A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

Eucalyptus iz bullshit!

Looks like a case for Plant Amnesty.

MEBST!!! I was beaten again to the earliest spot on the new thread.

MEBST!

re: #2 Killgore Trout

Eucalyptus iz bullshit!

They're pretty but dang, we've had two vehicles end up damaged from falling branches. Not our trees, county trees.

Repost...

By the way, we are taking votes for our media wing's next distraction. We can't have you noticing the real world too much...

Recently we have been developing a marriage between Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton, only to have them split in a murder/suicide after Lindsay becomes pregnant.

But one of our media interns believes that it would distract your media even longer if the baby were rescued from the dying Lindsay, and then there could be a custody battle.

We would like as an informal poll, to know which father would be the most distracting to your masses:

A) O.J. Simpson

B) Dr. Gates

C) Shatner

D) Michael Jackson's frozen sperm

E) Yasser Arafat's frozen sperm

re: #6 LudwigVanQuixote

D) Michael Jackson's frozen sperm

Obviously true, even to the casual observer.

re: #7 freetoken

Obviously true, even to the casual observer.

That was the obvious choice for me too but did Michael ever have any sperm?

re: #7 freetoken

I see you had an AGW thread here over Shabbos when I wasn't looking. You did a good job fighting the good fight. Good show!

re: #8 Pvt Bin Jammin

That was the obvious choice for me too but did Michael ever have any sperm?

Nothing is impossible for the powers of Zionist Science!

re: #9 LudwigVanQuixote

I really enjoyed the essay freetoken posted on that thread, and look forward to reading more. If you have any suggested reading, I'd love to add to the list.

re: #10 LudwigVanQuixote

Nothing is impossible for the powers of Zionist Science!

LOL But of course.

re: #11 Sharmuta

I really enjoyed the essay freetoken posted on that thread, and look forward to reading more. If you have any suggested reading, I'd love to add to the list.

May I ask how technical you want it to be?

Goodnight lizardim! It has been a fun day. Back to the grind tomorrow.

re: #13 LudwigVanQuixote

Probably best to have me start easy and work my way up.

re: #10 LudwigVanQuixote

Nothing is impossible for the powers of Zionist Science!

I like the scionist zience better.

re: #2 Killgore Trout

Eucalyptus iz bullshit!

True dat.

re: #9 LudwigVanQuixote

Thank you, but... you are the action officer on AGW, I was only filling in.

I'm now thinking that the overarching culture war is a beast that has been stirring for too long. There is no reason for people to reject the findings of scientific inquiry, unless they feel threatened by something.

My concern for our country goes way beyond AGW. We don't do decision making very well from a strategic standpoint. Rather, we make our society (laws, regulations) piecemeal driven by whatever whim of the day has sway. The principal we follow is "Let's eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die."

The cash for clunkers program is a prime example. It really has little to nothing to do with solving big picture environmental problems, but is a way of moving cars off of lots, in the meantime reinforcing the ideas of (1) we ought to build our lives by buying new cars every couple of years, and (2) we ought to go into debt to do it.

But... unemployment is high, car companies are failing, so we got to move those vehicles off the lot!

re: #15 Sharmuta

Probably best to have me start easy and work my way up.

A very good, and scientifically kosher, place to start is this page from UCSD. It has many hyperlinks to different terms and facts. It is written at a basic level and assumes an intelligent, but not necessarily scientifically professional reader.

[Link: earthguide.ucsd.edu...]

For very up to date resources and more cutting edge research, which also has links to press releases and some very, very good tutorial information
you really can not beat this page from Princeton Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Labs. In fact, go to this one first.

[Link: www.gfdl.noaa.gov...]

re: #18 freetoken

Thank you, but... you are the action officer on AGW, I was only filling in.

I'm now thinking that the overarching culture war is a beast that has been stirring for too long. There is no reason for people to reject the findings of scientific inquiry, unless they feel threatened by something.

My concern for our country goes way beyond AGW. We don't do decision making very well from a strategic standpoint. Rather, we make our society (laws, regulations) piecemeal driven by whatever whim of the day has sway. The principal we follow is "Let's eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die."

The cash for clunkers program is a prime example. It really has little to nothing to do with solving big picture environmental problems, but is a way of moving cars off of lots, in the meantime reinforcing the ideas of (1) we ought to build our lives by buying new cars every couple of years, and (2) we ought to go into debt to do it.

But... unemployment is high, car companies are failing, so we got to move those vehicles off the lot!

You rock! BTW, call me Joe.

re: #19 LudwigVanQuixote

Thank you. Placed in my favorites for further review. :)

I think it's time for me to hit the hay. 'Nite lizards, sweet dreams.

re: #21 Sharmuta

Thank you. Placed in my favorites for further review. :)

You are very welcome.

If you are interested in science, accept no substitute. The science does NOT look good for our current civilization and economy. The sooner that people get that, the sooner we start taking real measures to fix things, and I pray to G-d it isn't too late.

Check out Steven Chu on Stewart's show. He can't openly criticize the cap and trade bill as much as he might like to, but he talks a lot of sense.

re: #21 Sharmuta

Thank you. Placed in my favorites for further review. :)

I forgot the link.

[Link: www.hulu.com...]

re: #23 LudwigVanQuixote

I've had enough with propaganda, and I want to look for myself, LVQ. I'll follow the science, because to not do so here would be to do so elsewhere, and I'm not into that. I'm ready to accept reality and find better alternatives to the solutions proposed by the left.

It's just a fractal.

re: #25 Sharmuta

I've had enough with propaganda, and I want to look for myself, LVQ. I'll follow the science, because to not do so here would be to do so elsewhere, and I'm not into that. I'm ready to accept reality and find better alternatives to the solutions proposed by the left.

Chu is not "from the left." He has some very practical things to say. The other reason I pointed him out was a number of his comments dovetail with what we have been saying here.

re: #27 LudwigVanQuixote

Great. I have a lot going on right now, but I plan to work this issue into my reading time when and where I can. Some of your recent comments have really helped me re-examine my position, so I hope both you and freetoken keep up the good work.

re: #28 Sharmuta

Great. I have a lot going on right now, but I plan to work this issue into my reading time when and where I can. Some of your recent comments have really helped me re-examine my position, so I hope both you and freetoken keep up the good work.

Thanks. Honestly Sharm, that was one of the nicest things anyone can say to a scientist.

re: #29 LudwigVanQuixote

Just telling it like it is.

Here's a preview of Obamacare:

The [UK] Government's drug rationing watchdog says "therapeutic" injections of steroids, such as cortisone, which are used to reduce inflammation, should no longer be offered to patients suffering from persistent lower back pain when the cause is not known.

Instead the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is ordering doctors to offer patients remedies like acupuncture and osteopathy.

It gets better.

The NICE guidelines admit that evidence was limited for many back pain treatments, including those it recommended. Where scientific proof was lacking, advice was instead taken from its expert group. But specialists are furious that while the group included practitioners of alternative therapies, there was no one with expertise in conventional pain relief medicine to argue against a decision to significantly restrict its use.

