Stupid People with Top Hats

One of the most irritating things about President-Elect Obama's win is the number of entirely insane people with whom I must interact or read about.

Whacko nutjobs in Kenntucky (is anyone keeping track of their sanity, let alone literacy, statistics) planned on killing multiple minorities, capping things off by driving at Senator Obama dressed in tuxedos and top hats, firing fully automatic weapons. These 18 and 20-year old folks would be total idiots in my book -- except they had access to the requisite weapons and had made plans. (Can anyone say: "neuter the idiots so they don't breed?")

A friend of mine talked about "cowboys" snatching white sheets off the shelves of local department stores. We're here in Central Texas, see: land of the semi-rational and home of the 'do what you want so long as we can't bust you' brigade.

Same friend talks about how terrible it'll be "when" Obama gets shot.

I don't know how to push love, trust and calm out past folks like this, but if we don't, the Secret Service will certainly be chasing a legion of village idiots before things calm down. And acting uber-paranoid with the President Elect until we get all the easy nut jobs out of the way.

This friend -- and a few others with similar views, talk about the race war and terror that would follow Obama's assassination (g-d forbid!).

My question is this: is their fear, their hatred, their small-minded vision so pervasive so powerful that the next President of the United States  must worry about these lunatics? Or can be take a deep breath, concentrate on the realities of global warming, magnetoshphereic dissipation, and drive these false dybbuks of our generation aside long enough for truth to ring free?

I'd like to think we can rise above these idocies. But the Cheney/Bush regime has created early warning monsters that we would ignore at our own peril.

I Have Been Blessed to See This Day Come

It's a peculiarly Jewish custom to recite a blessing when encountering an incredible moment in one's personal history. We have a blessing on seeing rainbows, awesome sights, and living to see yet another year's holidays.

Today is a day of blessing. Blessing that we have seen the defeat of racism by truth. The defeat of fear and hate by trust and hope. Like coming upon a bridge over the Grand Canyon, ringed by double arcs of rainbows, this is a day for the United States to see a way through the darkness and weakness that have cloaked our country for the last many years.

Baruch Ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melech Ha'olam, asher kiddishanu ve'ki'imanu ve'higi'anu laz'man hazeh.

Blessed are you our master, god and king of the world, who has blessed us, sustained us and brought us to these times.

Palin's America: A Nation of Small People

There are different forms of evil. My post earlier today, in the form of official misinformation, was one. The picture to your left is another, more primitive one.

Sarah Palin talks the "pro-America parts of the country." Her America (although her quote sources say a lot about her pedigree) is far different from mine. The problem with her rhetoric is that it spawns the kind of Balkan 'stanism' creating the splits we've worked for decades to heal. And in tearing at our nation's scars, she, and the other fanatics of the right, are weakening the entire body politic, at a time it needs unity, not divisiveness.

Here's another example of race and allegience in the radical Republican mind. Check out the image to the left, and then please click on the image to visit Cagle's site and read the full story.

It's been a disturbing day in terms of news. AndI hope, unfortunately, it disturbs you at least as much.

Voter Fraud: Who Wanted, and Who's Wanted?

The voter fraud issues raised in Ohio have existed since, well, since well before the famous Chicago line: "vote early and often!" Ballot stuffing, flyers distributed in poor areas telling people that "their voting day" was the day after the elections, and other voting-day trickery, have been around for decades, if not centuries.

As I'm writing this, an example of voter fraud (IMHO) is apparently being perpetrated by folks in the Williamson County Elections office itself (a Republican county under "attack" by Democrats):

Falsehoods:

1. "...to make sure voting goes smoothly. Straight party voters, especially Democrats and Libertarian, will need to check all races. Some races do not have candidates from the Libertarian and Democratic parties."
   
2. "A voter can vote Straight Party and have all of their votes count. They can also vote straight party and then select every Democrat again, if they so choose. What WILL cancel a Democratic selection is if they cast a vote for Republican in a contest, but it will only cancel their Democratic selection for that race and that race only."
   

Truth:

If you do not wish to vote a straight party vote, you must mark each individual candidate for whom you wish to vote, and then cast your ballot. If you select straight party line, and thne check individual candidates, this could cancel your vote for those candidates [assumedly because this would be "two votes" for the candidate?]"

(Paraphrased from an email sent today by the Jaime Lynn campaign to all registered Democrats in the candidate's area.)

Misinformations are frequently characterized as innocent mistakes, but the mistakes frequently come from the incumbent party defending its turf.

On the other hand, registration fraud issues are more an expression of overzealous or ignorant voters and voracious, paid voter registration workers. Both are problems, but not as bad as they are made out to be by the parties.

An enthusiastic but uninformed voter might, for example, register to vote at the mall, then register again if approached by a campaign's volunteer in their neighborhood, for example. Or they might think that if they register twice, they can vote twice. A registration worker, paid per completed registration, might 'fudge the data' for the sake of a few (or many) extra bucks. These folks should be prosecuted for their offences.

