Update from the Heartland
No.376
23.2.09 – 1.3.09
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
No.376
23.2.09 – 1.3.09
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
The follow-up news items:
-- President Obama chose Marine Corps Base Camp Lejune, North Carolina, to publicly announce plans to withdraw combat troops from Iraq and to proclaim an end to the Battle of Iraq by 31.August.2010. I have voiced my objections to such pronouncements as pabulum for the uber-Left and generally not a wise choice in military operations. If the President is intent upon ending our involvement in Iraq, then our interests would have better served by gradually withdrawing troops and announcing the completion when it was done. I think the President was wrong. Now, we must hope things work out as he intends, and I hope he is wise enough to see beyond what I see.
President Obama addressed a joint session of Congress – a State of the Union type message. It was a typical Obama speech – full of hope and good wishes. The rhetoric will be judged by history in the harsh light of reality. It is hard to criticize words of hope, but I will. The President chose to join the foolishness in Congress, maligning the business aviation industry. Few citizens beyond the industry seem to understand what corporate aircraft are all about. The Press and the Public apparently see corporate jets as luxury perks of the wealthy leadership. Congress has no guilt whatsoever using corporate jets for their “personal” use. The President has the ultimate corporate jet. Business aircraft are efficiency amplifiers, not luxury perks. Nonetheless, all the flowery oratory will only last so long. He will either deliver or be judged a failure. The Republicans chose Governor Piyush “Bobby” Jindal of Louisiana for the opposition response. Perhaps it was the contrast with the President. Perhaps it was the awkward symbology of his entrance. Perhaps it was his disjointed, ill-timed, uncomfortable speaking style. Whatever it was, Jindal’s message was lost in the peculiar speech. Jindal may be an intelligent, effective politician, but he is no match for Obama when it comes to public speaking.
Early on, I decided to hold my fire and keep my powder dry regarding the cacophony of racial accusations, condemnations, ruminations and cogitations in the last couple of weeks. Then, I read the following opinion column.
“Furor over cartoon shows racial divide”
by Clarence Page
Wichita Eagle
Published: February 25, 2009; Page 7A
http://www.kansas.com/opinion/story/711387.html
The column title in our local newspaper caught my attention for a host of reasons, but it was the contrasting title of the exact same column as originally published that sent me over the top.
“At least the ‘chimp’ cartoon got us talking”
by Clarence Page
Chicago Tribune
Published: February 22, 2009
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-oped0222pagefeb22,0,5532821.column
This whole brouhaha seemed to erupt from remarks made by Attorney General Eric Himpton Holder, Jr. during a speech on Wednesday, 18.February.2009, at the Justice Department, commemorating Black History Month (February), in which he challenged us as “essentially a nation of cowards” for not discussing race and for living “voluntarily socially segregated.” I have listened to portions of the speech and read the transcript, and in the main, I heartily endorse Eric’s message, although I think his choice of words was most unfortunate and distracting. And, as the comedians say, timing is everything. On the very same day, a Sean Delonas cartoon was published in the New York Post, depicting two cops shooting a chimpanzee (another recent story) and referring to the new stimulus law. The cartoon apparently intended criticism of the government’s economic action, but the choice of characters smacked of past racial stereotyping and slurs from this country’s history. Clarence Page tried to echo Eric Holder’s admonition to face racism head-on, yet the Wichita Eagle chose a title that conveys a contrary tone, which seems to conflict with the message. I criticized Rush Limbaugh for his poor choice of words [371] and was taken to task for not transmitting the context of Rush’s statement. The same criticism I leveled at Rush must also be applied to Eric Holder and the Wichita Eagle. The latest kerfuffle over the Delonas cartoon reminds me of the flip side version – the Muhammad cartoons published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 30 September 2005 [218] – and the furor in the Muslim world including violent protests by people who never saw the cartoon – they were incited. There were 12 cartoons published that day, but one attracted the most attention – “Cartoon 7,” depicting Muhammad with a bomb in his turban and “peace be upon him” written in Arabic on the front of his turban. Either we believe in freedom of speech or we do not. The image/words of the Delonas cartoon are no different from “Cartoon 7” – they may be in poor taste like Limbaugh’s and Holder’s words, but they are not wrong or over the threshold. Likewise, we must get the hypocrisy out of our rhetoric, and public proclamations and protestations; we must stop hiding behind feel-good political correctness. You may have noticed that I no longer use or recognize superfluous social labels like African-American, Asian-American, Gay-American, Hispanic-American. We are either Americans, or we are not; there are no subsets, or artificial, divisive, meaning-less labels. I was recently reminded of a magnificent interview of Morgan Porterfield Freeman, Jr., which articulates far better than me the necessity of moving passed racial divisions. Please listen to the video clip from that 18.December.2005 interview:
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=1131418n
The national debate regarding race in the public domain must focus on real issues rather than the symbology of words and images. Eric Holder and Clarence Page have valid points for the national debate. Race is one of the social factors. People have every right to hold racist bigoted thoughts and avoid associations based on race, as they choose. However, reflection of bigotry into action that might cause injury is simply not acceptable. We must defend “Muhammad” and the “Chimp-Stimulus” cartoons equally. We need that freedom. As the kids say, “let’s get real.”
