Not so idle though... My poor mom has been running all over the place. She's gone from client to client and I've tried to help in my little way. Calling to set up appointments, letting her get some lunch while I wash down her vehicle, taking calls and messages. I feel bad she's working so hard to try and drum up business. I'm grateful that she's doing it and I hope I help.

Haven't been able to fansub lately... just keeping busy trying to make a buck. When I do have a spare moment, I usually just want to unwind and relax.

Ok... That's it.

Sure the idea that I funded massive bonuses to executives at a failing institution that would've been bankrupt had the US Government (aka taxpayers.. you and me) not stepped in ticks me off.

Let's take a stroll down the memory lane of facts and you can see where putting Obama into the mix with cronyism fits.

-Bank Crisis 2008...
-Hank Paulson, formerly of Goldman Sachs, decides that AIG is 'just too systemically connected' to let fail. They were deemed too big to fail.
-Billions of our dollars pumped in.
-Geithner has ties to Goldman Sachs
-Obama appoints Geithner to Treasury Sect. position.
-AIG spends the money in paying off counterparties. Guess who received the largest payout? You guessed it... Goldman Sachs (along with banks OUTSIDE of the US)
-AIG flush with taxpayer dough... whines to Geithner, "We've got these contracts to pay bonuses to the same people who got us into this derivatives mess..." (ok I'm adlibbing here, but point being AIG had to tell the Treasury that the checks were going out.)
-Geithner appears 'upset' but does absolutely NOTHING to block the payments.
UNTILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
-Obama realizes that his 'looking like a crony' meter starts to go off the charts and combine that with scathing articles from various news sources so...
-He tells Geithner to DO SOMETHING! STOP THEM!
-meh... they won... we're fleeced yet again.

Do you see the cronyism now? not yet? Oh but there's MORE!

Now, if you wanted to get out of a crisis caused by the banking system, with the banking system at it's roots, but you didn't want to appear to be appealing to 'the good old boys', would you hire a chief economist from a failing bank?

[cue most 'thinking' Americans] "HELL NO!" ... but what did Geithner do?

Well, he wants a counsellor... the cheif economist at Citibank.

Nah, no cronyism there. I'm seeing things.

First, You've probably heard about the Jon Stewart/Jim Cramer brouhaha. Well, it came to a pinnacle when Jon had him on his show. If you haven't seen it, it's a one man roasting of Cramer by Stewart. Just head here... and search out Jim Cramer. I haven't seen the 'unedited' ones but it's probably just where they took out the 'bleeps' when Jon cursed. Maybe there's more, so I'll find out.

Unedited part 1 for the really lazy.

The Watchmen blogger gets it right for about 90% here. except when he went to say that 99 Luft Balloons was a bad song for the movie. Here's why...

Quoting Wikipedia for "99 Luftballons"

"99 Luftballons" is a Cold War-era protest song by the German singer Nena. Originally sung in German, it was later re-recorded in English as "99 Red Balloons".

(and)

Both the English and German versions of the song tell a story of ninety-nine balloons floating into the air, triggering an apocalyptic overreaction by military forces. (and) The song came during a period of escalating rhetoric and strategic maneuvering between the United States and the Soviet Union in the Cold War.
End Quote

Basically, you couldn't have found a more poignant hit for that era which ties into the time period and the same fears of nuclear holocaust. Srsly dood, bone up on your history notes first before commenting. The move was 2.5 hours. The last 90 mins or so was a good ride to the close, which then left you feeling like 'ehh?!' I think I'll probably enjoy the comic more.

I'll be finishing G.T.O. [Great Teacher Onizuka] soon (only 2 more episodes #42-43) and probably will have a few words to say afterwards. So far, it's a good show with good laughs...and pimp teacher. Srsly. He is pimpin.

(/begin sarcasm)
If you haven't had the chance to see how 'right' Jim Cramer has been or have been wanting to see some fine CNBC footage which will leave you laughing then look no further. (/end sarcasm)

Jon Stewart and the Daily Show put together some absolutely horrible guesses, gaffs and guests from CNBC reels... I lol'd heartily.

