I'll be watching the Chicago Fed National Anxiety Index very close!

MaryAnn wrote:

Prepare your baggage carefully because you carry it until you don't.

My advise is to pack light. Then you can help carry a bag, or make it easier on someone who may carry your bag for a time.

Clinton Returns to Washington, Needling Himself, Obama and the Press - Washington Wire - WSJ

Elsewhere in his remarks, he noted he was speaking on the night before the start of spring, “otherwise known to Al Gore as proof of global warming.” Of the current vice president, he said: “Vice President Biden, God bless his mouth.”

Going back a couple of threads, my parents are looking for another investment property in Phoenix. I'm throwing out shadow inventory stats and interest rate increases when the feds stop buying as much MBS. Any other arguments I should make?

The markets will rally on the health care bill, though it is not in the best interests of anyone other than insurance companies, big pharma, and lawyers. Small businesses and taxpayers will get killed by all this. Premiums increasing 20% per year, indefinitely.

Though the markets will rally, I fear the next thing on the agenda will further bankrupt the economy. My guess is house giveaways for the poor souls who got snookered by those horrible, horrible mortgage lenders.

Disempowered Paper Pusher wrote:

Any other arguments I should make?

Home values in Phoenix metro could fall again because of 'shadow inventory'

Phoenix area home prices could experience another drop in value because of tens of thousands of properties that could flood the market in 2010.

dr munch wrote:

The markets will rally on the health care bill, though it is not in the best interests of anyone other than insurance companies, big pharma, and lawyers. Small businesses and taxpayers will get killed by all this. Premiums increasing 20% per year, indefinitely.

Isn't this bill an omnibus act that suspends the laws of supply and demand, providing a greater amount of care for a larger populace are a smaller cost?

Citizen AllenM wrote:

Such nice people. Gee, what are they going to get for used medical equipment at a yard sale-$10?

What they are getting, right this moment, is a very unpleasant suprise. Cops and 5 big guys at their house removing things that aren't theirs that they planned to sell and have some extra money.

My grandma said to never do business with a friend

Ignore the 2nd.

lawyerliz wrote:

My grandma said to never do business with a friend

She's right, but she left out not doing business with family either-

lawyerliz wrote:

CR, did you work this hard before you were "retired"

LOL! Had that conversation with a 'retired' exec from bigoil who was running a two day simulation exercise at an MBA program here in the Houston area... participating due to my part of bigoil sponsoring same event, a pretty interesting excercise in getting beyond the case study mindset to understand how messy actually getting things done in the real world can be because it is all about people.

Anyways, he said that he was busier since retirement than ever before, but just with the things that interested him. Wide ranging conversation, I put him onto Tainter and hope for some email correspondence on his views of that work.

Cinco-X wrote:

When you’re ridding yourself of debt that costs you much less, however, it’s easier to imagine a future when you could more easily earn a higher return by investing those potential extra mortgage payments someplace else.

Translation: equity market desperately seeking bagholders

edit: and that is quoting cinco quoting another source...

energyecon wrote:

When you’re ridding yourself of debt that costs you much less, however, it’s easier to imagine a future when you could more easily earn a higher return by investing those potential extra mortgage payments someplace else.

Translation: equity market desperately seeking bagholders

Actually, what I think they mean is that putting your money in bonds and money markets will make better sense in 6 mos. to1 year, when they're thinking the return on these will be higher than the money you save paying off a 5% mortgage early. I could pay off my one remaining car loan with the money I have in my checking account, but why would I do that when the interest rate is essentially zero. Doing so would save me nothing, and cost me a small bit.
You should know better than to rely on Google translator...

This would be for Nanoo-Nanoo if she were here:
High Fructose Corn Syrup Linked to Liver Scarring - US News and World Report
Anybody got her e-mail? I know she gets a hard-on about HFCs, and that's saying something....

longwaver wrote:

I could pay off my one remaining car loan with the money I have in my checking account, but why would I do that when the interest rate is essentially zero. Doing so would save me nothing, and cost me a small bit.

Can you lower your insurance costs by having it paid off?

I could eliminate collision, but there's a a lot of value in the car itself, so I probably wouldn't. It's a smokin' Mazda 3. Best car I've ever had, even better than the previous Mazda 3 that my wife is now driving....

Cinco - Wow. But why aren't we seeing more cases of liver disease since corn syrup is so widely used today?

I just switched our ice cream over to Breyers natural vanilla bean because I noticed in the ingredients it had no HFCS. But the kids are complaining. They want their Hood back.