Now, doesn't that sound like something you might want to discuss with your congresscritter?

re: #6 LudwigVanQuixote

Repost...

By the way, we are taking votes for our media wing's next distraction. We can't have you noticing the real world too much...

Recently we have been developing a marriage between Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton, only to have them split in a murder/suicide after Lindsay becomes pregnant.

But one of our media interns believes that it would distract your media even longer if the baby were rescued from the dying Lindsay, and then there could be a custody battle.

We would like as an informal poll, to know which father would be the most distracting to your masses:

A) O.J. Simpson

B) Dr. Gates

C) Shatner

D) Michael Jackson's frozen sperm

E) Yasser Arafat's frozen sperm

Either D or E.

re: #23 LudwigVanQuixote

Check out Steven Chu on Stewart's show. He can't openly criticize the cap and trade bill as much as he might like to, but he talks a lot of sense.

Did you see Sec. Chu on the Charlie Rose show, which was right at the beginning of Chu's tenure as Sec?

Rose quizzed Chu on why he was now accepting Cap and Trade, when before Chu had been rather a proponent of a simple carbon tax. It was an awkward moment (the answer being obvious), so Rose didn't let it languish too long. But it was a good demonstration of the reality of politics.

re: #33 freetoken

Did you see Sec. Chu on the Charlie Rose show, which was right at the beginning of Chu's tenure as Sec?

Rose quizzed Chu on why he was now accepting Cap and Trade, when before Chu had been rather a proponent of a simple carbon tax. It was an awkward moment (the answer being obvious), so Rose didn't let it languish too long. But it was a good demonstration of the reality of politics.

Yeah. Even Stewart rips the Dems for what they did to the cap and trade bill. However, from a scientific perspective, anything that addresses the problem at all is better than nothing.

The issue to keep in mind is pushing back the tip over.

If that gets pushed back at all we have a chance to get real actions that might do something. However, if it doesn't...

The realities fo the situation are that all of the economic arguments in the world are meaningless if you crash your economy utterly when the environment causes things like Wall Street to be under water.

Branches

The Trees

re: #23 LudwigVanQuixote

The science does NOT look good for our current civilization and economy. The sooner that people get that, the sooner we start taking real measures to fix things, and I pray to G-d it isn't too late.

Since Charles has explicitly asked that doomer pr0n not be pushed at LGF I don't put up links to the darker thoughts that inhabit various pockets of the web.

Plus, I think that so much of doomer pr0n is really projection of individual status unto the surrounding society.

However, if/when the LNDT come up I do have a new oil-issue link to put in the spin-offs. Our oil "addiction" is a problem today, not something in the future. Sadly, so many Americans want to buy Sarah Palin's claim that Alaska could "quench" (her words) America's thirst for energy.

I try to steer a middle ground between the doomer pr0nographers and the rosy-glasses/snake-oil peddlers.

Since we've brought up scenarios of future demise...

In between my readings tonight of LGF I am watching the movie "Virus" (original Japanese title: Fukkatsu no hi), which is available for free download over at the Internet Archives.

It's a rather intense look at a doomsday scenario (biological). Kind of a long movie, but it has some touching parts to it, and Japanese movies tend to really know how to dig down into the emotions.

Mostly in English, with some Japanese language.

Ok, back now...better half is a train wreck lately, and was having a small crisis (probably bigger than he lets on) but he looks to be ok now

re: #36 freetoken
Hi, Freetoken.

Sadly, so many Americans want to buy Sarah Palin's claim that Alaska could "quench" (her words) America's thirst for energy.

Wow. I never heard that. Do you have a link?

Pretty interesting video here (just 1:52 - short). Obama and other Democrats seem to have revealed their true intentions regarding taking over the health care industry (via HotAir). If anyone rooting for the Democrats on this issue could explain it, I would sure be interested in how these things reconcile:

re: #38 srb1976

Hi, SRB. Sounds like "better half" can handle it :) . How are you and Her Royal Stoutness?

re: #31 Steffan

Here's a preview of Obamacare:

Now, doesn't that sound like something you might want to discuss with your congresscritter?

For what it's worth, this recommendation simply mirrors the trend in medicine that is already taking place in the United States. Long-term use of steroids is not advisable; they have a number of unpleasant side effects, and more importantly they treat the symptom (inflammation-induced pain) without addressing the underlying cause. In some cases, they can exacerbate a condition. And the favored replacement for reliance on steroids, in many cases, is a round of physical therapy.

I'm certainly not thrilled that the alternative medicine leeches are also being applied; this is a valid criticism of government-run healthcare, where decisions wind up being made for political reasons rather than medical reasons. But the particular recommendation here, to reduce steroid use in favor of physical therapy, is sound and is already being widely practiced in the US.

Hi lizards...did I miss anything?

re: #42 SixDegrees

For what it's worth, this recommendation simply mirrors the trend in medicine that is already taking place in the United States. Long-term use of steroids is not advisable; they have a number of unpleasant side effects, and more importantly they treat the symptom (inflammation-induced pain) without addressing the underlying cause. In some cases, they can exacerbate a condition. And the favored replacement for reliance on steroids, in many cases, is a round of physical therapy.

I'm certainly not thrilled that the alternative medicine leeches are also being applied; this is a valid criticism of government-run healthcare, where decisions wind up being made for political reasons rather than medical reasons. But the particular recommendation here, to reduce steroid use in favor of physical therapy, is sound and is already being widely practiced in the US.

Note: I should qualify some of my statements, and note that in some cases steroids are extremely useful and beneficial. I'm not claiming that their judicious use is being avoided. But there has been a tendency to overuse them in pain management that has led, in the long run, to poor patient care.

re: #41 BatGuano

Hi, SRB. Sounds like "better half" can handle it :) . How are you and Her Royal Stoutness?

I'm doing well, and Her Royal Stoutness is ruling with an iron fist as usual = )
Thanks!

re: #39 BatGuano

I believe she said it a couple of times, including at a ceremony at the Seward House not long ago, when they honored Mr. Seward (and thus they had the gov. of Alaska come to honor Mr. Seward.)

I watched a brief video of her speech at that event...

I believe it was during this video:

(not sure which part)

re: #46 freetoken

Thanks, Freetoken! Nice speech,about but nothing about Alaska being able to quench America's thirst for oil.

re: #45 srb1976

Glad to hear it SRB!

re: #48 BatGuano

How's life treating you?

re: #47 BatGuano

Yeah, I screwed up the second sentence. PIMF

re: #49 srb1976

How's life treating you?

"It's a dog eat dog world and I'm wearing Milkbone underwear", Norm-Cheers

re: #47 BatGuano

Not sure that version got all of the speech... did you notice the edit around the 6:00 mark?

From the very pro-Palin site Conservatives4Palin:

Governor Palin's Seward House Address: Washington, DC Stands In Our Way

[the blog writer quoting Sarah Palin]

"Alaska can actually quench America's thirst for hydrocarbons for years, and reduce energy costs, and reduce the dependence on foreign sources of energy if given the opportunities that America was founded upon [...]"

