What Were the Republican Years About?

I recently read a post on digg by the engineer2008. He started out writing a paragraph of an article in which George Packer interviewed Buchanan, who worked for Nixon and secured his winning that election. I was interest in the Article because I remember watching the election so I clicked on the title, 'The Fall of Conservatism. Have the Republicans run out of Ideas.' It took me to http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/05/26/080526fa_fact_packer

The interview covered the early Nixon years when Buchanan worked for Nixon's campaign and helped him get elected. Buchanan tells Packer about an idea they came up with. Nixon and Buchanan had an idea of creating a new majority bordering on the fenced grounds of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Well it worked because Nixon won by a land slide that election.

Buchanan tells Packer in the interview: 'The sixties, which began in liberal consensus over the Cold War and civil rights, became a struggle between two apocalyptic politics that each saw the other as hellbent on the country’s annihilation. The result was violence like nothing the country had seen since the Civil War, and Perlstein emphasizes that bombings, assaults, and murders committed by segregationists, hardhats, and vigilantes on the right were at least as numerous as those by radical students and black militants on the left.

What are the Republican years about? What is any Republican year in the Oval Office about? It can be summed up with the last sentence of the article. 'Nixon claimed to speak on behalf of "the nonshouters, the nondemonstrators," but the cigar smokers in that South Carolina hotel were intoxicated with hate.'

They can call themselves the 'Moral Majority, the Right-Winged Party, The Evangelical Right, The Family Value Party,' But to me, they will always be no different that the NAZI party of Germany.

The Up-Swing Continues

In reading a money news article by Adam Schreck the AP Business Writer it is clear that the rise in Oil Prices is not over. Late Wednesday the price per barrel hit over $144.00 just as the government reported an unexpected drop in U.S. supplies with the threat of attacking Iran on the traders minds.

Speculation? It seems every time the oil people sneeze, and something in government happens it is the traders on Wall Street who frantically sell, trade, buy causing speculation that drives up the oil price. But don't take my word for it.

Good luck this 4th of July at the pumps. And expect higher prices all the way around the grocery stores and utilities.

Positive trade? Really?

According to Joe Bruno, an AP business writer, 'bargain hunting in the trade market today sent shares up then soaring downward only to creep up slowly toward the end of the day.' Yet it was called a positive trade and say we could be headed for recovery. Really?

Well, Ford motor Co. in its' report stated that sales dropped sharply in June. That does not sound like a recovery to me.

Oil rose again in record high levels. That does not sound like a recovery to me.

And according to Scott Mayerowitz a member of the ABC business news unit, during these hard times, as companies cut back like the airlines and cell phones so does the customer service. That does not sound like a recovery to me.

And many of the free-bee stuff that you used to get in some industries like the hotels and motels, will now cost you.

The associated press economics writer, Martin Crutsinger concerning the continuing slump in housing, he stated in his money news report that for the 11th time in the past year construction spending fell in May. In fact 'home builders have been frantically slashing back on their production in the face of the worst slump in housing in more than two decades.' That does not sound like a recovery to me.

And with all the news articles written on the oil, whether it was demand or speculation to blame for the oil hikes, another article was there on the news again. Yep, this time it was Barbara Lewis who claims that it is demand not the speculation on Wall Street that is responsible for the price hike. Hmm, I wonder. Were any of these news reporters around in the 1970s'.

Remember that time in history, During the Nixon and Ford years when they claimed that it was DEMAND that drove the price of oil from .25 cents a gallon to $1.40. Oh, you were not born yet. Well let me inform you of REAL HISTORY. You see a few of the OIL people in TEXAS got together and on paper transferred the ownership of oil from family member to family member to in-law to cousin. That process created a shortage on paper. But there was NO real Shortage nor was there an Increase in demand. However, there were long lines at the pump, the price jumped from .25 cents to .50 cents to .75 cents to $1.00 in a very short time. By the end of the three years the price jumped to $1.43 per gallon. But it wasn't until Carters time when an investigation of the Oil shortage and demand revealed that there was no shortage at all and that the demand was never increased. There were government hearings and a trial. There was serious talk of sentencing and jail time. But then Reagan became president and then Ronald Reagan slapped the American Citizen in the face when he gave clemency to the OIL people from TEXAS. And anyone who refuses to believe it, was either not born yet, or is still in denial. Do your own research in the Libraries your self. Scan all the old news articles of the time. Yep, the Oil People got the American Citizen to believe that Carter was a bad president, but in fact he was the only American president who went after the Oil People of Texas when they had the power. I wonder if any other American president could ever have the courage to take on the OIL PEOPLE who are now in control of the global economy.