Outsider wrote:

I just switched our ice cream over to Breyers natural vanilla bean because I noticed in the ingredients it had no HFCS. But the kids are complaining. They want their Hood back.

If your a republican family, tell them health care passed so no more ice cream, ever... because of Obama

longwaver wrote:

It's a smokin' Mazda 3. Best car I've ever had, even better than the previous Mazda 3 that my wife is now driving....

Nice.. The one car payment I have is a 2008 Saturn Vue with a V4... I'll drop collision in a heartbeat once I have it paid off.

I've had great luck with Mazdas, but this is the next car I want:
2009 / 2010 Volkswagen Golf VI 2.0 TDI Diesel - First Drive Review - Auto Reviews - Car and Driver
It's green, peppy, and I hope that someday I will be able to switch it over to bio-diesel.....

Cinco-X wrote:

It's green, peppy, and I hope that someday I will be able to switch it over to bio-diesel.....

Nice VW. Diesel is the way to go for the long haul.. The raw materials to make diesel are much more flexible than gas/crude oil.

longwaver wrote:
And your kids can kick the crap out of hippies anytime they want, since the health care is free!
'Bama gonna pay my mortgage!
'Bama gonna make my car payment!
'Bama gonna pay for my healthcare!

ResistanceIsFeudal wrote:

'Bama gonna pay my mortgage!
'Bama gonna make my car payment!
'Bama gonna pay for my healthcare!

It's gonna be suhweet for a few years, until the Chinese decide to repo everything....

It's a smokin' Mazda 3.

I hope you mean a Mazdaspeed 3, cuz the others aren't so smokin. 09 WRX driver myself.

'Bama gonna pay my mortgage!
'Bama gonna make my car payment!
'Bama gonna pay for my healthcare!

Why not? I deserve it!

I've seen a lot of lavish (read very nice buildings in order to skim even more money) projects funded by the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development

Are there any apparent consequences to bad loans or grants? Who pays for the free money? All holders of EU currency, the biggest EU taxpayers, the country receiving the money?

Citizen AllenM wrote:

Know any lawyer who will do an eviction cheap in Tucson?

What, and give your frenemies the chance to forestall eviction by filing BK, giving them time to trash the place? Why not take the $$ you'd be paying an atty and offer it to them for the keys? And you can promise no negative remarks when their next landlord calls for a reference.

DUBAI WORLD, the troubled Gulf investment fund that owns the QE2 cruise liner and Cirque du Soleil dance troupe, is to ask its creditors for up to eight more years to pay back a $22 billion (£15 billion) debt mountain.

Dubai World wants eight years to pay debts - Times Online

Can - kick.

ResistanceIsFeudal wrote:

Why not? I deserve it!
Damn right... after all, you exist.

I actually like the idea of real health insurance. Like car insurance. Give me a $5000 deductible and I pay 100% for everything under that. I'll pay $500 a year to cover my entire family and they can do a health evaluation every year to determine my rates. It'll be my families annual checkup and you can bet I'll be watching my weight before the appointment.

Right now my health plan is run like a time share. I pay every month and when I try to use it, I get screwed. Also they give me a phone # to call with questions.. 1-900-SCREW-U.

speaking of underfunded pensions
British Airways strike is going ahead

This report should stop anyone from buying property in Phx.

Real Estate 2010 state list - Money Magazine on CNNMoney.com

Projection for 2010 is another 18% down.

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:
British Airways strike is going ahead
There is no money. Anymore.
-The Management

longwaver wrote:

I actually like the idea of real health insurance. Like car insurance. Give me a $5000 deductible and I pay 100% for everything under that. I'll pay $500 a year to cover my entire family and they can do a health evaluation every year to determine my rates. It'll be my families annual checkup and you can bet I'll be watching my weight before the appointment.

This kind of program coupled with health saving accounts might work really well. Seeing the actual bills might consumers more cognizant of the real costs, and might encourage more shopping around for better deals.
Too bad that's not what we're going to get........

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:

speaking of underfunded pensions

Here are the specifics:

State Retirement Systems Under Funded

AZ is around the bare-bones minimum 80% funded.

Cinco-X wrote:

Seeing the actual bills might consumers more cognizant of the real costs, and might encourage more shopping around for better deals.
Too bad that's not what we're going to get........

Couple that with tort reform and competition across state lines and we would be in good shape...

