-CT

“Happy Hunting!”

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Partisanship, Special Interest Groups, and Why Voters Accept 2nd Rate Legislation

CT

Analysis Online, published an article How Leaders Make Policy Decisions. In an ongoing study Professor Max Bazerman, Jesse Isidor Straus Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, quantifies why policy makers lack the ability to “ make wise tradeoffs, or to give up small losses for much larger gain.” as well as the voters’ willingness to accept their poor decision making processes.

This is particularly interesting due to the climate of this election. Numerous special interest groups, media outlets, and political parties have ambitions that they are promoting. Messages will be distorted and lacking significant facts in order to shift the judgment of the voting public. Not to mention the sweeping atmosphere of “change” both sides in this election are promoting.

Bazerman offers two reasons for this irrational judgment process: "proliferation of special interest groups" and a host of “judgment biases.” He sees these two factors as the most important for guiding constituents to accept middle of the road policies that inevitably do more harm than good for the country.

“The problem comes when actions designed to strengthen the political power of the special interest are misinterpreted as providing greater benefits to individuals who identify with the group, when the reality is to the contrary, Bazerman explains.”

Special interest groups and self-seeking individuals have promoted many worthless causes, this goes for both sides of the aisle. In their current strategies, most use facts are considerably generalized or try to generate fear to reinforce their preferred outcome. A good example is the current economic crisis, yes had to slip this in. Bother parties have adopted this mentality, implying the rival group was the causality of the situation. This is simply not true, evidence is supporting that a host of bad decisions, made by both parties, throughout a fifteen-year period led to it.

With judgment biased, he lays out four reasons that people will tolerate fundamentally flawed policies.

• The Harm of Omission – People (including policy makers) are more fearful of the harms that could result from action than the harms of inaction even when the harms of inaction are greater.

• Status Quo Bias – Connected to the bias of omission is the bias exhibited by many people of preferring the status quo. “People are more likely to be concerned about the risk of change than about the risk of failing to change, and will be motivated to preserve current systems and beliefs,” notes Bazerman.

• The Fixed Pie Pitfall – Hefty, black-and-white generalizations about situations and policy decisions dominate this judgment bias, which is strongly exhibited in negotiations and partisan fervor, notes Bazerman. This bias is built on the assumption (when opposing sides battle) that what is good for one side must necessarily be bad for the other side.

• The Winner’s Circle Curse– This one is highlighted by the high-dollar bidding for sports franchises and stadium improvements that has become trademark with modern day sports. Bazerman says taxpayers are ill-served by this type of competition because the winner more often than not is the party that has most overestimated the benefits of winning.

Again, with the economic crisis, partisan biased is driving poor decision making. So far we have been offered nothing but bail-outs and stimulus packages. The psychological aspects of this are particularly important. Neither side wishes to be perceived as the cause of the problem, but both want to be recognized as the one with the solution. This promotes each party to rush, trying to beat the other, which leads to poor solutions that become policy. Thereby exacerbating an already bad situation. They are more concerned with the political outcome than the well being of our nation. Partisan minded voters are more than gladly to back up these decisions, regardless of their value or product.

Voters have a responsibility to see beyond party motivation and tactics. Fundamentally understanding the issues is imperative and it's quite alright to understand those issues based on personal political philosophy. But, what is as equally important is to understand the motivations of the people supporting those issues. Reshaping the way we make policy is just as important as reshaping the policies themselves. If we do not, we are dooming this country and its population to years of flawed legislation supporting the self-serving needs of individual groups, which will only continue fracturing our society.

-CT


“Happy Hunting!”

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In the News: 23rd October 2008

CT
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Top Iran officials recommend preemptive strike against Israel

By Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent-Senior Tehran officials are recommending a preemptive strike against Israel to prevent an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear reactors, a senior Islamic Republic official told foreign diplomats two weeks ago in London.

The official, Dr. Seyed G. Safavi, said recent threats by Israeli authorities strengthened this position, but that as of yet, a preemptive strike has not been integrated into Iranian policy.

