The main thing we learn from history is that we don't.
One Upon A Time: Will last week's market enthusiasm for fairy tales carry on, or will reality creep in. Like the reality that Greece cannot be saved. Nor Spain. Nor the euro. Which is not to say that various European agencies and figureheads won't make claims and plans and promises; just that they are empty claims and plans and promises.
Shin Bone Connected To The... Will the American corn belt drought translate into another round of unrest, demonstrations and strikes like those of the Arab Spring? Hunger and desperation lead people to do the strangest things.
Summation: It's not that the thieves took over the financial world, it's that they've taken over not just the whole economy but the political system, too. They blew up our savings and our pensions and our futures, as they got away with the biggest robbery in history. Except for a few outsiders and mid-level dupes, we have not yet put the culprits in jail and we are unlikely to do so; they’ve bought the politicians, the policy-makers, and the courts. We are screwed.
Scorecard: On Sunday the US used six missiles to kill 'at least' seven Pakistanis between the ages of 17 and 70 – the working definition of 'militant'. The military spokesman held out hope that the count would go higher – making the killing more cost-effective – as the rubble is more thoroughly searched. The official added that other missiles had destroyed two militant vehicles. (sic)
The Stakes: This election is a question of the rich vs. the rest of us. Too bad we don't have a candidate.
Mirror Image: Now that global warming is here and acknowledged, we must quickly figure out who to blame. Why are we still doing nothing to prevent the worst? Because there are no simple solutions, no comfortable solutions. Cutting back today to help the next generation survive isn't a compelling argument. What's in it for me? The long-term forecast is not promising and our suicide pact with the fossil-fuel industry is the reason.
Clunkers: Since GM acquired AmeriCredit in 2010 and renamed it GM Financial, GM has come to depend on auto loans to customers with FICO scores below 660 – considered to be subprime loans – 93% of its Q4 2012 loans were to buyers with sub-660 scores. Guess who will get to bail GM out. Again.
Flaw/Feature: That noisy restaurant is noisy because the owners know the noise goads you into eating and drinking faster, talking less, and moving on. Next!
Denial Denied: Remember the deniers' glee when it turned out that there was not as much glacier melt happening in the Himalaya as the scientists had predicted in 2007? New data from satellites and on-the-ground surveys show that global warming that is causing Himalayan glaciers to melt. Not all, perhaps, but most – over 7,000 Himalayan glaciers have shrunk.
The Parting Shot
Sunrise
1 comment:
Re Denial Denied: Been a bad week for the head in the sand crowd. First climate scientist Richard A. Muller, the (former) hero of the climate-change denial crowd goes on record to admit that global warming is real AND caused by humans, now this. It's difficult to gloat knowing that my children and grandchildren are going to suffer regardless. But what the teck, "UP YOURS" Koch brothers.
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