SAR #11283

Will the people back down again?

Das Fault: Germany is reportedly quietly working for a Greek default that would impose 50 - 60% haircuts on banks and institutional investors - much more than the 21% loss they were forced to accept in earlier negotiations.

Lend Lease: Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has tasked his lawyers to find a way to legalize the illegal Israeli settlements that have been built on privately owned Palestinian land. He should borrow those guys in the US Justice Department who found legal grounds for the assassination of citizens without judicial process. Stealing Arab property should be a cinch for them.

Permanent War Austerity: The European Union says that all of the eurozone requires a permanent regime of tough austerity measures. Never mind that they haven't worked anywhere they've been tried, the poor must be made to suffer for the excess of the rich. It's the natural order of things.

Pea/Mattress: American hedge funds have assets approaching $1.4 trillion. This is starting to keep me awake.

97 Pound Gorilla: The Republican minority is again going to stymie the will of the majority - this time it's the jobs bill - then whine that they had nothing to do with the matter because they are the minority party.

A Kate Hepburn Moment: Irum Abbasi, a Pakistaini-born US citizen, was yanked off her Southwest Airlines flight for saying "I've got to go" into her phone when the crew said it was time to turn off all electrical devices. Going, apparently, is frowned upon by Southwest. Or maybe it was using a cellphone while wearing a head scarf. Go before you get on the plane.

Not News: A major investigation into corruption in the upper levels of Afghan provincial and national government has been terminated, with no prosecutions. Elsewhere, the US Justice Department still has not indicted a single Wall Stre....

License, Registration and Cellphone: Warrantless and Search are two words that should not be allowed to marry - not even in California. There are no qualifiers in the Constitution that let the government abridge your rights “in some circumstances”.

99.99% Pure: Wannabe Romney, proving he can sense the mood of the mob, has decided that Occupy Wall Street is no longer dangerous class warfare, but actually represents the discontent of the 99% who wouldn't qualify for his proposed $6.6 trillion in tax cuts for the 1% who run the place.

The Night the Lights went Out in Illinois: Detroit area city Highland Park had fallen $4,000,000 behind on it's light bill, so DTE Energy removed 1,400 light poles, leaving most of the city in the dark. Energy costs are down, crime up and no new taxes....

Polling Places: A recent poll shows that the Quinnipiac poll is slightly ahead of Gallup and nearly even with Rasmussen and Public Policy Polling. The always unimportant polsl of straw voters gives various results depending on who pays for them.

Yet Another Record: The number of poor people in the US hit a record of 46 million in 2010 as the national poverty rate climbed for a third consecutive year – to the highest level since 1993. The recession ended in June 2009.

Porn O'Graph: And the winner is...