[Bill,
December 14, 2007]
Kant attack ad
[Bill,
December 12, 2007]
Experts: Things in U.S. have returned to normal
PHILADELPHIA -- After nearly nine years of craziness and controversy, where many Americans have been at each other's throats over politics, things have returned to normal, experts said today.
"The beginnings of the unhinging of the American body politic began with the events leading up to the Clinton Impeachment," said Walter Muncie of the Research Laboratory for Normality. "Then came the Florida 2000 fiasco, 9/11 and the subsequent War on Terror -- we've just been at each other's throats."
In the past few months, however, things have calmed down and Americans have returned to doing the stuff they've always done.
"People are once again gossiping about their neighbors, complaining about the weather -- without mentioning global warming, and engaging in conspicuous consumption," said Muncie.
Some attribute the sheer dullness of the current candidate field; others say that the two-year campaign has put politicians so much in the spotlight that they're just sick of them.
"Men want to watch football again and ogle the cheerleaders and curse the Cowboys," said Liberal Commentator Al Dunn of the left-liberal Institute for Quiet Fleecing. "They're smoking cigars and mentioning boobs more."
Women, meanwhile, have returned to worrying that their mates "don't get them."
"It really depends on what my husband gets me for Christmas," said Patti S., who asked for anonymity. "If that bastard doesn't get the 9,000 hints I've left for him, he's dead."
This return to normality is the welcome result of fatigue, according to both Muncie and Dunn. At the same time, they said, "People are sick of fighting."
Both experts agreed that in the next few years, you should increased self-focus from Americans.
"The beginnings of the unhinging of the American body politic began with the events leading up to the Clinton Impeachment," said Walter Muncie of the Research Laboratory for Normality. "Then came the Florida 2000 fiasco, 9/11 and the subsequent War on Terror -- we've just been at each other's throats."
In the past few months, however, things have calmed down and Americans have returned to doing the stuff they've always done.
"People are once again gossiping about their neighbors, complaining about the weather -- without mentioning global warming, and engaging in conspicuous consumption," said Muncie.
Some attribute the sheer dullness of the current candidate field; others say that the two-year campaign has put politicians so much in the spotlight that they're just sick of them.
"Men want to watch football again and ogle the cheerleaders and curse the Cowboys," said Liberal Commentator Al Dunn of the left-liberal Institute for Quiet Fleecing. "They're smoking cigars and mentioning boobs more."
Women, meanwhile, have returned to worrying that their mates "don't get them."
"It really depends on what my husband gets me for Christmas," said Patti S., who asked for anonymity. "If that bastard doesn't get the 9,000 hints I've left for him, he's dead."
This return to normality is the welcome result of fatigue, according to both Muncie and Dunn. At the same time, they said, "People are sick of fighting."
Both experts agreed that in the next few years, you should increased self-focus from Americans.
[Bill,
December 11, 2007]
Housing Bubble
1,000 times yes.
As you know, I went through a home-buying exercise during the insane real-estate bubble. There was a twofold problem -- cheap Chinese money and people paying outrageous prices. I had to look around, decided that the Philadelphia suburbs had a critical mass of idiots who were paying way more than they could afford -- and bought a reasonably priced house on one acre in the Lehigh Valley. As a writer, I can, at the end of the day, work from home. Still, I do a long commute -- but I don't have to do it.
Anyway, my point in all this was my simmering resentment of two things -- one, the lack of regulation in the mortgage industry (Btw, where were the Democrats -- seriously, guys, this is exactly what you are for. This is your bread and butter -- preventing irresponsible business oeople from distorting markets and creating boom-and-bust situations. And the negative amortization loans, and interest-only loans, distorted the hell out of the market. And also btw, this is what I mean when I say I am an economic liberal. Markets need referees. Hell, a football game consists of 22 players and SEVEN regulators to make sure the game doesn't get distorted into something unrecognizable.)
In the above link, Arnold Kling explains the obvious, which apparently, escaped lots of people (who bid up the price of houses -- hence my resentment):
As you know, I went through a home-buying exercise during the insane real-estate bubble. There was a twofold problem -- cheap Chinese money and people paying outrageous prices. I had to look around, decided that the Philadelphia suburbs had a critical mass of idiots who were paying way more than they could afford -- and bought a reasonably priced house on one acre in the Lehigh Valley. As a writer, I can, at the end of the day, work from home. Still, I do a long commute -- but I don't have to do it.
Anyway, my point in all this was my simmering resentment of two things -- one, the lack of regulation in the mortgage industry (Btw, where were the Democrats -- seriously, guys, this is exactly what you are for. This is your bread and butter -- preventing irresponsible business oeople from distorting markets and creating boom-and-bust situations. And the negative amortization loans, and interest-only loans, distorted the hell out of the market. And also btw, this is what I mean when I say I am an economic liberal. Markets need referees. Hell, a football game consists of 22 players and SEVEN regulators to make sure the game doesn't get distorted into something unrecognizable.)
In the above link, Arnold Kling explains the obvious, which apparently, escaped lots of people (who bid up the price of houses -- hence my resentment):
In my opinion, the number one priority in resolving today's mortgage crisis is to bring the housing market back to equilibrium. Equilibrium means prices that are in line with incomes, with supply and demand in balance. With equilibrium prices, houses could be readily bought and sold. When houses can be readily bought and sold, mortgage loans are backed by valid collateral. When mortgage loans are backed by valid collateral, investors will once again be able to trust securities backed by pools of mortgages. Only when we reach that point will the "subprime crisis" be behind us.