I'm pretty sure I heard the word "quench" in one of her speeches. If I had more time I'd look for other (non-edited) versions of that Auburn speech, but right now I don't.

I really need to find a good local charity that can use TONS of little kid clothes!!

I almost hate giving them all to goodwill, but the sheer volume will fill up the house if we don't get rid of it!

re: #52 freetoken

Freetoken, Don't worry about it. I'll poke around see what I can find. Thanks.

re: #36 freetoken

Since Charles has explicitly asked that doomer pr0n not be pushed at LGF I don't put up links to the darker thoughts that inhabit various pockets of the web.

Plus, I think that so much of doomer pr0n is really projection of individual status unto the surrounding society.

However, if/when the LNDT come up I do have a new oil-issue link to put in the spin-offs. Our oil "addiction" is a problem today, not something in the future. Sadly, so many Americans want to buy Sarah Palin's claim that Alaska could "quench" (her words) America's thirst for energy.

I try to steer a middle ground between the doomer pr0nographers and the rosy-glasses/snake-oil peddlers.

If Charles wishes to tell me that the tipping point isn't real or that it is doomer Pr0n, he is welcome to do so, and I will respectfully pull out all of the science I know to point out that a tipping point is a real thing.

The fact is that if we cross such a point, we will loose the caps.

The fact is that would be very bad for the way we run our civilization as we know it. Look at the projections from Princeton. These are not the darker corners of the web. These are not moonbats. This is the reality we are heading towards to the best that we can tell.

re: #55 LudwigVanQuixote

I'm pretty sure that is not what Charles meant.

Just like the science of human sexuality is not the same as "real" pr0n... scientific discussions about mankind and his ecology is not "doomer" pr0n.

Doomer pr0n is usually about people fantasizing about a near term "die-off" of a great majority of mankind.

re: #53 srb1976

I know what you mean. I still have baby clothes that go back to 1982 and I still can't bear to part with them.

re: #57 BatGuano

How do they fit?
/

re: #56 freetoken

I'm pretty sure that is not what Charles meant.

Just like the science of human sexuality is not the same as "real" pr0n... scientific discussions about mankind and his ecology is not "doomer" pr0n.

Doomer pr0n is usually about people fantasizing about a near term "die-off" of a great majority of mankind.

Except that if we loose the caps, and the weather/growing patterns change sufficiently, there will be a mass die off. I don't know about the majority of mankind, but certainly hundreds of millions will lose their homes and not have enough food or clean water. If you consider a time scale of the next hundred years near term or not is a matter of semantics.

re: #57 BatGuano

Shoot, at this point we're not being sentimental...every time I do laundry I run across stuff that the Little Man outgrew 4 years ago...
Since my kids are the smallest ones I know, I can't just give them to friends...and the local goodwill acts like their doing me a favor (they are...but don't tell them) just to take them...

re: #58 Fenway_Nation

How do they fit?
/

Fine, as long as I'm doing the French Mistake. :)

re: #59 LudwigVanQuixote

If you consider a time scale of the next hundred years near term or not is a matter of semantics.

I agree that if you look at century long timescales then the ultimate havoc wrought by climate change does indeed fit a definition of "die-off."

Doomer pr0n, at least that which I have come across, tends not to be as concerned with the long picture as much as near term scenarios of societal collapse. Usually a villain is identified up front (capitalism, militaries, secret societies, mad scientists, etc.) and an expected-soon scenario is run where mankind goes mad.

Examples popular in recent times: a common scenario was an impending attack on Iran by the Bush administration leading to WWIII. Another popular scenario was that terrorists (AQ) already had suitcase nukes (from the old USSR) and was smuggling them in via the Mexican border.

Generally these types of fantasies feed some great fear common among people.

re: #60 srb1976

Shoot, at this point we're not being sentimental...every time I do laundry I run across stuff that the Little Man outgrew 4 years ago...
Since my kids are the smallest ones I know, I can't just give them to friends...and the local goodwill acts like their doing me a favor (they are...but don't tell them) just to take them...

I know. I should give them to Goodwill but I every time I see their little socks...

re: #60 srb1976

PURPLE HEART!

Years ago I bought my daughter a Froot Loops t-shirt at Kohl's. Probably spent $10-12. She took it to camp one summer (which meant her name was on the label) and at some point, she having outgrown it, not to mention me washing it to death, I donated it to Purple Heart.

A couple of years after that we were shopping in one of those chi-chi "vintage" stores on South Street in Philadelphia, and there on the rack, with her name still on the label, was that darn Froot Loops t-shirt! For $20!

;-)

re: #64 littleoldlady

Sweet!

I was thinking about trying to find the local battered women's shelter...they can usually use stuff like that...most of what I have right now is infant sized (HRS is very small...usually 2 sizes behind her age)

but the little socks she can still wear...tiny feet...the last shoes she outgrew were size 2

re: #64 littleoldlady

Looks like I'm in the wrong line of work...

re: #65 srb1976

That's probably an even better idea. :-)

re: #66 Fenway_Nation

EXACTLY what I thought when I saw it!

re: #65 srb1976

Little socks... I might be a Daddy but I'm a Mommy too!

Branches Elected Republican representatives are not, repeat NOT, advised to seek the most extreme perch of the most radically divided limb, fire up the rhetorical chainsaw, then expect the supporting strength of every rational conservative nearer the center.

/my 20-second rorschach reaction

re: #69 BatGuano

Little socks... I might be a Daddy but I'm a Mommy too!

It's nuts, but the little knit booties the hospital sent her home with still fit...and she'll be 2 next month...poor kid will never be able to find shoes easy or cheap = )

re: #62 freetoken

I agree that if you look at century long timescales then the ultimate havoc wrought by climate change does indeed fit a definition of "die-off."

Doomer pr0n, at least that which I have come across, tends not to be as concerned with the long picture as much as near term scenarios of societal collapse. Usually a villain is identified up front (capitalism, militaries, secret societies, mad scientists, etc.) and an expected-soon scenario is run where mankind goes mad.

Examples popular in recent times: a common scenario was an impending attack on Iran by the Bush administration leading to WWIII. Another popular scenario was that terrorists (AQ) already had suitcase nukes (from the old USSR) and was smuggling them in via the Mexican border.

Generally these types of fantasies feed some great fear common among people.

OK I hear you. However, I am not projecting any politics into this analysis. Further, that is a century timescale for things to get really bad. The tipping point comes in decades though.

And if we cross it, it really will take something like Divine intervention to save hundreds of millions of lives. This is reality. It is not a pretty one.

re: #66 Fenway_Nation

Looks like I'm in the wrong line of work...

In the mid-eighties my Mom told told me that a younger cousin wanted an old Levi jacket. I had one Circa 1977 So I gave it to her. My Mom then said that my cousin said that they were going for about 200 a piece. I still have Levi jackets going back to 1978.

Good morning, afternoon, evening *everyone*!™

Fruitcup is on the buffet - - - >
Help yourselves!

re: #74 littleoldlady

Yay! Fruitcup!