The registration process, to be clear, is separate from the actual voting verification. For example, if I register multiple times, when I get to my polling place, the printouts (or screens, depending on the state), my voter registration card is checked against the list. If I've registered several times, duplicates are apparent. The harder to check ones are underaged or dead people who are registered, but their ability to impact an election, especially a national election, would require vast numbers of conspirators operating in very large areas.

So: punish the greedy, watch local government election officials that might try and rig elections through misinformation or purges of voter lists against erroneous felon or other lists, and ultimately focus on the voting day safeguards, and not on the registration process. Focus is important these days.

Last Anecdote and Observations

This evening I spoke with the owner of a wine store. He said that my sales are actually up compared to the last three months of last year. I'm getting a lot more customers buying by the glass, as opposed to people coming in to buy bottles and take them home. I get a better profit on the per-glass sales.

Sure, this isn't anything as scientific as something Angelo Angelou could put together in Central Texas. Or what the big marketing firms could query and sort on. But it is, I think, a fair snapshot of life in this new economy. People are spending about the same, but smarter, or in different ways, or more tactically. That bottle at home is better spent as three glasses at the bar, with friends. Topping off the gas tank feels less like a fill-up, even if the cost is the same (or greater, factoring the time to drive to the station).

The next hit will come when the retail credit dries up, and that, I think is part of why the government today focused its energy on unfreezing the credit markets. Because 80% of retail sales happen between October 15 and January 15, and what happens in the next three months will permanently impact who is in business, and how they will sell, in nine months. And without ready credit for retailers to purchase goods to sell, or factors to handle the accounts receivable from credit card sales, this will probably be the first true "Black" holiday period in a very long time.

More Anecdotes from the Texas Main Street

I had the opportunity to talk with three folks representing what I think are interesting data points regarding the economic situation and its effects over the last three weeks. Again, comments are paraphrases, not quotes:

From a car repair place: Business is about the same... but folks are being more careful about what they're repairing. And they're holding off on repairs, especially if they have high deductibles.

Top Line Liquor From a liquor store owner: I'm still selling. But people (gestures toward single malt scotches), are buying the cheaper stuff, not the expensive. (Points at the bargain, economy priced bourbons and scotches.) More like these, and less (waves hand upward to the $70 bottles) like those. But hey, things will get better eventually. I'm downgrading this guy from owner to manager... clearly he hasn't looked at credit terms lately.

What's interesting is that I'm getting a fairly homogenous set of responses (this post and the last) in terms of the economic impact. Everyone seems to be getting hedgy with their investments. Everyone seems to be acting, if not executing, on a more conservative, less confident, track.

I think this is how the 1929 crash started, except they didn't have folks like me making connections quite as fast. (No, that's not a reason to self-sensor!) I predict we'll get to the 8,000 range well before the winter holidays. Unless Obama gets elected, in which case all bets, unfortunately, are off. At least with McCain/Sarah [mammoth hunter] Palin we know where we're headed. [Okay, that was partisan, but if you've been reading this blog... you know where I stand.]

Anecdotal Observations from Main Street

I've been collecting comments from people running or managing retail businesses, to see what changes consumers have been made.

From a gas station manager: People are pumping differently. They're not filling up, but I see them around more often. They're topping off, like on their way home and stuff.

From a hair stylist: Business is down. Not during the weekends, then we're real busy. But people aren't coming around during the day. Like now (gestured at the empty store): between like one and five in the afternoon it's totally dead.


From a supermarket manager: Overall receipts hasn't changed. But people are buying less each time, and coming more often instead. And they're coming in more with shopping lists; they're not shopping casually.

People are talking about Main Street, and the reality of the economic impact on plain folks. These observations, to me, mirror more the crisis of confidence precipitating the Great Depression rather than technical credit crisis. 401(k)s, pension plans and the credit markets will eventually recover, with or without a government bailout (and yes, I still think it's a bailout, no matter what the pundits might opine). The crisis that has to be overcome now is the one of consumer confidence, and there are several relatively inexpensive, non-pork ways to ameliorate consumer fears:

• Eliminate short stock purchases. Period.
• Extend unemployment benefits to a full year.
• Freeze all foreclosures for the next eighteen months, and have local bankers, a representative from the mortgage company and the homeowners sit down and try and figure out how not to foreclose on the property. The feds should give local banks (not parent companies, or at a national level) funds relative to the mortgage stresses in that area to help underwrite these new loans. Only after there's no agreement, or it's clear the homeowner would be unable to pay even a reworked mortgage, would the foreclosure continue.
  
• Underwrite 'pay for play' programs, where unemployed people who successfully complete training and certification courses have a free ride -- but are personally liable for the courses if they do not complete them (this cuts the ITT Tech student loan scam out of the loop).

There are other ideas, ones that we'd need to think about, ideas that might not be right for every region of the country, but workable in some. But what we really need is time. Time not to rush, time not to act hastily. And if that results, as President Bush said last week, in the loss of $1.4 trillion in "value" to the country, in the form of a loss of stock value, then so be it.

Calm, thoughtful action is economically more prudent than rash, panicky and doom-driven action.