Cycle Of Oil Prices Rise Again

It seems that we continue to go in circles with our oil prices rising above $143.00 per barrel. Strange that every time the money experts on the News stations like CNN, Fox, MSNBC all seem to suggest and do say that our oil prices are expected to go down with the help of the Bush administration. Yet, that NEVER happens!

With everything the Bush administration has done so far the oil crises just continues to get worse. Now why is that? What was the very first impact of change of policy since GW Bush took over in 2001? The very first thing he worked on was changing the U.S. policy of outsourcing of American jobs. It started before the 9/11 attacks. Yet no one remembers.

Now what is the secret to a strong economy? The secret to a strong working economy is to have the people in that economy working, Economics 101.

When the high tech jobs were sent overseas with Bush selling the Idea that Americans are too stupid to do the job, there began a domino effect both in the job market, and in Americas' economy. Our dollar began to fall and get weak. Old home sells began to fall. Older middle aged people who were loosing their jobs along with medical benefits and retirement had to find other work to pay for the rising cost of Utilities: electric and gas.

By the end of his first term in office, Bush sold the belief that we are no longer a high tech country, but are now a service country.

Now nearing the end of GW Bush second term in the Oval Office, the oil has more than double since the beginning of his first term, more than 3/4 of all the states in the United States are experiencing quick sells, causing mortgages of unsuspecting neighboring homes to be a lot higher than the falling value of their homes. Although the promise of forgiving what is owed sounds good, the truth is that what is forgiven has to be included as income in the following tax year, leaving all those homeowners who are holding on to their homes watching the value of their homes drop. Selling is no option for those of us who are still paying into our mortgages as the value of our homes decline below what is owed.

The Electric and heating gas utilities has continued to rise every year. In my area alone, the electric rate rises twice each year since Bush began his first term with the heating gas rising once each other year.

Now with the gasoline price more than doubled since Bush second inauguration, I can not help but wonder why the American people are not fed up.

When we had Bin Laden in our grasp, it was the Bush administration that backed down. When our intelligence had proof that Pakistan was harboring and protecting Bin Laden, it was the Bush administration that denied, denied, denied.

When will we finally admit that the Republican Party are not the party of the people, but the party of Oil and Big Business? When will we finally admit that you cannot have a democracy, a government by the people for the people with a Republic administration? Is there democracy in Red Communist Republic of China, or the Banana Republics? No! And you will never have a democracy with a Republican administration.

Oh Happy Day

After reading an economics news article on http://www.abcnews.com/ that was written by Tom Hays, an associated press writer, I just had to spread the good cheer.

Oh Happy Day, Oh Happy Day, Federal Authorities have arrested 2 Bear Stern Managers. They are being charged with conspiracy and fraud charges in misleading investors adding in the collapse of the Subprime Mortgage Market making this a Happy Day.

Both Mathew Tannin and Ralph Cioffi were arrested at their homes. Tannin was arrested in his New Jersey home and Cioffi at his New York City home by FBI agents. Their arrest came as the result of a year-long-Federal-Securities-Fraud-investigation of the 2 Bear Stern Managers misleading the investors in the risky Subprime Mortgage Market.
The two are speaking to authorities under anonymity due to the outcome of the investigation still pending, leaving me to believe that they will not serve any real time. Tannin's lawyer, Brune, believes in her clients' innocence, claiming that her client is a scape-goat. She is looking forward to his acquittal, while Coiffi's lawyer refused to comment.

The Subprime Mortgages were repackaged and sold around the globe as securities. Bear Sterns collapse revealed the damage that had been done to the companies that had bought, packaged, then sold the loans. In fact the Bear Sterns hedge funds failed way back in June of 2007 although Tannin and Cioffi continued with positive assessments of the loan securities. Before crashing, the loans had more than 20 Billion in assets.

Stating that they were misled in the investments, Barclays Bank along with other hedge fund investors had file a lawsuit last year naming the two, Tannin and Coiffi.

Yet the lawsuit also claims that Bear Sterns itself knew for a while that certain assets in the Bear Sterns high Grade Structure Strategies Enhanced Master Fund were worth far less than their stated values. The portfolio asset values were declining during the same time that Bear Sterns told Barclay the enhance fund was up at 6% percent in June 2007.

The company Bear Sterns itself might had gotten bailed out with billions in tax-payers money it collapsed. But the company has suffered a humiliating loss recently when it was bought out at $10.00 a share, yet their shares were $171.00 each back in January 2007. Oh happy day.

