Lies, Damn Lies, and Obama

While he claimed he wanted an end to the Iraq war and to bring the troops home, he quietly worked to keep them there just long enough for him to take credit for it, as detailed in this piece by Amir Tehiri (not the best source in the universe, but it sounds legit):

OBAMA TRIED TO STALL GIS' IRAQ WITHDRAWAL

WHILE campaigning in public for a speedy withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, Sen. Barack Obama has tried in private to persuade Iraqi leaders to delay an agreement on a draw-down of the American military presence.

According to Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, Obama made his demand for delay a key theme of his discussions with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad in July.

"He asked why we were not prepared to delay an agreement until after the US elections and the formation of a new administration in Washington," Zebari said in an interview.

The more one learns about this man, the worse it gets. I used to think he was just not very bright, but I am beginning to think he is a truly bad man.

A Decent Analysis

A decent, if incomplete, Analysis can be found here in the NY Times:

FAIR GAME; Home Loans: A Nightmare Grows Darker

By GRETCHEN MORGENSON
Published: April 8, 2007

SNAZZY and newfangled mortgage loans, like those with low initial rates of interest or extended terms of 40 or 50 years, helped to drive homeownership rates in the United States from around 64 percent two decades ago to a peak of almost 70 percent in recent years. Called ''affordability loans,'' these new kinds of mortgages have gone mostly to first-time home buyers and borrowers with tarnished credit or spotty employment histories.

Now, however, with home foreclosures and mortgage delinquencies soaring, it is becoming clear that the innovative loans that lenders championed -- in what the industry called the ''democratization of credit'' -- are turning the American dream of homeownership into a nightmare for many borrowers.

For those who wish to blame the "failed policies of the Bush administration," then make some weird leap to "tax cuts for the rich," there is some sobering history here:

For years, the homeownership rate in the United States ranged from 60 to 65 percent of the total population. But in 1995, President Bill Clinton directed Henry G. Cisneros, then the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, to work with the housing industry, nonprofit groups and other government officials to develop the National Homeownership Strategy, ''an unprecedented public-private partnership to increase homeownership to a record-high level over the next six years,'' as described in an Urban Policy Brief in August of that year.

This did have some "positive effects" for some folks:

Lenders were off to the races. They created slick new mortgage products with low ''teaser'' interest rates that ratcheted up significantly after two years or so. They devised loans that required only the payment of interest, not principal as well. They extended mortgages to 50-year terms to reduce monthly payments.

The partnership succeeded. In 2004, the homeownership rate reached 69.2 percent, a record.

But, it had a dark downside:

But according to experts on lending practices, the products devised to propel homeownership did so only as long as housing prices kept rising. Now that prices have started to fall, these products look instead like a transfer of wealth to mortgage lenders from those who can least afford it: subprime borrowers.

''It's not good to put somebody into a home if they can only afford it when home prices go up,'' said Thomas A. Lawler, founder of Lawler Economic and Housing Consulting Daily, a newsletter. ''Now that prices are falling, the folks who made enormous amounts of money lending in 2003, 2004 and 2005 are giving some of it back. But they aren't giving it back to the poor borrowers.'

'

This whole system, created by government, has backfired. Once again, government, with good intentions in mind, has made matters worse.

This whole thing has nothing to do with "tax cuts for the rich," or the failed policies of George Bush (although he is rightly blamed for not stopping it, big government Republican that he is); but with bad risks brought about by the failed policies of Bill Clinton.

The Ickiest Thing About The Economic Situation

Without a doubt the most disgusting factor in all this economic woe, all the doom being preached from the mainstream media, is that it is quite obvious that they and the Democrats WANT people to do badly, just so they can use it as a political talking point and get elected. Just as they wanted us to lose in Iraq, which just might lead to us losing the world to the Jihad; they don't care as long as it gets them elected.

How can people live their lives like this? To want people to lose their homes, to want American soldiers to die, to want the body count to rise, just so your guys MIGHT gain power. Ewwwww.

Good Seeing They Won't Bail Everyone Out

Crisis on Wall Street as Lehman Totters,
Merrill Is Sold, AIG Seeks to Raise Cash

Fed Will Expand Its Lending Arsenal in a Bid to Calm Markets;
Moves Cap a Momentous Weekend for American Finance
By CARRICK MOLLENKAMP, SUSANNE CRAIG, SERENA NG and AARON LUCCHETTI
September 15, 2008; Page A1
[graphic]

The American financial system was shaken to its core on Sunday. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. faced the prospect of liquidation, and Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed to be sold to Bank of America Corp.