Cinco-X wrote:

Good link; I've always wondered why someone didn't try something similar using Sargassum ...

I'm also okay with all electric cars IF I can have a personal nuclear reactor.

Key US Dollar Libor Higher Again As Liquidity Tightens - WSJ.com

However, "we believe the recent tightening in the OIS/Treasury basis is largely a result of a sharp increase in collateral in the bill market over the past month," explained Ajay Rajadhyaksha, Barclays Capital strategist.

"We expect the bill universe to resume its shrinking trend from April onward, which should richen the two-year OIS/Treasury basis back to +15 basis points or so."

Three-Month Dollar Libor Increases By Most Since September - Bloomberg.com

Can the spending associated with Health care bill dim the prospects of a ?

energyecon wrote:

A meaningful contribution on the margins? Certainly. As to "massive algae farms powering the nation"...do some math. And tell me when you can get there.

If I can choose between this or Obamacare, I'm going with the Algae.

Algae, obamacare - both squid food.

ResistanceIsFeudal wrote:

There is no money. Anymore.
-The Management

YRC, Teamsters Work on Concession Holdouts | Journal of Commerce
Teamsters 15% pay cut, no pension contributions for 18 months

FedEx slashed freight prices but YRC hasn't gone under yet. Might take longer, but freight rates will increase just like is happening in shipping where they will have tripled within a year. Trucking doesn't have the benefit of fewer transports on fewer routes to put a time sensitive squeeze on, but the companies have to make a profit eventually.

scone wrote:

Dumb ass question of the day. Why didn't they make the health reform thingie a simple HSA account? It certainly works for me, and watching the money grow over time is pretty gratifying. You'd think there would have been less opposition.

I think this is why folks are so angry. There are literally dozens of common sense / low-to-no cost changes that would evolve the system we have today... Instead we get turd bill that was never meant to become law.

scone wrote:

Dumb ass question of the day. Why didn't they make the health reform thingie a simple HSA account? It certainly works for me, and watching the money grow over time is pretty gratifying. You'd think there would have been less opposition.

Because the Repubs were for it, and there was nothing in it for doctors, insurance companies and hospitals. As I mentioned above, having an HSA would mean that folks would necessarily have to see the costs of their care, and as such would begin to ask questions, shop around, etc., all things that would put downward pressure on health care costs. Remember:
Consumer health care costs = Health care industry revenues......
'nuff said-

dr munch wrote:

When a company like Exxon makes billions a year and has a pension funded at only 70%, it makes you wonder.

Why wonder?
They paid themselves well. Screw everyone else.

dr munch wrote:
When a company like Exxon makes billions a year and has a pension funded at only 70%, it makes you wonder.
Only makes you wonder which end of the leverage wedge you're on.

Reich made a good point about the bill, that insurance companies will still get their anti-trust exemption. So you have to buy in, but they don't have to control their prices. Not good. Still, even if it passes, it won't kick in until 2014, IIRC, and that's a very long time in politics.

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:
assuming they achieve 8% returns on investment indefinitely, let alone estimates of inflation linked payments
That's a perfectly reasonable assumption supported by two strong economic fundamentals:
&

scone wrote:

Still, even if it passes, it won't kick in until 2014

What was sad was the Dems making public health care sob stories about people who are dying without healthcare. I'm guessing the new law puts those folks in cryogenic storage until 2014.

Cinco-X wrote:

xpert agree: free money is the best kind.

HowStuffWorks "How Counterfeiting Works"

scone wrote:

We sold our tractor, Slartibartfast. I feel like I've given away my favorite kitten. I hope they're nice to him.

Did you bring him all the way from OR?

Cinco-X wrote:

Odd! I clicked that link and all of a sudden my computer has slowed down. It's almost as if the SS was loking at every more I am making

That was me.. when you click there, you join a compute grid that I developed seize control of the tri-state area.

longwaver wrote:

That was me.. when you click there, you join a compute grid that I developed seize control of the tri-state area.

Are you in league with the Chinese trying to bring down our grid as well?

Extolling the Corporate Squeeze of Workers? « naked capitalism

Interesting post by yves...

Seventeen hundred federal programs in The Health Care Bill, twenty two hundred pages, from School Loans to School lunches. The only thing for sure IRS plays the biggest roll.

They paid themselves well. Screw everyone else.

The epitaph of every society that has ever gone down.

pavel.chichikov wrote:
The epitaph of every society that has ever gone down.
But... this time it's different. My alien masters said so.

