SAR #8025

Fannie Mae is raising the mortgage limit to $625,000.
Because other kinds of stupidity take too long...
Tanta at Calculated Risk.

Apostates' Creed : We've gone from a President who could not tell a lie to one who could not tell the truth. We were willing to impeach a president for lying about a sexual act, but simply shrug at solid evidence that a president, vice president, secretary of state, defense secretary, and national security adviser had all lied over and over in a conscious, coordinated conspiracy to mislead us into an illegal and disastrous war of aggression.

Name Calling : Dr. James Hansen "... allowing construction of new, more efficient coal-fired power plants that do not capture and sequester CO2…. spells doom for life on the planet." And you thought I was a doomster.

Good Hands : Bail-outs for bond insurers (monoliners) are being offered. It seems sensible, for their failure would lead to cascading failures throughout the financial world. Ambac is leveraged 143 times, and MBIA 147 times. If a modest 3.5% of their commitments go south, someone's got to pony up $85 billion. Next.

Don't Forget Aunt Vi ! A Swedish university has received $590,000 to measure the greenhouse gases released when cows belch.

Other End Up : Are oil prices about to tumble due to the US recession? Here's a hint: Kuwait's budget calls for oil revenues to increase by 56% this year, while oil production remains level. Look at it this way: if an apple costs $1 today and will cost 50% more tomorrow, how much will it be tomorrow? Right, $150 an apple barrel.

Child's Play : South Africa is suffering continuous, crippling power outages severe enough to prevent the Tourist Bureau from hosting the 2010 World Cup. Meanwhile, US Energy Secretary Bodman says there is a shortage of oil in the market and OPEC says it isn't so.

Heads Up : As suspected, researchers have proven that women's skulls are thicker than men's.

Rainbow : If there's a deep recession and large numbers of people are thrown out of work while the Usual Suspects get to keep all their ill gotten gains, maybe we'll see some changes. Voices in the streets might just get universal health care, a living wage, and reining in some of the legalized greed. Hoping for bad to get good done.

Headline : Secret Of Scottish Sheep Evolution Discovered. I didn't read it as it could not possibly have lived up to expectations.

Benched : Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich explains that the US recession is not partaicularly bad news for the global economy, because "consumers in Japan, China, India and Europe are now far better able to fill the gap when American consumers fail to do the job." To the showers, here comes that Chinese relief pitcher.

Socialism : Part of the 'recession rescue' is raising the limit of Fannie Mae mortgages from $417,000 to $625,000. Thank god, now I can get that retirement cottage I always wanted. On the beach. In Hawaii.

New Kids : China and Russia and India have replaced the US as the market shapers for energy and resources. In both production and demand we have become superfluous. We weren't ready to go quietly. We need outplacement counseling, not a recession.