Smitten

Moonlight Sonata~ Beethoven

We call this the "Smitten song"~ it is a song Beethoven wrote for a piano student of his. 

Smitten = very much in love....

 

A beautiful love song

Heartsongs

Yes, Valentines Day is Saturday & thoughts of love are in the air.... so here are some offerings to nurture love,  & find balance in our hearts.

Bob Dylan Wedding Song~ And if there is eternity, I'll love you there again.....

Hearts need healing, and I love Mandalas.... 

Mandalas Vision~ Spread your Light

 CLICK THE 2ND BUTTON FROM THE RIGHT

TO ENJOY THE  FULL SCREEN VIEW


Sand Mandala

We all can put a little love in our hearts ~ friends, family, lovers. 

An act of love goes a long way

Ode to Rabbit Ears

If you have rabbit ears, you will see
The digital change will black out your TV
The conversion dates and times are a changing mush
Maybe better your TV you crush?


The digital TV switchover is getting more & more complicated.
February 17 was the deadline for the changeover.
It was announced for three years. Major PR blitz.
Last week Congress voted to delay the change to June 12. Not enough people had converted. The Federal coupon program ran out of money.

I am an analog holdout. We just did not want to pay to watch TV. We realize there is better programing, reception, and variety- oh & C-Span pure live coverage without the talking heads. But I can get that on the Internet.

That being said all this week, our local station scrolls the message that they ARE going to the digital conversion as originally scheduled. They claim "people here are prepared and ready to go". A local media rep said it would only confuse people to change the date. I don't know if this TV station rep listens to the news, but our county unemployment rate is at 9.5 percent, according to the state Employment Department. It was the county’s highest December rate in 24 years — since it hit 10 percent in 1984, the department said.

There were 17,711 people unemployed in this County in December. That’s 2,162 more than in November. The county lost 4,200 nonfarm payroll jobs last year — half of them in manufacturing. Ready!

Congress' action gives local stations the option of keeping the Feb 17 deadline.

So rabbit ears are "out" & become obsolete, and converter boxes are "in" till a digital TV replacement happens.

We have a back up little solid state portable TV, so old, it does not have a remote!

You have to get up off your ass to change the channels, and the dial is a hard click to change the channels. Yes it is a color TV.... Our main TV is converter digital ready, but as the main breadwinner in our house is on a temporary layoff that has been extended 4 times now, we are not spending money on a 2nd digital converter at this time.

Old reliable is going to the dark ages on Tuesday, the 17th.

The times they are a changin'

Nuff's Enough

MoveOn is circulating a petition to reverse the free for all Wall Street Bailout money w retroactive rules.
"W"~ the ex-decider did his usual shoddy job & just let the money be mismanaged in a big way - his last gasp lame duck (in)action.

Now Obama & We the People are left with his elephant dung to clean up. 

Rather than just wave goodbye to all those Billions of tax dollars, while Wall Street Execs squander the money any damned way they like.... impose retroactive rules. 

I think this is a great concept:

Limit Salaries at All Banks Taking Taxpayer Dollars
Wall Street banks distributed $18.4 billion in year-end bonuses in 2008. $18.4 billion to the people who crippled our economy with their recklessness and greed and then took $700 billion of our money.

President Obama took an important first step, limiting pay at companies taking bailouts going forward. But Congress is considering going even further.

Congress can apply the limits retroactively, and might even take back some of the most extravagant bonuses at firms that take taxpayer money. A huge public outcry will put them over the edge.

A compiled petition with your individual comment will be presented to your senators and representative.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION

Hat tip to Anok~

TAX FORM WE NEED

CLICK FORM TO EXPAND

BAD BANKS ARE A BAD IDEA

Bad Bank Q & A

Q: What is the bad bank?

A: The "bad bank" would be a government-run entity set up to buy assets that a re weighing down the balance sheets financial institutions. By replacing these assets, many of them mortgage backed securities, with cash, Treasury hopes to free up the banks to begin lending again.

