Federal Reserve leaders laughed and joked while housing marker crashed

This is why the federal reserve needs to be reigned in or better yet, ended:

The leaders of the Federal Reserve went around the room saluting Alan Greenspan during his last day as chairman of the central bank. Then Timothy F. Geithner, the future Treasury secretary, made a prediction.
“I’d like the record to show that I think you’re pretty terrific, too,” Geithner, who was president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, told Greenspan amid laughter on Jan. 31, 2006. “And thinking in terms of probabilities, I think the risk that we decide in the future that you’re even better than we think is higher than the alternative.”
On Thursday, the Fed released transcripts of its meetings in 2006, offering a new window into what was on the minds of some of the nation’s top economic and financial thinkers just ahead of the financial crisis and subsequent great recession. The transcripts, which are customarily released after five years, show that Fed leaders, armed with the best economic data available, had little idea of what was looming less than two years off.
Trusted to look toward the future and make decisions to keep the economy strong, they spent some of their time patting their leader on the back and even found time to joke about what turned out to be early-warning signs in the markets. While Fed officials — including several who are in key positions today — were aware that the nation’s rapid increase in housing prices was coming to an end, they significantly underestimated how much damage the popping of the real estate bubble would cause in the rest of the economy.
In his first meeting as Fed chairman, in March 2006, Ben S. Bernanke noted the slowdown in the housing market. But he said he shared the view that “strong fundamentals support a relatively soft landing in housing,” adding: “I think we are unlikely to see growth being derailed by the housing market.”
The year began with adulation all around for Greenspan. In that January meeting, Roger Ferguson, then Fed vice chairman and now head of the TIAA-CREF financial services group, called Greenspan a “monetary policy Yoda. — Greenspan image tarnished by newly released documents – The Washington Post

So far there is only one person even talking about the Federal Reserve and his foreign policy is horrible. So, nothing will change. In other words, business as usual. So much for that Tea Party eh?

(via HotAir Headlines)

Memo to CAIR: Thou Doth Protest Too Much

Now this is unbelievable. A couple of Marines decided to treat a few dead Taliban terrorists to a good old fashioned “golden shower.”

Here is the video:

Quoting CAIR:

“We condemn this apparent desecration of the dead as a violation of our nation’s military regulations and of international laws of war prohibiting such disgusting and immoral actions.
“If verified as authentic, the video shows behavior that is totally unbecoming of American military personnel and that could ultimately endanger other soldiers and civilians.
“We trust that this disturbing incident will be promptly investigated in a transparent manner and that appropriate actions will be taken based on the results of that investigation. Any guilty parties must be punished to the full extent allowed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice and by relevant American laws.”

Allow me, as a proud American who lived through, witnessed on live TV and had to deal with the depression of what happened on September 11, 2001 — to show you, just WHO these Marines were pissing on….

They pissing on people that did this:

and this:

So, to you CAIR, I have two words for you turban wearing pieces of human excrement:

Piss Off!

If anything at all, you should be glad that angry Americans, like me, are not going around to Mosques in America and dragging your sorry asses out in to the streets of America and shooting you in the heads. You have been very highly protected by the United States Government, despite the fact that your backward religion instructs your mindless followers to kill people that disagree with your beliefs. You should be very grateful for this and should keep your mouths shut.

Remember you bastards, you started this little war on freedom — we did not. We did not want it — you did, and when you suffer, you complain. Crybaby pukes, you start a war against freedom and when some of our guys get the upper hand, you cry. Wah, Wah Wah…. cry me a river. 🙄

This is one of the many reasons why I believe that in the interest of National Security; that the ~~Religion~~ backward crap of ISLAM should be BANNED in America. This is not about Religion Freedom, this is about National Security and these bastards are a threat to humanity!

…and before anyone says it. I know it was Al-Qaeda that hit us, not the Taliban. Same difference, terrorists are terrorists, Jihads are Jihads… Big whoop. 🙄

Others: Pamela, American Power, Yourish.com,

Cross-Posted to Right Michigan

Update: it seems that most over at hotair.com agree with me.