Quick Funny from a Friend's Neighbor

The Veep debate will be quite the hoot. For you Dems, here's a drinking game. If any Republicans have a matching game for Biden, please forward it to me and I'll put it up alongside this one!

P.S. I made one fix: she had Gov. Palin's son's name as "Track," so the line didn't work. Mine's snarkier.

SARAH PALIN DEBATE DRINKING GAME

1. Every time Sarah Palin refers to John McCain as a "maverick,” chug a Red Bull while lassoing an unbranded calf.
   
2. Every time Sarah Palin cites her executive experience, fix yourself a Bloody Mary.
   
3. Anytime Sarah Palin gets lost in her “verbiage” (see Hannity interview), throw a lifesaver towards the TV to rescue Palin from drowning in her half-baked thoughts and unfinished sentences.
   
4. If Sarah Palin mentions lipstick, apply enough lipstick to leave an imprint on your drinking glass.
   
5. Every time “bailout” is mentioned, finish your drink, pour yourself an even stronger one and apply an icepack to your head.
   
6. Every time Sarah Palin alludes to Alaska’s proximity to Russia, mix a Black Russian for your neighbor. If she includes a mention of “Putin rearing his head,” add cream to make it a White Russian the color of Putin’s skin.
   
7. Whenever Sarah Palin mentions “not blinking,” toast your neighbor with “Here’s mud in your eye.” If “not blinking” is brought up when discussing how she would handle Russia, put on sunglasses that will help prevent blindness when the nuclear bombs start going off.
   
8. If Sarah Plain mentions her recent speed-dating outing with world leaders, mix yourself a Cosmopolitan. Add an extra shot of vodka if this is when she mentions Russia.
   
9. Every time Sarah Palin cites her record as a reformer, open a bottle of Sam Adams. If Palin describes John McCain as a reformer, try to think of something other than campaign finance that McCain has successfully pushed through Congress while downing your Sam Adams.
   
10. If Sarah Palin denies that Global Warming is man-made, combine ice cream, sponge cake and meringue to make a Baked Alaska. Serve to all Debate Party guests.
    
11. If Sarah Palin mentions her pregnant daughter Bristol, take of sip of Harvey’s Bristol Cream. If she mentions her son Trig, calculate the size of the (remaining) Arctic Ice Cap and pop open a cold one.
    
12. If Sarah Palin mentions that she played high school basketball, dribble into your glass. If she adds that playing sports will give women economic empowerment (yep, she’s stated this), find the recipe to and then mix a Harvey Wallbanger.
    
13. If Sarah Palin accuses the media, Joe Biden or Barack Obama of a cheap shot, down a shot of your own choosing.
    
14. If Sarah Palin mentions Cindy McCain, knock back a Bud.
    
15. Every time Sarah Palin does something that will be mocked by Tina Fey on the next Saturday Night Live, put on a pair of glasses to enjoy a good ol’ “Live From New York…” libation, be it a Manhattan or a Long Island Iced Tea.
    
16. If Sarah Palin refers to her husband as “First Dude,” gag and spit out your drink.
    
17. Clink glasses whenever you remember that Joe Biden is participating in this debate, too.
    
18. If you are a teetotaler, the prospect of a Palin Presidency should make you start drinking copious amounts of alcohol during Thursday’s debate.

I'd love to see the Republican view of this: Please, bring 'em on!

Not to waste your time, but...

A video worth seeing!

Shifting to as Serious a Topic

The hanging of an effigy of Barack Obama at a Christian university brings into sharp focus one of the odder issues in this election. Obama is a self-confessed Christian, no less one than McCain.

Both are struggling with their actions as opposed to their alligences. Obama, with anti-abortion and other 'leftist' stances (even silly, made up ones). McCain has similar problems. Southern Baptists, the folks who evilly brought you Messianic Judaism [1] [2] [3] [4], aren't quite happy with his less than Evangelical attitudes, although he's been their best candidate even throughout the Republican primaries: even Mormon Mitt has a looser attitude than McCain, who has opposed same-sex marriage, civil unions, or even live-in partner rights to medical insurance.

Prejudice against a Black American, against a suspiciously non-Anglo Christian, are deep-rooted. The KKK is only one of the ugly cancers that have erupted from the skin of the American psyche. Much more common, and more subtle, are the Muslim insinuation against Obama, even going to the push-poll questions that mangle his name on purpose to slip suspicion and doubt into the vapid White American voter.

Nooses, effigies and other "subtle" signs don't work in their stagers' favor: Americans have had fifty years experience with understanding the real meaning behind these formerly powerful symbols. Unfortunately for the beleaguered McCain operation, these idiots play into Obamas, not his, hands. And the best thing McCain can do is either ignore them, or revile them: both of which strengthen the hand of the left.

As usual, the lunatic right, with its symbols bereft of contextual reality, come out the losers. I'd much prefer an articulate lunatic like David Duke than these fringe nutters: David, at least, made for good and focused press. These idiots are shades of the 1950's. And we all know how that played out in the end.