PennyMac opens for business. "Sort Of Like The Arsonist Who Sets Fire To The House And Then Buys Up The Charred Remains And Resells It" Screw up CDO's and then get to profit off taxpayer bailouts.
Toyota asks Japanese government for 200 Billion Yen Bailout. This a HUGE story that nobody is picking up on. It's only about $2 Billion USD, but this is just the beginning. Given the huge amount of government support that Toyota gets and Japanese cultural values, this is hugely embarrassing. If you read through the details, Toyota is trying to downplay the situation and save face as much as possible. What's that Senators Corker and Shelby?
Toyota just can't build cars to keep up with the Domestics. They've been struggling for YEARS. They insist upon their antiquated business structure to reap profit from sub-standard cars. They need to focus on more fuel efficient vehicles. Enough with all their sports cars! Toyota just really needs some decent cars right now. Oh, and they really need to consolidate their brands and dealer network. End the struggling Lexus and Scion brands. I can't stand Toyota. Let them die. They need to learn from their lessons. This has been coming for a long time.
Finally GM can be on top again.
Open wide for those feet Senators.
'CNBC Teabagger takes legal department butt plug all the way in, cancels Daily Show appearance, issues groveling apology.' I love the Exiled.
13 year old allegedly kills 16 y.o. brother to take over drug ring. So many fucked up things about that headline.
Pastor John Raphael believes the solution to stem violence in New Orleans must come from within African American community. Pastor Raphael is an ex-NOPD cop and truly believes in empowering those who most have written off and giving them a reason to live.
Dallas levees structurally deficient. Could George W. Bush end up on a rooftop begging for FEMA help? (H/T Greg)
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Crime Cameras and City Council Emails - EVEN MORE UPERDATED
The Office of the Inspector General released it's much anticipated crime camera report. First off, all of Ashe Dambala's reportings on Verascent, Imagine, Greg Meffert, and company are totally vindicated. The report exhaustively laid out what got us expensive, broken, useless crime cameras. Also, Jim Letten is directly CC'd on the report with a letter suggesting serious violation of federal law are present in the contracting and accounting irregularities of the Mayor's Office of Technology (MOT).
Now, I think the report was exhaustive enough to rise above any criticisms or racially inflammatory reactions.
... and then this came out. Tracie Washington requested the emails of the council's four white members plus one other city official, also white, on Dec. 3, 2008. And this activist got (tens of?) thousands of emails of all the white city council members on a CD in record time. Meanwhile, WWL can't get squat from Nagin because of "executive privilege" (Nagin copying Bush yet again).
With Veronica White and an activist on a fishing expedition against certain council members thrown into the mix, expect fireworks. Oyster recommends a hazmat suit and a silkwood scrub (whatever the later is?). This could end up like one of those late 90's/early 2000's Orleans Parish Public School meetings.
UPDATE- Talk about synchronicity:
The crime cameras at the end of the block are working! It has missed 3 shootings while being inoperative. Now they're back up and aimed at exactly where the shootings were.
UPDATE 2- One thing I found interesting in the OIG report was the installation and wiring standards. Look at the photos at the bottom of the OIG report. Shoddy workmanship. I'll keep an eye out for specific examples in the future.
UPDATE 3- WWL TV led off their news reports with the Veronica White story, not the OIG report. I know WWL is involved in the emails thing, with their lawsuit and all, but I'm disappointed at the choice of lead story.
UPDATE 4- Now the camera is pointed directly at the telephone pole it's mounted on. FAIL!
UPDATE 5- Now all the Council's emails have been compromised...
UPDATE 6- Dambala's take
Now, I think the report was exhaustive enough to rise above any criticisms or racially inflammatory reactions.
... and then this came out. Tracie Washington requested the emails of the council's four white members plus one other city official, also white, on Dec. 3, 2008. And this activist got (tens of?) thousands of emails of all the white city council members on a CD in record time. Meanwhile, WWL can't get squat from Nagin because of "executive privilege" (Nagin copying Bush yet again).