They’re watching us: DHS is now monitoring Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and More.

Governments that watch their people, fear them:

(Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s command center routinely monitors dozens of popular websites, including Facebook, Twitter, Hulu, WikiLeaks and news and gossip sites including the Huffington Post and Drudge Report, according to a government document.
A “privacy compliance review” issued by DHS last November says that since at least June 2010, its national operations center has been operating a “Social Networking/Media Capability” which involves regular monitoring of “publicly available online forums, blogs, public websites and message boards.”
The purpose of the monitoring, says the government document, is to “collect information used in providing situational awareness and establishing a common operating picture.”
The document adds, using more plain language, that such monitoring is designed to help DHS and its numerous agencies, which include the U.S. Secret Service and Federal Emergency Management Agency, to manage government responses to such events as the 2010 earthquake and aftermath in Haiti and security and border control related to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia.
A DHS official familiar with the monitoring program said that it was intended purely to enable command center officials to keep in touch with various Internet-era media so that they were aware of major, developing events to which the Department or its agencies might have to respond. — Homeland Security watches Twitter, social media | Reuters

I made reference to this in my previous posting. I had a video up there that could have been misinterpreated by some idiot Government zealot, so I canned it. I just do not want to take any chances. Either way, if they’re looking at the big sites, like HotAir.com; you can bet they will be looking at the smaller blogs too. I guess they figure if they cannot pass SOPA/PIPA, they will just snoop on us anyhow.

Needless to say, I will not be shooting and posting anymore videos on this blog or anywhere else. I just don’t need the hassle. 😡

(cross posted at Right Michigan)

Let’s stop SOPA/PIPA

When I first heard about this SOPA/PIPA bill, I really did not think much of it; in fact, my attitude was, “If you’re not doing anything illegal, you have zero to worry about!” Well, it seems that I was wrong about that.

Jane Wells over at WordPress.com has posted a video about the bill:

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

Quoting Jane:

You are an agent of change. Has anyone ever told you that? Well, I just did, and I meant it.
Normally we stay away from from politics here at the official WordPress project — having users from all over the globe that span the political spectrum is evidence that we are doing our job and democratizing publishing, and we don’t want to alienate any of our users no matter how much some of us may disagree with some of them personally. Today, I’m breaking our no-politics rule, because there’s something going on in U.S. politics right now that we need to make sure you know about and understand, because it affects us all.
Using WordPress to blog, to publish, to communicate things online that once upon a time would have been relegated to an unread private journal (or simply remained unspoken, uncreated, unshared) makes you a part of one of the biggest changes in modern history: the democratization of publishing and the independent web. Every time you click Publish, you are a part of that change, whether you are posting canny political insight or a cat that makes you LOL. How would you feel if the web stopped being so free and independent? I’m ~~concerned~~ freaked right the heck out about the bills that threaten to do this, and as a participant in one of the biggest changes in modern history, you should be, too.
You may have heard people talking/blogging/twittering about SOPA — the Stop Online Piracy Act. The recent SOPA-related boycott of GoDaddy was all over the news, with many people expressing their outrage over the possibilities of SOPA, but when I ask people about SOPA and its sister bill in the Senate, PIPA (Protect IP Act), many don’t really know what the bills propose, or what we stand to lose. If you are not freaked out by SOPA/PIPA, please: for the next four minutes, instead of checking Facebook statuses, seeing who mentioned you on Twitter, or watching the latest episode of Sherlock*, watch this video (by Fight for the Future).

Jane’s right, WordPress does steer clear of the politics, (Bare Naked Islam notwithstanding.) and when they’re publishing something like this here; it is important.

So, head on over, and let’s stop this one cold, as united Americans.

Hannity to Perry: You sound like the #OWS crowd!