President Obama nominated former Governor Gary Faye Locke of Washington to be Secretary of Commerce, replacing Senator Gregg [373, 374] and Governor Richardson [364, 368]. I hope this choice works out for the President. I remain quite concerned about various Press reports that the administration wants the Census Bureau to report to the White House Chief of Staff for the 2010 census, rather the Commerce Department as it has been for decades. Politicizing the census is wrong in the worst, most cynical way.
President Obama also nominated Governor Kathleen Sebelius (née Gilligan) of Kansas to be Secretary of Health and Human Services to replace former SenatorTom Daschle [372-3]. Sebelius is a two-term, Democratic governor in a pretty Red State, which by itself is an accomplishment. We shall soon be bear witness to another analysis of a political life. And, the Associated Press reports anti-choice groups are planning vigorous protests and objections to the Sebelius nomination. C’est la vie!
News from the economic front:
-- Several recent polls suggest broad, popular support for the President’s ARRP. The uber-Right talking heads proclaim the beginning of a socialist or even a communist state in this Grand Republic – take from the rich and give to the poor. I am not pleased with “those little, tiny, porky amendments” [374] that survived, but at least they pared back a chunk from the original versions. The dangerous aspect of the ARRP: unbridled credit got us into this situation, and now, we have the government borrowing even more. The central issue is confidence. If the President is successful in restoring confidence, as the polls may suggest, then, we shall give the President recognition for helping us return to prosperity quicker.
-- Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee that the U.S. is experiencing a “severe contraction,” and the contraction “appears to have continued into the first quarter of 2009.” What a surprise! I had no idea! Ben is predicting the recession should end this year, and 2010 “will be a year of recovery,” and here is the big if . . . if actions taken by the government yield some stabilization in financial markets. Ben also testified that the government was not planning to nationalize the banks. Whew!
-- The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales fell 5.3% in January, to an annual rate of 4.49 million units, from a 4.74 million rate in December. It was the weakest showing since July 1997. About 45% of total sales involved distressed property transactions, including foreclosures. The median sales price continued to contract to $170,300 from $199,800 a year earlier and $175,700 in December 2008.
-- Swiss bank UBS AG announced the latest shake-up in its top executive ranks after being battered by massive write-downs and its role in a U.S. tax-evasion. CEO Marcel Rohner is being replaced by Oswald Grubel, 65, who had been CEO at Swiss rival Credit Suisse Group until he retired in 2007.
-- The Edinburgh-based Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Group announced its restructuring after posting the UK’s largest-ever corporate loss for the full year – £24B compared with a net profit of £7B in 2007. RBS is bundling its troubled operations into a non-core unit, equivalent to about 20% of its total assets – £240B (US$341B) – with the intention of disposing of them in the next three to five years. RBS also said it will radically reform its global banking and markets operations, centering on the UK with smaller, more focused, global operations.
-- The administration submitted a US$3.6T budget with an intended US$1.7T deficit, reportedly replete with more social spending on a broad variety of typical left-of-center programs. Oddly, the budget predicts the deficit shrinking to US$533B by 2013, based on projected economic recovery late this year. To say big government is back may be a serious understatement. Let us not forget that the Bush administration allowed a Republican Congress run up deficits with pork spending on their projects, on top of the gargantuan war spending. How are we ever going to trust a politician to return us to fiscal responsibility?
-- In a sad product of our time, E.W. Scripps closed down the 150-year-old daily newspaper Rocky Mountain News (Denver) – its final edition on Friday. The Hearst Corporation indicated it may have to close the San Francisco Chronicle, unless it can rapidly slash costs. Four newspaper owners have filed for bankruptcy protection since December:
Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times;
closely held Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis;
the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News; and
Journal Register Co. owner New Haven Register.
The Seattle Intelligencer is also reportedly in trouble. We need newspapers. These failures do not bode well for the Fourth Estate. Our freedom will be diminished without a robust Press.
