Bulls, Bears, Swines, Elephants, Donkeys And Shrubs, Oh My!

Wall Street futures have contracted Swine Flu this morning, and are off nearly 2 percent. On top of everything else, a major global flu pandemic would certainly wreck any chance of recovery in 2009 and could in fact make things significantly worse.

The World Health Organization said the outbreak was a "public health emergency of international concern" that could become a pandemic, or global outbreak of serious disease.

The World Bank estimated in 2008 that a flu pandemic could cost $3 trillion and result in a nearly 5 percent drop in world gross domestic product, damaging prospects of recovery in a world economy deep in financial crisis.

The SARS outbreak, which disrupted travel, trade and the workplace in 2003, cost the Asia Pacific region an estimated $40 billion.

It lasted six months and killed 775 of the 8,000 people it infected in 25 countries.

"A nasty chill will run through the market with swine flu as people think back to the SARS virus," said Justin Urquhart Stewart, investment director at Seven Investment Management.

"The threat of the pandemic will add further weakness to global trade — we saw with SARS tangible percentage points knocked off the index and that was in a buoyant time. Put that in a weaker time and it is likely to be more unpleasant."

Airline stocks were hit by fears the outbreak would hurt travel but drugmakers were higher on vaccine hopes against the virus.

Shares in Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding rose. The company said it was working on increasing production of Tamiflu, a drug shown to work against the new flu strain.

But a company spokeswoman said the production lead time for the drug from synthesis of the product to packaging was eight months.

"We've always made it clear that this cannot happen overnight which is why it is so important that countries are prepared before the pandemic breaks out," she said.

I honestly can't think of a worse time for a major global pandemic to hit the world, especially the US. Right now the country is reeling, but if a big flu scare keeps Americans at home and away from work, school, and other public places, it could be a disaster for tourism and retail that will only accelerate the problem. It could be good for internet retailers like Amazon, but it will be bad, bad news for the already crippled commercial real estate sector and the shops, offices, and hotels that sector represents.

But there's a political angle here on that preparedness front. Remember, President Bush repeatedly slashed the budget of the CDC despite the warnings that a major epidemic or pandemic was long overdue. And when House Democrats led by David Obey tried to get hundreds of millions in funding for pandemic preparation put in the stimulus bill, it was the Senate Republicans, led by Susan Collins, who stripped the funding out, calling it (ironically) wasteful pork. Doesn't seem like preparing for Swine Flu is "pork" anymore, does it?

It was only the Omnibus Spending Bill passed a few months ago and Obama's new budget that restored some of the cuts Bush made, and even then Republicans continue to complain about science funding increases.

So yes, should Swine Flu knock America's economy for a loop and should you judge the administration's response to the possible pandemic as slow, you can thank Dubya's science funding slashing and Republican obstructionism for that. We still have no HHS Secretary, Surgeon General, or permanent CDC director to coordinate our response and inform the public thanks to the GOP. Our response could have been better with more resources, and should the outbreak reach the pandemic stage when it could have been contained better and earlier, consider it another lesson learned for the anti-science crowd.

Now there will most likely be an economic damage component to the Swine Flu story too. The only question is how much this bug will sicken the global economy and how long it will take to pass. It might end up costing the US billions in lost productivity, sales, and additional health care costs that could have been prevented with additional preparedness funding.

Thanks again, GOP! Glad to see you're looking out for America.

[UPDATE] It's been pointed out to me that Democrats in the Senate agreed with Collins and stripped these measures out of the stimulus bill as well, starting with Chuck Schumer.

So apparently once again we have a bi-partisan stupidity problem.

StupidiNews!

• American cases of Swine Flu are now confirmed at 20.
• More CIA torture memos may be on the way over the next few weeks.
• Baghdad officials say a US raid on suspected Iraqi terrorists violated Iraqi sovereignty.
• Four more banks were seized by the FDIC over the weekend, bringing 2009's total to 29.
• Web host Geocities will close after 15 years of bringing web sites to the masses.

Last Call

64% of Minnesotans want Norm Coleman to frickin' concede already. Having lived in Minnesota, I can tell you that if 64% of Minnesotans are sick of your ass, then you really have overstayed your welcome and are really very much being a complete asshole. Other states would have kicked your ass out months ago. Sixty-four percent means a healthy chunk of people who voted for Norm Coleman are now freely admitting "Hey, you lost. Get over it."

Concede already, man. Your former constituents have spoken.