I have to hand it to Hannity, when he is right, he is right. I wrote the same thing. Which means I actually agree with Sean Hannity! Horrors! 😯

Video: (Via Mediaite) (H/T to HotAir Headlines)

Money quote:

Perry began the segment attacking President Obama, but Hannity quickly shifted gears to the “very harsh words” Perry has had for Romney. “It almost sounds like Occupy Wall Street,” he noted, “it doesn’t sound like someone who is governing Texas as a conservative.”
“There is a real difference between venture capitalism and vulture capitalism,” Perry replied, adding that “venture capitalism we like; vulture capitalism, no.” He justified his attacks saying that “the fact of the matter is he’s going to have to face up to this at some time or another.” Hannity wasn’t satisfied with this answer, asking Perry whether he was saying “that Mitt Romney is a vulture capitalist, that he is unethical.” Perry specified that he thought what happened with two specific companies bought by Bain was “irresponsible,” and that “the folks in South Carolina agree with that.” Hannity replied that it was still “as severe as they can get” as far as attacks go, though Perry insisted there were places where Bain had “destroyed people’s lives.

Rick Perry, making the Democrats arguments for them. Nice Ricky….real nice… 🙄

Bombing in Iran kills Commerce Deputy of Iran’s Nuclear Enrichment Site

Hmmmmm:

The magnetic bomb which was planted by an unknown motorcyclist under the car of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan Behdast, a professor at Tehran’s technical university, also wounded two other Iranian nationals in Seyed Khandan neighborhood in Northern Tehran.
Ahmadi Roshan, 32, was a graduate of oil industry university and a deputy director of Natanz uranium enrichment facility for commercial affairs.
No more details have been revealed about the blast.— Fars News Agency :: Terrorists Kill Commerce Deputy of Iran’s Nuclear Enrichment Site

Mossad? CIA? (sarcasm of course…)

It is to wonder.

Whomever it is…. keep it up!

Others: YID With LID and Israel Matzav

Obama’s World? — Fines for Bio fuel that does not exist is stupid, says… The New York Times?!?!

When the Obama lead Government loses the New York Times, something is horribly wrong:

WASHINGTON — When the companies that supply motor fuel close the books on 2011, they will pay about $6.8 million in penalties to the Treasury because they failed to mix a special type of biofuel into their gasoline and diesel as required by law.
But there was none to be had. Outside a handful of laboratories and workshops, the ingredient, cellulosic biofuel, does not exist.
In 2012, the oil companies expect to pay even higher penalties for failing to blend in the fuel, which is made from wood chips or the inedible parts of plants like corncobs. Refiners were required to blend 6.6 million gallons into gasoline and diesel in 2011 and face a quota of 8.65 million gallons this year.
“It belies logic,” Charles T. Drevna, the president of the National Petrochemicals and Refiners Association, said of the 2011 quota. And raising the quota for 2012 when there is no production makes even less sense, he said.
Penalizing the fuel suppliers demonstrates what happens when the federal government really, really wants something that technology is not ready to provide. In fact, while it may seem harsh that the Environmental Protection Agency is penalizing them for failing to do the impossible, the agency is being lenient by the standards of the law, the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act.
The law, aimed at reducing the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, its reliance on oil imported from hostile places and the export of dollars to pay for it, includes provisions to increase the efficiency of vehicles as well as incorporate renewable energy sources into gasoline and diesel.
It requires the use of three alternative fuels: car and truck fuel made from cellulose, diesel fuel made from biomass and fuel made from biological materials but with a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gases. Only the cellulosic fuel is commercially unavailable. As for meeting the quotas in the other categories, the refiners will not close their books until February and are not sure what will happen.
The goal set by the law for vehicle fuel from cellulose was 250 million gallons for 2011 and 500 million gallons for 2012. (These are small numbers relative to the American fuel market; the E.P.A. estimates that gasoline sales in 2012 will amount to about 135 billion gallons, and highway diesel, about 51 billion gallons.)
Even advocates of renewable fuel acknowledge that the refiners are at least partly correct in complaining about the penalties — Via NYT: Companies Face Fines for Not Using Unavailable Biofuel – NYTimes.com

It is very obvious that the attempt to inject politics into our economy has failed. This means vote different in 2012.