Now, how many more will be named and with what companies since the investigation is still pending?

Iraq, Afghan Veterans Guinea pigs for Suicidal drugs

The report of our American Soldiers and Veterans being used as Guinea pigs for drugs that cause Suicide and other violent effects is not new. It has been documented during the past wars. The effects have always been negative to our men and women in the military. And in the military, you are not given the option to opt out of receiving the shots. You are told that you will receive these shots for your protection before going into your deployment. Or they are told that they have to get this shot or that shot to prevent an outbreak from a virus of some-kind.

However, what is being done to our men and women in the military with our government, in this modern day, using them as guinea pigs for drugs that are known to have violent and suicidal effects is disgraceful.

Why? In the past the doctors and scientists did not know what negative effects there would be. But in our present day, they are well aware of the permanent damaging harmful effects of these drugs before they even administered them. One of the drugs they have been exposed to recently is Chantix, an anti-smoking drug. Chantix causes suicide and neuropsychiatric behavior. Known are the side effects: anxiety, nervousness, tension, depression, thoughts of suicide.

These brave men and women sacrifice their futures, they put their lives on hold, they are separated from their loved ones, they put their lives in harms way to do the jobs that our government asks them to do, and do all of this and much more on very little pay. Their benefits have gotten leaner, having to pay more for their medical, almost equal to or as high as what is in the private sector, while being denied medical coverage after they were injured in Iraq or Afghanistan when they are unable to continue serving due to injury on the job. They pay more for housing, almost equal to or as high as what is in the private sector. In fact on many bases it is the private sector that owns the housing, charging our military personnel the same amount for rent. Gone are the days when the military are the ones guarding the entrance gates to the bases. Yep, even that is private security, an action that has hit all the bases in these last five to eight years. So much for homeland security, when those protecting our bases do NOT answer to top military personnel, but to a private corporation.

Yet, our military personnel still serve the United States of America with great pride and honor. Their dedication knows NO bounds. They are strongly committed to our Constitution, our Bill-of-Rights, our many privileges that make us a strong free nation.

That is why I consider it shameful and criminal that our brave men and women should be subject to suicidal drugs that cause such violent adverse, permanently harmful effects to them.
These brave men and women should receive our respect, and our loyalty, Not-Our-Indifference to their situation.
These brave men and women do deserve protection from our government, protecting them from permanent harm through psychic drug testing, Not-Expected-To-Be-Guinea pigs.
These brave men and women must have the same amount of dedication from us in seeing to their safety as our government claims to have for its' civilian citizens.
These brave men and women deserve the same outcry of what is happening to them, as is given to the many programs in saving the environment and life on this planet.

We can care so much for environmental effects. We can care so much for the extinction of the whales and other animals. We can care so much for the loss of the rain forests.

But what is missing is the LOUD-OUT-CRY for what is happening to our own military personnel. They are our brothers, our sisters, our children, our parents. They are our friends, our neighbors. They are our fellow citizens. They are us.

"For what so ever you do to the least of my brothers, you have also done to me."

'Hope Now' Is A Shortie

The latest in the foreclosure fiasco is that "Bush administration-backed mortgage industry coalition, called 'Hope Now' has fallen short in stopping or lowering the number of foreclosures. In fact the glistening 'Hope Now' was suppose to turn around the economy and show a decline in foreclosures. But it did not. Actually, as it stands right now the foreclosures are forty-three percent higher this year than what it was this time last year.

Of the mortgages held by nine large banks foreclosures rose in March by 1.23 percent according to a new government report. In May the Real Trac report stated that one in ever 483 households received a foreclosure filing.

There are reports that foreclosures are likely to rise much higher towards the end of the year.

Meantime, some are doing the 'short sale', which means lowering the price of their homes to sell quickly. Some sales are lowered between $100,000.00 to $250,000.00. The good thing about this is that some mortgage companies are willing to forgive what is still owed on the mortgage after the sale. The bad thing is that you have to count the forgiven amount as income when you do your taxes. This is a loose, loose situation for the ex homeowner.

But it is a loose, loose situation for the surrounding neighbors, neighborhood, and sometimes the entire city. As homes continue to sell at lower than their value, it brings down the values of the homes in the community. I know because several homes sold in quick sales in my community. The bank told me that my home had dropped in value $250,000.00 because of someone Else's 'quick sale.' Leaving me and my home in the 'QUICK SAND OF DECLINING HOME VALUE.'