Safavi is head of the Research Institute of Strategic Studies in Tehran, and an adviser to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The institute is directly affiliated with Khamenei's office and with the Revolutionary Guards, and advises both on foreign policy issues.Safavi is also the brother of Yahya Rahim Safavi, who was the head of the Revolutionary Guards until a year ago and now is an adviser to Khamenei, and holds significant influence on security matters in the Iranian government. Read more...

Preemptive strike against Israel? Yeah that's smart. I sure hope the insurgent backing government of Iran isn't listening to this guy. Big Bad, aka the United States, would cause it to start raining steel if Israel got whacked. I can think of no other way to put it.
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ELECTION REJECTION: NETWORK NEWS SLUMPS;VIEWERSHIP FADES

The Obama-McCain match-up is proving to be a lackluster election ticket for the Big 3 network news programs, according to NIELSEN MEDIA RESEARCH.

As the shouting from the trail and the frantic spinning from the anchor desks intensify, the audience is voting with their remotes.

All 3 evening news shows experienced audience drops year-to-year for the week of Oct. 13-19, 2008.

CBSNEWS w/ Couric shed a half a million viewers, falling from 6.4 million to 5.9 million; ABCNEWS dropped from 8.1 million to 7.6 million; NBCNEWS slumped from 8.2 million to 7.8 million.

I don't know why but for some strange reason I don't feel sorry for them.
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Oil falls below $67 on US recession fears

By Madlen Read, AP-Oil prices tumbled below $67 a barrel to 16-month lows Wednesday after the government reported big increases in U.S. fuel supplies -- more evidence that the economic downturn is drying up energy demand.

he Energy Information Administration said crude inventories jumped by 3.2 million barrels last week, above the 2.9 million barrel increase expected by analysts surveyed by energy research firm Platts. Gasoline inventories rose by 2.7 million barrels last week, and inventories of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, rose by 2.2 million barrels. Read more...

Remember the good ole' days, about a month or two ago, when this was all we had to worry about? My how things change from week to week. And let me tell you I am so worried about those poor folks in OPEC starving to death. What will they do?

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Larijani: Iran prefers Obama

YnetNews-Iranian parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said Wednesday that Iran would prefer Democrat Barack Obama in the White House next year. Larijani also dismissed any idea that the US would attack Iran.

"We are leaning more in favor of Barack Obama because he is more flexible and rational, even though we know American policy will not change that much," Larijani said at a press conference during a visit to Bahrain. Read more...

I would prefer him too. He has absolutely no foreign policy experience and his mentor is Joe Biden, the Iranians must be jumping for joy over his possible election.

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Cred to the Drudge Report for stayin' up late providing all the cool links. Thanks!

-CT

"Happy Hunting!"

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Tales From the Drip: Liberal Myths About De-Regulation

Pundit,

Most of the blame placed on de-regulation, by the Left, for the current economic crisis is simply a misleading account of the causes. This is as unreasonable as the Right calling Liberals, socialists. While heaping the blame on de-regulation in this environment of witch hunting is the trendy political motivation du jour, it is quite incorrect. Both sides in this mess were looking for a boogey man, for the Right it was the CRA and for the Left it was Gramm-Leach-Bliley.

De-regulation of the financial sector predisposes people to thinking that all of the rules were gone and Wall Street was running amuck in an orgy of economic freedom. Nutz! Regulatory expansions were never abandoned, nor were any of the rules discarded. It is a misnomer to assume otherwise.

Since the beginnings of the Bush administration, there has been little attempt at actual de-regulation of the financial sectors. From the Heritage Foundation.

In terms of rulemaking--the promulgation of specific rules by regulatory agencies--the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is by far the most active among agencies in the financial realm. Based on data from the Government Accountability Office, the SEC completed 23 proceedings since the beginning of the Bush Administration that resulted in a substantive and major change (defined as an economic effect of $100 million or more) in regulatory burdens. Of those, only eight--about a third--lessened burdens.