Others: National Review, The Enterprise Blog, Weasel Zippers, The Volokh Conspiracy, Doug Ross and The Jawa Report

It’s Mitt in New Hampshire!

The Video: (H/T HotAir.com)

The Story:

Mitt Romney has won the New Hampshire primary, Fox News projects, notching back-to-back victories in the first two contests of the presidential nominating season.
Fox News also projects that Ron Paul will finish second and Jon Huntsman will finish third. Rick Perry is projected to finish in sixth place — the rest of the night is shaping up to be a race for fourth, between Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. Both candidates are pulling in 10 percent of the vote.
Also unclear is Romney’s margin of victory, though Fox News projects he will win by double digits. With 40 percent of precincts reporting, Romney is leading with 37 percent of the vote. Paul has 24 percent and Huntsman has 17 percent. — Romney Wins New Hampshire Primary, Fox News Projects | Fox News

Like I previously wrote; What other choice do Republicans really have? South Carolina will be a telling primary and challenge for Romney. But so far, I think he has the nomination in the bag.

Update: Now a Memeorandum Thread.

Is China’s Economy about to collapse?

This is not the first time I have heard this, but:

Which does China face? A popped real estate bubble could exert a big drag. Housing construction exceeds 10 percent of GDP. That’s historically high, says Lardy. At a similar stage of economic development, Taiwan’s housing investment was 4.3 percent of GDP. In the recent U.S. real estate boom, housing peaked at 6 percent of GDP. In China, housing stimulates much consumer spending (furniture, appliances) and accounts for 40 percent of steel production, notes Lardy. Land sales are also a big revenue source for local governments. All would suffer from a housing bust.
There are mitigating factors. Outside Beijing and Shanghai, it’s unclear that housing prices are “out of line with household income growth,” says economist Eswar Prasad of Cornell University. Chinese buyers also typically make large cash payments for their properties. Compared to United States, a housing bust is less likely to become a banking crisis as mortgages sour.
Whatever happens, China’s economic model is reaching its limits, as Lardy argues. It has relied on exports, promoted through the controlled exchange rate, and investment, including housing, subsidized by cheap credit. Meanwhile, Chinese savers have been punished by the low returns on deposits. This dampens their incomes and consumption spending. The trouble is that the global slowdown threatens exports and housing’s excesses threaten investment. Unless China can switch to stronger consumption spending, its economy will slow — or it will achieve growth by becoming even more predatory toward other countries. — Is a Chinese economic slump on the horizon? – The Washington Post

Go read that whole thing, because this is the best case for this belief. The funny thing, the people over a GoldSilver.com have been saying this for a while:

Go check them out and get into Gold and Silver; before you lose it all.

Here is a good reason why I will be voting Republican in 2012

This is very scary…:

In his remarks, Genachowski said the program has been successful, but has also been plagued with problems of accountability and efficiency. Multiple service providers are often supplying Lifeline subsidies to the same households, he said, because there is no centralized system. To address the issue, Genachowski said, the draft proposal creates a national database of Lifeline users to prevent duplicative billing. It also sets a budget for Lifeline aimed at connecting eligible consumers while staying within budget, and requires that participating companies be subject to independent audits every two years. — via FCC’s Genachowski proposes broadband reform – Post Tech – The Washington Post

National Database of internet users? Yeesh. 🙁 The Democratic Party has gone mad. Go read, that whole thing. I will say this; that low income thing is a crock; if they do it for them, they will do it for everyone. This is why we have to win in 2012 and further more, Why we also have to pick a real Conservative and not some idiotic Rockerfeller big-goverment Republican. Which is why I do not quite understand why people like Michelle Malkin get upset over the back and forth that is going on.

The Republican grassroots and the Conservative grassroots; which does include me — needs to know what they are getting this time. The last time around, everyone just followed behind what the Republican establishment gave them. Not this time; we are better informed, and thanks to twitter, facebook and blogs, we communicate better. Which is why elitists like President Barack Obama hate the internet so much. To be fair, I would be willing to bet some Republicans dislike it too.

(H/T Drudge)