Obama's further Hollywood ties

Endeavor Agency run by Ari Emanuel, the brother of Obama's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, and the William Morris Agency, Jim Wiatt, CEO, will merge to become an organization that will bring further Hollywood muscle to the Obama Administration.

Dictator Wannabe Obama?

Our president, as has been widely publicized, believes America is a nasty, dirty, unfair nation that, apparently has never done anyone any good. Look at what America has done to the world's great Democracies, Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua at the same time former president Bush diminished his new best friends, Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez and Daniel Ortega. It seems possible that the president of the United States looks up to these gentlemen and would like to be like them. They are widely loved in their countries, clearly. Or is it feared? Not too certain. We could go to their jails and ask. One thing is clear, Democratic-run states such as California and New York have replicated the successes of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua and let's throw in Argentina. Is the United States of America far behind?

Just asking.

Pirates from Somalia and Washington, D.C.

An uncharacteristically strong president allowed the United States Navy SEALS to kill three Somalian pirates who kidnapped the captain of the U. S. merchant ship Maersk Alabama and free the captain, Richard Phillips. The anarchical country of Somalia is controlled by independent warlords with no central government. Rampant crime is driven by poverty and virtually no commerce or industry. The start-up service industry of capturing and holding for ransom ships and crews has proven profitable, thus bringing it hockey-stick-like growth as ship owners pay millions of dollars in ransom to regain their ships, cargos and crews. A lack of defense mechanisms extend the safe operations of the pirates. It is easier and cheaper for the ship owners to pay rather than resist. Payment of ransom leads to more piracy, the costs of which are paid for ultimately by consumers...sort of taxation without representation.

An analogy might be trial lawyers extort business executives, and they pay and it gets worse.

Another analogy might be union bosses extort business executives, and they pay and it gets worse.

Another analogy might be Congress extorts seekers of favors, and they pay and it gets worse.

And the world gets corrupted.

Think about it: the world needs be rid of all pirates.

"Gregoire: Raise tuition 14%"

From the Seattle Times Front Page Wednesday, April 8, 2009. (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009001043_apwaxgrgregoirehighered2ndldwritethru.html)
Headline: "Gregoire: Raise tuition 14%"

I sent to the Seattle Times the following Letter, which hasn't been published:

The Return of the Company Store


Little understood is the relationship between increasingly higher college costs and government participation in higher education. In today's article, "Gregoire: Raise tuition 14%" it becomes starkly evident. Coming before Gov. Gregoire's proposal were "increases to federal Pell grants and education tax credits" from which, according to the article "families earning up to $160,00 would be no worse off" after the tuition increases "for the first year anyway". So here's how it works. The federal government takes some of the income tax money from citizens of Washington and turns around and offers some of it back for higher education. The state government seeing this "new money" coming into the state for higher education, raises the prices for said higher education. Everything's hunky dory except for the second year. Then perhaps grants aren't sufficient, so students and their families borrow from the government to pay for college. They become indebted -- financially and emotionally -- to the government. Like a company store. So think of the cause and effect (supply and demand) for the huge inflation in college costs, and remember it began when our federal government started interfering in higher education. This is the government we want?

http://www.periodictablet.com