With Veronica White and an activist on a fishing expedition against certain council members thrown into the mix, expect fireworks. Oyster recommends a hazmat suit and a silkwood scrub (whatever the later is?). This could end up like one of those late 90's/early 2000's Orleans Parish Public School meetings.
UPDATE- Talk about synchronicity:
The crime cameras at the end of the block are working! It has missed 3 shootings while being inoperative. Now they're back up and aimed at exactly where the shootings were.
UPDATE 2- One thing I found interesting in the OIG report was the installation and wiring standards. Look at the photos at the bottom of the OIG report. Shoddy workmanship. I'll keep an eye out for specific examples in the future.
UPDATE 3- WWL TV led off their news reports with the Veronica White story, not the OIG report. I know WWL is involved in the emails thing, with their lawsuit and all, but I'm disappointed at the choice of lead story.
UPDATE 4- Now the camera is pointed directly at the telephone pole it's mounted on. FAIL!
UPDATE 5- Now all the Council's emails have been compromised...
UPDATE 6- Dambala's take
Monday, March 2, 2009
News and Notes - 2 March 2009
Economics:
Must suck to work at Chystler right now:
Great Job Bill!! At this rate, by the end of the century we will have recouped the hundreds of millions of dollars AME Senior Management lost on the Patriot/Compass launch. You remember that launch. That's where AME Senior Management decided to blindly outsource the body shop and not require the supplier to follow our standards or involve our Engineers. Thank God with the new reorg we lost those managers....NOT. We couldn't afford to lose that talent now could we. You can force me to use both sides of the toilet paper if you'd like, but until we lose the no talent never waz's running our AME organization, our fate is sealed.
Stress testing mortgage CDO's. What did they learn? They're STILL massively overvalued.
Louisiana Unemployment Claims Gain Again. No more "bucking the trend."
A good investment strategy is to short whatever stock CNBC is in love with. CNBC is leading the herd off the cliff. Related Rick Santelli: just another Wall Street cheerleader who's getting taken care of behind the curtain.
Texas to legalize gambling? This would be a huge blow to Lake Charles and Shreveport. But, we can't have any real, productive jobs. We've got to have crappy service industry jobs that suck the lifeblood out of economy.
Taxes: Businesses brace for higher taxes. Related: The highest economic growth occurred when the highest marginal tax rate was over 90%. Another of US economic history from Mark Ames.
Public Colleges Get Surge of Acceptances. $40,000 tuition not the bargain it used to be?
Politics:
"Republicans aren't getting a dime more in committee money for staff than we got last year." That's the point.
US Guns in Mexico. Which is why Obama is thinking about reviving the assault weapons bill. It has become one of the hottest topics on Reddit I've ever seen.
The end of (Wingnut) Welfare as we know it.
Some rightwingers have had all the hate they can take and are taking it out on evil liberals/gays/browns/etc. I remember after 9/11 when a Sikh was beaten to death and some local "patriot" decided to throw a molotov through Mona's plate glass window. This is far worse than that. The scary thing is it has the potential to get even worse.
James Gill takes on Jindal and Harry Lee. Excellent read. H/T Oyster.
Random:
Google Maps displaying blast impacts of various nuclear weapons. Put it on your favorite address (say, City Hall on Perdido) and drop the big one.
No call of duty without the rules of war. Forcing war gaming kid to read the Geneva Convention.
Are outside volunteers helping or hurting New Orleans' Katrina recovery? I don't agree, but it's interesting food for thought.
The guy who started WikiScanner (a site that tracks anonymous Wikipedia edits to the companies, like Diebold, to their changes of their own entries) comes a fun little experiment. Books and music that make you dumb. Fun fact: there's a 67 point difference in SAT scores from "Bible" readers to "Holy Bible" readers. Note to self: listen to more Beethoven and Counting Crows.
