Sunday, May 31, 2009

Lobbyists Are A Better Investment Than CDs And Stocks

If you have no ethical problems with engaging in grand larceny then hire a lobbyist. The rate of return on this type of investment can be several thousand percent or more if AIG, GM, Fannie Mae and dozens of large banks are used as examples. GM's ten million dollar investment may yield more than one hundred billion dollars in returns within a single year! That is certainly a better profit margin than they make on the sales of their vehicles. Come to think of it, they make no profit on the sales of their vehicles.

Lobbysists are not for everyone, however, since a few million dollars are needed to get started. After that, they are self perpetuating. A small percentage of the taxpayer loot that is awarded will be automatically reinvested in the lobbying firm which will then "influence" (bribe) the appropriate congressmen to keep the ball rolling. One final note - a sob story is helpful. Something like "my business has lost billions of dollars (due to stupidity, incompetence and insanely high bonuses) but is too big to fail" will be helpful.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Nancy "Xena" Pelosi Fought The War In Iraq and Bush Too, You Know

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is having some difficulty explaining if and/or when she was briefed by the CIA about the waterboarding of prisoners. Her standing room only weekly press briefing did not do much to clarify matters. Apparently, the problem is excusable, however, because she was "fighting the war in Iraq at that point too, you know - and battling a Bush administration that was misleading the American people about the threat of weapons of mass destruction." Oh, really - one wonders why her self-proclaimed heroic battle against Bush administration lies did not stop her from taking impeachment off the table.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

My Flickr And QOOP Sites Will Be Updated This Summer


Hundreds of new high quality images will be added to my Flickr and QOOP sites sometime this summer.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Subjecting Others To Near-Death Experiences Falling Out Of Fashion As A Conversation Starter

Chatting about beating people senseless or subjecting them to near-death experiences for good causes is becoming less stylish. The trend is apparently not related to either a realization that cruel and unusual punishment is prohibited by the Constitution or that such practices are simply too barbaric and evil for an allegedly civilized people to seriously consider. It may have more to do with the recent better late than never major media pieces indicating that torture is a poor method to gather useful information.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Is Drink-Till-You-Puke The Only Inviolable Right?

Most Americans regard their country to be the best in the world. The reason most often given is that it is unquestionably freer than other nations which they are unable to locate on the world map. U.S. presidents, mirroring that boundless vanity, find it difficult to refrain from self-righteously reminding foreign leaders of that fact, sometimes as a prelude to and justification for initiating costly and senseless wars that kill and maim thousands of innocent people. Individual lives and monetary outlays are unimportant considerations when one believes in might for right and foolish ends justify violent means.

In truth, however, almost all of the precious substantive and procedural liberties enshrined in the Bill of Rights are routinely subjected to political controls, manipulation, debate, compression, stretching, massaging, warping, torture, neglect, misunderstanding, misinterpretation, contempt, infringement, loathing and violation.

It seems that the only popular activities which have not recently been subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques include the production, distribution and consumption of alcoholic beverages. In rare displays of wisdom politicians choose to leave those alone.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Motorcycles And Freedom



As children we are bombarded with messages from adults which usually have little or nothing to do with nurturing our talents and and individuality. On the contrary, they often relate to molding our ideas and influencing our behavior in ways thought beneficial and acceptable to artificial constructs called corporations, society, the nation, the church etc. Happiness is not regarded as a proper purpose or end. Worse yet, mindless consumerism is offered as a perverse substitute. Curiosity and the willingness or ability to question popular tenets and beliefs are stifled early on. Few are able to break free.

For those who have broken free or would like to break free I suggest buying a motorcycle and seeing much of the country as possible. Few better ways exist to clear useless cobwebs from the gray matter. If you think that $20,000 is an appropriate purchase price and official Harley or BMW apparel are fashion necessities I suggest not bookmarking this blog.

Feel the wind in your face, smell the countryside, sleep under brides, get sunburned and soaked by rain and talk to people who you meet along the way. If possible, pack a camera equipped with a sharp lens, preferably a short telephoto. Remember to always ride defensively. Freeways are usually the safest roads to travel because one is separated from oncoming traffic and inattentive or drunk drivers are not able to suddenly pull out in front of you as they sometimes do on side streets and rural back roads. Life should be about exploring, learning and having as much fun as possible.