-- The USG (Treasury) has apparently reached a deal with Citigroup to convert its special preferred stock from earlier TARP funds into common stock, which would give the government a 36% stake in the bank. The government will be the single largest voting stockholder in the company, and the Board has agreed to restructuring to allow government-appointed directors. But, the government isn’t nationalizing the bank. I sure hope we are not parsing words here.
-- Quasi-governmental, mortgage giant Fannie Mae posted a 4th Quarter net loss of US$25B, amid massive fair-value losses and credit-related expenses. The loss narrowed from the 3rd Quarter and revenue increased as they reported improved access to credit markets since late November. The company also submitted a request for an additional US$15B in Treasury funds, to help reduce its net worth deficit. Are we approaching the bottom, yet?
-- The Commerce Department reported the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) decreased at a seasonally adjusted 6.2% annual rate in the 4th Quarter, revised from its original estimate, a month ago, that the 4th Quarter 2008 GDP fell 3.8%. The sharply lower revision reflected downward adjustments to inventory investment, exports and consumer spending. This was the worst quarterly GDP contraction since a 6.4% decrease in the 1st Quarter 1982 GDP.
-- Warren Buffett’s holding company, Berkshire Hathaway, reported its worst year ever in 2008, with its net falling to US$4.99B from US$13.21B in 2007. The company’s book value per share declined 9.6% – performance far better than the S&P 500 stock index but only the 2nd negative year since the Oracle of Ohama took over in 1965. Buffet predicted the economy “will be in shambles throughout 2009 -- and, for that matter, probably well beyond.” He closed on an upbeat note, saying we should “never forget that our country has faced far worse travails in the past. . . . without fail, however, we’ve overcome them.”
The Blago Scandal [365]:
“Burris's Final Act”
by Eugene Robinson
Op-Ed columnist
Washington Post
Published: Friday, February 20, 2009; Page A23
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/19/AR2009021902580.html?wpisrc=newsletter
Robinson said, “This may be stating the obvious, but Roland Burris needs to stop explaining and start packing. The woefully forgetful Illinois senator should go home and stay there, and I'd advise taking a vow of silence as well.”
‘Nuf said for me.
-- The senior senator from Illinois Dick Durbin joined the growing chorus of politicians advocating Roland Burris resign.
The Stanford Fraud [375]:
-- Laura Pendergest-Holt, Stanford Financial’s chief investment officer, was arrested and charged with obstruction in an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
No comments or contributions from Update no.375.
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
The follow-up news items:
-- President Obama chose Marine Corps Base Camp Lejune, North Carolina, to publicly announce plans to withdraw combat troops from Iraq and to proclaim an end to the Battle of Iraq by 31.August.2010. I have voiced my objections to such pronouncements as pabulum for the uber-Left and generally not a wise choice in military operations. If the President is intent upon ending our involvement in Iraq, then our interests would have better served by gradually withdrawing troops and announcing the completion when it was done. I think the President was wrong. Now, we must hope things work out as he intends, and I hope he is wise enough to see beyond what I see.
President Obama addressed a joint session of Congress – a State of the Union type message. It was a typical Obama speech – full of hope and good wishes. The rhetoric will be judged by history in the harsh light of reality. It is hard to criticize words of hope, but I will. The President chose to join the foolishness in Congress, maligning the business aviation industry. Few citizens beyond the industry seem to understand what corporate aircraft are all about. The Press and the Public apparently see corporate jets as luxury perks of the wealthy leadership. Congress has no guilt whatsoever using corporate jets for their “personal” use. The President has the ultimate corporate jet. Business aircraft are efficiency amplifiers, not luxury perks. Nonetheless, all the flowery oratory will only last so long. He will either deliver or be judged a failure. The Republicans chose Governor Piyush “Bobby” Jindal of Louisiana for the opposition response. Perhaps it was the contrast with the President. Perhaps it was the awkward symbology of his entrance. Perhaps it was his disjointed, ill-timed, uncomfortable speaking style. Whatever it was, Jindal’s message was lost in the peculiar speech. Jindal may be an intelligent, effective politician, but he is no match for Obama when it comes to public speaking.
Early on, I decided to hold my fire and keep my powder dry regarding the cacophony of racial accusations, condemnations, ruminations and cogitations in the last couple of weeks. Then, I read the following opinion column.
“Furor over cartoon shows racial divide”
by Clarence Page
Wichita Eagle
Published: February 25, 2009; Page 7A
http://www.kansas.com/opinion/story/711387.html
The column title in our local newspaper caught my attention for a host of reasons, but it was the contrasting title of the exact same column as originally published that sent me over the top.