Another Good Guy

Add Nicholas Kristof to the list of Villagers who understand the concept of rule of law and exactly why a transparent public commission on investigating torture is absolutely needed.

There are three solid reasons for a national commission:

First, it could help forge a consensus against torture, for almost everyone in the national security world believes that the result would be a ringing affirmation that we should not torture.

It’s in Mr. Obama’s interest to reach such a consensus, because otherwise the next major terror attack — and there will be one — will be followed by Republican claims that the president’s wimpishness left America vulnerable. His agenda on health care, climate change and education will then risk a collapse into dream dust. The way to inoculate his agenda is to seek common ground through a nonpartisan commission.

Second, a commission could help restore America’s standing by distancing ourselves from past abuses. Alberto Mora, a former general counsel for the Navy, has said that some flag-rank officers believe that Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo constitute “the first and second identifiable causes of U.S. combat deaths in Iraq,” because they galvanized jihadis. An Air Force major and interrogator of prisoners who goes by the pseudonym Matthew Alexander told Harper’s Magazine that “hundreds but more likely thousands of American lives” were lost because of “the policy decision to introduce the torture and abuse of prisoners.”

Third, a commission could help counterterrorism efforts. Foreign governments have been wary of cooperating with us for fear of being tarnished by scandal. At home, Arab-American and Somali-American communities have been leery of reporting tips because they see the authorities as unjust and hostile to Muslims.

“Oftentimes, the communities from which we need the most help are those who trust us the least,” Robert Mueller, the F.B.I. director, told the Council on Foreign Relations recently. Last fall, a Somali-American was among a group of suicide bombers who killed more than 20 people in the northern Somalia; he may have been the first American citizen to commit such a suicide attack.

There’s no magic bullet to prevent that from happening in Minneapolis next time, but a truth commission would perhaps be one way to clear the air, build trust among American Muslims and improve counterterrorism.

There's a clear concept here: such a commission would only help America's efforts to stop terror attacks.

This is the best argument I've heard yet for convincing the Jack Bauer crowd that we need an investigation.

An Ounce Of Prevention

The White House is taking the swine flu outbreak very seriously.

In an unusual Sunday briefing at the White House, administration officials said a “public health emergency” is being declared in the United States in order to mobilize maximum resources to combat fears of a global swine-flu pandemic.

The term "sounds more severe than it really is," said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who called the measure "standard operating procedure," adding, “I wish we could call it a declaration of emergency preparedness.” The same measures, she said, were taken for the inauguration and in cases of flood and hurricane.

Acting CDC Director Richard Besser said that health officials have reported 20 U.S. cases across five states – California, Kansas, New York, Ohio, and Texas – and expect the numbers to rise as doctors perform more tests to detect the illness, and warned that "more severe" cases are likely to surface here.

While the disease, which appears to have originated in Mexico, has killed more than 80 there and infected over 1,300, there have been no fatal American infections so far.

The government said it will release 25 percent of its stockpiles of the flu-fighting drugs Tamiflu and Relenza. Texas governor Rick Perry had previously requested 37,430 doses of Tamiflu be sent to his state from the Strategic National Stockpile.

And while this emergency is certainly concerning, it's also a major reminder that playing politics with something like a national health emergency is abhorrent. It's important to note that political actions have real world consequences. Right now, we have no Health and Human Services Secretary during this health emergency. Nor do we have a Surgeon General. Why? Republicans and religious conservatives have blocked votes and held up procedures and continue to do so.

So think about that. We have a national health emergency as of today...and nearly 100 days into this administration, no HHS Secretary or Surgeon General to lead America's response to it. Mexico went to Canada first to diagnose swine flu, NOT the United States, because America's health emergency response is being held up by Republicans more worried about controlling the uterus rather than controlling a pandemic.

Why, the Wingers are outraged at Obama's inability to respond to this health crisis with no HHS Secretary or Surgeon General, and of course that leaves Janet Napolitano at Homeland Security who the Wingers want fired anyway. It's his Katrina moment! (You know, just like his last Katrina moment.) I'm sure the lack of cabinet heads has nothing to do with the speed of our response.

Which party is endangering the country again? Here's a hint, it's not the Democrats.

[UPDATE] DDay points out the blinding speed at which Texas Gov. Rick "The Federal Government Should Stick Strictly To Its Constitutional Duties, The Rest Is The Clear Dominion Of Individual States" Perry is once again asking for federal resources on the swine flu issue.