Guinea-Bissau coup linked to drug smugglers?
Louisiana leads the nation in Incarceration. 1 in 55 Louisianians are currently behind bars. WE'RE #1! Oh, wait. Got a couple more to add behind bars. The Lorino case is particularly tragic. I didn't know him, but he had a reputation for being an extremely kind person who would give you the shirt off his back. He was killed in his Irish Channel home by someone he'd helped out before. His dad is still the CFO of Tulane, I believe.
I'll leave you with this:
How bacon is made.
Must suck to work at Chystler right now:
Great Job Bill!! At this rate, by the end of the century we will have recouped the hundreds of millions of dollars AME Senior Management lost on the Patriot/Compass launch. You remember that launch. That's where AME Senior Management decided to blindly outsource the body shop and not require the supplier to follow our standards or involve our Engineers. Thank God with the new reorg we lost those managers....NOT. We couldn't afford to lose that talent now could we. You can force me to use both sides of the toilet paper if you'd like, but until we lose the no talent never waz's running our AME organization, our fate is sealed.
Stress testing mortgage CDO's. What did they learn? They're STILL massively overvalued.
Louisiana Unemployment Claims Gain Again. No more "bucking the trend."
A good investment strategy is to short whatever stock CNBC is in love with. CNBC is leading the herd off the cliff. Related Rick Santelli: just another Wall Street cheerleader who's getting taken care of behind the curtain.
Texas to legalize gambling? This would be a huge blow to Lake Charles and Shreveport. But, we can't have any real, productive jobs. We've got to have crappy service industry jobs that suck the lifeblood out of economy.
Taxes: Businesses brace for higher taxes. Related: The highest economic growth occurred when the highest marginal tax rate was over 90%. Another of US economic history from Mark Ames.
Public Colleges Get Surge of Acceptances. $40,000 tuition not the bargain it used to be?
Politics:
"Republicans aren't getting a dime more in committee money for staff than we got last year." That's the point.
US Guns in Mexico. Which is why Obama is thinking about reviving the assault weapons bill. It has become one of the hottest topics on Reddit I've ever seen.
The end of (Wingnut) Welfare as we know it.
Some rightwingers have had all the hate they can take and are taking it out on evil liberals/gays/browns/etc. I remember after 9/11 when a Sikh was beaten to death and some local "patriot" decided to throw a molotov through Mona's plate glass window. This is far worse than that. The scary thing is it has the potential to get even worse.
James Gill takes on Jindal and Harry Lee. Excellent read. H/T Oyster.
Random:
Google Maps displaying blast impacts of various nuclear weapons. Put it on your favorite address (say, City Hall on Perdido) and drop the big one.
No call of duty without the rules of war. Forcing war gaming kid to read the Geneva Convention.
Are outside volunteers helping or hurting New Orleans' Katrina recovery? I don't agree, but it's interesting food for thought.
The guy who started WikiScanner (a site that tracks anonymous Wikipedia edits to the companies, like Diebold, to their changes of their own entries) comes a fun little experiment. Books and music that make you dumb. Fun fact: there's a 67 point difference in SAT scores from "Bible" readers to "Holy Bible" readers. Note to self: listen to more Beethoven and Counting Crows.
Guinea-Bissau coup linked to drug smugglers?
Louisiana leads the nation in Incarceration. 1 in 55 Louisianians are currently behind bars. WE'RE #1! Oh, wait. Got a couple more to add behind bars. The Lorino case is particularly tragic. I didn't know him, but he had a reputation for being an extremely kind person who would give you the shirt off his back. He was killed in his Irish Channel home by someone he'd helped out before. His dad is still the CFO of Tulane, I believe.
I'll leave you with this:
How bacon is made.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Project Truck Update: Can you pick the door?