16 Nov 2009 Financial crises and the evaporation of trust

Relatedly, setting liquidity requirements to be proportional to short-term
debt, in the manner of the Greenspan-Guidotti rule [16] for short-term debt-
to-reserve ratios in emerging-market countries, can also improve system sta-
bility [17]. In our model, this amounts to setting b0 = βi + αli , where α is
some pre-defined ratio. From Eq. (2) this is equivalent to reducing the cost
of miscoordination c to c − α, and replacing b0 by βi − α. Clearly, however,
the benefits of ex post regulation of this kind need to be set against the ex
ante costs to banks of such regulation. Requiring banks to hold liquidity
cushions may lower the extent of lending ex ante and the overall implications
of such a policy for economic welfare is likely to be unclear.
An alternative to blanket leverage ratios and liquidity requirements is to
target such policies on those financial institutions in the network that are
most important [18]. There are interesting parallels here with the literature
on attacks on internet-router networks [19].

Kartik Anand,1, Prasanna Gai,2, and Matteo Marsili

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guidotti–Greenspan_rule

If you can't pay off all of your foreign debts in the next 12 months, you're a terrible credit risk.

C4Cs fall out.

Third - and this is the most deleterious side effect of the program - used car prices are up 13.7% since July 2009.
Now, try and tell those aged 16-19 years, the age category that is currently experiencing a 25% unemployment rate, that Cash for Clunkers was a successful piece of legislation."

News N Economics: 9 months after the most economically atrocious piece of legislation in 2009 (Cash for Clunkers)

Dr Munch - That is really funny. Reminds me of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, when every word can be traced back to Greek origin.

Didn't seem to get great reviews.

I find the best computer deals happen right after T'giving.

The computer industry is always looking for technological advances, to get you to dump their last technological advance, and buy the latest thing you don't really need, to waste time blogging and gaming.

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:
just like TVs are now moving into 3d trying to keep some feature differentiation in there
That, and the sky-high unemployment, hovels and generally diminishing standard of living as well as quality of public services all but the squid-favored and bureaucracy are going to experiencing will require plenty of distraction to thwart insurrection or popular uprisings while the looting continues.

The TV deal between Google, Sony, Logitech and Intel which flooded the media zeitgeist last week was a perfect riposte to the other news that Facebook topped Google for the week ending March 13th with 7.07 per cent of all Internet traffic for that week, while Google.com got 7.03 per cent.

The new platform would reportedly be available as a set-top b

Google TV: Five Burning Questions - PCWorld or as part of a Web-capable television. Google TV would be based on Google's mobile operating system,

scone wrote:

The computer industry is always looking for technological advances, to get you to dump their last technological advance, and buy the latest thing you don't really need, to waste time blogging and gaming.

There is something else to do besides blogging and gaming?

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:

just like TVs are now moving into 3d trying to keep some feature differentiation in there

I experienced the Samsung 3D in a retail store yesterday and was underwhelmed. The sample 3D loop they had running didn't look very 3D. Maybe it was a defective unit or defective glasses.

Doc Holiday wrote:

Any suggestions

Review the movie Caddyshack...

Doc Holiday wrote:
Any suggestions?
Form a central board first, five or six people with vested business interest. Then create a committee of at least nine to study the problem for a few months. Gather data about the mole infestation and use statistical analysis to estimate your loss expectancy. The committee then will meet to assess options and decide among the alternatives offered by the central board. Present your recommendation to the board, and they will ignore it and do what they intended to do in the first place (infest your yard with even more moles so it's worth their while and next year you are even more desperate). Your mole problem, of course, will not be solved, but look at all the temporary employment you will have created..

scone wrote:

Dogs.

Terriers are a great breed for keeping moles, rabbits and goffers out.

CSPAN is fabulous entertainment right now. I'm trying to clean my house as fast as I can so I don't miss any of this. I'm waiting for them to start boxing next...

PETA would be all over you for torturing those moles like that.

And don't try to eat them, they taste like shit. And they give dogs the stinkiest farts.

$320 just got me an acer revo dual intel ion processor, nvidia video card, 2 gigs of ram, 160 gig drive, wireless mouse and keyboard and windows 7

every analyst who is extrapolating based on CPU shipments rather than what those CPUs are going into is making a bad mistake.

I have no tv here - what is going on on CSPAN? Live coverage of the DC Debacle?

Insurance encourages risk taking...