Hey, secessionists? Is asking the feds for Tamiflu in the Constitution? No? Well then, I guess you're on your own, right? But I thought the Federal government was evil and run by a fascist usurper that we must resist with our last ounce of blood?

Zandar's Thought Of the Day

A WaPo poll finds Americans are pretty evenly split on the torture question, with 75% of Democrats wanting investigations and 74% of Republicans not wanting them. If wanting investigations of the Bush torture regime is nothing more than a partisan witch hunt that "assures another 9/11 attack", doesn't that mean by the same logic that NOT wanting investigations means this is a partisan cover-up that "assures another Watergate scandal"?

At what point does rule of law and the Geneva Conventions enter into the debate here? Oh wait, I'm sorry, terrorists never signed on to those, so it makes it okay for us to break them.

So, I guess a corrupt government is better than dead Americans! Take that, libtards!

Of course, that logic is a complete fallacy to begin with, but that's besides the point. When we've become more worried that the risk of doing justice now outweighs the possibility that we might cause harm or injustice later, then we're no longer a country of laws.

David Waldman has more.

A Wingnut Pandemic Of Stupidity

Naturally, the Wingers see the Swine Flu outbreak in Mexico as unequivocal proof that we need 40 foot high electrified border fences guarded by turbolaser towers to keep the filthy, diseased illegals out of the country. Malkinvania and her ilk are quick to point out that the AFOP has now set us up for death by killer flu.

It hasn't occurred to any of these meatheads that the fastest path from Mexico City to Manhattan is called "an airplane taken by an American business traveler or vacationing family."

Sure, we could do a better job on the borders. Absolutely. Blaming Obama for this? Idiotic. Not to mention if the President made the same public safety moves that Mexican President Calderon is doing (advising all to wear face masks, closing schools, museums and other public places) then let's not forget Michelle Malkin would be the first person to go into an unrestrained screaming fit calling Obama the worst fascist America had ever seen, and that his Soviet gulag-era tactics to restrain American freedom would just be the beginning of the end of America.

Let's be honest here, people. If Obama doesn't say "Let's lock America down, nobody gets in, nobody gets out" he'll be blamed by these assholes for putting us at risk from FILTHY MEXICAN DEATH FLU on purpose, and it's proof Obama is a fascist dictator threatening our very lives and that we would need to rise up against the Kenyan usurper's illegal government and defend ourselves against enemies at our borders by whatever means necessary.

If he does implement public health and safety measures like this, of course that would mean Obama is implementing the policies of one world government by taking our guns and taking over the country to install himself as Leader For Life, and it's proof Obama is a fascist dictator threatening our very lives and that we would need to rise up against the Kenyan usurper's illegal government and defend ourselves against enemies within our borders by whatever means necessary.

He can't win with this crowd, so it's best to take anything they say with a ton of salt and cotton in your ears. Which is sad, because there is a real concern here for public health, and it's being used as a vehicle instead to attack Obama. Either way the Wingers get to have their WOLVEREEEEEEEEEENES! fantasy about shooting Latinos with the sniffles, or shooting jackbooted Gubment Thugs.

What a great bunch of people, huh?

It All Came Back To Iraq

Frank Rich discovers journalism again (and it is a glorious thing, truly) as somebody in the Village finally writes the torture memo column that needed to be written. Rich makes two excellent points on the torture of Abu Zubaydah:

In other words, the ticking time bomb was not another potential Qaeda attack on America but the Bush administration’s ticking timetable for selling a war in Iraq; it wanted to pressure Congress to pass a war resolution before the 2002 midterm elections. Bybee’s memo was written the week after the then-secret (and subsequently leaked) “Downing Street memo,” in which the head of British intelligence informed Tony Blair that the Bush White House was so determined to go to war in Iraq that “the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy.” A month after Bybee’s memo, on Sept. 8, 2002, Cheney would make his infamous appearance on “Meet the Press,” hyping both Saddam’s W.M.D.s and the “number of contacts over the years” between Al Qaeda and Iraq. If only 9/11 could somehow be pinned on Iraq, the case for war would be a slamdunk.

But there were no links between 9/11 and Iraq, and the White House knew it. Torture may have been the last hope for coercing such bogus “intelligence” from detainees who would be tempted to say anything to stop the waterboarding.

Indeed, in the end, everything was about selling the Iraq War to America and the world. Should we be surprised that an administration that made lies up wholesale to get us into war with a country that didn't attack us, wasn't capable of hurting us, and will now hate us for generations?