Looks like I'm in the wrong line of work...

re: #74 littleoldlady

Good morning, afternoon, evening *everyone*!™

Fruitcup is on the buffet - - - >
Help yourselves!

8 seconds late!But thank you, littleoldldy!

Fenway! :-)

Don't kid yourself.

re: #74 littleoldlady

Mmm, Fruitcup!

re: #74 littleoldlady

Yay!! Fruitcup!
(goes great with coffee)

BatGuano! :-)

I haven't hit it on time in like...forever! :-/

Speaking of which...how's red been, btw?

sng! :-)

Hiya! :-)

srb! :-)

What doesn't go well with coffee? ;-)

does fruit cup go with chips lol?

re: #72 LudwigVanQuixote

And if we cross it, it really will take something like Divine intervention to save hundreds of millions of lives. This is reality. It is not a pretty one.

Well then, you might want to hire lobbyist (and former Republican representative from Texas) Dick Armey to plead your case:

re: #74 littleoldlady

Many thanks, littleoldlady! You're the best :)

yochanan! :-)

Sure, why not? ;-)

Clemente! :-)

Good to see you!

re: #77 littleoldlady

Looks like I picked the rong week to stop sniffing airplane glue...

re: #87 Fenway_Nation

Looks like I picked the rong week to stop sniffing airplane glue...

No such week... ;-)

re: #75 Fenway_Nation

Looks like this is the wrong day to stop sniffingre: #87 Fenway_Nation

I was looking for that on Youtube!

bbl

re: #74 littleoldlady

Fruitcup is on the buffet - - - >

Yay!

Does fruitcup go very well with Ben&Jerry's Mint Chocolate Chunk ice cream?

/cause I just ate half a pint...

re: #88 littleoldlady

Good to hear...looks like I'm off the wagon already.

freetoken! :-)

Only HALF?!

/on sale this week at Acme, which means MY flavor - Coffee Heath Bar Crunch - is hard to come by

re: #93 littleoldlady

If you like that...try the Vermonty Python...yum!

re: #83 freetoken

Audio is bad. Do you support AGW? Sorry, I'm trying to keep up amid multiple distractions.

re: #80 littleoldlady

BatGuano! :-)

I haven't hit it on time in like...forever! :-/

Speaking of which...how's red been, btw?

Alas, no word.

"Raw ceviche- sold from the back of a truck...what went wrong?..."

*resumes vomiting*

Dale Gribble- King of The Hill

re: #95 BatGuano

On that youtube video of Armey the audio pickup was too low, so on replay I have to turn my Mac audio all the way up (and the youtube audio control also.)

BTW, I "support" modernism, by which I mean among other things the rise of the scientific endeavor as the means of gathering information about our world/universe.

re: #94 srb1976

If you like that...try the Vermonty Python...yum!

re: #93 littleoldlady

Only HALF?!

Sadly, it was all I had left :-(

re: #88 littleoldlady

Is there any fruitcup left. I cannot sleep.

re: #101 Pvt Bin Jammin

Oh...that was your fruitcup?

re: #43 Fenway_Nation

Hi lizards...did I miss anything?

Did you catch Charles' column at HuffPo, where he convincingly defends Glenn Beck, plugs his upcoming world tour with that nitwit ex-governor on Fox, and endorses Texas' 14th district Representative for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination?

/kinda made up some of that

//ok, all of that. sry!

re: #102 Fenway_Nation

Oh...that was your fruitcup?

Oh noes! Is Red around? Maybe I need some of his fruitcup.

Pvt Bin Jammin! :-)

It's backwards day! ;-)

re: #98 freetoken

So, Do you believe in AGW? I'm not making a value judgement.

re: #105 littleoldlady

That's okay. Good to see you!

re: #99 BatGuano

I had actually typed a response. What happened to it? Rhetorical question.

re: #107 Pvt Bin Jammin

Any particular reason you can't sleep?

/of course, I don't need a particular reason myself... ;-)

re: #109 littleoldlady

Any particular reason you can't sleep?

/of course, I don't need a particular reason myself... ;-)

Family issues, I suppose. At least it's not the immediate family.

re: #110 Pvt Bin Jammin

I hope all the problems work out okay!

{PBJ}!

re: #103 Clemente

Ya had me goin'!

re: #111 littleoldlady

re: #111 littleoldlady

Thanks.

Fruitcup? But I was craving a G-n-M crab cake...

===

I still have all but one of my old Levi jackets. But their not worth anything to anybody else. Not much left of them. When they got too small or worn out they were appropriated by my Schipperkes for bedding. One of my old black leather jackets went the same way. I fully expect my next Schip to lay claim to the same bedding the same way the last two did.

TRADITIONS,
R

re: #114 Render

Tradition!

RENDER! :-)

It's so good to have you back!

Tradition!

G'nite all you kooky lizards...my search for work begins anew later on today.

re: #118 Fenway_Nation

Best of luck!

re: #118 Fenway_Nation

Good luck, Fenway!

Back again...slipped away to cook up something yummy and messy for breakfast before bed!

Good luck, Fenway! :-)

re: #121 srb1976
It wasn't crab cakes was it? Render made me hungry.

re: #123 Pvt Bin Jammin

It wasn't crab cakes was it? Render made me hungry.

Nope...eggs scrambled with mushrooms, onion, tomato, ham and cheese...toast on the side...messy but good

re: #124 srb1976

Nope...eggs scrambled with mushrooms, onion, tomato, ham and cheese...toast on the side...messy but good

Yum. Got any left?

re: #125 Pvt Bin Jammin

For you...sure!

re: #116 littleoldlady

DillyDallied!

(they're - their - there) lemme get that outta the way...

===

Nice to be back, although I never really left.

Digital fruitcup isn't curing the growling in my stomach, and G-n-M's doesn't open until six and a half hours from now, so I'm gonna "settle" for some turkey sausage cooked on the grill, with some scrambled eggs and lox.

WANT
SOME?,
R

I know I have some Raisinettes around here, somewhere...

re: #127 Render

WANT
SOME?,

YES!

/PLEASE! :-)

I think that's going to be dinner...lox, scallions and cream cheese omelettes.

/lox mode
//my favorite! :-)

re: #124 srb1976

Nope...eggs scrambled with mushrooms, onion, tomato, ham and cheese...toast on the side...messy but good

Don't forget the fruit cup! Perfect with that.

re: #130 Clemente

Don't forget the fruit cup! Perfect with that.

Perfect...fruit and veggies! I feel healthier already = )

re: #130 Clemente

Don't forget the fruit cup! Perfect with that.

Some un-named lizards have already chowed down on the fruitcup but I heard somewhere they have some chips over at Hurry Up Harry's website.

re: #129 littleoldlady

Back in a few, gotta explode the grill (igniter's broken so I gotta throw flaming wooden matches at it while posing like a track star). If you see a small mushroom cloud on the Mid-Eastern seaboard, breakfast'll be ready in 15 minutes...

