Bailout Bill Fails
Looks like the bill did not pass out of the House, by a vote of 206-227. More later.
Lighting Our Money On Fire
Bailout
I have no idea what to think of the financial bailout being discussed even now in Washington (well past midnight on early Saturday morning). I am deeply suspicious of the idea of a seven hundred billion dollar act of market… Continue Reading
It Must Grow On Trees Somewhere
Nearly fifty weeks ago, I wrote about how very, very strange and corrupt it looked when Hillary Clinton received nearly fifty thousand dollars in campaign donations from a single family in Daly City, California that reported an income that barely… Continue Reading
Sell San Quentin!
There’s a proposal that the state sell off some of its more valuable real estate holdings to make up for the budget shortfall. For instance, San Quentin State Prison is 275 acres of waterfront land on the north side of… Continue Reading
Conservatives: Do You Still Think Bush Is One Of You?
As if leaving a half-trillion dollar budget deficit for the next administration wasn’t enough. This morning, President Bush signed into law a $300-billion bailout for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He had threatened to veto the bill because it included… Continue Reading
Invisible Hand At Work
Americans are, at last, driving less. This is almost undoubtedly due to the continued increase in the retail price of gasoline. Things have even declined moderately recently, but I still paid $4.20 a gallon at Costco today (California is usually… Continue Reading
Speculation About Equilibrium
I got this “open letter” in my e-mail today, from United Airlines. It would seem that the airlines are calling for regulation of the oil market in an effort to reduce the skyrocketing cost of their fuel. If I’ve uploaded… Continue Reading
Got That One Right!
John McCain has made no bones about not being very knowledgeable about economic issues, particularly as compared to his oeuvre* in foreign policy and military matters. So when he takes on Social Security and says it’s a “disgrace,” he earns… Continue Reading
The Burst Bubble Isn’t Enough
One of the reasons that The Wife and I wanted to move to Tennessee was the possibility of buying our own home. Tennessee didn’t work out for a variety of reasons, but when you consider what the real estate market… Continue Reading
I Find I Enjoy Being Stimulated
At long, long last — four months after it was promised — our stimulus money arrived today. Woo hoo. Undeserved money drawn from public debt in an improbable attempt to salvage the economic legacy of a failed government. But, like… Continue Reading