The Daily Show Video Link

Did I mention that my cousin who is a registered investment advisor was recently upset because Citibank preferreds which had been paying a nice dividend were looking like 'that party is over'. My thoughts? Did you really think (being that he was also previously a mortgage broker during the upswing) that the party for their shareholders would never end? Do you still think that debt holders won't be required to take a haircut eventually? Has the news of late not made it very clear that banks/financials are the worst performing sector and probably NOT a good bet to place ANY of your money?

It astounds me. I picked up 'The Black Swan' recently, and I hope to eventually get the time to read it. I think the premise is actually very foolish albeit for one thing: When applied to financial stock markets...the ideas that something just 'can not happen' almost means that at some level, it could happen. Also I think this book came out at just the right time when several deviation moves have occured making many of the previously thought 'impossibles' not only possible but they happened. Otherwise, I think the book's premise is somewhat simplistic.

The name from the book comes from the fact that for the longest times in our own history and even in fairy tales and the like...swans were white. Swans can only be white...until a black swan is found. Then we as a society begin trying to explain away why we were ignornant to the possibilities of 'black swans' and reason it away. This is basic common nature. There were those who knew the levies in New Orleans were old and breaking down, but it took a 'black swan' (Katrina) before we decided to look at it and do something for the future.

For financial institutions and the stock market, there is this same idea which I think needs to be revisited. Markets are nothing more than a froth of rational and irrational behavior. A stock is only worth what someone else is willing to pay for it. There is no other basis. Stocks can trade below the actual asset recapture (should one be necessary) of the firm. They could trade at $0. So when people say that a stock can't go any lower...sure it can. When they say, it's not possible for XYZ corporation to be broke...sure it is. No one thought three years ago that it was even 'POSSIBLE' for Lehman Brothers to be totally defunct. It can happen, and for Lehman, it did happen. Massive ponzi schemes are now being reported and investigated. What some people thought was safe and secure was nothing more than mirage...a hole which swallowed up their money. This re-evaluation about 'RISK' is really necessary. Home prices could never go down...sure they can. People will wake up to that definition either by understanding and reading or by force of market 'black swans'.

I'm slow on this one...

Ok let's recap...

Uranium Willy -> U-238 Willy -> U238Willy. William S Burroughs had a character in 'Nova Express' (I'm pretty sure, and there might have been another spot.) called 'Uranian Willy' - The Heavy Metal Kid... etc.

So you can see that one of my favorite writers/spoken word people (now r.i.p.) is WSB... and then I see this.

Quote: Wiki page for 'Watchmen'
Moore named William S. Burroughs as one of his main influences during the conception of Watchmen. He admired Burroughs' use of "repeated symbols that would become laden with meaning"

Well color me surprised... I'll be reading the comic... then watching the 'Watchmen: Motion Comics' and seeing the actual motion picture too. In short order...

We'll see if I notice any homage or other lit. device.

They want to jawbone prices higher. Jawboning doesn't work well with the markets. I'd like to find the 'word cloud' thingy for Bernanke's Q&A with Congress today. That's where the most stated words are in a larger font than the less frequently said ones...maybe one will be out later today.

Here's a cloud for Bernanke's speech back in July 2008

Certainly 'bad assets' would be a fairly large word pair in that cloud...

**Try not to get upset, but after I *voted* for a 'CHANGE'... I'm not seeing it. So I'm venting...beware**

<&U238Willy> obama budget anticipates new 750billion bank rescue
<&U238Willy> YEAH
<&U238Willy> damn nigga... i know you know about welfare and it shows fo'sheezy.
<&U238Willy> oh yeah
<&U238Willy> hey man.. i need to own a bank
<&U238Willy> them hoes gettin' all the cash from the gov't.
<&U238Willy> trickin' on the corner of wall street.
<&U238Willy> YO gov't man..
<&U238Willy> sucky sucky... for a few billion? how about it?
<&U238Willy> OOOOOOOOOOOOuh dayum bitch... Shake them bad assets...
<&U238Willy> you got all kinds of JUNK in yer trunk.
<&U238Willy> Heyyyyyyyyyyy gov't man... these bills are really stiff and smell so fresh...what'chu doin' now? printing this shit?
<&U238Willy> HA HA HA bankslut.. absolutely.. I AM the printing press... all the while PWNing the value of everyone elses' paper.
<&U238Willy> SUCKERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRS!

fack!!