SI, yep. Last I heard Weiner was on his way outside to address the Tea Party people. Can't wait for that video. Tea Party busted in on the house floor earlier but were removed. I have a nice chuck roast simmering in red wine and broth right now as well as several spare bottles of wine...First have to finish house cleaning.

Comrade Kristina wrote:

I have a nice chuck roast simmering in red wine and broth

I recommend some steamed broccoli smothered in Velveeta as a side dish...

ShadowInventory wrote:

KRAFT processed Cheez products

I'm going to wmt as we speak.... screw gunpowder

Simmering, it is a pot roast. I rubbed the roast in Herbs de Provence, Cajun Seasoning and flour before browing in butter and olive oil. Deglazed with red wine and added the broth, peppercorns, and bay leaf. I'll let it simmer for a couple hours and then add the potatoes and veggies and fresh garlic.

energyecon wrote:

Extolling the Corporate Squeeze of Workers? « naked capitalism

Scouring through some old posts, I came across this little nugget:

... Further, "wages and salaries" are defined by BLS as "earnings before taxes and other deductions and include any overtime pay, taxes, commissions, or tips." As employers push more of the cost of healthcare onto employees, this deduction is NOT subtracted from the BLS wages! Then wages can be counted as up, even as increased healthcare costs push net wages down. ...

Given the following, it becomes clear that the comparison of hourly wages over the past few decades is skewed and doesn't, in fact, represent reality. It means that real wages have actually fallen instead of remained approx. steady.

... For example, from 1996 to 2002, among all private-sector employees, the offer rate increased from 86.5 percent to 88.3 percent, the eligibility rate decreased from 81.3 percent to 77.1 percent, and the enrollment rate dropped from 69.6 percent to 62.4 percent. In addition, the enrollment-when-eligible rate dropped 4.5 percentage points, ...

EDIT: Nice chart showing firms offering health benefits: http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/774/uspercentageoffirmsoffe.png

longwaver wrote:

PCs are getting insanely cheap.... Margins are gone...

Yes, but the thing about it is: The computer you really want is still around $2500 including the monitor.
That's one of the reasons that I have so much trouble with the hedonic adjustments to the CPI.

Doc Holiday wrote:

This mole has mystical powers

I wonder if he could be the long-sought.... Holy Mole?

Maury the Credit Responsibility Panda wrote:

I wonder if he could be the long-sought.... Holy Mole?

Oh, shit, I hope not!!

barfly wrote:

Should drinkers and smokers be insured in a separate risk catagory? Should they be insured at all?

Funny question from a guy named barfly....

barfly wrote:

I must say it irritates me no end that people I know who have multiple health problems due to drinking and smoking use their health insurance as a way to keep drinking and smoking. IMO, they should be refused coverage for voiding their doctor's orders.

Won't they then just end up at the emergency room begging for help at the taxpayer's expense?

I had a dozen pigs that roto-tilled my lawn this fall without first asking for permission, and we'd been here for about 2,000 days previously and they had never been a problem heretofore, a Black Swine event.

And they did the same thing to our lawn for 8 nights in a row and then they were gone~

We just re-seeded the lawn about a month after their last appearance and it looks great now...

Water if possible Got rid of a turtle once hat way.

Terrier dogs were invented to dig up beasties like this ,no?

Chill, what,s a few holes?

Cinco-X wrote:

barfly wrote:

I must say it irritates me no end that people I know who have multiple health problems due to drinking and smoking use their health insurance as a way to keep drinking and smoking. IMO, they should be refused coverage for voiding their doctor's orders.

Won't they then just end up at the emergency room begging for help at the taxpayer's expense?
We should give them a medal for saving social security!

And a quick one to EHP- Arizona's State Pension scheme will most likely not go bust. The reason why is they have almost no ability to increase payments once you pick your poison, unless they get back to over 100% funded;-}

Fat chance of that happening;-} On the whole, that is the only thing in state government that is mostly functioning, but it is out of reach of the legislature for now.

Someday this war's gonna end...

Juvenal Delinquent wrote:

I had a dozen pigs that roto-tilled my lawn this fall without first asking for permission, and we'd been here for about 2,000 days previously and they had never been a problem heretofore, a Black Swine event.
And they did the same thing to our lawn for 8 nights in a row and then they were gone~
We just re-seeded the lawn about a month after their last appearance and it looks great now...