Five years after the Abu Ghraib revelations, we must acknowledge that our government methodically authorized torture and lied about it. But we also must contemplate the possibility that it did so not just out of a sincere, if criminally misguided, desire to “protect” us but also to promote an unnecessary and catastrophic war. Instead of saving us from “another 9/11,” torture was a tool in the campaign to falsify and exploit 9/11 so that fearful Americans would be bamboozled into a mission that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda. The lying about Iraq remains the original sin from which flows much of the Bush White House’s illegality.

Levin suggests — and I agree — that as additional fact-finding plays out, it’s time for the Justice Department to enlist a panel of two or three apolitical outsiders, perhaps retired federal judges, “to review the mass of material” we already have. The fundamental truth is there, as it long has been. The panel can recommend a legal path that will insure accountability for this wholesale betrayal of American values.

President Obama can talk all he wants about not looking back, but this grotesque past is bigger than even he is. It won’t vanish into a memory hole any more than Andersonville, World War II internment camps or My Lai. The White House, Congress and politicians of both parties should get out of the way. We don’t need another commission. We don’t need any Capitol Hill witch hunts. What we must have are fair trials that at long last uphold and reclaim our nation’s commitment to the rule of law.

From Frank Rich's computer to America's ears. Not everybody in the Village is completely corrupt, it turns out. Some of them still believe in America.

I only hope that Obama and Eric Holder are willing to do what has to be done. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy, but America has taken the easy way out once too many times. It's high time we started acting like America again.

"But Zandar," you say, "Rasmussen says 58% of Americans don't want further investigations of Bush. How can you possibly justify doing so? It will destroy the country!"

To which I say "We are either a country ultimately ruled by laws, or ruled by men. Choose wisely."

Last Call

The banking crisis is far from over.

Regulators met top executives from the 19 banks behind closed doors at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Friday, and at some of the 12 other regional Fed Bank offices, to review the preliminary results of the tests and inform bankers how much additional capital they must raise.

The information will not be publicly released until May 4, although the banks have the next several days to dispute any of the findings of the tests.

On Friday, Morgan Stanley came forward with its own analysis of which banks might need to raise capital, the latest in a series of private estimates being tallied to allow gambling investors to position themselves to profit from fluctuations in the stock prices of the banks.

The report identified SunTrust, KeyCorp and Regions Financial — all major regional banks — as those that the government would probably determine needed billions in additional capital. Bank of America and Wells Fargo fall into a “gray zone,” the report said. Earlier this week, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a boutique investment bank, said all of the 19 banks might need a total of $1 trillion of fresh capital.

And of course, they will get it from Helicopter Ben's magic printing press, and everything will be just fine!

But I have to ask, since we've determined that the Big 19 will not be allowed to fail, then what happens to the twentieth largest bank on the list, I wonder? And #21? And #22? If the big banks need another trillion to survive, what about the medium banks? What happens to them?

The Big 19 banks account for half the loans in this country. What about the banks that hold the other half? What will Obama do for them?

You have a loan out with a bank not on this list? I'd be worried if I were you.

Very worried.

The Problem With The Village

David Broder scolds Obama for even possibly leaving the door open for torture prosecutions.

If ever there were a time for President Obama to trust his instincts and stick to his guns, that time is now, when he is being pressured to change his mind about closing the books on the "torture" policies of the past.

Obama, to his credit, has ended one of the darkest chapters of American history, when certain terrorist suspects were whisked off to secret prisons and subjected to waterboarding and other forms of painful coercion in hopes of extracting information about threats to the United States.

He was right to do this. But he was just as right to declare that there should be no prosecution of those who carried out what had been the policy of the United States government. And he was right when he sent out his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, to declare that the same amnesty should apply to the lawyers and bureaucrats who devised and justified the Bush administration practices.

But now Obama is being lobbied by politicians and voters who want something more -- the humiliation and/or punishment of those responsible for the policies of the past. They are looking for individual scalps -- or, at least, careers and reputations.

Their argument is that without identifying and punishing the perpetrators, there can be no accountability -- and therefore no deterrent lesson for future administrations. It is a plausible-sounding rationale, but it cloaks an unworthy desire for vengeance.