I was busy working up numbers for the end of the year for the business which I'll have to send over to the accountant soon...but I need a break.

I want a break from everything. Ever have one of those days? Perhaps I should meditate or take up some sort of grounding or spiritual practice.

I doing some spring cleaning of sorts and wondering what needs to be pitched away. If I was buddhist, and following the path of 'not clinging, craving, etc' then I'd throw it all away. I'm not there yet. :3

I haven't done much in the way of fansubbing either. I worked on Ashita no Joe eps. 9 last week and this week I told saizen that I'm busy with office stuff so, it'll have to wait until this weekend.

I had to get up early this morning in order to take my mom to her dentist appointment and then pick her up afterwards. Now, I'm tired. Early to bed.. Early to rise.. yeah yeah. I'd like to follow that. Let's see if I can get to bed earlier tonight and do it again.

That's it...really. I got nothing today.

I said this in IRC tonight...and it was disregarded. I understand people's...fuck that HUMANITY'S desire to keep looking for the silver lining. I like that desire. I want it for myself. I do look for the little things nowadays to make me laugh or smile. The problem is that I won't ignore the obvious and just put on rose-colored glasses. Now, what did I say?

[19:04:56] &U238Willy: fack
[19:06:09] &U238Willy: 2009 will be the year where we're all faced with ourselves
both individually and as a nation.
[19:06:51] &U238Willy: when 2009 closes we will be no where near the same
headspace we were in when we started this year.
[19:06:54] &U238Willy: habeeb it

The stock market is on a rally right now, so if you're looking to make some cash, you can until sometime after Obama's inauguration. It would be a good time to ride the wave. The markets are discounting very bad signs as if in its ability to look forward that six months from now all the indicators will be fabulous. How ridiculous is that?

Very ridiculous. Has the bad debt been exposed and we know who is holding it? nope. Is free market capitalism happening where companies who can't hack it are allowed to fail or go into bankruptcy and reorganize? nope. So what truth could anyone predict about six months from now when the lies are still quoted as truth and failing institutions are still allowed to survive from taxpayer injections? There is none. No truth...only more debt. The more I read about it, the more I think maybe the Austrians had it right because Keynes is dead and so should the adherence to his policies. (I have to credit minyanville and mish shedlock's blog and others... many others for providing me with truth in these trying times)

All they're doing is prolonging the inevitable. This bear market rally is a good sign of it. Take note, however, the higher it traces upwards with no real change in debt honesty or a change to gov't fiscal responsibility mean the further it will eventually slide.

We've crossed the rubicon. How are you dealing with it? Are you ready for that new headspace? It will be one of extreme frugality. This saddens me because I have no idea how to change it or to position myself for it. If you have an idea, let me know. Most bloggers and economists speak from positions of being independently wealthy or in a position of security regardless of conditions. I wanna know what the rest of us are going to do.

I'll continue with some anime reviews and some new year's resolutions (basically a rehash of stuff from 2008 that never got done) later.

So yesterday I said that I was caught up right? I come in this morning and see a bunch of new stuff including some work to do. Kurozuka 8 is ready for review. Now I'm following Casshern SINS, Kurozuka, Today in Class 5-2, and Michiko to Hatchin. Feast or famine! I also saw that a movie was released earlier in the year (looks promising) called 'Sword of the Stranger'. Hmmmmm.

The stock market right now is probably heading into a bear market rally. I wouldn't say it's a bottom of sorts because there's alot more gloomy news to come, however, it's seems a year-end uptick is here.

Bamboo Blade

Animation

Fairly solid animation for a show done recently, but nothing particularly detailed. Some might enjoy the 'show within a show' aspect of it as the main character (Kawazoe Tamaki/aka/Tama-chan) watches a sentai/power rangers type show called 'Blade Braver'. I also found the occasional chibi effects and other facial expressions cute for the type of show that it was. Don't expect any real fanservice. This show, while being cute, does a good job at being serious.