Q: What's so bad about the "bad bank"?

A: It's not the bank that's bad, it's the assets the bank will purchase. Some are non-performing, meaning that they are based on mortgage loans that borrowers have stopped paying, others are illiquid, which means they may be valuable, but no one wants to buy them in this uncertain economic environment.

Q: Why is this being considered now?

A: The money the banks already took helped them stay afloat, but it didn't solve the fundamental problem: Too much of the banks' money is tied up in these problem assets. It could potentially restore stability to the financial sector.

Q: What are the advantages to the bad bank concept?

A: Many economists say the "toxic assets" are the fundamental problem at the bans, and until these are removed from the balance sheets, banks will remain unstable, making it difficult for investors and others to understand how much the banks are worth.

Q: What are the downsides of the "bad bank" plan?

A: It is extremely difficult to determine how much the government should pay for these assets, since there is no market for them right now. If the government pays too much, it will waste taxpayer dollars. If it pays too little, not enough banks will want to participate and the program won't do any good. Also, accounting rules state that all asset prices have to be set at the current market value. That means that without rule changes, any lowball prices the government offers could be applied to the assets the banks choose not to sell, forcing them to take massive writedowns that would reduce their overall worth." (From the Register Guard)

ACCOUNTING RULES???

Seriously? If the banks were operating under Accounting rules, we would not be in this sub prime mortgage mess in the first place! Whether the bank itself, or a subsidiary, or vendor pool they do business with was engaged in predatory lending, by not scrutinizing what it was they were buying or trading or otherwise becoming the owner of, it is theirs to own.

My biggest contention around this banking/mortgage mess is that they created the problem.

If you get greedy, and sloppy and or predatory- taking advantage of elderly, or otherwise new to mortgage purchase people, then the loss or default is the bank's to own.

I argue that if taxpayer dollars are used to "rescue" the banks, from their own shoddy, self regulated practices- they learn nothing, they lose nothing, and We the People, take the financial hit for their gross mismanagement and mistakes.

For banks that really abused the system, and failed to make sound business decisions, then just like in the private sector, they should go out of business, or be subject to take over, by a more stable bank. For those who played in the sub prime, junk mortgage game, set up a mandatory requirement to refinance those homes. For people with steady payment history, redo the loans with an affordable payment. The banks would STILL be making money- just at a slower pace and longer term. Too bad if it is not a hand over first money fest. They bought those loans, and it should be their job to make them viable. If taxpayer money is needed, in part to help them in the transition, I would be open to that- but ONLY if it comes with the strictest of regulating. The transition LOAN money would need to be paid back.

Another potential scenario is let the banks who did not engage in this sub prime mortgage nightmare take over the loans, being allowed to rewrite them in a way that people can afford them, and give them more assets to do so.

I also favor a new set of mortgage rules.

• Put a 5 year moratorium on ARM- adjustable rate/balloon payment, and Variable rate loans.

The people who sell these mortgages are trained (just like the car salesman) to emphasize-

You could be paying just $600 a month for mortgage!!!! But failing to complete the sentence, but in XX amount of time you will pay more than double that amount.

Same deal with Variable rates.... they tend to push these kinds of mortgages when interest rates temporarily drop- but as they fluctuate, so does your mortgage payment. You want to roll the dice on what the roof over your head loan will cost on any given month?

Even with conventional loans... I think there needs to be even more strict uniform, standardized truth in lending format that spells out everything.... and like in days of old, tight guidelines on what percentage of income is allowed for housing costs.

• Giving mortgage loans that set people up to fail, because they would not have enough money to live on is not responsible lending either.

Tax & insurance costs should be included in monthly payments. Cut out all hidden or extra expenses, eliminating costs that could potentially make a homebuyer default on the mortgage loan.

I also wish the government would go after predatory lenders. Those who sought out elderly people on fixed incomes & took them out of a stable mortgage situation, and sold them the ticket to foreclosure. Either make them have to rewrite & carry the new loans, or have them fined to the fullest extent of the law - also making them pay the legal fees of the people who have to retain a lawyer, to keep their homes.

