Tuesday, January 8, 2013

SAR #13008

People are not following the script, my script.

Cookie Jar:A group of 10 mortgage servicers will pay an average of $880 to homeowners - some 3.8 million of them, who were fraudulently deprived of their homes. If they had burned down those 3 million houses - which would have had basically the same effect on the people - would the government merely fined them?  The servicers said, hiding their smirks, that they were pleased with the settlement. Separately, BofA has agreed to pay $11.6 billion to Fannie Mae for a variety of crimes and misdemeanors.

Working For The Woman: If you work for Wendy's in Omaha, you just had your hours cut so you won't qualify for health care coverage. Remind me why our health care is tied to our employment.

Being Prepared: The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision has issued rules which will require banks to hold sufficient cash and readily salable assets sufficient to permit the banks to withstand “an acute 30-day crisis.” Is that pessimistic or optimistic?.

False/Falser: 1. The US has a 100-year supply of natural gas. 2. By 2017, the US will be the world's biggest oil producer. 3. By 2035, the US will be energy-independent. 4. Our natural gas bonanza will let us avoid pushing global warming over the 2ºC level. Sorry, the numbers for 1 thru 3 do not add up and we've already locked in 2ºC and are well on the way to 4ºC.

Credit: It’s not about ability to pay, he says. It’s about willingness to pay.

The Rightness of Things: John Boehner and Mitch McConnell are right; the US does have a spending problem. We spend far too much on 'defense' - by which we mean the money we waste on the domestic industrial-military complex and the international aggression we have spawned to create a need for their output - and we spend far too much on the healthcare industry - which adoption of a single-payer system would greatly cure. Until the GOP begins advocating one, if not both, of these needed spending changes, they should sit quietly at the back of the room. Or better, they could figure out ways to cut the $3 trillion a year in taxes that the rich avoid via various tax dodges.

Bug/Feature: Health insurance companies are jacking up their rates outrageously – Aetna by 22%, Blue Shield by 20%, etc. Why? Because they can – the Affordable Care Act doesn't prevent it and that which is not forbidden is mandatory.

Shh! Forbes reports that President Obama is "the smallest government spender since Eisenhower." Don't tell Boehner.

Crib Notes: In case you've been out of the room, the Republicans are planning on using the debt-ceiling confrontation to cut spending, specifically, entitlements that the majority of Americans do not want cut. They seem intent on confirming their image as intolerant, incompetent warmongers. Is there any way to interpret their continued self-destruction except as a death wish?

Definition: An AR-15 is “nothing more than a fancy-pants hunting rifle.” So says Bryan Fisher of the the American Family Association.

If Only: “The Democratic Party has become the party of smallish government and tax cuts for most people, while the Republican Party is the party of tiny government and tax cuts for everyone. There is no party dedicated to the New Deal and the Great Society. We need one.”

Roundup: Texas, under Governor Goodhair, has cut school funding by $5.4 billion, leading to the termination of over 10,000 teachers and 15,000 school staffers during a period when an additional 84,000 kids showed up at school. The solution? Pay for-profit private schools $5,000 a head to take the kids.

The Parting Shot:

130108

1 comment:

Blissex said...

«The Democratic Party has become the party of smallish government and tax cuts for most people, while the Republican Party is the party of tiny government and tax cuts for everyone.»

That's quite inaccurate indeed.

Both parties are the party of property interests, and in particular of massive tax free capital gains for the top 20%, and massive expenditure on the security industries, because that's what most voters want.

For two main reasons:

* Most voters belong to the top 50% by income of those eligible to vote, and most non-voters are poor immigrants who are not eligible, or poor eligible citizens who are discouraged from voting. Also only the top 5% donate to campaigns, and thus nominate candidates.

* The single most important constituency is middle aged and older middle class and richer women, and to them belong most properties (often by way of divorce or inheritance) and are deeply authoritarian.

Also, it is pure propaganda to say that the Republicans are the party of «tax cuts for everyone» because they want to raise overall taxes on the poor massively, via indirect taxes and fees, like in Texas; they want to cut federal income taxes precisely because most low income don't pay them.