WOOSH,
R

re: #132 Pvt Bin Jammin

Bwahaha! Scavenging for food on the internet!

/look what we have come to! ;-)

You folks are making me too hungry for this time of morning...

re: #134 littleoldlady

I've found that when getting turned around for night shift, I sleep better during the day if I fix some breakfast before I go to bed...and every little bit helps

re: #134 littleoldlady

Bwahaha! Scavenging for food on the internet!

/look what we have come to! ;-)

You folks are making me too hungry for this time of morning...

LOL. It's pretty bad, isn't it?

re: #133 Render

GAH! BE CAREFUL, will you?!

/geez!

Speaking of grills...I have a question regarding a safety issue: The metal piece that hangs over the burner part of our gas grill is burned through (open to below) in some places. I always get an actual flame when I bar-b-que anything. Is that okay? Or do I need a new grill?

goodnight all. BatGuano signing off:

re: #137 littleoldlady

Seems like when that happened to out grill, better half got all handy and "converted" it to charcoal...but I am not the grill person here, so I defer to wiser advice = )

re: #138 BatGuano

Sweet dreams!

'Night, BatGuano! :-)

re: #139 srb1976

I suppose I could try to replace that part... :-/

/or get a new one
//charcoal is not my thing

re: #141 littleoldlady

One of my sil's said you can buy parts on line but I haven't looked. Our actual grill is shot. What's that burner part made of, sheet metal?

re: #137 littleoldlady

That metal piece is there to deflect the grease drippings away from the open flame. You should replace it, or the grill. I have a friend who is a sheet metal worker, he replaced the original burnt through shield in my old (early 80's) Sunbeam propane grill with a stainless steel one. Back when I had money...

Replaced all four legs with 1/4 inch angle iron too. One of these days I'll get around to replacing the igniter, but it's such fun to make the whole back porch shake on ignition.

LIFT
OFF,
R

re: #137 littleoldlady

GAH! BE CAREFUL, will you?!

/geez!

Speaking of grills...I have a question regarding a safety issue: The metal piece that hangs over the burner part of our gas grill is burned through (open to below) in some places. I always get an actual flame when I bar-b-que anything. Is that okay? Or do I need a new grill?

See if whoever made your grill has a website that lists parts. It's usually possible to order individual replacement parts like these heat shields. Sometimes, local barbecue/grill shops will stock parts for the more popular brands.

Cooking over an open flame is not good on a gas grill. Crud from the food will get in the burner orifices, causing problems, and the grate and lid will suffer as well. Not to mention that your food will get burnt on the outside and be raw on the inside - but some people like that sort of thing.

Ok folks...gonna play with the Rock band game for a minute and then head to bed...
Better half HAD to have the game...today! Then got it and realized that he really misses the fingertip they cut off last month (not funny, but funny)
= )

re: #142 Pvt Bin Jammin

One of my sil's said you can buy parts on line but I haven't looked. Our actual grill is shot. What's that burner part made of, sheet metal?

Yeah, I think so. We've kept grills alive by replacing parts before. There's a junk shop type place not too far from here that carries a lot of different parts, and I've ordered over the internet, too.

Just wondering if it's worth it...

re: #143 Render

Whew! Glad you made it back alive! ;-)

re: #144 SixDegrees

Hiya, Six! :-)

What do you think they call that part?

re: #146 littleoldlady

Yeah, I think so. We've kept grills alive by replacing parts before. There's a junk shop type place not too far from here that carries a lot of different parts, and I've ordered over the internet, too.

Just wondering if it's worth it...

I know what you mean. Ours is getting pretty old too and they are on sale around here. The guys weighed in with some good advice.

Guess I will try the sleeping routine again. Good to see everybody.

Bye, srb! :-)

'Night, Pvt Bin Jammin! :-)

re: #146 littleoldlady

Yeah, I think so. We've kept grills alive by replacing parts before. There's a junk shop type place not too far from here that carries a lot of different parts, and I've ordered over the internet, too.

Just wondering if it's worth it...

Depends. For a decent quality grill, spending twenty to fifty bucks every two or three years to keep it in operation makes sense. If it's a bottom-of-the-barrel no-brand grill that only cost $65.00, not so much.

At some point, an upgrade is called for. Mid-summer, however, is not the time to buy. Here in the Great White North, January is a solid month to buy outdoor cooking equipment - if you can find any. The weekend after Labor Day is another good bet.

re: #147 littleoldlady

Whew! Glad you made it back alive! ;-)

re: #144 SixDegrees

Hiya, Six! :-)

What do you think they call that part?

My guess is that it's the vaporizer bar. On Webers, it's called a "flavorizer bar"; too bad they don't have a picture of it for confirmation. They've got an 800 number; it might be possible to describe it over the phone if their service center employees speak English.

re: #129 littleoldlady

YES!

/PLEASE! :-)

I think that's going to be dinner...lox, scallions and cream cheese omelettes.

/lox mode
//my favorite! :-)

lox rawx!

re: #147 littleoldlady

Whew! Glad you made it back alive! ;-)

re: #144 SixDegrees

Hiya, Six! :-)

What do you think they call that part?

Morning. Are you talking about a "V" shaped piece that is inverted and covers where the flame comes out?

re: #150 SixDegrees

Yeah, it seems to me that the bargains were all in the beginning of the summer.

Meanwhile...this isn't too bad. Pretty much what we have now.

I just may go that route and forget the parts...

re: #153 Cannadian Club Akbar

Morning. Are you talking about a "V" shaped piece that is inverted and covers where the flame comes out?

Cannadian Club Akbar! :-)

That's it!

re: #151 SixDegrees

My guess is that it's the vaporizer bar. On Webers, it's called a "flavorizer bar"; too bad they don't have a picture of it for confirmation. They've got an 800 number; it might be possible to describe it over the phone if their service center employees speak English.

Here's some PDF assembly instructions that might help, on the Specifications tab. Looks like the vaporizer bar is what I'm thinking of; whether that's what you're talking about is an open question.

re: #156 SixDegrees

Vaporizer bar. You're right.

/...turns head sideways ;-)

re: #155 littleoldlady

Cannadian Club Akbar! :-)

That's it!

If you call, just explain that to them. Some people call it a heat deflector, others call it a heat dampener. Measure the length and width. The pitch on the piece won't change much. Also, remove it and take it to a restaurant supply store. The can get what you need.

"I'm gonna do this snack in real time..."

/vinnie

re: #157 littleoldlady

Vaporizer bar. You're right.

/...turns head sideways ;-)

Yeah. They're designed to be replaced every few years; even stainless steel gets beaten up by the intense heat. On Webers, they just lift out; there's not fastener holding them in place. Looks like Char-Broil is the same.

Also, check your local Home Depot or Lowes. Both carry Char-Broil, and they have quite a few parts on hand. It would save you shipping costs.

re: #158 Cannadian Club Akbar

Thanks! :-)

Now I'm thinking maybe a new one. There could be other things wrong with this old unit that I can't see (although the igniter DOES work!) that might make it dangerous.