“At least the ‘chimp’ cartoon got us talking”
by Clarence Page
Chicago Tribune
Published: February 22, 2009
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-oped0222pagefeb22,0,5532821.column
This whole brouhaha seemed to erupt from remarks made by Attorney General Eric Himpton Holder, Jr. during a speech on Wednesday, 18.February.2009, at the Justice Department, commemorating Black History Month (February), in which he challenged us as “essentially a nation of cowards” for not discussing race and for living “voluntarily socially segregated.” I have listened to portions of the speech and read the transcript, and in the main, I heartily endorse Eric’s message, although I think his choice of words was most unfortunate and distracting. And, as the comedians say, timing is everything. On the very same day, a Sean Delonas cartoon was published in the New York Post, depicting two cops shooting a chimpanzee (another recent story) and referring to the new stimulus law. The cartoon apparently intended criticism of the government’s economic action, but the choice of characters smacked of past racial stereotyping and slurs from this country’s history. Clarence Page tried to echo Eric Holder’s admonition to face racism head-on, yet the Wichita Eagle chose a title that conveys a contrary tone, which seems to conflict with the message. I criticized Rush Limbaugh for his poor choice of words [371] and was taken to task for not transmitting the context of Rush’s statement. The same criticism I leveled at Rush must also be applied to Eric Holder and the Wichita Eagle. The latest kerfuffle over the Delonas cartoon reminds me of the flip side version – the Muhammad cartoons published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 30 September 2005 [218] – and the furor in the Muslim world including violent protests by people who never saw the cartoon – they were incited. There were 12 cartoons published that day, but one attracted the most attention – “Cartoon 7,” depicting Muhammad with a bomb in his turban and “peace be upon him” written in Arabic on the front of his turban. Either we believe in freedom of speech or we do not. The image/words of the Delonas cartoon are no different from “Cartoon 7” – they may be in poor taste like Limbaugh’s and Holder’s words, but they are not wrong or over the threshold. Likewise, we must get the hypocrisy out of our rhetoric, and public proclamations and protestations; we must stop hiding behind feel-good political correctness. You may have noticed that I no longer use or recognize superfluous social labels like African-American, Asian-American, Gay-American, Hispanic-American. We are either Americans, or we are not; there are no subsets, or artificial, divisive, meaning-less labels. I was recently reminded of a magnificent interview of Morgan Porterfield Freeman, Jr., which articulates far better than me the necessity of moving passed racial divisions. Please listen to the video clip from that 18.December.2005 interview:
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=1131418n
The national debate regarding race in the public domain must focus on real issues rather than the symbology of words and images. Eric Holder and Clarence Page have valid points for the national debate. Race is one of the social factors. People have every right to hold racist bigoted thoughts and avoid associations based on race, as they choose. However, reflection of bigotry into action that might cause injury is simply not acceptable. We must defend “Muhammad” and the “Chimp-Stimulus” cartoons equally. We need that freedom. As the kids say, “let’s get real.”
President Obama nominated former Governor Gary Faye Locke of Washington to be Secretary of Commerce, replacing Senator Gregg [373, 374] and Governor Richardson [364, 368]. I hope this choice works out for the President. I remain quite concerned about various Press reports that the administration wants the Census Bureau to report to the White House Chief of Staff for the 2010 census, rather the Commerce Department as it has been for decades. Politicizing the census is wrong in the worst, most cynical way.
President Obama also nominated Governor Kathleen Sebelius (née Gilligan) of Kansas to be Secretary of Health and Human Services to replace former SenatorTom Daschle [372-3]. Sebelius is a two-term, Democratic governor in a pretty Red State, which by itself is an accomplishment. We shall soon be bear witness to another analysis of a political life. And, the Associated Press reports anti-choice groups are planning vigorous protests and objections to the Sebelius nomination. C’est la vie!
News from the economic front:
-- Several recent polls suggest broad, popular support for the President’s ARRP. The uber-Right talking heads proclaim the beginning of a socialist or even a communist state in this Grand Republic – take from the rich and give to the poor. I am not pleased with “those little, tiny, porky amendments” [374] that survived, but at least they pared back a chunk from the original versions. The dangerous aspect of the ARRP: unbridled credit got us into this situation, and now, we have the government borrowing even more. The central issue is confidence. If the President is successful in restoring confidence, as the polls may suggest, then, we shall give the President recognition for helping us return to prosperity quicker.
-- Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee that the U.S. is experiencing a “severe contraction,” and the contraction “appears to have continued into the first quarter of 2009.” What a surprise! I had no idea! Ben is predicting the recession should end this year, and 2010 “will be a year of recovery,” and here is the big if . . . if actions taken by the government yield some stabilization in financial markets. Ben also testified that the government was not planning to nationalize the banks. Whew!