Sound

I love the OP and ED to this show. Catchy pop tunes is all they are but, I like 'em. Expect your ears to be 'tested' in this show about Kendo (the martial art/sport). The characters will be shouting and screaming either to display dominance (which...when high school girls do this, it is strangely shocking) or calling out the targets for their strikes (the head, arm, torso, or the neck stabby called 'tsuki').

Story

This show is about the Muroe High School Kendo club (mostly girls) along with their male instructor and two male club members. Initially, the plot centers around an old rivalry the instructor had with another male instructor. The one had beaten the other back in their high school Kendo, but still as adults the desire to 'one-up' on each other remains. So enter the idea of these two Kendo instructors using their respective club of high school girls to determine the new victor. This is just the initial premise, and the show shifts focus to its main point and that is the growth and development of the characters. Not all the characters get the same time under the limelight, but it does a good job with the ones who were the primary focus of the show. I liked how the bonds between the characters were formed and maintained. Friends stay friends as they help each other grow even in particularly painful moments. The story does good job of showing that failure doesn't mean the end and in fact, failure pushes us on to higher heights and new beginnings. Without failure, how can one know where one is weak and needs to grow stronger and without testing your limits, you'll never know where they are.

Character

A good story shows us characters who we can identify with. This show portrays opposite character issues: there are those who think they can never fail and those who think that all they can do is fail. Plus, there's those in-between. It's the kind of show you'd like your tween daughter or niece to watch. The strong find out it's ok to lose and learn something, while the weaker members learn what it's like to get stronger and win. The development of the characters in this show is its best feature.

Value

In the sea of recent releases, there are shows which have great promise but poor delivery. This show delivers. It's not profound or epically grand like Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann but, for a cute show it finishes clean and has a happy ending.

Enjoyment

I enjoyed the show much to my surprise. Again, coming from my earlier statements I was expecting this show to close as so many shows do...poorly. I think if the idea of watching high school girls duke it out in Kendo sounds good to you, then you'll like it.

So aside from catching up with the latest episodes out of shows I'm following, I also had the opportunity to finish shows that had been on my plate. **minor spoilers follow**

Detroit Metal City

Animation

The animation wasn't this show's strong suit. I'm not saying it's bad, in fact, it's decent. They did however do two things which describe my first statement, and that is short episodes and the use of still images. This makes the show unique in that the episodes are fantastic for the ADHD crowd. With episodes clocking in under 15 minutes, it makes watching the show a breeze. That, and the use of stills lowered their costs I'm sure. Still though, what ends up being animated are some hilarious scenes. Those who have seen Oruchuban Ebichu will know exactly what I mean. That show's animation was lackluster, but the laughter was non-stop.

Sound

The sound was 'ok'. This was due primarily to the subs that I listened to. Earlier in this blog, I described what happened. I had worked on an episode and I thought the audio was low, and I said something, but nothing was done. So, for the last few episodes Media Player Classic users will have to set the 'Normalize Audio' in the Audio settings. Other than that, if you're a fan of heavy metal music, you'll enjoy the show's intro, but maybe not the outro. Since the show deals with the day to day situations of an up-and-coming heavy metal band there's plenty of songs played for the audience.

Story

Well continuing with the last sentence, Negishi is our main character and he's a 'sugar sweet pop' singer trapped in a death metal band. That's it. Now the synopsis that you read on AniDB or ANN is bullcrap in my opinion. One of the biggest failings of this show and their synopses is they lead you to believe that being sweet and mild, while tending to your dark side and death metal persona, can lead to problems in your relationships when the make-up comes off. It does this pretty well for eight episodes. In the final four episodes that entire idea disappears. I mean disappears! The girl he wanted to date and their relationship progresses with its foibles and hilarious screw ups but, then episode nine comes around and she disappears. Entirely. It's like whoever wrote the first few episodes got sick and someone else came in and finished the show without even watching any of the episodes up to that point. I was disappointed by this because I thought it was flowing quite nicely and I was looking for some resolution in that relationship. There was none. Like I said, she disappeared...no mention of her or their relationship. At least the show delivers in the laugh department and that's where it really shines.

