News that makes us laugh, cry, or both

Gelare · Post by **Gelare** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:17 am

Lago PARANOIA wrote:Are you seriously telling us that a bank panic would've been healthy for the economy? Haven't you seen It's a Wonderful Life?

Nowadays we've got FDIC insurance at every bank, so unless you've got a quarter million dollars sitting around in a bank that I don't know about, your money, as well as the money of about 98% of the nation, was fully insured. The real bank run would be among the rich, because their money wouldn't be insured.

Data Vampire · Post by **Data Vampire** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 8:39 am

New Hampshire state government guarantees loan to newspaper

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 9:07 am

Do they still have freedom of press?

mean_liar · Post by **mean_liar** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:01 am

Gelare wrote:
Lago PARANOIA wrote:Are you seriously telling us that a bank panic would've been healthy for the economy? Haven't you seen It's a Wonderful Life?
Nowadays we've got FDIC insurance at every bank, so unless you've got a quarter million dollars sitting around in a bank that I don't know about, your money, as well as the money of about 98% of the nation, was fully insured. The real bank run would be among the rich, because their money wouldn't be insured.

...as well as among small businesses that have to pay out salaries based on credit lines and such.

Gelare · Post by **Gelare** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:15 am

mean_liar wrote:...as well as among small businesses that have to pay out salaries based on credit lines and such.

Point. I didn't mean to imply it'd be a particularly good situation.

Murtak · Post by **Murtak** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 11:54 am

Lago PARANOIA wrote:Are you seriously telling us that a bank panic would've been healthy for the economy?

If (and I realize that's a big if) the government can step as a provider of loans, yes, I do think it would have been healthy. Sure, a couple of companies who were already living on borrowed money and needed yet more would have crashed, along with the banks. For everyone not needing more loan money yesterday the government could have stepped in and provided loans.

Heck, the government could just have given away the exact amount of money they pumped into failing banks and insurances and end up where we are at right now, except some companies who, according to all principles of the free market, should have crashed would actually have been allowed to do so. Heck, the government could have let them declare bankruptcy and then bought them for much less than what they just gave away.

Instead the US government essentially gave away billions in bailout money, trillions in unmonitored fed lending and god-knows-how-much in deregulations and fed perks. As far as I can tell the entire investment sector is at this point a giant betting house, where those who bet high and risky enough get government insurance. How can the next bubble be far off when there is a giant banner floating over the White House reading "lose enough money and we will pay you for it"?

The exact same thing happened here in Germany, though on a smaller scale. We decided to save banks that bet billions of money on houses getting more valuably by the minute and not only did we keep morons like that alive to speculate with other's people money, no, we even spent more money on saving them, than they would have cost to outright buy. By at least an order of magnitude. I am just waiting for greedy bankers to ride the next bubble. At this point I can't even blame them. After all the government will clean up any mess they make. So either they do the ethically correct thing, earn less money for their shareholders and less bonuses for themselves or they wildly speculate and try to ride a market that is sure to be increasingly volatile and hope to jump off the bubble just before it pops. And what is at stake? As it stands, government money. Just what I wanted, bankers playing roulette with my money.

And what will we do when the next bubble pops a little early? Rescue failing banks yet again? And again? Or will we finally have the balls to admit this doesn't work and let them crash? And if so, why didn't we do so this time, when the stakes are lower?

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 2:21 pm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Allen_Muhammad

On September 16, 2009, Muhammad's execution date was set for November 10, 2009.[12] On November 9, 2009, Muhammad's death sentence appeal was denied by the US Supreme Court. Justice Stevens, joined by Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor, wrote a separate opinion stating that Virginia's rush to set an execution date "highlights once again the perversity of executing inmates before their appeals process have been fully concluded," while noting that they concurred with the decision that the appeal ought not be heard.

It i just me or does that statement contradict itself? This is how better a Latino woman can do that a white man, in that she can spew contradiction just as well as them?

We shouldn't rush to do something before the appeals process has been finished, but lets just cancel the appeals process.

WTF?

Wyzzard · Post by **Wyzzard** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 4:24 pm

shadzar wrote:It i just me or does that statement contradict itself? This is how better a Latino woman can do that a white man, in that she can spew contradiction just as well as them?

We shouldn't rush to do something before the appeals process has been finished, but lets just cancel the appeals process.

WTF?

They're trying to say "don't kill people", they just have to use carefull wording so FOX can't make them look like "terrorist sympathisers" (which they probably will anyway).

On the topic of FOX:
Rupert Murdoch says: people will pay to read shit i totally fucking make up.

Indeed Rupert. If authors can do it, so can you. Have faith baby.

Kaelik · Post by **Kaelik** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 4:32 pm

Uh....

You do realize that Sotomayor didn't write that opinion right? Stevens did.

Just saying.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 12:02 am

Gelare wrote:Nowadays we've got FDIC insurance at every bank, so unless you've got a quarter million dollars sitting around in a bank that I don't know about, your money, as well as the money of about 98% of the nation, was fully insured. The real bank run would be among the rich, because their money wouldn't be insured.

And in fact, it was. This is the reason that actual banks failed: Four billion dollars was withdrawn from Northwest Bank leading to its collapse.