When you have done nothing but cover politicians in Washington for 40 years, everything is political. The fact that the President as a human being may actually be bothered to want to do the right thing as millions of people outside Washington may want him to do hasn't even occurred to Broder: it is simply "populism" and populism by default should be ridiculed and dismissed in Broder's worldview. Should populism be acknowledged at all, it simply hides the crassly political. It is the ultimate Villager view: the voters aren't smart enough to know how the real world works, and the real world is Washington. Everything outside it consists of the great unwashed masses, teeming with naivete' and banal emotional responses like "accountability". Only the Villagers, especially Dean Broder here, are qualified to make Solomonic proclamations that wisely maintain the status quo and power of the Village. What the people want doesn't matter, unless it happens to be what the Village wants as well.

You could slip and break your neck on the thick pool of condescension dripping from Broder's column. How dare the rabble demand their leaders be accountable? People like David Broder made Washington, and no lesser, filthy leftists are allowed in. Obama is only as useful as he continues to see the status quo served, and that status quo consists of the Village telling Washington what to do and what to think, and Washington executing those orders, with the Village sages wisely running the country and the world. Accountability would damage the very fabric of the Villagers' power.

In other words, see Double G's Three Rules Of The Village. The GOP aren't the only enemies democracy has in our nation's capital. Not by a long shot.

Outbreak

The Mexico/US border area outbreak of Swine Flu has gotten extremely serious.

The swine flu outbreak in Mexico and the United States could develop into a pandemic, the head of the World Health Organization said Saturday.

The outbreak involves "an animal strain of the H1N1 virus, and it has pandemic potential," director general Margaret Chan said, adding that it is too early to say whether a pandemic will actually occur.

To contain the outbreak, Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard announced on Saturday the cancellation of all public events for 10 days.

The World Health Organization has advised countries around the world to look out for similar outbreaks following the discovery of related strains on both sides of the Mexico-U.S. border.

At least 62 people in Mexico have died from pneumonia after contracting a flu-like virus. WHO said some tested positive for a strain that sickened at least seven in the southwestern United States. No deaths have been reported in the U.S.

That's a serious problem. This one could be bad, folks. Keep an eye on this outbreak.

The Village Doesn't Get The GOP Plan

An unsigned editorial from the NY Times takes aim at Republicans blocking foreclosure and bankruptcy reform.

The House passed reform legislation more than a month ago. Senate Democratic leaders say that nearly all 58 members of their caucus are on board. Republican leaders say all 41 of their senators will block a vote. If they hold ranks, it would mean that senators from states hardest hit by foreclosures would help to ensure the bill’s failure — including John McCain and Jon Kyl of Arizona and John Ensign of Nevada.

Republican opposition appears to have more to do with fund-raising than principle. The American Bankers Association and other lobbies remain opposed to the fix. Sam Geduldig, a lobbyist for several banking trade associations, recently told The Times’s Stephen Labaton and Eric Dash that as a minority party, Republicans will get “professional donors and lobbyists to look at them in a different light,” if they show they can affect policy.

There might be some good news. Several powerhouse banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, have been talking with Democratic leaders in recent days about crafting a bankruptcy fix. Democrats hope the big banks can rope in a few Republicans. The danger is the bill could be watered down.

And while all that is true, the Times then reveals the entire editorial board hasn't been paying a lick of attention to the Republican party's goals in the last 100 days.

The Obama administration, which is propping up the banks, should put more pressure on them to support a robust bankruptcy reform.

If that doesn’t work, there’s always the appeal to reason.

Republican senators need to understand that a vote against this reform is a vote against economic recovery. As foreclosures add to the glut of unsold homes, house prices will continue to fall. That will lead to more foreclosures — declining equity is a risk factor for default — and more defaults and foreclosures will hamper the banks’ recovery and further constrain credit. And so on.

Hey, brilliant journalists at the NY Times...what the hell makes you think that the Republican party wants economic recovery?

Now I have my doubts about Obama's methods for recovery, but I know for sure he wants the country to start recovering. There's a small chance Obama's plans may work, and the GOP can't risk it. It's politically advantageous for them to want the entire economy to fail so they can blame Obama for it...which is why they are obstructing everything Obama is trying to do in order to fix the economy. If the economy recovers, the Democrats will continue to hold power. If the economy fails, the GOP can say "I told you so" and regain status. Since everything to the hyper-politicized GOP is just the calculus of power in Washington and the calculus says that if the GOP helps the country recover by allowing Obama's legislation to become law, the Democrats will get the credit for it, the Republicans are willing to destroy the country's economy for their own political ends. I've said this since it became clear late last year. Every day since then has simply borne out the truth in that accusation. The NY Times still hasn't figured this out yet. They have gotten to the what of the story (Republicans will try to filibuster any Democratic legislation that could fix the economy) but not the more-important why (they want to wreck the economy, blame Obama, and retake Washington.)