The Federal Reserve reports five major rulemakings in the database since 1996--four of which were deregulatory. The only rule change reported by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Controller of the Currency is the 1997 adoption of new capital reserve standards, an action with mixed consequences.

As far as Gramm-Leach-Bliley, is concerned the major banks and holding companies that have collapsed were actually unaffected by the actual legislation. From AEI.

None of the investment banks that got into financial trouble, specifically Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., were affiliated with commercial banks, and none were affected in any way by the repeal of Glass-Steagall.

But, the CRA amendments in Gramm-Bliley, was motivation for smaller banks and thrifts, mortgage underwriters, etc. to start a major issuance of sub prime loans, circumventing credit standards set up by the industry. These were purchased in package deals called Residential Mortgage Backed Securities by these major institutions. When people defaulted on them these companies, who so kindly bought them (Sarcasm intended.), were left with enormous amounts of debt without the liquid capital to back that debt up. Sucked to be them.

Concerning the repeal of Glass-Steagll, actually might be favorable to correcting the economic crisis.

AEI-The repeal of portions of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999--often cited by people who know nothing about that law--has no relevance whatsoever to the financial crisis, with one major exception: it permitted banks to be affiliated with firms that underwrite securities, and thus allowed Bank of America Corp. to acquire Merrill Lynch & Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. to buy Bear Stearns Cos. Both transactions saved the government the costs of a rescue and spared the market substantial additional turmoil.

and

Heritage-In fact, President Bill Clinton--who signed the reform bill into law--defended the legislation in a recent interview, saying, "I don't see that signing that bill had anything to do with the current crisis. Indeed, one of the things that has helped stabilize the current situation as much as it has is the purchase of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America, which was much smoother than it would have been if I hadn't signed that bill."

Only a fool would think that tyrannical regulation or free market anarchy are the proper approaches to the economy and its problems. Regrettably with the witch hunt mentality and it being an election year and enemy is needed. As time goes on and more peer review studies are released the truth is sure to come out. Until then we will probably have to endured crushing laws and acts seeking to undermine the free market even further more than likely bringing in more financial problems in the future.

OmegaPundit


‘The last word on everything.”

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In the News : 22nd October 2008

CT

Oh where to start? Frank needs to keep his mouth shut about tax increases, Murtha, I don't even know what to say about him shuttin' up, and Obie on McCain's willful ignorance. It's a morning full of comedy!
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Barney Frank on Tax and Spend



You want it, you got it. "My encouraging will have more impact on Senator Obama." "Needs to be a focus on spending increases." "Deficit fears need to take a second seat." and "There needs to be tax increases." Yeah Barney sounds like a lot of new ideas from you and your Liberal pals. Tax and spend your way out of enormous debt, do I have to say anymore?
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John Murtha Calls Western Pa. 'Redneck'

CHARLEROI, Pa. -- U.S. Rep. John Murtha is calling many of the people who put him in office "rednecks."

The news comes one week after Murtha claimed the area is racist, then apologized for that comment.

In explaining his comments about racism, Murtha, D-Johnstown, told WTAE Channel 4 Action News on Monday it's difficult for many in the area to change. Murtha said that just five to 10 years ago the entire area was "redneck."

Now Murtha said only certain segments of the population are holding on to those racist feelings. Read more...

Who keeps electing these people to public office? The only place we should ever have the unfortunate sightings of Murtha or Frank are on the cover of the National Enquirer. These people are ridiculously stupid and getting worse, I think they are O2 deprived.
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Obama says McCain offers 'willful ignorance'

By JENNIFER LOVEN, (AP) - Democrat Barack Obama said Tuesday that Republican John McCain is offering little more than "willful ignorance, wishful thinking, outdated ideology" to an economy in crisis, seeking to capitalize on the main issue that is propelling him forward in the race for the White House.