The U.S. government, which bailed out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac a week ago and orchestrated the sale of Bear Stearns Cos. to J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. in March, played much tougher with Lehman. It refused to provide a financial backstop to potential buyers.

people must understand this "crisis" was not brought on by free markets this "crisis" was brought on by big government. There are no free markets or real capitalism in these or really any markets any longer.

These failed policies are the failed policies of over twenty years, NOT Bush's measly eight. This whole philosophy must be changed, and sadly, from Obama and McCain, we'll probably just get more of the same.

The Obama campaign continues to blame the "failed policies of the Bush Administration" for this (partially true), but no one in the press is asking them HOW those "failed policies" did this. They usually follow with the usual class envy crap and leave it at that.

Government must be drastically reduced; they must get out of the way of that which must come to pass and stop being an indulgent mommy and daddy. Thankfully, they are going to let this one fail, as they SHOULD have done with the failed government programs known as Fannie and Freddie.

Markets are above all, communications systems. Too much government muddies those communications systems, and leads to what we are dealing with now. It also creates false "bubbles" which eventually burst, and cause more damage than if the natural business cycle were allowed to run its course. Both big government Democrats and big government Republicans are out of touch with this.

Only Ron Paul on the Republican side, and Bob Barr from the Libertarian Party, seem to understand this (See America Needs “Surge” in Fiscal Responsibility, Says Bob Barr)

1 Corinthians 15: 22 - 26

Once again, it's time for Sunday Bible Study! All please turn to 1 Corinthians 15: 22 - 26:

22For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

This passage dovetails nicely with Romans 5:18, which we discussed on Sunday, August 31st.

Here we see Paul laying out for us essentially a staged salvation plan. First, Christ Himself is raised, then, comes we who believe. Then on the Last Day, Death is the last enemy defeated.

I take this to clearly mean that Christ is the first sign of God's plan; then comes the Christians, his foot soldiers carrying the gospel, then, in the end, EVERYONE. Note 1 Corinithians 15: 22: he says in Christ ALL will be made alive; as in Adam all die. Once again we see the legal proof, almost mathematical. The total of mankind is doomed through Adam; the totality of mankind is saved through Christ.

Once again we see the divine mathematics of God's way. In man, we can really only have FINITE Sin. There are only so many people, so many years, so many sins. Even the effect of sin is some finite (although VERY LARGE) number. Christ, however, being 100% God and 100% man, is infinite crossing finite. Therefore, his atonement is infinite. Infinite atonement trumps finite sin, and even has extra for a song and dance number.

Now, take this joy with you and go love your neighbor!

They NGE'ed Sitemeter!

Rollback please!

For fans of SWG, it's deja vu all over again.

*Update: Sitemeter has been rolled back to its earlier incarnation. Oh, if only SOE had done this with the NGE.

RIP David Foster Wallace

Ugh. Another smart person has killed himself. My prayers go out to his family, friends, students, and fans.

Writer David Foster Wallace found dead

Please, if you are a smart person, a talented writer, or anyone else who contributes to this world, please, Heaven already HAS plenty of talent. They don't need you. WE do. LIVE.

These Crappy Ads Should Stop

Now, I LOVE a good negative ad. I still remember Reagan's "Bear in the Woods" ad, that's how effective it was. It was not only well, done but most importantly, it made a reasonable point.


This one starts out very well, but that crack about sex education is ridiculous:


Fail.



And this one is just garbage. Granted, Obama was an idiot to use the "lipstick" metaphor in context of Sarah Palin's ad-lib joke at the convention, but it is unfair and inaccurate to say he INTENTIONALLY meant HER. No, he was, all by himself, showing he is too dumb to lead this nation. McCain should have let the victory go at that but no, sensing the blood in the water, went too far:


Fail.


Now, Obama is not innocent in this either, in fact, one can say he has done one even more despicable than the other two.


Epic Fail.

Not only does John McCain know how to use a computer and send out an e-mail; he has a difficult time because his war injuries make using a keyboard tough.

Instead of THIS, far more effective ad that plays on the same theme:

See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die

Dudes, to quote the great political pundit whose "government name" is Sean Combs, you are buggin' the f**k out. A rich bimbo is making better attack ads than you. Cut the crap and let's see some quality attack ads, like this one:



Or this gem:

Smart attack ads FTW.

So Far, So Good...

http://hasthelargehadroncolliderdestroyedtheworldyet.com/

Gnarliest kills in The Force: Unleashed

Can't wait for the 16th....