/bar-b-que'd littleoldlady isn't my thing, either

re: #160 SixDegrees

Yeah. They're designed to be replaced every few years; even stainless steel gets beaten up by the intense heat. On Webers, they just lift out; there's not fastener holding them in place. Looks like Char-Broil is the same.

Also, check your local Home Depot or Lowes. Both carry Char-Broil, and they have quite a few parts on hand. It would save you shipping costs.

[no phone numbers allowed]546&lpage=none">Here you go.

Yeah. They're designed to be replaced every few years; even stainless steel gets beaten up by the intense heat. On Webers, they just lift out; there's not fastener holding them in place. Looks like Char-Broil is the same.

Also, check your local Home Depot or Lowes. Both carry Char-Broil, and they have quite a few parts on hand. It would save you shipping costs.

Ack! The forum ate my link! Let's try that again:

[no phone numbers allowed]546&lpage=none">Try here.re: #160

re: #160 SixDegrees

I know that it does swivel - because I tried to clean it! - but even if it's held in by screws I could probably handle it. ;-)

Home Depot here I come!

/one way or another...I really need a BBQ!

re: #163 SixDegrees

Ack! The forum ate my link! Let's try that again:

OK, I give up; for some reason, my links aren't working. They have them at Lowes: [Link: www.lowes.com...][no phone numbers allowed]546&lpage=none

re: #165 SixDegrees

OK, I give up; for some reason, my links aren't working. They have them at Lowes: [Link: www.lowes.com...][no phone numbers allowed]546&lpage=none

Part of the URL looks like a phone number to Charles' scripts. Go to the Lowes website, search for "char broil bar" and it'll turn up.

re: #161 littleoldlady

Thanks! :-)

Now I'm thinking maybe a new one. There could be other things wrong with this old unit that I can't see (although the igniter DOES work!) that might make it dangerous.

/bar-b-que'd littleoldlady isn't my thing, either

As long as you are getting fire right away, run it until it is falling apart. The only big problem might be gas build up, but you are getting immediate flame. Plus, since you are in the north, I'm guessing gas grills might be on sale in February. :)

re: #165 SixDegrees

Your link might have a 7 or 10 digit number that the auto-censor is deleting?

re: #164 littleoldlady

I know that it does swivel - because I tried to clean it! - but even if it's held in by screws I could probably handle it. ;-)

Home Depot here I come!

/one way or another...I really need a BBQ!

Live isn't worth living without grilling.

My friend just bought a new grill and it has a "tub" that covers the burners. Keeps drippings from the elements and you can put chips in a steel bowl with water to get a nice smoke flavor.

re: #164 littleoldlady

Sausages been turned.

I couldn't live without a grill. The kitchen is all electric and if/when the power goes out for extended periods of time my grill becomes the family lifeline. Hence the thermonuclear survivability modifications.

That, and it's a guy thing to hotrod everything in sight...

BIGGER
FASTER
MEANER,
R

re: #171 Render

I keep a gas grill just for hurricaine season. No power? No problem.

re: #171 Render

I feel the same way about having a grill (except the hotrod part ;-). We're all electric, too. We keep an extra tank of gas for justincase.

Believe it or not, hurricanes happen in Philadelphia...on occasion.

Well, thank you ALL very much for your help! :-)

I have to go out to see what kind of damage yesterday's hurricane storm did...

Good day, ALL!™

Gone too...

Remember this?

[Link: www.fuzzymemories.tv...]

SHAZAM,
R

I was distracted at the market Saturday when I reached in to get a pint of 1/2-and-1/2 and got a pint of heavy whipping cream instead. Coffee oughta' be interesting today.

re: #176 MandyManners

I was distracted at the market Saturday when I reached in to get a pint of 1/2-and-1/2 and got a pint of heavy whipping cream instead. Coffee oughta' be interesting today.

You just won't need as much. Plus, heavy cream will last much longer.

Ooh, lookee--I have two comments in the Top 10 for what I posted to that nasty bit, drcordell.

re: #177 Cannadian Club Akbar

You just won't need as much. Plus, heavy cream will last much longer.

Will it be thicker?

re: #178 MandyManners

Ooh, lookee--I have two comments in the Top 10 for what I posted to that nasty bit, drcordell.

Is one of them "Piss up a rope" ?

re: #179 MandyManners

Will it be thicker?

It is thicker, just don't use as much. But if you use the same amount, you won't be disappointed.

Oh, great. A new HIV stratin has been found in humans that previously has been in gorillas only.

How did it get into humans? Do I really wanna' know?

re: #182 MandyManners

Evolution.

re: #182 MandyManners

Oh, great. A new HIV stratin has been found in humans that previously has been in gorillas only.

How did it get into humans? Do I really wanna' know?

I think it "jumped." That is also why I don't date girls who used to date gorillas.

re: #180 Cannadian Club Akbar

Is one of them "Piss up a rope" ?

No. Just two syllables.

re: #185 MandyManners

No. Just two syllables.

"Good day?"

Good morning.

re: #6 LudwigVanQuixote

We would like as an informal poll, to know which father would be the most distracting to your masses:

A) O.J. Simpson
B) Dr. Gates
C) Shatner

I resemble that remark!

D) Michael Jackson's frozen sperm

I don't believe that MJ has ever been any child's biological father, nor ever will be (all of the times he's asked kids "Who's your daddy?" notwithstanding).

E) Yasser Arafat's frozen sperm

Isn't that hidden in Syria with the other WMDs?

re: #181 Cannadian Club Akbar

It is thicker, just don't use as much. But if you use the same amount, you won't be disappointed.

Oh, this is yummy, almost chewy.

re: #8 Pvt Bin Jammin

That was the obvious choice for me too but did Michael ever have any sperm?

You'd need a breathalyzer to answer that question.

re: #183 Sharmuta

Evolution.

The virus evolved in one human? From what I heard a few minutes ago, a woman in Africa is the first known patient.

re: #184 Cannadian Club Akbar

I think it "jumped." That is also why I don't date girls who used to date gorillas.

I can just imagine your singles ad.

re: #186 Cannadian Club Akbar

"Good day?"

Yeah! That's it!

Good morning.

Look for the market to open on the upside as the market has been down for so long that slowing the decline is starting to look like "up".

U.S. stock futures up on economic optimism

U.S. stock futures rose on Monday, as indications of improving economic health emerged from across the world.

S&P 500 futures rose 11.7 points to 996.10 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 23.25 points to 1,625.20. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 84 points.

U.S. stocks rose over 7% last month, the best July since 1997, according to Standard & Poor's. The materials sector led the advance while more defensive sectors like telecoms and utilities lagged.

Data released on Monday showed purchasing managers' indexes up in China, the U.K. and the euro zone, with the Chinese data and, surprisingly to economists, the U.K. figures as well, above the 50-mark indicating economic expansion.

The equivalent gauge in the U.S., the Institute of Supply Management's manufacturing index, is due for release at 10 a.m. Eastern time. Construction spending data also is due.

