SAR #8340

Ponzi schemes always end badly.

Bailing Wire: Detroit needs to cut its production by more than 50%, or all rescue plans are useless. That cut, in turn, will result in about 2.5 million pink slips, and Obama needs to come up with a plan to prevent all pensions and health benefits from breaking into unrecognizably small fragments.

Here Comes Santa Claws: Israel is reportedly drawing up plans to strike Iran alone if the US will not go along with them in an attack.

Hush! "We cannot even remotely afford that an auction of Italy’s government bonds goes uncovered…That would lead to a unique lack of liquidity for the payment of pensions and salaries. It would be like Argentina: That’s Maurizio Sacconi, the Italian Labour Minister on television. And the chart is pretty scarry, too.

Dun Notice: China wants the US to do something to solve its problems. “We hope the US side will take the necessary measures to stabilize the economy and financial markets as well as guarantee the safety of China’s assets and investments in the US.” They went on to suggest US over-consumption and total reliance on credit might be areas to examine.

Simple Science: Soot is darkening ice in the Arctic and speeding its melting. If the polluting factories are cleaned up to prevent this from happening, the resulting clear air will let more heat through the atmosphere, increasing global warming.

Talking Turkey: As mentioned before here, the political/cultural struggle playing out in Turkey is far more important than the theatrics in Georgia, Iraq, Syria and possibly Iran. The Army, long protectors of democracy, seem to be split into opposing camps, with neither supporting the government. The ruling Islamist party is accusing all opposition of being secret traitors of some sort. Study up, there will be an exam - bring your burqua.

Oxy Morons: The next time someone touts clean coal, remind them that there is not a single business nor a single house in the US powered by clean coal.

Barrel's Bottom: Big three are in such poor shape that even if the workers would work for free - no wages, no retirement, no healthcare - it would not help enough to matter. Put the blame on management, where it belongs. And quit wasting time; let's start figuring out what to do that makes sense and will actually work. Hint: Building cars is not the answer.

Rhetorical Question: Why is Single-Payer Health Reform Not Viable? (1) Blue Cross - Blue Shield (2) Humana (3) HCA (4) All those folks who own 1 thru 3. (5) All the folks who work at 1 thru 3 (6) All the people who work in hospitals and doctor's offices filling out paperwork for 1 thru 3. (7) Money. 8)All of the above,

Let's Privatize Social Security: Corporate pension funds keep falling - $300 billion in losses to date this year in the 1500 largest US corporations, leaving them only 80% funded. If they make up the shortfalls, it will come at the expense of profits, if any.

Stop & Go: Add this to the fad of cities farming out catching and fining those who run red lights: Chicago auctioned off its parking meters for the next 75 years for $1.157 billion. They'll spend half the money now and the rest "over the next few years". Scofflaws get sent to prison. A private prison. Private sidewalks are under consideration.

Here Bubble, Bubble: Europe's central bankers are following Bernanke closer and closer to a zero funds rate. It is a last-dich attempt to start some sort of re-inflation of the economy. Nothing else has worked. Japan tried this in the early 1990's, to no avail. It's still dragging the horse to water.

Porn O'graph: Shoe size... Bailout compared to lots of other big programs.