February 2009 archive

1. The NY Times reports the U.S. escalation in Afghanistan includes billions to fight roadside blasts. “the Pentagon plans to deploy billions of dollars in heavily armored vehicles, spy planes, jammers and even experimental ground-penetrating radars to defend troops from roadside bombs that are proving increasingly lethal.”

   Last year, 175 troops were killed in Afghanistan by roadside bombs. Afghanistan’s terrain and system of undeveloped roads makes it easier to mine with improvised explosive devices.

2. The Guardian reports the Iraqi government welcomes U.S. plans to withdraw combat troops by August 2010. “Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, who has been pressing for an accelerated pullout, said that Iraqi forces would be ready to take over full responsibility for security.”

   However, President Obama may delay the redeployment by many months. Obama has asked the Pentagon for “withdrawal plans ranging between 16 to 23 months… Some of America’s generals based in Iraq preferred the longest option.”

   Even after redeployment, “a sizeable contingent – between 30,000 and 50,000 – will be left to help with security and training.”

3. McClatchy reports Carbon dioxide emissions could last millenniums.

   “David Archer, a leading climate researcher who teaches at the University of Chicago,” explains in a new book that “if the world continues its heavy use of coal over the next couple of hundred years until it’s essentially used up, it would take several centuries more for the oceans to absorb about three-quarters of the carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere… About 10 percent of it would still be in the atmosphere in 100,000 years”.

   “Ultimately, the amount of fossil fuel available could be enough to raise the atmospheric CO2 concentration higher than it has been in millions of years,” Archer wrote… “In the long run, it could be a steep price to pay for a century or so of fossil fuel energy.”

4. According to The Guardian, the United States’ Climate change timetable slips as Obama backtracks on 2008 deadline. President “Barack Obama has been forced to slow down early legislation to reduce the CO2 emissions that cause global warming, a key green objective of his presidency.” Press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters on Monday that Obama “would support moves by Congress to act on global warming ‘whether that’s this year or next year’. The shift appeared to be an attempt to downplay expectations for further dramatic action on the environment.”

   And last night, once again, Obama furthered the myth of ‘clean’ coal.

   As NASA climate scientist James Hansen wrote, “The dirtiest trick that governments play on their citizens is the pretence that they are working on ‘clean coal’ or that they will build power plants that are ‘capture-ready’ in case technology is ever developed to capture all pollutants.”

We must have, because there’s no other way to explain shit like this.

I think my personal favorite quote that explains the mentality (and I use that word in the loosest and most generous sense possible) of these idiots is this:

They’re the same people who believed that Bill Clinton’s use of the FISA court to obtain warrants to eavesdrop on Americans was a grave threat to liberty, but believed that George Bush’s warrantless eavesdropping on Americans in violation of the law was a profound defense of freedom.

Get that? Read it once again, please.

From Ignoring Asia

As with any trend, fad or period of history things ascend and descend some at glacial speed others like a meteor.

In 1980 Ronald Reagan became President of the United States beginning the rise of conservatism in American politics aided and abetted by the likes of Ralph Reed who helped found the Christian Coalition of America, Rush Limbaugh and the rise of Conservative Talk Radio.

Even though George H.W. Bush followed Reagan one of Americas most popular presidents he was unable to win reelection in 1992 losing to Bill Clinton. Even with that win 1994 brought about the Republican Revolution led by Newt Gingrich and his Contract for America

American conservatives would obtain their biggest triumph with the election of George W. Bush allowing them to control all branches of America’s government until 2006 midterm elections.

The Liberal Democratic Party has dominated Japanese  politics since 1958. Under their policies the Japanese began its assent to what would become the worlds second largest economy. Using what became known as the convey system. Where the Ministry of International Trade and Industry would work in cooperation with banks and leading industrial corporations to not only promote Japanese business interests but to protect them.  

The LDP’s other power base lay in the way seats in the Diet were proportioned. A uniquely  Japanese system was created one which was not democratic or by any means representative of Japans voters. The multiple seat constituencies were weighted towards rural areas rather than the cities where a majority of the population now resided.

Even though the LDP led Japan in its most prosperous times this party like the Republicans is now descending but its decent was one made by a thousand cuts.  

Japan’s Bubble Economy

In 1985 the deregulation of interest rates on deposits began. Prior to that time bank were not allowed to pay interest on deposits. The removal of this prohibition led to competition between banks for deposits and hence to interest payments. Japanese banks did not raise interest rates they charged borrowers and thus did not offset the effect of the higher costs of their funds. They made up for the drop in their profits by selling the shares of stock they owned for a long time and counted the realized capital gains as profits. But because of the obligation of cross-holding of stock among the members of a keiretsu they immediately bought back the shares at the new higher price. This meant that they were able to count the capital gains as a profit, and had to pay tax on the capital gains and yet were back again with the assets they started with. They thus experienced a net loss of cash flow on the operation. Furthermore any decline in the stock market then would mean a disguised capital loss.

With the collapse of the Bubble Economy Japan under the LDP failed to correct the situation for 10 years out of fear. Using this go slow approach a decade was lost (The Lost Decade) causing Japan’s economy to contract and consumer spending to dry-up while savings increased at a rate higher than at any other time in its history this from a country known for saving.  

Today the LDP and the Republican are as popular as a used car salesman. Why?

Because both of these parties have failed to look forward rather than to the past.

For reasons that are beyond me the Liberal Democratic Party embraces policies that are Nationalistic and Inward looking policies that remind one of the 1940’s and 50’s. They are, even with control of the Diet unable to pass an economic stimulus package, can’t recognize that single parent families exists, that education isn’t about denying history while at the same time embracing the horrors that the Yasukuni Shrine represents.

America’s Republican party has become a shadow of its former self. Once a national party it has become a regional party.

One that embraces racism, believes that the top 1% of Americas wage earners (the wealthy) should receive the full protection and services that only government can offer while ignoring those most in need Americas Middle and Lower wage earners, rather than believing health care should be a right they fight to prevent care reaching the 47 million Americans without it. Living in fear of a major health care crisis.

These two parties have become irrelevant one did it in two years while the other has done it over a period of almost 20.    

More confirmation Obama is the last US president.

SOCIAL SECURITY CHANGES  

It does not matter if you personally like or dislike Obama.  You need to sign this petition and flood his e-mail box with e-mails that tell him that, even if the House passes this bill, he needs to veto it.  It is already impossible to live on Social Security alone.  If the government gives benefits to ‘illegal’ aliens who have never contributed, where does that leave those of us who have paid into Social Security all our working lives?

As stated below, the Senate voted this week to allow ‘illegal’ aliens access to Social Security benefits.

Attached is an opportunity to sign a petition that requires citizenship for eligibility to that social service.

Instructions are below.  If you don’t forward the petition and just stop it, we will lose all these names.

If you do not want to sign it, please just forward it to everyone you know.

Thank you!

To add your name, click on ‘forward’.  Address it to all of your email correspondents, add your name to the list and send it on.

When the petition hits 1,000, send it to [email protected]