The Fed stepped in later to declare that it would insure literally any amount, but it was too late to save the banks which were stressed.

The lack of loans is really stifling the economy. I cannot get a loan to buy a house, even though I and the house qualify - because the banks are blaming 'new rules' which don't exist for their reason to be so slow. I cannot get a loan to repair a house because the banks won't even try. I'd hate to be a business which normally leverages its quarterly income to pay its employees on time or buy new materials: The banks aren't lending, even if the downturn didn't hurt your business.

So yes, spending trillions of dollars may not have been the best idea - the collapse&replace or nationalize plans might have been cheaper - but the result would be very similar: Bankers make money off of cannibalizing each other and ripping off the little guys.

-Crissa

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 12:12 am

Kaelik wrote:Uh....

You do realize that Sotomayor didn't write that opinion right? Stevens did.

Just saying.

But she did sign/agree with the verbal diarrhea.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 12:56 am

shad, saying that they should, from a moral standpoint, schedule executions after the required appeals (some are required, some are optional) does not mean that legally it is in doubt or that there are any further legally required appeals to the case.

Hence the opinion.

Basically it's saying that "we've made this so complex, the state wastes our time and your money scheduling these things when it knows they cannot happen." However, in this particular case, there seems to be no compelling reason to continue with the appeals process as every avenue has been exhausted.

That we have to get appeals for a capital case all the way to the supreme court is probably what they're complaining about in a round about manner.

However, what I really wanted to post was about the founded of the cesspool 'Little Green Footballs' being horribly disgusted by the right wing of which he was a part of. I guess some people draw the line at warmonger.

-Crissa

Kaelik · Post by **Kaelik** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 1:49 am

shadzar wrote:
Kaelik wrote:Uh....

You do realize that Sotomayor didn't write that opinion right? Stevens did.

Just saying.
But she did sign/agree with the verbal diarrhea.

She "joined" with an opinion.

A) People join with opinions that they only mostly agree with all the time.
B) If she's joining an opinion written by a white man, she definitionally cannot think that particular act is an example of being better than a white man.

In conclusion. Stop being a twit.

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 2:01 am

When she stops being a twat.

Ganbare Gincun · Post by **Ganbare Gincun** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 3:07 am

Lack Of Health Care Killed 2,266 US Veterans Last Year.

I thought the yellow ribbons were supposed to take care of this. Right?

cthulhu · Post by **cthulhu** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 3:11 am

Only some US veterans have access to medical care through the VA and coverage is apportioned on the basis of eight "priority groups."

Holy shit that's retarded. The VA is a very, very good source of medical care so excluding people from it just seems bizarre.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 3:37 am

They're excluded because otherwise, the VA would not have the resources to treat them. The VA support includes far more than just health benefits, and is generally voted against by Republicans to balance the budget, even when they're in control.

-Crissa

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 3:40 am

cthulhu wrote:

Only some US veterans have access to medical care through the VA and coverage is apportioned on the basis of eight "priority groups."
Holy shit that's retarded. The VA is a very, very good source of medical care so excluding people from it just seems bizarre.

Sadly it isn't and that is the problem. The VA had in recent years thrown away over 4000 claims. Filled those claims and bills sent to them in the round bin.

For some it is, but the numbers for VA are increasing as more people are going to wars like in Iraq-anistan, and coming back with PTSD which has a wider range now than just the shell-shock of the past.

So one locally who lost a leg, cannot get treatment because he was one of those 4000 that got filled in the round bin.

They have gone back and taken the shredded claims and have been reconstructing them and looking back into paying for these claims, but it is taking longer than it should because of the other current economic problems.

So even for those accepted by the VA, there are many that "fall through the cracks" as they call it due to negligence.

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 8:46 am

Seems they finally got Laser Tag in South Africa.

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 10:09 am

AIG CEO fed up an ready to quit over such a small salary as 10.5 million per year!

Let the mother fucker get a job as a greeter at Walmart then and see how he likes the REAL working life.

I could live for the rest of my life off of 10.5 million dollars as long as I don't have to get health insurance from those scam artists.... like AIG.

RobbyPants · Post by **RobbyPants** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 12:24 pm

People like that come off as "out of touch", and tend to get little sympathy from most people.

I'd love 10.5 million a year! Hell, I'd take 1% of that. I'll gladly take $150,000 a year!

Koumei · Post by **Koumei** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 12:52 pm

How could that not be enough: that could surely give him a comfortable life and large savings even taking a heavy cocaine habit into account. Hell, that could even cover a GW habit.

shadzar · Post by **shadzar** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 1:39 pm

No. 10.5 million flat out for the rest of your life could NOT support a GW habit. Not with those new tables for $640 each, and the Armageddon size armies with drop pods, and all the FW pieces.

Koumei · Post by **Koumei** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 2:28 pm

I meant as a yearly wage. I know a flat $10.5milUS couldn't cover a GW habit for life.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 10:14 pm

He makes over one hundred seven times what my spouse does in reported wages and pays five percent less of that income as taxes to the feds.

Sure, he could get a better paying job elsewhere. Because in his industry, triggering the largest series of bank collapses in over a century and bankrupting your company (several hundred times over) isn't considered a negative job history.

-Crissa