S & P and the S&P and then there's just P

Geez, here we go.

The Congress of the United States, specifically the House of representatives and more to the point the wicked witch of the west, Nancy Pelosi, have announced a sweeping, ten year plan to overhaul the health care system in our country.

It needs it.

I just don't trust Nancy & Co to be the ones to come up with a plan.

That is my opinion. Period.

((( I just erased a paragraph that compared the House of Representatives to the Marx Brothers, but it shamed me, as the Marx Brothers had finesse, timing, and knew their limitations. Even Zeppo. ))).

Don't get me wrong, I am not a fan of the health care industry, and if ever there was a den of thieves outside of Chicago or Wall Street, it is them, but this is not the outfit to take them on, and this is not the way to do it. Leadership builds a consensus, first among the base, then among the moderates, then the pragmatists, then they face the antagonists.

The Pelosi method is something different, and it won't work, and, at best, it will set the idea back another fifteen years, or, at worse, kill it altogether.

I want to know how the financial markets, (another den of thieves) will react to this. They need do nothing at all to have enormous impact on this initiative, their timing will be key.

And I wonder if this will take away air time from Sarah Palin, or give her a big issue to trip over.

We are going to hear a lot of the "S" word for a while, get used to it. As a political system, it is not so hot, but keep in mind that we all drive on a socialist road system, drink from a socialist water network, blab and download porn and music files on a socialist internet, (tho that is changing, much like health care). It is a matter of degree, and how evil "socialization" is seems to be proportional to how potentially profitable it is for some middleman who really has no skin in the game. In most cases, it is a matter of degree.

My money is that by noon tomorrow, eastern time, we will see a headline regarding Ms Palin's opinion on the decline of the healthcare system under the current administration.

Just a guess.

Political Porn

Damn, I wish she'd make up her mind!

That Palin woman has mentioned that she is not out of politics, oh know, she is in it for the long haul, yessiree.

Maybe someone should ask her to spell "potato".

What Sarah has is star quality, but she seems to wear thin rather quickly.

I am sure we will be hearing more from and about her, you don't need to hear it fro me. I wish her success in whatever she does.

The most impressive act of political savvy, (at least to this casual observer), last week came to us from the junior senator from Illinois, Roland Burris, who announced that he would not seek election next year. No matter what his motives, one must give the man credit for recognizing his situation for what it is, and not being blinded by the power and opportunity currently in his lap, and doing not only what is most expedient, but what is right, with little fanfare or self-serving publicity. Not that he won't walk away with a bundle anyway, but his action shows a bit more class than we are used to seeing from inside the beltway.

Then there is Nancy Pelosi.

She is the poster child for the ilk of politicians who just can't get over the fact that they won the last election and that they need to move forward rather than continue to extract their pound of flesh from the last administration, (not that they don't deserve it--but revenge, as the saying goes, is a dish best served cold). She reminds me a lot of Lenny Bruce in his decline. It's not enough to be on the winning side Nancy, you have to do something with it.

and this just in

Sarah Palin has resigned as governor of Alaska.

There seems to be a lot of speculation as to why, (her term expires in 2010), some say she is preparing to run for the presidency in 2012.

Talk about self absorption. (Maybe she couldn't stand the thought of Michael Jackson getting all the attention). Truth is, she has been the focus of those who fancy themselves the purest of the pure in terms of who is the most conservative in the GOP. One of her aides was quoted today as saying that "people here are collectively agreeing that it sheds everything she doesn't like about running government now and allows her to devote fulltime to this passion she has about wanting to lead the country away from socialism."

Well jeepers, ain't that sweet.

In the first place, the statement, if I interpret it correctly, (the syntax is a bit more fractured than even a curmudgeon such as myself is used to...), reminds me a little of the things that came from the Nixon White House regarding Watergate. The governor was elected to a four year term, and now, in the face of a few minor things, such as some serious ethics investigations, and polling numbers that have at times, reached into the single digits, well shucks, the governor is just going to take her conservative credentials and go home!

I mean, seriously, this is life in the political world Sarah, if you run for the White House, it ain't gonna be any better, and you cannot simply throw a neutron bomb at those who might not like what you do when/if you happen to get there.

Lead the country away from socialism. Nice. This from the governor of the state that pays its citizens rather than taxing them. The idea of a budget crisis in Alaska is when to mail the checks.

And some people claim that UFO's don't really exist. Remember, the people who staff, advise, spin and promote Ms Palin are the same people, I mean the very same people, who worked wonders for Dan Quayle.

just another week....

Where are we this week?

Well, besides being right here, our nation is preparing to celebrate its 233rd birthday this coming saturday.

233 years of freedom of speech and of the press, and what do we have to show for it?

Impressive, eh? I wonder what we can do to follow that? How about "damn near anything"?

To our friends the British, I would like to say "you are welcome". I don't know that you would have survived this long had you held on to the colonies when you tried. Consider that can of whoopass we opened up on you at Yorktown not just a lesson, but an investment in your future and your well-being.

And while I am on the subject of of semi-sentient beings who pontificate and bloviate on the popular media, there seems to be something of a urinating competition within the ranks of those pundits who fancy themselves to be on the right of the political spectrum regarding who did what and whose fault it is that they didn't win the election.

These people take themselves altogether too seriously, and really need to spend three months broke and unemployed, availing themselves of the services and resources available to most everyone, and exposed to all the petty insults and indignities that are placed in many peoples way by those who just don't understand what the problem is. I'm betting that the 'issue' of who is the purest conservative won't look quite as significant.

On a related note, Al Franken is going to become a senator, only eight months after the hotly contested election. It is this kind of thing that makes one wonder if this particular republic is too far gone to be worth saving. In any case, I hope that he serves with distinction, and leaves before he becomes a stalagmite like so many of the others.

Michael Jackson passed away this week.

OK, enough of that, lets move on.

For the past few weeks, we have been treated, yet again, to the saber rattling of the DPRK, with that little runt that they call 'beloved leader' threatening a rain of nuclear fire if he does not get his way. I know that out President campaigned on an image of doing things differently from the previous administration, but how much of this little cockroach do we need to put up with?

It is clear that his threat was taken seriously enough that defensive hardware was moved into Hawaii, Alaska and the mid Pacific areas to deal with any extreme contingencies. (As an aside, these US states, territories and protectorates are potentially threatened because any other test trajectory for a medium or long range rocket would cross Russian or Chinese territory--governments not known for displaying tolerance for unsanctioned overflights, even by comradely allies).

In the event of a provocation, our President needs to show some serious resolve, not to mention a set of brass cajones.....

The there is the Iran situation. When I think of brass balls and the 4th of July, I have to think of the folks there, in the streets, taking a stand for what they believe to be right. They may think no more highly of the USA than their government, but they are to be respected for what they are doing. Think of them this weekend, as you do what you do.

Everybody have a good weekend. I'd like to say hi, and welcome to Cathleen, and to anyone else who may happen by.