Now that Mardi Gras is over with, I can get back to working on the truck. Had to fill in the patch panel that I welded into place last time. It was a tedious process of laying some bondo, letting it dry, sanding it down, bondo, sand, bondo, sand... Eventually I got it built up enough.
Here are the two "good" doors. Can you guess which one went under salt water in Katrina and which one was fresh?
Also played around with some "filling" primer. Not too impressed. Doesn't do much more than regular primer and looks like it takes a little longer to dry.
Tested out a little painting, too. Got some red and white rustoleum. I'd like to get a topcoat on that will be a good water and oxygen barrier, that way I can park it on the street. I like the red and white two-tone idea for the color.
Carpocalypse Now!
From Jalopnik:
Laid off Germans, frustrated with increasing unemployment, stagnant wages, and rapidly rising rents have taken to the street to vent their frustration on the elite. This map shows an explosion of burned cars all over Berlin. Looks like even the Germans are getting testy. We'll see when that starts to translate over here.
More Carpocalypse coverage from Jalopnik here.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Estimating and Procrastinating
"Keystone Corps" Estimating. The Corps doubles their estimate for the cost to gate 'the funnel.' For all the Times-Pic goes on about the estimate, this one might not be their fault. Honestly, this is an incredibly difficult task right now. I've been involved in writing some detailed estimates for big projects and you either have to be so conservative you'll scare the client or you have to try to explain legitimate cost overruns. Commodity fluctuations since Y2K have made it very hard on estimators. For example steel prices shot way up, affecting piping prices. Industrial pipe (SMLS and ERW) reached the highest price they've ever been, but have slowly been declining since August. I wouldn't be surprised if the Corps estimate didn't take into account steel price changes. By the time they actually get the budget corrected, I wouldn't be surprised if steel prices have dropped enough (thanks to the Financialapocalypse) to keep things in line.
FEMA's Toxic Bureaucracy. CBS alleges Bush-era appointees are intentionally delaying reconstruction projects to ensure personal job security in their $100,000+ benefits government jobs. Who is this Doug Whitmer character and why is he still running the show? Cao and Louisiana's only useful Senator are calling for an investigation. I'll say two things: if they go for a full investigation of FEMA contracts, they're going to turn up some VERY interesting things with some VERY interesting connections. Not necessarily ones you might initially guess. Second, this article makes a some anecdotal stories I've heard within the local engineering community over the past 2 years make a lot more sense... I'll just leave it at that.
...Let the investigating begin!
FEMA's Toxic Bureaucracy. CBS alleges Bush-era appointees are intentionally delaying reconstruction projects to ensure personal job security in their $100,000+ benefits government jobs. Who is this Doug Whitmer character and why is he still running the show? Cao and Louisiana's only useful Senator are calling for an investigation. I'll say two things: if they go for a full investigation of FEMA contracts, they're going to turn up some VERY interesting things with some VERY interesting connections. Not necessarily ones you might initially guess. Second, this article makes a some anecdotal stories I've heard within the local engineering community over the past 2 years make a lot more sense... I'll just leave it at that.
...Let the investigating begin!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Cleaning up the Post-Mardi Gras Mess Part 2 of 2
The bigger part of the mess we now have to clean up is our most intractable opponent: crime.
In case you're living under a rock, there were multiple shootings yesterday. At least 5 by my count.
My twitter feed was clogged today with people who went back to work and were asked by coworkers, sometimes on the other side of the world, "so, you get shot yesterday?" The entire world read about the shootings. We're keeping "the brand out there" all across the globe. Well, I picked up today's Picayune and look:
The only mention of the shootings is a very brief note at the bottom to refer to the Metro section. I understand it was a busy news day, but come on. You're not the only source of news in the world. People are going to find out about it. It was one of the top stories on WWL. Here's Warren Riley's comments on a WDSU video. WDSU could have also done a better job holding the Chief's feet to the fire. Here's a
When news organizations downplay the shootings to avoid "hurting the recovery" the only person that benefits is our idiot police chief. The Times-Picayune really outdid themselves today by completely burying the abduction and rape outside Gibson Hall at Tulane. I can't find any mention of the incident in the dead tree edition.