Character

There is no real character development. If you take into account what I concluded with in the 'story' segement, then there really is no development. It's a slice of the band's life and that's it. I guess they progress in becoming a bigger phenomenon in their indie/death metal circles so there's that to consider. I did like how Negishi was so different from his own band mates and how that played out in many of the jokes that this show has to offer.

Value

There is lots of value with this show. I've never seen people curse and swear in an anime so much before. Seriously...a death metal band's fans and their particular manager can get vulgar, and do they ever get vulgar. This isn't a little kid's show, unless you'd like them to learn a few new words for their vocabulary. Think of George Carlin's "Seven Words..." and you've got most of them. This led to some crude jokes but great, great gobs of laughter. I'd watch it again just for the laughs.

Enjoyment

I enjoyed it even if the plot has a massive wrinkle. It was just too funny. I'd recommend anime fans to watch this just to see something different than what is usually on display. One caveat...prudes need not apply.

*****

I also finished 'Bamboo Blade' and, I'll write up something on that soon.

In business or politics, if you piss off one of your contributors by handling a situation improperly, then don't be surprised if they decide to stop contributing.

Since the last time I posted, I've finished up Real Drive with Ureshii. It was a nice show, and the last few episodes were touching even if various plotlines and whatnot weren't perfect.

I've switched over to working on Gosenzosama Banbanzai now that Real Drive is over. I'm also giving a hand with Kurozuka as well. It's nice.

There's plenty of shows to watch, plenty of stuff to do.

Paulson probably won't get the 2nd 1/2 of the bailout and perhaps the auto industry will leave Washington empty-handed.

Despite the bad news truck dropping of a big one today regarding unemployment figures, the market is split. 30 year bonds nearly touched 3.00% in early futures but yields have come back. Is this a blip or have bonds finally peaked? If so, is a rally in stocks in the works? There's nothing to suggest that the current downturn has lost any of its momentum. Unemployment is expected to rise even farther. Cash strapped consumers will continue to pull back spending (2/3rds of GDP). Is it because we're on the anniversary of Greenspan's statement of 'irrational exuberance?' back in 1996? The drama unfolds...

The bad news truck keeps dumping new articles...

Sect. Paulson says that using the bailout to buy toxic assets isn't where he's going with the TARP anymore. That's actually a good thing. However, I hope that Congress says 'No' on the second half/installment on the bailout plan.

I expect the low for the Dow to be tested tomorrow. Where we go from there and how will set the stage and mood. I think the S&P and Nasdaq are at or very close to that low made back in early October.

I watched the ending of Kaiba. I was tired and toasty. I got it but not entirely. Yay for cute ending...but what a long road to get there.

I still want to finish the Detroit Metal City show. Just a few episodes left.

It's coming yo...

Today it seemed to bounce off of 8600... but don't forget that last month the intra-day low was around 7900, but the low close was 8100. As we move foward and the closer we get to that range, the more data will be out and the more we'll know.

I think the smart consensus was that we wouldn't crash through those lows THIS year, however, downside risks remain so it was considered "possible". The testing of those lows was expected after the new year.

Like the last post... the market is in a strange territory. The one thing which 'the Maestro' (Greenspan) stated recently is probably the only point of which he is certain: "This is a once in a century event."

I still hear people expect that we're 'near halfway through'. The third quarter of this year was the first quarter to show a negative growth. If you use that marker and 10 months for a short problem, you've got until 3rd quarter 2009 to see a rebound. How about a longer episode? say 80's or 90's? That's 16 months so we're talking the 1st quarter of 2010. The big 'D'? 44 months. I won't even add it up.

Seriously, the markets right now... a gamble. This was said on techticker on Yahoo and it's pretty spot on. Mad swings.

Did you see the unemployment #'s? for the base unemployment we jumped to 6.5% and if you dig farther (read: add other people to the percentage, like discouraged, have part-time want full-time, those who have no work but aren't eligible for unemployment compensation anymore... etc) the larger overview is at 11.8%

That's just a wow.