To his credit, the President no longer sees the GOP as willing to negotiate in good faith. Obama indeed does get it, that the GOP will in fact do everything they can to destroy Obama's legislative priorities. The President is starting to turn to his own party to get things done, which the left has been suggesting he do for quite some time now.

But as you can see from the Times, the Village still seems mystified as to why the GOP is obstructing everything at best, and at worst, it's buying into the Winger spin that Obama is now a brutal dictator.

While some Democratic senators were reluctant to embrace the arrangement, Mr. Obama made clear at a White House session on Thursday afternoon that he favored it, people with knowledge of the session said.

Mr. Obama has given way in some battles with Congress, but the new stance suggests he may be much less willing to compromise when it comes to health care, his top legislative priority, even if it means a bitter partisan fight.

The no-filibuster arrangement is fiercely opposed by Republican leaders, who say health care is too important to be exempted from the Senate rules that usually mean major bills must win support from 60 senators.

That's a Senate rule? Really? You need a super-majority to pass legislation? Could have fooled me.

It's Senate rules to have two Senators from each state too, but the Republicans don't seem to be too concerned over that either.

Obama gets it. The American people certainly get it. The Democrats get it. The Village? Still purposely clueless as to the GOP Plan after months...or aiding and abetting it.

Just A Reminder

The job picture is pretty bad here in the US, but it's much worse in places like Spain, where the national jobless rate is already a whopping 17.4%.

In the past year, two million people have lost their jobs taking the total out of work to just over four million.

The Bank of Spain recently predicted the jobless rate would reach 19.4% in 2010, as the recession took hold.

"It is a terrible figure," Octavio Granado, secretary of state for social security told state television.

He said the first quarter of any year was traditionally bad for employment in Spain.

Mr Granado also said that 2009 was expected to be the worst part of the economic downturn.

"So we are in the epicentre of the crisis. We are in the eye of the perfect storm," he said.

I think quite a few countries are going to top the 20-25% official unemployment rate nationally, along with the U-6 rate here in stateside (currently 15.6% and rising).

There's no sign of improvement in the unemployment picture at all, if anything it's looking to get far worse according to government data.

Employers took 2,933 mass layoff actions in March that resulted in the separation of 299,388 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits filed during the month. Layoff events and initial claims rose to their highest levels on record, with data available back to 1995.

The number of mass layoff events in March increased by 164 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims increased by 3,911. Over the year, the number of mass layoff events increased by 1,348, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 137,891.

In March 2009, the manufacturing sector experienced 1,259 mass layoff events, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 155,909 claims. Over the month, mass layoff events in manufacturing increased by 24, and initial claims increased by 3,291. Layoff events in the manufacturing sector reached its highest level on record in March.

The government defines mass layoff as 50 or more from one company at one time, and more and more companies are going to be slashing big numbers over the next year at the minimum. In other words, companies are no longer nickel and diming a few positions here or there. They are laying off hundreds of people at a time. It's not just small businesses that are hurting but big ones too. That will only continue to accelerate as the consumer economy grinds to a halt.

Banks still aren't lending at the consumer level. Do you see any banks offering protection plans on homes or credit card purchases like car companies are doing if you lose your job? They're getting money in from the government of course, but they know more and more Americans are major credit risks now, just a couple of lost paychecks or a layoff away from falling completely behind on bills. Without consumers buying homes, cars, vacations and big ticket items, there will be no recovery no matter what signs of life are seen in the markets. And without recovery stabilizing the unemployment market, there will be no confidence to buy or lend. It's a nasty catch-22, and we're all stuck in the middle.

StupidiNews, Weekend Edition

• Hillary Clinton travels to Baghdad among one of the bloodiest weeks in Iraq in years.
• The National Academy of Engineers claims the levees protecting New Orleans are too weak.
• Islamist extremists are withdrawing from Pakistan's Buner region, but nobody's convinced they are gone for good.
• The Donald's daughter Ivanka Trump says credit conditions continue to be lousy.
• One billion Apple iPhone apps have been downloaded from the Apple Apps Store.

Last Call

One of the clear criteria for sentience is that sentient beings possess self-awareness and an understanding of causality, that is specific actions performed by the aware self have specific consequences.



Michelle Bachmann is having some trouble with that concept, it seems...not to mention a complete inability to recognize shame or irony for that matter.

EPIC FAIL.