The idea of the Federal Government creating a new bank with all bad assets sounds like a really bad idea to me- because if and when it too goes bad, guess who pays?

Worthwhile Rant ~ Lion's Roar

This is one of the best rants on the Senate floor, ever.

Ted Kennedy has his say about federal minimum wage not being raised in 10 years. It is vintage footage, but something Congress can learn from now-- they need to stop the partisan bickering & realize what it is they are supposed to be doing- working for the PEOPLE. While Congress got a $4000 raise this year, the people are hurting.



When does the greed stop? he asked
He accuses the republicans of "filibustering by delays and amendments".

Yes, some things never change.

But that vote did happen and federal minimum wage was raised for the first time in 10 years.

Federal minimum wage is now $6.55 per hour, and goes up to $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.

We still need people to get up there on the Senate floor and rant about taking care of the "little people". Because the latest cuts to the Stimulus package include head start, child nutrition, food stamps & public transit.

When DOES the greed stop?

What it is!

What it is ~ a phrase from the 70's ~ right out of the Aretha Franklin song~ Rock Steady. Check out young Aretha with her 'Fro ~ but even back then, she could belt out a tune in a way, that only she could. Performing on SOUL TRAIN no less.



Ya know the repuglicans are going to have to understand it's * a funky and low down feeling*, a majority of  We the People are having, over this DEPRESSION. Yea baby.... because ~ What it is... is a DEPRESSION. The recession was in 2007.

We've evolved. They held off (during the election year) saying we were in a recession, till the dam burst just before the election & banks were failing along with the mortgage scene. While foreclosures were popping up everywhere, so were tent cities.

WE are going to have to be ROCK STEADY. If you have a republican congressperson stalling, voting no, bullshitting around with the political process and denying funds for OUR needs, we need to pounce on them. Write them, call, protest, pressure, write editorials.. because these same spendthrifts, tightwads, and cautious spenders, never denied Bush one damned dime for billions of dollars back door war budgets, for Wall Street bailouts & for tax breaks for the wealthy.

Suddenly they are frugal and unwilling to put out money to help the people who fill the federal coffers with cash, and pay their fat salaries?

No! We have to be mad as hell & not gonna take it any more!

That being said, this presents itself as a good segway to put in a plug for a new blog site by Enigma, (of Watergate Summer fame), titled THE 2009 DEPRESSION

a place to journal the goings on of our historic place in time.  Swing by & share your thoughts & observations of the 2009 depression ~ What it is!

Killer Peanuts

The list of recalled products continues to grow-as of Feb 6, 2009, more than 1679 products have been recalled at this time. The salmonella outbreak has been blamed for at least eight deaths and 575 illnesses in 43 states. The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation.
It includes things like energy bars, trail mix, and Pet food. The bottom line, is if you do not know the source of peanuts, you should not eat them. 

Brownie Product Recalls
Cake and Pie Product Recalls
Candy Product Recalls
Cookie Product Recalls
Cracker Product Recalls
Donut Product Recalls
Dressing and Seasoning Product Recalls
Fruit and Vegetable Product Recalls
Ice Cream Product Recalls
Peanut Butter Product Recalls
Peanut Paste Product Recalls
Peanuts Product Recalls
Pet Food Product Recalls
Pre-Packaged Meals Product Recalls
Snack Bar Product Recalls
Snack Mix Product Recalls
Topping Product Recall

Too long to post, here is the link to the expanded FDA (potentially) salmonella tainted peanut containing foods recall list.

saturday tune

I seem to have the working class blues, so this song is appropriate for today.
The husband did a first draft of the taxes ~ I can't believe we work so hard, live so simply & still *the Man* wants more money from us- when he is on extended temporary layoff. Still we have to hit the taxes early to figure out a way to pay the federal government more money so Wall Street people can live high on the hog, and keep their summer homes in the Hamptons.
I am going to scour those forms for the box that says "simple oversight" or "honest mistake".