Organic farmers suggest that having pigs (not PIIGS) till and fertilize your garden is a very "green" approach. Too bad my wife is dead set against pigs. If they eat a more natural diet (i.e. minimal amounts of grain), and you inoculate the soil with microbes, the smell is purportedly not too bad, or at least not overpowering..........

ResistanceIsFeudal wrote:

I tried, but the almond-headed aliens and their lizardlike demon masters who held me paralyzed had other ideas.

By other ideas do you mean "anal probing"?

The pigs were offal this fall, it got so bad that there was an advert in the local paper from a couple of out of town hunters that wanted permission to go shooting porkers on your property...

I was browsing through the details of PCE (the estimate of what people spent, big chunk of GDP)
U.S. Department of Commerce. Bureau of Economic Analysis

What is bothering me, and I can't believe I've never heard about before, is Line 156: Imputed rental of owner-occupied nonfarm housing

First of all every aspect of housing expenditure has been increasing (you can check the quarterly data yourself, I had it set to annual to quickly browse a longer timeframe)
That means rents are up, mortgage payments are up, house prices are up. They may base some of it off of the OER survey which would have a 6 month moving average lag, but it is still absolutely crazy. They are purporting some kind of anti-'squatter stimulus'

Second of all, am I just misunderstanding what imputed rent of owner occupied housing represents? Please tell me it is just applicable to mortgaged houses -- in which case they are vastly over estimating it given 7mn delinquent mortgaged homes out there -- and not as I worry, applicable to paid off homes. Because you can't just make up stuff to count for GDP. Otherwise they could include unlimited payments-to-self.


Also, it looks like Prescription Drug expenditure has been a big booster of PCE / GDP.

Cinco-X wrote:
By other ideas do you mean "anal probing"?
No, they just strongly insisted I stop posting on Calculated Risk or there would be severe repercussions

ShadowInventory wrote:

C-SPAN | Capitol Hill, The White House and National Politics

A little overloaded? I just traced from my datacenter, and no router in the path responds once the packets try to leave Los Angeles.

Juvenal Delinquent wrote:
The pigs were offal this fall
Living around agricultural areas for a good part of my life, pig manure is eclipsed by only one thing - sheep urine. When that scent is in the air, the stench is so overpowering that your eyes burn.
(I can't believe we have no sheep icon. WAKE UP SHEEPLE!)

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:

imputed rent of owner occupied housing represents? Please tell me it is just applicable to mortgaged houses

I don't think that is the case. I believe it applies to all owner occupied housing.

lawyerliz wrote:

Why abuse the dog. Put up a screen (or n0t), and go to town yourself in those holes.

I had to pee at one of my daughter's soccer games (no on site facilities), so my wife suggested that I run out in the woods. I explained to her that things are not like they used to be; if one of those little girls saw me, I'd probably end up on a registry of sex offenders. I took a drive to the local McDonalds instead....

No prob from here in DC. But it's not worth it: I could only take about 30 secs.

C-SPAN Live Stream - C-SPAN

4:06 p.m. |Stupak Is a Yes, Cites the Executive Order Obama Will Sign

communist world government has finally triumphed

Doc Holiday wrote:

I have dreams that this will end up in the sofa!

You dream of stuffing your sofa with moles? Funky!

YouTube - Hazmat Modine: Bahamut

Those plastic stakes that are about 18 inches long and take a few batteries, and makes a sound every minute or something like that, will work for awhile until the mole gets used to it.

Cost you around $20 @ Lowes.

sm_landlord wrote:

By other ideas do you mean "anal probing"?

I objected when they brought out the black oil.

You like it "ruff", I take it?

Comrade Elmer Fudd wrote:
communist world government has finally triumphed
The has eaten the , repeat, the has eaten the

Declare martial law, transport all high officials of government to the appropriate secure facilities and instantiate the shadow government.

So stop filling the holes and the holes may stop reproducing. Or if there os 3 to one ratio
dog 5 or 6 holes and the mystery holes will disappear!!!!

OTOH, mole diggings make a really good fertilizer. And that little bugger does aerate the soil and eat bad grubs-- that's what's drawing him to your yard. Once he raises a family and they "pac man" their way through all the grubs, they may leave, and your yard will grow better in the long run.

Comrade Kristina wrote:

Scone, pork and white wine would be great as well. I make a white chili with pork that is really yummy.

As opposed to moose chili, which dresses to the right.

Cinco-X wrote:

Actually, if you ever catch one, you'll find the fur is unbelievably smooth.

Yeah, I know, it's like biting a peach.

