SAR #11131

Which hand washes which?

Boehner of Contention: John Boehner gave a “huge” speech on budget deficits, the national debt and the debt ceiling. What he said was he didn't have the faintest idea how to solve any of these problems and thus he was going to throw a meaningless tantrum for a while. He will receive lots of praise and lots of attention. Only a few will point out that the whole exercise was a waste of his, and our, time.

Echo? What Echo? Attorney General Eric Holder vows to close Guantanamo.

The Pain in Spain: The short list for Spain: GDP came in lower than expected – which was already a disaster,. Personal income tax receipts are down 19.4% Corporate income tax receipts are down 42.7% VAT collection is down 22.4% Excise tax receipts are down 40%. Pass the hat.

Monkey See.... And so it begins. Bill Gross shorts US Treasuries and people make fun of him. He doubles down. Now Jim Rogers is going to join him. No big deal, what do the manager of the world's largest bond fund and one of the world's most successful investors know? Buy Apple. Or oranges, oil, Skype, stocks, buy stocks!

Self-Inflicted Wounds: Autism, like Republican rule, is something we've done to ourselves that keeps getting worse. Causation is unknown, but my money would be on something we've done to the environment that is getting back at us.

Tea for the Tillerman: In 1Q11, Goldman Sachs had but one down day and made more than $100 million in profits on 32 days. How are you doing with your on-line trading?

Fill In the blanks: Claiming only a wish to prevent rampant voter fraud, _____ legislators are rushing to restrict voting in the upcoming recall election. There is, of course, virtually no evidence to support the ________'s fears.

Reframing the Question: Which gets the most government support, Planes or Trains? Trucks.

Selling the Cow to Buy Hay: More and more of the appointed financial czars running Ohio's cities and towns are turning to privatization as a way of raising cash, lowering spending and cutting public services. Schools, especially, are seen as cash cows that can be run at a profit by private enterprise though unheated schools and temporary teachers.

Praiseworthy: Really neat doctor-density interactive map over at Barry's place.

Remedial Lesson: Here's a wake-up lesson for would-be liberal and progressive activists. The key word is “activist”. It is not enough to sign an on-line petition. It is not enough to sign an actual paper petition. You have to get out and demonstrate, occupy public places, get arrested, maybe even get maced or clubbed. That's the only thing that gives the wealthy and their satraps a moment's pause. Occupy or become occupied. Bodies and blood if necessary. Recall, yes, but prevention, too.

King Corn: USDA says that farmers are way behind in planting the corn crop – to wet to plow – along with spring wheat. The “schedule is way behind schedule”.

Sure Thing: In March, one-third of all property purchases nationwide were all-cash. Most of the buyers are fools over 50, seeking higher returns than the 1% relatively safe instruments are giving them. Remember the old saying “a house is a place to live”?

As If: Chuck Schumer wants Wall Street commuters standing quietly in line for an hour or two on a cold January morning in Stamford or Greenwich while TSA sniffs their shoes. Ain't gonna happen.

Wrong Lessons: Two Three things are true. Unemployment is very high. College educated have higher employment rates. This does not mean that education (or the lack thereof) is a primary driver of unemployment. Most people, for most jobs, do not need to go to college (and most who go do not learn anything, much less anything actually useful on the job). There are probably more idle workers now than ever. It is not due to their educational level – it is because there are no jobs.

Porn O'Graph: We're almost there!