An olive still floats in a half-filled glass.
It's a well worn metaphor but still appropriate in describing one's outlook in life.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
A turd by any other name is still a stinking turd.
A stinking pile of dog dump still stinks by any other name. Same goes for managed risked loans, packaged derivatives, underperforming assets and any other Ivy League B-school financing moniker given to "what the hell were you thinking." Anyone with a functioning brain could have seen the divergent trends of personal income and housing pricing. Personal income has remained relatively constant for many years. The only major change has been the 2 wage earner family during the last generation but that has been pretty much tapped out with 75% of the available spouses already in the workforce. Housing pricing has increased 5-10% for a decade. Duh. How could anyone think this could sustain itself even with clever loan packages. And now we have the current mess.
Bankers have become equal partners in society's sludge pool with lawyers and politicians. The crap pile just gets bigger and more pungent.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
America's Least Favorite Past Time on Roids
A Rod does juice. Ho-hum. Pass the pretzels and mustard. Why do we care. We don't. Americas least favorite past time has less excitement than mid day shuffle board in the Villages. So why would a juice head risk raisin nuts and juice rage to smack a few more balls out of the park? Some illusion of greatness and a chance to boink Madonna. The later might happen but the former - who cares.
Reefer Madness in a Speedo
Michael got caught sniffing the feel good lettuce. Lost his pic on the Wheaties Box and the US swim team furloughed him for a short spell. Holy crickie. What's next Kermit caught sneaking a peak at Piggies silk undies!?!
Saturday, February 07, 2009
Consciousness In a Pickle Jar
I was on that fine edge of a deep sleep and full consciousness when I had the darkest thought. I could hear the wind against the windows. Feel the cool air over my face. Sense my tingling toes against the blankets. Smell the week-old jeans and barely see the dim light through my still closed eyes. Then the thought hit me.
Is one form of hell a fully conscious brain without any direct sensory feedback? Lucid thoughts, desires, awareness but nary a sensory nerve in action. Holy damnation! No sight, feel, sound, smell, taste all the while the brain synapses firing away. To maintain a sense of sanity would the brain create its own imagined sensory feedback? Would its current memories provide the sense of surreal being? Would new memories occur?
How do we know that this isn't already our current state?!?
Play safe my friends ;-)
Sunday, February 01, 2009
last week of January in review
A few notable items:
- 129.5 inches of snow so far in Erie. Makes it the 5th snowest season on record!! Sure looks a record is in the making.
- Bankers have no clue and we're idiots for allowing them to rape the taxpayer. Handing out over 18B in bonuses to bank employees that were taxpayer bailed out is just plain stealing. The reason given is to hold onto the best and brightest. It's ironic that the best and brightest caused the mess in the first place. Quite frankly why aren't the management teams that were in place when they headed under all out of jobs and shunned? It's clear their greed is a major cause of the current global economic crisis the world world currently in.
- The message we're hearing from our new Commander-in-Chief is disappointing. To keep stating that it will get worse before it gets better offers scant hope for the folks that have become jobless, lost their homes, ..... It's no better than the press continuing to headline the massive layoffs, the failed banks and every other doom and gloom issue they can print about. I'm convinced much of the actual recession is a result of the 24/7 negative news causing everyone to panic and compounding the tight economy which is strongly driven by consumer confidence. Why is anyone surprised that consumer confidence is at historical lows when everything one hears is negative. A leader would calm the troops by giving them a sense of hope and guidance on the turnaround. The claim that it will get worse before it gets better is managing expectations of their leadership and providing a prophecy that will be fulfilled just by the fact that the leader had stated it.
- Today is SuperBowl Sunday. Should be an interesting game but I must remind everyone that it's just a game. A few million people will have a day of diversion from life's mundane but world peace and the cure for cancer won't be any closer.
- 129.5 inches of snow so far in Erie. Makes it the 5th snowest season on record!! Sure looks a record is in the making.
- Bankers have no clue and we're idiots for allowing them to rape the taxpayer. Handing out over 18B in bonuses to bank employees that were taxpayer bailed out is just plain stealing. The reason given is to hold onto the best and brightest. It's ironic that the best and brightest caused the mess in the first place. Quite frankly why aren't the management teams that were in place when they headed under all out of jobs and shunned? It's clear their greed is a major cause of the current global economic crisis the world world currently in.
- The message we're hearing from our new Commander-in-Chief is disappointing. To keep stating that it will get worse before it gets better offers scant hope for the folks that have become jobless, lost their homes, ..... It's no better than the press continuing to headline the massive layoffs, the failed banks and every other doom and gloom issue they can print about. I'm convinced much of the actual recession is a result of the 24/7 negative news causing everyone to panic and compounding the tight economy which is strongly driven by consumer confidence. Why is anyone surprised that consumer confidence is at historical lows when everything one hears is negative. A leader would calm the troops by giving them a sense of hope and guidance on the turnaround. The claim that it will get worse before it gets better is managing expectations of their leadership and providing a prophecy that will be fulfilled just by the fact that the leader had stated it.
- Today is SuperBowl Sunday. Should be an interesting game but I must remind everyone that it's just a game. A few million people will have a day of diversion from life's mundane but world peace and the cure for cancer won't be any closer.
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