"While President Bush and Sen. McCain were ready to move heaven and earth to address the crisis on Wall Street, the president has failed so far to address the crisis on Main Street, and Sen. McCain has failed to fully acknowledge it," Obama said at a jobs summit his campaign staged in economically precarious and politically significant Florida.

Obama said that McCain's response to the limping economy doesn't offer enough to Americans worried about keeping their jobs, their homes and their lifestyles. Read more...

This was too good not to follow up the other two posts with. I think I need to refer Barry to them. Seems Barney Frank is worried about my job, my home, and my lifestyle, if I have all three he can tax the living hell out of me and keep his spending programs running. If I don't want to pay them Murtha will probably think I am a racist. Oh well.
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What can I say the Three Stooges here are about as fun as a shaving your buddy's eyebrows after he passes out drunk. Well that is it for toady, can't wait to be taxed and spent to death, while being branded a racist, and told I am willfully ignorant cause I want to save money. What a bright future we have!

-CT

"Happy Hunting!"

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Locking up the Free Markets and Throwin' Away the Key.

CT

Sometimes by looking back on the historical relevance of a past can be a guide or lesson book for the future. You can apply this to the present day economic tragedy and the political state of affairs of 2008 to the environment of 1933. The Wall Street Journal just published an article by Paul H. Rubin, Get Ready for the New New Deal. An intriguing comparison of the FDR administration to a potential Obama administration and how that may not be the right thing for America’s future.

The new president's response was to restructure the economy with the New Deal -- an expansion of the role of government once unimaginable in America. We now know that FDR's policies likely prolonged the Great Depression because the economy never fully recovered in the 1930s, and actually got worse in the latter half of the decade.

Keeping in mind, as rightfully pointed out in the WSJ article, Obama is one of the most Liberal members of Congress. Himself as well as Nancy Pelosi, Herry Reid, and other noted Liberal leaders have all blamed this on de-regulation. How else should we expect them to react other than imposing further directives and possibly even going as far as creating new and more powerful regulatory bodies.

Unlike FDR, Mr. Obama will not have to create the mechanisms government uses to interfere with the economy before imposing his policies. FDR had to get the Supreme Court to overturn a century's worth of precedents limiting the power of government before he could use the Constitution's commerce clause, among other things, to increase government control of the economy. Mr. Obama will have no such problem.

This is the key point, FDR basically had to build this Liberal bastion of regulatory bodies from the ground up. Until this point, the control the government extended over the economy was minimal and that attitude had lasted for the better part of a hundred years, until the Depression. Obama, on the other hand, has sixty-five years or so of regulatory growth and institutions to build upon. With no opposition in Congress the overwhelming size of regulatory bodies and laws he can create would change the landscape of the American economy for generations. I guarantee it will have free marketers going into convulsions just at the mere thought.

Also pointed out early in the WSJ article is the fact that we are not in the crisis that was being experienced in 1933. There is a great deal of potential for it to collapse and go the way of the Depression, but we are not there yet. Unfortunately, Congress and Senator Obama are already planning on trying to spend their way out of this. This is stereotypical Liberal behavior to economic misfortune, throw money at it till it goes away. Stimulus packages will not stimulate anything other than a want by people to get another check from the government.

When it comes to these stimulus packages, I think we forget sometimes that they are a loan that Congress is making to us on our behalf. It has to be paid back sooner or later. I fail to see how incurring more debt will solve any of our current problems. It was carrying to much debt that got us here in the first place, so we want to enable the problem further?

Part of the more successful attitudes that FDR demonstrated during the Depression years was fiscal responsibility. He and those around him made a Herculean attempt to control spending so they could stimulate some growth in the economy. Albeit the increase in manufacturing for WWII is probably the most notable reason we pulled out of the Depression but his fiscal conservatism did play a major role. However, based on the stimulus package approach I do not think we can expect Obama or Congress to adopt this frame of mind. I only hope and pray that someone wakes up and realizes trying to correct one extreme with another usually ends in further disaster.

-CT

"Happy Hunting!"

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