-- The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales fell 5.3% in January, to an annual rate of 4.49 million units, from a 4.74 million rate in December. It was the weakest showing since July 1997. About 45% of total sales involved distressed property transactions, including foreclosures. The median sales price continued to contract to $170,300 from $199,800 a year earlier and $175,700 in December 2008.
-- Swiss bank UBS AG announced the latest shake-up in its top executive ranks after being battered by massive write-downs and its role in a U.S. tax-evasion. CEO Marcel Rohner is being replaced by Oswald Grubel, 65, who had been CEO at Swiss rival Credit Suisse Group until he retired in 2007.
-- The Edinburgh-based Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Group announced its restructuring after posting the UK’s largest-ever corporate loss for the full year – £24B compared with a net profit of £7B in 2007. RBS is bundling its troubled operations into a non-core unit, equivalent to about 20% of its total assets – £240B (US$341B) – with the intention of disposing of them in the next three to five years. RBS also said it will radically reform its global banking and markets operations, centering on the UK with smaller, more focused, global operations.
-- The administration submitted a US$3.6T budget with an intended US$1.7T deficit, reportedly replete with more social spending on a broad variety of typical left-of-center programs. Oddly, the budget predicts the deficit shrinking to US$533B by 2013, based on projected economic recovery late this year. To say big government is back may be a serious understatement. Let us not forget that the Bush administration allowed a Republican Congress run up deficits with pork spending on their projects, on top of the gargantuan war spending. How are we ever going to trust a politician to return us to fiscal responsibility?
-- In a sad product of our time, E.W. Scripps closed down the 150-year-old daily newspaper Rocky Mountain News (Denver) – its final edition on Friday. The Hearst Corporation indicated it may have to close the San Francisco Chronicle, unless it can rapidly slash costs. Four newspaper owners have filed for bankruptcy protection since December:
Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times;
closely held Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis;
the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News; and
Journal Register Co. owner New Haven Register.
The Seattle Intelligencer is also reportedly in trouble. We need newspapers. These failures do not bode well for the Fourth Estate. Our freedom will be diminished without a robust Press.
-- The USG (Treasury) has apparently reached a deal with Citigroup to convert its special preferred stock from earlier TARP funds into common stock, which would give the government a 36% stake in the bank. The government will be the single largest voting stockholder in the company, and the Board has agreed to restructuring to allow government-appointed directors. But, the government isn’t nationalizing the bank. I sure hope we are not parsing words here.
-- Quasi-governmental, mortgage giant Fannie Mae posted a 4th Quarter net loss of US$25B, amid massive fair-value losses and credit-related expenses. The loss narrowed from the 3rd Quarter and revenue increased as they reported improved access to credit markets since late November. The company also submitted a request for an additional US$15B in Treasury funds, to help reduce its net worth deficit. Are we approaching the bottom, yet?
-- The Commerce Department reported the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) decreased at a seasonally adjusted 6.2% annual rate in the 4th Quarter, revised from its original estimate, a month ago, that the 4th Quarter 2008 GDP fell 3.8%. The sharply lower revision reflected downward adjustments to inventory investment, exports and consumer spending. This was the worst quarterly GDP contraction since a 6.4% decrease in the 1st Quarter 1982 GDP.
-- Warren Buffett’s holding company, Berkshire Hathaway, reported its worst year ever in 2008, with its net falling to US$4.99B from US$13.21B in 2007. The company’s book value per share declined 9.6% – performance far better than the S&P 500 stock index but only the 2nd negative year since the Oracle of Ohama took over in 1965. Buffet predicted the economy “will be in shambles throughout 2009 -- and, for that matter, probably well beyond.” He closed on an upbeat note, saying we should “never forget that our country has faced far worse travails in the past. . . . without fail, however, we’ve overcome them.”
The Blago Scandal [365]:
“Burris's Final Act”
by Eugene Robinson
Op-Ed columnist
Washington Post
Published: Friday, February 20, 2009; Page A23
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/19/AR2009021902580.html?wpisrc=newsletter
Robinson said, “This may be stating the obvious, but Roland Burris needs to stop explaining and start packing. The woefully forgetful Illinois senator should go home and stay there, and I'd advise taking a vow of silence as well.”
‘Nuf said for me.
-- The senior senator from Illinois Dick Durbin joined the growing chorus of politicians advocating Roland Burris resign.
The Stanford Fraud [375]:
-- Laura Pendergest-Holt, Stanford Financial’s chief investment officer, was arrested and charged with obstruction in an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
No comments or contributions from Update no.375.
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
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