I think they're cute. I found one swimming in my pool one morning. He was fading fast so I hurried and scooped him out with the net. I took him out to the yard thinking he was a goner but as soon as I set him in the grass he dug into it and disappeared in less than ten seconds.

speaking of smoking, Tobacco product spending jumped during the crisis big time. Cigarette smuggling?

They're not too bad liz. We used to use them in omelets, frittata or scrambled eggs. Slightly strong taste to them.

Comrade Kristina wrote:

I think they're cute. I found one swimming in my pool one morning.

It's all that training from 'messing about in boats.'

mole and ratty - Google Search

You could always blow the mole's cover and expose it as a communist agent.

Cinco-X wrote:

Scone,
Have you seen any moose up your way yet?

No, not even deer. But I haven't been tramping around in the woods yet. I need some duck boots.

sm_landlord,

while it's certain that some doctors have given bad advice, telling a patient to quit drinking or smoking certainly can't fall into that catagory. If a patient continues to keep defying doctor's orders, and common sense, why should the rest of us continue to subsidize such behavior? Insurance should be for those who are serious about their health.

The ones in up State New York had weird faces like that.

Star-nosed mole - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here in Florida we just have the normal looking ones.

Comrade Kristina wrote:

The ones in up State New York had weird faces like that.

Brrrr.... he has that vaguely Predator thing going on (as in the 80s movie).

This is my boy:

invader

its front paws are broad and spade-shaped, specialized for digging; the rear paws are smaller. It has 44 teeth. Its ears are not visible and it has small eyes. It is similar in appearance to the smaller Coast Mole.
This mole spends most of its time underground, foraging in shallow burrows for earthworms, small invertebrates and plant material. It is active year round.

Seattle Mole Control & Removal

Ok, I need to work in the yard ... see yah!

Doc Holiday wrote:

This is my boy:

Oh, that reminds me, moles don't like stinky bulbs like garlic, allium, and daffodils. They aren't crazy about lavender and rosemary, either. Basically anything with a "medicinal" or farty plant kind of stink. So you could plant some of those bulbs. Not tulips. They love tulips.

seriously, from January 2009 to April 2009 PCE (what Americans personally spent) for Tobacco increased 21% and has remain at that elevated amount.

The number was flat for decade(s), and then it jumped 21%. Since it is not showing up as a proper export, it either has to be a bogus number or related to smuggling. The jump in Tobacco consumption is $16bn
Retail prices haven't fallen, in fact they've risen with tax increases, so I don't think any stimulus funding of tobacco producers can explain the number

scone wrote:

lavender

I have about 2 dozen lavender plants in my yard, and I like the idea of garlic. There are also lots of bulb things, but .... probably just that time of year. There also was a large field plowed lately fairly close to me, so this invasion may be related to that. That's also kind of funny, because some investors bought the field at the top of the market and recently decided to grow hay or something -- because nothing is selling. Is this a cycle?

So if and when Obamacare goes through, the mad hatters in the no-flyzone..I mean in the flyoverland gonna totally lose it?

EvilHenryPaulson wrote:

Citizen AllenM wrote:

And a quick one to EHP- Arizona's State Pension scheme will most likely not go bust. The reason why is they have almost no ability to increase payments once you pick your poison, unless they get back to over 100% funded;-}

I don't know anything about Arizona's State Pension other than a single source reference that they were using an 8% expected rate of return, and I just assumed there would be some kind of inflation/medical cost link that would require a forecast as well. Was just adding on to someone else's initial post. All that being said, did you just say that their payouts are frozen until they increase the pension fund pool by 25%?

Yes, the main ASRS plan is very interesting in that they can not give increases to pensioners unless the returns on investment generate returns allowing overfunding. In other words, no inflation adjustments for the foreseeable future until investments significantly recover. The medical insurance subsidy has already assumed a nominal value as the costs of insurance have risen. In other words, a bare bones set up based on employee earnings that is only really generous to long term participants because they have a significant benefit built up. Also very high costs to employees - running 19.3% of salary evenly split between employer and employee-on top of social security payments. So yes, one can theoretically retire at 50 with 30 years and get 69% of highest 3 of last 10 years pay, but that is extremely rare. Plus a five year step to the vesting run from 50% to 100% at ten years. Only after 10 years do you own the state contributions. Early withdraw gets only a 4% return on contributions, etc.

In other words, a very conservative plan.

Someday this war's gonna end....