Good morning, world!

re: #191 MandyManners

The virus evolved in one human? From what I heard a few minutes ago, a woman in Africa is the first known patient.

The virus is capable of evolving, certainly. Just because this woman is the first might not mean she's the only one. But evolution caused swine flu, so...

re: #194 3 wood

What have you heard about raising taxes on the middle class?

re: #195 SteveC

Good morning, world!

Sez you.

Seriously, I'm getting back in the saddle for the school year. I've been awake for 90 minutes. grrr

re: #197 MandyManners

What have you heard about raising taxes on the middle class?

To quote that well respected philosopher, Tone Loc,

"Let's do it!"

re: #196 Sharmuta

The virus is capable of evolving, certainly. Just because this woman is the first might not mean she's the only one. But evolution caused swine flu, so...

So the medications will need to be adjusted to inhibit it?

re: #184 Cannadian Club Akbar

I think it "jumped." That is also why I don't date girls who used to date gorillas.

"Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street."
-Joe Jackson

re: #200 MandyManners

I don't know.

re: #197 MandyManners

What have you heard about raising taxes on the middle class?

Zero promised no taxes on the middle class. I know so. I heared him.
/

However, all is not rosy in the international markets:

HSBC profit drops 57% on rising bad-debt charges

HSBC Holdings, Europe's largest bank, on Monday reported a 57% drop in net profit as surging losses from bad loans were partly offset by higher profits in its investment banking unit.

The group said net profit for the six months to June 30 fell to $3.35 billion from $7.72 billion.

Pretax profit dropped 51% to $5.02 billion, but excluding impacts from the fluctuating value of its own debt in both periods, pretax profit would have been roughly flat at $7.5 billion. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a pretax profit of $4.9 billion.

re: #194 3 wood

Mornin' Wood! We missed you last week.

Good to have you back!

re: #182 MandyManners

Oh, great. A new HIV stratin has been found in humans that previously has been in gorillas only.

How did it get into humans? Do I really wanna' know?

I didn't know she was a gorilla! I thought she was an alien from Sigma Beta 5!

re: #201 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

"Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street."
-Joe Jackson

Hey look over there! Here come Jeanie with her new boyfriend...!

re: #197 MandyManners

What have you heard about raising taxes on the middle class?

There are going to be a bunch of them, but they will probably be called "fees". They are going to try to make it past the next congressional election before they really start jacking things up.

Also, the definition of "rich" is moving down the income scale. Figure on "rich" being about $50,000 and up.

re: #205 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Thank you for the kind sentiment.

re: #199 SteveC

To quote that well respected philosopher, Tone Loc,

"Let's do it!"

It'll be just $50.00?

re: #201 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

"Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street."
-Joe Jackson

re: #209 3 wood

Kind sentiment my ass. There is a gigantic effing hole in the morning threads without you in them.

C'mon y'all. Gimme an AMEN!

re: #202 Sharmuta

I don't know.

Have scientists ever figured out how it got into humans?

re: #203 Cannadian Club Akbar

Zero promised no taxes on the middle class. I know so. I heared him.
/

Can I sell you some Harvard transcripts? I'll kick in a birth certificate for free.

re: #206 JamesTKirk

I didn't know she was a gorilla! I thought she was an alien from Sigma Beta 5!

All that hair didn't tip you off?

re: #213 MandyManners

Have scientists ever figured out how it got into humans?

They just discovered this- I'm sure they're very curious as to how it happened.

re: #215 MandyManners

re: #206 JamesTKirk

I didn't know she was a gorilla! I thought she was an alien from Sigma Beta 5!

All that hair didn't tip you off?

She said she was half-French.

(She did surrender pretty quickly...)

China is leading the rebound out of the international recession:
Metals, Oil, Stocks Advance as Chinese Manufacturing Expands

Aug. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Metals and oil rose, while commodity stocks led the MSCI World Index up for a third day after Chinese manufacturing expanded at the fastest pace in a year.

Copper reached its highest price since October, with nickel and zinc at their strongest levels since September. Crude traded above $70 a barrel for the first time in a month. The MSCI World Index, a gauge of 23 developed markets, added 1 percent at 11:09 a.m. in London, as HSBC Holdings Plc’s first-half profit beat analysts’ estimates. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 1.1 percent. The yen fell against all 16 most-traded currencies.

The CLSA China Purchasing Managers’ Index in China, the world’s biggest consumer of copper and aluminum, rose to a seasonally adjusted 52.8, from

51.8 in June. Commodity prices may extend their rally in 2010 as the global slump abates, said Nouriel Roubini, the New York University professor who predicted the financial crisis. Economists predict U.S. manufacturing probably contracted at the slowest pace in 11 months in July.

China reacted to the recession by cutting taxes and encouraging entreprenuership.

I expect Obama to take credit for the Chinese rebound.

re: #218 3 wood

I expect Obama to take credit for the Chinese rebound.

I expect Obama to take credit for the sun rising every morning.

re: #208 3 wood

There are going to be a bunch of them, but they will probably be called "fees". They are going to try to make it past the next congressional election before they really start jacking things up.

Also, the definition of "rich" is moving down the income scale. Figure on "rich" being about $50,000 and up.

First, it was those making $250,000.00 who were defined as "rich". IIRC, that was moved down to $70,000.00 sometime during the campaign. (Or, maybe--if a faint memory is correct--FCBBHO had always said that $70,000.00 is rich.)

Fees. Levies. Maybe even some fines for not doing what our lords will us to do.

re: #220 MandyManners

First, it was those making $250,000.00 who were defined as "rich". IIRC, that was moved down to $70,000.00 sometime during the campaign. (Or, maybe--if a faint memory is correct--FCBBHO had always said that $70,000.00 is rich.)

Fees. Levies. Maybe even some fines for not doing what our lords will us to do.

Next: "Anybody who has a job is rich."

After that: "We have eliminated the rich!"

re: #212 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Kind sentiment my ass. There is a gigantic effing hole in the morning threads without you in them.

C'mon y'all. Gimme an AMEN!

AMEN!

re: #208 3 wood

There are going to be a bunch of them, but they will probably be called "fees". They are going to try to make it past the next congressional election before they really start jacking things up.

Also, the definition of "rich" is moving down the income scale. Figure on "rich" being about $50,000 and up.

I believe the Bush tax cuts will expire ... but this won't be called "raising taxes".

Also, if any form of cap and tax gets through, this will be, effectively an upstream tax on everybody.

The cigarette tax was certainly a tax on middle and low-income folks. Look for more of this sort of stuff.

The beat goes on ... this list could be longer than the Zero's mistakes list

re: #220 MandyManners

Remember when "Rich" was someone who made more than you?

Now, frackin' millionaires are calling me rich.

I don't have elastic in my underwear, and those ass-hats are calling me rich.

Got on the Elevator at Duke Children's Hospital. One of the floors is named the Jim Valvano Day Hospital.

I had to smile. Back in the day some of those Duke fans would have hung Valvano from the highest tree. Now thanks to his foundation, his name is plastered all over the fifth floor! Jimmy's got to be chuckling from the great beyond.