Warren Riley continues to tear Pennington's "model police force" to shreds, but the good news is that NOPD quickly apprehended two suspects (one of which was actually wearing an ankle-bracelet monitoring device!). There are still good cops working hard out there and I salute their valiant efforts. I hope, for the sake of those police, that Warren Riley is removed before he recreates one particular piece of the pre-Pennington force: Antoinette Frank (a cop that murders other cops). The bad news is that someone had the audacity to try something like this. There's always a fair amount of crime around Mardi Gras, but it's rarely close to the parade routes. There's usually too many police/criminals don't feel the need (not sure which) to shoot at the parade routes. The St. Charles Ave. shooting sets a horrible precedent, though. Parade crowds are packed so tightly that even the worst gunman in the world can't help but hitting someone. That's part of the reason concealed carry is specifically prohibited along parade routes. There are so many people that a shooting is almost 100% guaranteed to result in innocent casualties.
We're extremely fortunate that nobody was killed in this incident, but that was purely luck. Next time we might not be so fortunate. Be sure to read how parents were throwing their children over fences to keep them out of the chaos in the first article.
So, now what? We're a poor city with a history of injustice, but there are plenty of places in the world that fit that description that don't have NEARLY the problem with crime, specifically murder, we do. I'm going to propose that our criminals have a very low respect for human life and specifically are very low on Kohlberg's stages of moral development. The best outcome now is to make an example of the suspects, should they be convicted. Charging them with 7 counts of first degree murder is a good start, but we need to try them in a timely manner. The alleged shooters need a competent defense and the DA's office needs to do their job within the rule of law. Justice must be served swiftly.
NOTE- Some edits. See comments.
UPDATE- Make that 6 shootings on Mardi Gras.
Cleaning up the Post-Mardi Gras Mess Part 1 of 2
Yesterday, there was much fun to be had, but today is the day we clean up, get our ashes, and straighten things up. And boy do we have some big messes to clean up.
The bulldozers have been mobilized to clean up the Quarter.
Yesterday was President Obama's speech to Congress about the Global Financial Crisis. All in all, the reviews seem to be positive. I've only skimmed it so far.
You also can't mention Obama's speech without going over Governor Jindal's speech. This speech pretty much marked the end of Governor Jindal's term as Governor of Louisiana and the beginning of his primary campaign for the Republican nomination in 2012. Forget about him putting the interests of the state before the interests of his political future. Just out of curiosity, did Governor Jindal have his usual mile-a-minute speaking speed? Here's one parody of Jindal already up.
While I confess I haven't finished either speech, I've been reading a lot leading up to the speeches.
At first, Jindal wanted to turn down an extra $25/month for the unemployed (paid for 100% with federal money) claiming it was "welfare." Keep in mind, Louisiana's unemployment system is one of the most bare-bones in the country. The payments tend to be half as large as, say New York's, because Louisiana always wanted to have the lowest possible tax burden for businesses.
If low tax burdens spawned businesses, it would be Louisiana, not California, that has the world's 10th largest economy. Imagine were we'd be on this list if it weren't for all the oil in our backyard. But, don't tell that to Jindal. He adores Bush's economic record and thinks that tax cuts to the wealthy are the best stimulus possible for the economy. Look at what the Bush tax cuts did!
Democrats are seizing on Jindal's hypocrisy of only objecting to a small portion of the stimulus (and only objecting to those portions that would most please the Base). They're calling Louisiana, not unjustifiably, a "Poverty Stricken State" that can't afford to give the ambitious Governor the luxury of turning down millions of dollars. It's also ironic he's objecting to the arts money when our biggest cultural event (Mardi Gras, with it's Billion dollar+ economic impact) is going on.