LoserBeachBum
Is Merkel actually going to cut back on Kurzarbeit after the May North Rhine-Westphalia election?

re: HCR -- its nice to give 32 million Americans subsidized health care insurance but - no way in hell - does this reduce the deficit. $500B in medicare cuts never gets done. This thing will continue the trend of vastly enlarging the structural deficit.

We won the first battle without any legal action, but there is still a petition that was submitted to our HOA which has not been withdrawn, thus, apparently we still have to have a special meeting, which apparently will not be binding -- so, there is a real possibility that the mystery petition will have a new agenda item with a new proposal. The BOD backed off because of a conflict of interest, but there is weird stuff that can still happen. These are very nasty and desperate people, but they can only push so far, without exposing themselves to liabilities. So it goes.

Ahh crap, now it's raining!

RE wrote:

Could this be partially explained by increased sin taxes?

No, it's still up at the $92-94bn seasonally adjusted level 1 year later. My guess is that the USD fell to a point where a big smuggler went into the tobacco smuggling market, and according to history that smuggler is probably a tobacco company.
OR at some future date the BEA is due for a major revision and explanation
OR it is tax evasion and the BEA is too stupid to realize double-counting of sales and under-reporting of taxes

sm_landlord wrote:
If you start fiddling with using lifestyle choices to ration insurance, you'll end up with a system that's more intrusive and less rational than the one we have now. And the one we have now is already pretty bad.
Control over the lives of others and the ability to enforce your own lifestyle preferences on others? What self serving politician would not want that? Weaponizing public health for political purposes will be great for all of us.

Tax high fructose corn syrup.

Thr sin tax of the future.

In theory, if people want to do some stupid shit, that's their business, but everybody seems to want their ass pulled out of the fire in the end. So tax the stupid behavior, whether it's smoking or bankstering.

YouTube - Ry Cooder - The Very Thing That Makes Her Rich

"Control over the lives of others and the ability to enforce your own lifestyle preferences on others?"

Bright new future awaits us. A kid must soon show some real talent for profit making before hitting eight..or it will be too late and the kid will be labeled as "C-class production unit with little profit potential, no further education needed, suitable for temp work only". But maybe the kid will get at least a cool bar code tattoo?

Maury the Credit Responsibility Panda wrote:

So I foresee things like tattoo and piercing taxes, anything the boomers find objectionable.

These businesses already are taxed in most places, like any other business.

YouTube - Steve Vai vs Ry Cooder (Crossroads Guitar Duel)

@scone

Forget about telling us how old you are.

You're probably not old enough to remember when cigarettes were packaged in C rations, nor are you probably old enough to remember when, in the army, the only people who got "breaks" were smokers for "smoke breaks."

Everybody smoked. The government subsidized tobacco advertising and production. The advertising was on the radio, in the magazines, and later on TV.

There was a time when everybody was scared shitless that we might lose. We survived on coffee and cigarettes to make sure we didn't lose.

Sadly, I'm still a smoker. My son isn't. Times are different.

But don't lay that stupid shit on me.

RE,
Do you think Merkel is just barking loudly about spending and the deficit, but without any bite to follow it up?
Realistically, if she withdraws government spending any time in the foreseeable future, or if she planned to raise taxes at any time to close the structural deficit -- the economy will go from bad to worse. She might like to be a conservative, but winning elections is the real number one priority
We have a similar fiscal plan in Canada -- the deficit will solve itself mostly in 5 more years

Oil Prices and Vehicle Miles

In Japan there are already a lot of young people living in the so called "dropout economy" and now that is spreading fast in the West too. It means living in a commune outside society or social safety nests or travel like a hobo, spent years in India etc etc, the possibilities for dropout economy are endless.

Youngsters are turning this all around silently and GenX/Y might be the last generations actually "obeying", choosing the "life". There are no meaningful jobs for younger ones so they are doing something else.

They actually do have this; it is called an HSA. I've got one 3k high deductible + a separate 30/month accident rider on top up to 5k (my deductible used to be 5k). I absolutely love it, I get tax deductions by contributing. I've had (or will shortly) 2 kids under it. It works like a charm. It can be a little funky with dates (i.e. 1st of the year roll-over). But it works like a charm. After 5 years and 2 kids my HSA will have ~10k in it to be used for just about ANY medical expense I want (eye, dental, cosmetic).

Sucks that in the health care takeover they are curtailing it.

When will we learn, catastrophic coverage exists and is affordable . . . but no everyone wants to be able to go to the doctor for a cold free of charge!