"Cancer can take my body, but it will never take my heart, it will never take my soul, and it will never take my mind." - Jim Valvano, at the first Jimmy V. Fund dinner. (His last)

/Godspeed, Jimmy.

the banks are buying treasuries...with our money:

Bailout Banks Buying Treasuries Help Keep Rates Low

U.S. lenders bailed out by the government are returning the favor by stepping up purchases of Treasuries, helping to temper a rise in borrowing costs.

Bank holdings of U.S. government securities are up 15.6 percent from a year ago, almost double the average annual growth rate of about 8 percent since the Federal Reserve began tracking the data in 1973, according to the Greenwich, Connecticut-based trading and research firm MKM Partners LP. Purchases may accelerate as lenders look for places to park rising deposits as sales of federal agency debt of companies such as Fannie Mae and corporate bonds slow.

“We expect demand to shift to Treasuries, given low net supply in corporates,” Srini Ramaswamy, a fixed-income strategist at New York-based JPMorgan Chase & Co., the second- biggest U.S. bank, wrote in a report July 24. The firm’s models “suggest that bank purchases of corporates and mortgage-backed securities will be small relative to the growth in deposits net of loans, which have been growing at a rate of roughly $29 billion per month.”

This is where the public lynching of the bank officials on camera by Congress to score points is now coming back to burn us. Why should they loan out a lot of money and take a risk, if they just get hammered if they make money or lose money?

Smartest thing for them to do is take the free money, buy the treasuries, and pocket the interest at very little risk.

But that does not expand the economy, and will force interest rates up.

re: #216 Sharmuta

They just discovered this- I'm sure they're very curious as to how it happened.

I have a vague recollection that Patient Zero in North America was a gay fight attendant from Canada.

re: #212 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Kind sentiment my ass. There is a gigantic effing hole in the morning threads without you in them.

C'mon y'all. Gimme an AMEN!

Preach the truth, brother!

re: #217 JamesTKirk

She said she was half-French.

(She did surrender pretty quickly...)

HAHAHAHAHAAA!

Morning all. This is a drive by, I need to be off to work for four hours and then-VACATION!
Captain Kirk- long time no see, how are things?

re: #218 3 wood

China is leading the rebound out of the international recession:
Metals, Oil, Stocks Advance as Chinese Manufacturing Expands

China reacted to the recession by cutting taxes and encouraging entreprenuership.

I expect Obama to take credit for the Chinese rebound.

I still shake my head thinking about FCBBHO praising China's infrastructure.

re: #221 JamesTKirk

Next: "Anybody who has a job is rich."

After that: "We have eliminated the rich!"

Well, you have to get down to the $50,000 a year range to find enough income to tax to pay the bills.

Raising taxes on the middle class? As NRO puts it, "All promises from Barack Obama come with an expiration date."

re: #223 grambo46

The cigarette tax was certainly a tax on middle and low-income folks. Look for more of this sort of stuff.

I think we will end up being close to how Canada does it. Huge taxes on liquor, tobacco, just about any real property, fees everywhere you look.

re: #230 Jim in Virginia

Enjoy the vacation. I haven't had one in three years.

But, I'm rich. So, I'm not bitter.

Not bitter at all.

Hope and Change are expensive.

re: #230 Jim in Virginia

Captain Kirk- long time no see, how are things?

I spent most of last week sleeping, or tired and dragging my butt. I hope I'm over whatever I had.

If I'm going to spend that much time in bed, there had better be somebody green next to me.

re: #234 3 wood

I think we will end up being close to how Canada does it. Huge taxes on liquor, tobacco, just about any real property, fees everywhere you look.

Tom Petty will have to change his song: "You do have to live like a refugee!"

re: #221 JamesTKirk

Next: "Anybody who has a job is rich."

After that: "We have eliminated the rich!"

Nummy-num-num.

re: #237 JamesTKirk

If I'm going to spend that much time in bed, there had better be somebody green next to me.

Oh wait, there was. My wife wasn't feeling well either.

re: #223 grambo46

I believe the Bush tax cuts will expire ... but this won't be called "raising taxes".

Also, if any form of cap and tax gets through, this will be, effectively an upstream tax on everybody.

The cigarette tax was certainly a tax on middle and low-income folks. Look for more of this sort of stuff.

The beat goes on ... this list could be longer than the Zero's mistakes list

Will the soda tax come through?

Good news?

My monthly house payment went down!

(house is now worth less, property taxes actually lowered)

The rich just get richer.

re: #242 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

I usually give the rich a [finger].

re: #224 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Remember when "Rich" was someone who made more than you?

Now, frackin' millionaires are calling me rich.

I don't have elastic in my underwear, and those ass-hats are calling me rich.

Tell 'em to start paying you for the designs they want you to give them for free!

BTW, do you wear suspenders?

re: #237 JamesTKirk

I spent most of last week sleeping, or tired and dragging my butt. I hope I'm over whatever I had.

Didn't McCoy threaten to give you a case of the Arugulian Flu once? Have you looked into that possibility?

You locked in your quarters, He and Scotty are tearing up the town, drinking all the Romulan Ale!

What is a middle class income anyway? I assume it is less than 250K a year (from O's capmaing promise on taxes) but according to Michelle they were struggling to pay for piano lessons when they were making north of $300,000.

re: #233 Jim in Virginia

Raising taxes on the middle class? As NRO puts it, "All promises from Barack Obama come with an expiration date."

That's cause they use a subjective term "rich". You can define that anyway you want.

When you talk about economics, taxes and such, a real key element is to tie down the definitions. When you see someone avoiding the clear definition of their terms, look out.

And example is when some talk about how the clunker program is "working" The key to that is the definition of "working".

Are they spending a lot of our money? Yes.

Will it expand the economy and raise the standard of living (my definition of working"). Very minimal in my estimation.

All we are doing is shifting future car purchases to the near term, and we are incurring a long term liability (the debt) to gain a short term depreciating asset (the cars). Plus now a lot of people have incurred more consumer debt.

You want to get a long term asset for incurring a long term liability.

re: #237 JamesTKirk

If I'm going to spend that much time in bed, there had better be somebody green next to me.

"That green blooded son of a bitch!"

re: #245 SteveC

Didn't McCoy threaten to give you a case of the Arugulian Flu once? Have you looked into that possibility?

You locked in your quarters, He and Scotty are tearing up the town, drinking all the Romulan Ale!

I've learned not to ask what my officers do while they're on leave, ever since Sulu gave me a detailed answer with a full slideshow.

Later. I'll try to post pics from vacation for you, FBV.

re: #236 Sharmuta

Hope and Change are expensive.

I hope we'll radically change the partisan balance in Washington in 11/10.

re: #248 SteveC

"That green blooded son of a bitch!"

Those rumors just will not go away.

re: #249 JamesTKirk

I've learned not to ask what my officers do while they're on leave, ever since Sulu gave me a detailed answer with a full slideshow.

That explains why you are the Captain and I'm stuck down here in StarFleet Waste Disposal!