So there's 11.8% of the working population that isn't working, or barely working. Guess what? They aren't spending too much either. That will directly translate to retail sales and/or consumer spending. That's bad.

Now with home prices falling, the equity loans are shrinking (those home equity loans that people have... it's like a house ATM) and in some cases are being closed/capped. The same is true with consumer credit cards because defaults are rising so if you haven't used that credit card in a long time...just saving it for that rainy day? You better check it because the account might be closed.

Basically, we've passed the rubicon of the largest and longest credit boom ever. The economy is drowning and there's a whole lot fewer people with 'free credit'. This would explain why the government is throwing money all over the place. If the consumer can't spend, then the gov't tries to pick up the slack. Problem is, in my opinion, the slack is more than the gov't can handle without possibly tarnishing it's credit rating.

Today it's GM crying the blues... tomorrow it'll be Ford and Chrysler. Who's next?

I keep searching for the answer but I don't think there's any easy way out. I know they want to hide the truth with bailout money or maybe extend the possibility of a recovery (really soon, we promise!). However, defaulting homes, credit cards, commercial buildings, vehicles all have to be discovered and written off bank balance sheets. It will hurt badly. Some poorly managed firms will have to fail. I wonder when the realization will come that by trying to save a few big, bad apples (companies) we just might destroy the whole bunch (US credit rating/$).

Where do we go from here?

Can I restate the statement I made many months earlier on OA?

"Doesn't it seem a bit strange that a white president gets to throw a big party and leave a huge mess behind for some black president to come in and have to clean it all up."

Really... sup with dat? :P

Though feelings of unity and large voter turn out will bring the US together, the problems still persist.

I'm still siding with my opinions that there's more to the downside still to come.

As I've heard elsewhere and agree... time and price. You can't escape it.

Though with 'homes for a buck'... maybe price has been reached? Heh.

I'm following this 'letter' business as it's relevant to my interests and that's words.

Comment and I'll give you a letter.
Then you have to list ten things you LOVE that begin with that letter.
Afterward, post this in your journal and give out some letters of your own.

Yssa aka Scenecake has given me the letter "H". You can stop at 10 by the way...I'll just keep on going.

1) I love 'hootch'... I've made hootch. I even love hootchie-mamas who drink hootch. Let's not forget one of my biggest faves which includes 'hops' and that's beer.
2) I love the word 'harbl'... I scratch my harbl daily. I wash my harbl. Harbl has been good to me.
3) I love hilarity.

Dictionary:
hilarity
(hĭ-lăr'ĭ-tē, -lâr'-, hī-) pronunciation

n.
Great merriment.

Thesaurus: hilarity
noun
A state of joyful exuberance: blitheness, blithesomeness, gaiety, glee, gleefulness, jocoseness, jocosity, jocularity, jocundity, jolliness, jollity, joviality, lightheartedness, merriment, merriness, mirth, mirthfulness. See laughter.

4) I love hydrogen. Think about it... lightest and smallest element in the periodic table (another love.. chemistry, but that's not 'h' worthy) and without it we wouldn't have water (2 H's) or ethyl alcohol (6 H's.. you know liquor). Just about every damn compound in your body! Seriously, I can't think of one which doesn't have hydrogen or hydrogen bonds...oh wait (CO2) but you expel that so does it really count?

5) I love harmony. Ahhh, sweet music to my ears. My ipod keeps getting fatter because my collection keeps growing. How about harmony between people? How about ending strife and hatred? Those are important too.

6) I love horticulture. You see that rose as my userpic? I grew that in Hawaii... DAMN! I just let on my next H... oh well, you knew it was coming eventually didn't you? I had orchids at my house in Lake Worth, and I help my family with the many fruit trees and now our 'victory' garden. I got my green thumb honest...right from my mom.

7. I love Hawai'i. I think about that island still and it's been more than three years since I left. I can't wait to go back. I love the climate and the kind people. It's a beautiful place.

