WaMu (Washington Mutual) has been in trouble. WaMu stock has dropped 87% this year. The federal government has been trying to locate a buyer for WaMu. It was announced tonight that JPMorgan Chase will acquire WaMu’s deposaits and assests. The federal government will take over the rest. WaMu stock is probably worthless.
OBAMA, MCCAIN AND WALL STREET
It won’t surprise you to know that the employees of large investment firms have contributed large amounts of money to the political coffers of members of Congress over the years, including McCain and Obama.
While Obama and McCain are trying to out do each other today in their supposedly “non-partisan” efforts to save our economy from the ravages of Wall Street greed, it’s helpful to put things in perspective in terms of where their donations come from.
This chart is from an article in the Wall Street Journal.
BERNANKE & PAULSON – 8, COMMITTEE – 2
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson (left) and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
I was able to catch parts of the hearing yesterday (September 24) when U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testified before the Joint Economic Committee. It was painful. It is obvious Bernanke knows what he is talking about. I hear Paulson was just as impressive.
It was painfully obvious that many members of the committee don’t know what they are talking about. Some of them didn’t look too bad as they read prepared statements that were designed to please their constituents back home (probably written by some staffer. But when they got into questions and answers with Bernanke, their ignorance became obvious.
BUFFET BACKS BAILOUT
Warren Buffet
Warren Buffet, the “Oracle of Omaha”, has a well deserved reputation as a remarkable investor and prescient observer of Wall Street. Yesterday in an interview on CNBC he expressed his strong support for the proposed $700 billion bailout to save the U.S. economy. In Buffet’s view the bailout essential to keep us away from an economic “precipice”. “There is no plan B.”
I believe Warren Buffet. He knows what he is talking about. If Buffet says Congress needs to adopt the bailout and soon, then that’s what Congress needs to do. In his view, Congress needs to take action in days. Buffet said three weeks is too long. Other financial experts would like to see Congress act before the markets open this coming Monday morning.
RED SKELTON’S PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
First introduced on the Red Skelton Show on CBS television, January 14, 1969. According to the introduction of the video at YouTube, it has twice been read in the Congressional Record of the United States.
You can view it here.
A slightly different version along with an mp3 file and the full text can be found at American Rhetoric.
The 4th of July
Fireworks over Yukon Oklahoma on old U.S. 66. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
From the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4, 1776. Written by Thomas Jefferson (1762-1826). 3rd US President (1801-09).
To see an engraving of the original and George Washington’s personal printed copy, go here.
to read the entire declaration, click the page 2 link at the right
EARTH BEAMS SOUNDS INTO SPACE
Northern Lights, Alaska. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.
The same process the creates the Northern Lights is also responsible for creating an odd assortment of sounds that earth “beams” out into space in the form of radio waves. The ionosphere prevents these sounds from reaching earth which is a good things, since they would drown out every radio station on the planet with a signal 10,000 times more powerful than the strongest military radio transmissions.
You can listen here at Space.com (you have to listen to one of those annoying mini-ads before the video plays).
DRY DROWNING
It is rare but it is something for parents to be aware of. A person can drown up to 24 hours after ingesting a small amount of water in the lungs. Read more here.
MEMORIAL DAY, IN REMEMBRANCE
Cemetery, The Presidio, San Francisco, California. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.
Memorial Day began unofficially in a variety of places as people felt the need to recognize those who gave their lives in the Civil War. Memorial Day was officially declared on May 5, 1868, when General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic ordered a day of observance when all Union and Confederate Graves at Arlington National Cemetery would be decorated with flowers on May 30, 1868. One state after another adopted May 30 as a Memorial Day observance until all of the Northern states had adopted May 30 by 1890. Many Southern states had picked different days to honor the Confederate dead.
TAKE BACK THE TAP
“Take Back the Tap” is a campaign to get people re-invested in using tap water instead of buying bottle water.
There is a fuss over bottled water. It isn’t green. The environmental cost is high compared to tap water. It is expensive. It isn’t as clean as tap water.
You can read more here and here.
If you don’t buy bottled water, what do you carry your drinking water in? Some suggestions are in the Slate.com article.
WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?
Map of States Visited
Where have you been? You can easily create your own maps online.
WATCH THIS!
I rarely forward video clips to my friends, or anything else for that matter. But this really touched me so I sent it to my friends in an email and I am posting it here.
Paul Potts, an unassuming (to say the least) mobile phone salesman, lacking in confidence, shows up for the June 9, 2007 episode of a British TV talent show with three judges (think American Idol and Simon Cowell). When he tells them he wants to sing opera, the judges are obviously thinking “oh no”. And then he sings . . . .
Turn up your audio.
More about Paul here.
MEMORIAL DAY, IN REMEMBRANCE . . .
Cemetery, The Presidio, San Francisco, California. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.
Memorial Day began unofficially in a variety of places as people felt the need to recognize those who gave their lives in the Civil War. Memorial Day was officially declared on May 5, 1868, when General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic ordered a day of observance when all Union and Confederate Graves at Arlington National Cemetery would be decorated with flowers on May 30, 1868. One state after another adopted May 30 as a Memorial Day observance until all of the Northern states had adopted May 30 by 1890. Many Southern states had picked different days to honor the Confederate dead.
After WWI, Memorial Day became a day of observance for American soldiers who died in all wars, not just the Civil War. In 1971, congress changed the date from May 30 to the last Monday in May as part of a three day weekend for federal employees. Most states follow the same day as the federal observance.
In 2000, congress declared a “National Moment of Remembrance” at 3 pm local time on Memorial Day when all Americans can remember “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to Taps”.
If you are one of the American readers of this blog, take a moment on Memorial Day to remember those who gave “the last full measure of devotion”.
WHERE HAVE ALL THE LEADER’S GONE?
by Lee Iacocca
Excerpted from WHERE HAVE ALL THE LEADER’S GONE? by Lee Iacocca (highly respected business leader and former Chrysler CEO) with Catherine Whitney. Learn more about Lee Iacccca at Wikipedia.
Had Enough?
Am I the only guy in this country who’s fed up with what’s happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We’ve got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we’ve got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can’t even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, “Stay the course.”
Stay the course? You’ve got to be kidding. This is America, not the damned Titanic. I’ll give you a sound bite: Throw the bums out!
THOUSANDS MOURN HOLOCAUST VICTIMS
The news article is at Beliefnet.
PET FOOD RECALL
If you have a dog or cat, you should be aware of the recall of 42 brands of cat food and 53 brands of cat food. Go to the MENU FOODS site and click on PRODUCT INFORMATION for cats or dogs.
COMPUTER NIGHTMARE: Not-A-Virus.Exploit.ByteVerify
I spent several hours today in a computer nightmare.
Ahhh! CHRISTMAS!
Santa and children. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.
Ahhh! Christmas!
I was strolling through a local mall when I found – to my great surprise – Santa! (I could tell who he was by the name on his belt.) He was visiting with two adorable children. They chatted and I took pictures. (The mother gave me permission to use this photo on my web site.)
to continue, use the page links to the right
BLESSED RELIEF!
For the last few days it has been pretty peaceful. Up until election day the phone was ringing with ever increasing frequency. Current President George Bush left one message and former President Bill Clinton left two. Too bad I missed them, I had questions for both of them. The mail box is a lot more empty too. No more full color flyers that begin with “BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID” (an exact quote from one attack ad).
Click “more” to continue
WANT TO LIVE LONGER? MOVE!
A recent study of life expectancy reveals big differences. Christopher Murray of the Harvard School of Public Health analyzed mortality data by county, race, gender, and income. Murray found “eight Americas”:
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