8. I love hot things. You know spicy 'hot' peppers and habaneros. I get jalapenos in my subs all the time.

9. I love hearts. The seat of emotion. I love speaking heart to heart. I like knowing that I've touched someone's heart.

10. I love history. Without history, we are doomed to keep doing the same things over and over. If you want to know how you came to be who you are look no further than your history and your family's history.

and now for the NSFW.. bang them all out #11

11. To my honey-dripping housewife...who is quoting Hemingway as she hacks into 4chan. How my hormones heat up desires to harpoon your holiest-of-holies with my human horn. I'll hone you to the hilt in this hedonistic horizontal mambo. I'll hold you hostage in this humid hotel room as we hump and howl like hyenas until the final hurrah.

Happy now? :P

Now I'm ahead in the Real Drive department. I ended up just punching out three scripts last weekend. I still have 3 more to go and then I'm done with the harder first QC (and done with RD) and then all that will be left is checking out the release candidates.

I want to write up the Fall Guide for OA this afternoon. Just a few notes.

Well I'm still reading up about the current market and economic situation and I have to say that if you follow some charting analysis, the worst is still yet to come. I wouldn't be gobbling up any stocks unless for short-term plays.

Then I read a mad post on www.minyanville.com

"The facts: We have a $10.5 trillion national debt; $53 trillion of unfunded liabilities; a military empire that has US troops in 117 countries and has spent $700 billion on a pre-emptive war that has killed over 4,000 Americans; a $60 billion trade deficit; an annual budget deficit that will exceed $1 trillion in the next year; a crumbling infrastructure with 156,000 structurally deficient bridges; almost total dependence on foreign oil; and an educational system that is failing miserably. We can’t fund guns, butter, banks and now car companies without collapsing our system.

Ultimately, it‘s up to the Baby Boom generation to change our country’s course. The oldest Boomer is 62 years old; the youngest is 45 years old. It is time for Boomers to take a hard look in the mirror and rethink their priorities. It is time to cast aside the $88,000 Range Rovers, $1,200 Jimmy Choo boots, $5,000 Rolex watches and daily double lattes at Starbucks. It’s time to live within your means, distinguish between needs and wants, reduce debt, save 10% of your income, make sure your kids get a good education, show compassion for your fellow man, and possibly pay more taxes and get less benefits, for the good of the country." - written by Minyanville Staff, James Quinn -- http://www.minyanville.com/articles/WMT-HD-YUM-bbi-GDP-SHLD/index/a/19789 (full article)

Read that.

The fundamentals of the economy are still trying to delever, and the pain is already mixed into the batter. The government is just taking it's time trying to alter the mix so it doesn't 'rise'... The average consumer has already felt some of the heat from many directions. Whether it's job losses or availability, or the debt we hold and the shrinking of credit available, the signs are there, and they're not going away very soon.

What I hear that happens in many bear markets is there are short term rallies which collapse to new lows until some major form of capitulation occurs and the worst of the bad news has been priced into the market. I still think there's optimism or just denial that the consumer is going to rebound and the measures of the government are going to mitigate (heh, and NOT make worse... a joke right there) the depth or breadth of the downturn. I just don't see it. Do you? I think that the optimism that the gov't will step in to make this "Ok" is unwarranted. I almost see in about 6-9 months from now a cry from the populace which can go one of two ways. Either we become responsible and say "No more intervention! Your band-aid fixes don't work and are making things worse." or "Do something, do everything, and bankrupt this nation and then try to pass it on to someone else." The problem is, the latter option, has been practiced for so long that I don't think we'll have the luxury of having it.

I'll be glad when this election business is over... just another 36 hours or so. I'm tired of watching the campaigning or the muckraking or people trying to sway people to 'not vote'.

(I need to get a better Reideen userpic... Everyone likes TTGL and uses the typical glasses or etc... but I liked the golden mech that was done in the Reideen redo in 2006...)

Anyways, markets up... markets down. Financial Doomsday! heheh--I sit and wait...maybe it will happen, maybe not as bad as doomsday. The event is unfolding and exciting.

I posted on Miku's "Tell me a story about something we did..." I did this once when I felt the muse for Hujak (Jon..) one day and the outcome was long, grand and uplifting. This time I felt like doing something short, devious, and evil. I think it came out all right.

I'm slacking on Real Drive, even though I recently watched all the raws to the end. Bad week for me I suppose. Stuff came up at work like legal papers, and then she decided to pay, and then blah blah blah. I'll get back on the horse, but this is a busy week considering I've got 6th year to pack for and get ready. Only one infused vodka, of green apples and cinnamon. I didn't drink it all and I've left a healthy bit for those friends of mine attending. I'm also bringing some absinthe for daring folks to try. I should try and pack the cooler with ice and some beer tonight. Also, packing my suitcase or bag with needed clothes and whatnot will be good too.

By the way, fansubbing sometimes sucks.. but then it has it's bonuses..

Example.
21:51 @U238Willy: I just played your vid.. and then I just started playing RD 17 (next in my pile) and the volume was quite loud..
21:52 @U238Willy: so.. check the volume levels on DMC 08.
21:56 @U238Willy: *basically.. i remember turning up the volume for dmc 8*
22:11 ~Drama: uh... wut?
22:19 @KunJinky: hard of hearing? lol
-------------------------------------
I didn't say anything after this, but I was kinda ticked off..
Like.. hey.. you ask me to watch something so I could tell you my thoughts on grammar, sentences, and also visual or audio issues. So after I submit my list of things, I started to play something else and it was blaring. Hmm, methinks perhaps since I had to turn up the volume for your vid, then perhaps the audio level is low. Don't be a dick to me... just check it.

So fast-forward a few days later in a different channel and....
-------------------------------------
12:14 + dj_tjerk: U238Willy~
12:15 ~ArabianSwan: kill him dj_tjerk
12:15 +dj_tjerk: no.. i need him to qc ep9 >_>
12:17 +dj_tjerk: he's a good qc'er... and the only one we got.. so
12:18 ~ArabianSwan: yah he is... pile more eps, he likes that ^^
12:18 ~ArabianSwan: [17:11] <@U238Willy> i don't like these triple releases
12:18 ~ArabianSwan: [17:11] <@U238Willy> it's evil :p
12:18 +dj_tjerk: :P
12:19 * ArabianSwan goes back to the sad mode ~_~
12:19 +dj_tjerk: :P
--------------------------------------

Do I have to say anything else? btw.. dj_tjerk is the same person who works on the team in the first chat snippet. He was the one who asked me to look at dmc 8.

Anyways back to work... back to fansubbing...

Senate passed it... Now it looks like the House will pass it.

They're all talking about lost jobs and lack of credit, and they want to pin it on this bailout. They don't want to talk about typical business cycle. It's like the idea of a 'recession' is something which is abhorred and never to happen again. To me and this is purely on a more universal level, but things ebb and flow. Tides rise and fall. Heat in the atmosphere builds up (energy build up) and creates hurricanes which causes that energy to flow from the equator to northern areas to dissipate (and unfortunately destruction in some cases). Stars in distant galaxies form, expand and then supernova over eons of time. The rise of certain bugs which cause the rise of their predators and then the eventual cut back on the bugs and the death of their predators due to lack of food. Old statements of 'What goes up... eventually comes down.'

So instead of recognizing the normal rise and fall (the sine/cosine waves) of the universe and of life itself. They want to fight it. Instead of creating and saving surpluses in times of expansion to limit the effects of the inevitable contraction we spend too much during the expansion and then spend even more during the contraction. This would be great if the money could flow forever. However, it cannot.

There will come a day of reckoning because the money cannot last forever. The Bretton Woods system will experience a shock the day that our debt becomes so large that we simply have no other choice but to default. It might not be today, or this year, or even the next 5 years, but it's coming. We'll see how this bailout affects how other nations view our currency as the 'reserve currency' of the world.

Societal acrimony (aka populist ideas and policy) is growing. At what point will they become so loud that they just might topple the country's free market underpinnings? The average citizen (taxpayer) has seen his dollar fall over the past few years (devaluing his ability to buy things). Recently because of the US dollar being the reserve currency and because of deflation it has started to rise. Increasing our debt won't be beneficial for that strengthening.

It's just creating more debt... and postponing the day when we'll have to look that debt in the face.

As I finish this... it looks to have passed... 263 yay's to 171 nay's...

What a sad day is this.