If Congress got serious about forcing the governors to "take it or leave it," things would get very interesting.
UPDATE- Oyster rounds up the brutal critiques of the Governor's speech last night. One of the headlines was "Jindal's Speech: Panned, Seared." Ouch.
UPDATE 2- Oh no, Kenneth the Page responds:
The bulldozers have been mobilized to clean up the Quarter.
Yesterday was President Obama's speech to Congress about the Global Financial Crisis. All in all, the reviews seem to be positive. I've only skimmed it so far.
You also can't mention Obama's speech without going over Governor Jindal's speech. This speech pretty much marked the end of Governor Jindal's term as Governor of Louisiana and the beginning of his primary campaign for the Republican nomination in 2012. Forget about him putting the interests of the state before the interests of his political future. Just out of curiosity, did Governor Jindal have his usual mile-a-minute speaking speed? Here's one parody of Jindal already up.
While I confess I haven't finished either speech, I've been reading a lot leading up to the speeches.
At first, Jindal wanted to turn down an extra $25/month for the unemployed (paid for 100% with federal money) claiming it was "welfare." Keep in mind, Louisiana's unemployment system is one of the most bare-bones in the country. The payments tend to be half as large as, say New York's, because Louisiana always wanted to have the lowest possible tax burden for businesses.
If low tax burdens spawned businesses, it would be Louisiana, not California, that has the world's 10th largest economy. Imagine were we'd be on this list if it weren't for all the oil in our backyard. But, don't tell that to Jindal. He adores Bush's economic record and thinks that tax cuts to the wealthy are the best stimulus possible for the economy. Look at what the Bush tax cuts did!
Democrats are seizing on Jindal's hypocrisy of only objecting to a small portion of the stimulus (and only objecting to those portions that would most please the Base). They're calling Louisiana, not unjustifiably, a "Poverty Stricken State" that can't afford to give the ambitious Governor the luxury of turning down millions of dollars. It's also ironic he's objecting to the arts money when our biggest cultural event (Mardi Gras, with it's Billion dollar+ economic impact) is going on.
If Congress got serious about forcing the governors to "take it or leave it," things would get very interesting.
UPDATE- Oyster rounds up the brutal critiques of the Governor's speech last night. One of the headlines was "Jindal's Speech: Panned, Seared." Ouch.
UPDATE 2- Oh no, Kenneth the Page responds:
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Everywhere else, it's just Tuesday
Went downtown today. Saw St. Anne and some of the other walking groups. Tons of great costumes. I'll share a few of my favorites:
Sidney Torres was one of the most popular targets of ridicule.
A-Rod gets his juicing in.
Shark eating a tourist
Roaches
Madoff the Grinch
Google Street View. The nerdiest costume of the day.
...Or maybe not. Battlestar Galactica pilots and a Cylon walking down Royal.
Ghostbusters with Stay Puff Marshmallow Man
Archbishop Hughes was also an extremely popular costume inspiration.
Casket Bike. Very cool contraption.
...And here's us. Rest of the set here.
Sidney Torres was one of the most popular targets of ridicule.
A-Rod gets his juicing in.
Shark eating a tourist
Roaches
Madoff the Grinch
Google Street View. The nerdiest costume of the day.
...Or maybe not. Battlestar Galactica pilots and a Cylon walking down Royal.
Ghostbusters with Stay Puff Marshmallow Man
Archbishop Hughes was also an extremely popular costume inspiration.
Casket Bike. Very cool contraption.
...And here's us. Rest of the set here.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
For my out of town friends that miss Mardi Gras...
Click play, hold your hands above your head and yell, "Throw Me Something, Mister."
If anyone around you looks unsettled, just tell them it's Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
The Bands of Mardi Gras
Slidell High School
Rabouin High School. Soon to be closed. Their last Mardi Gras.
Fountainbleau H.S. (Nothshore) Band
Bagpipes
The young ladies of St. Mary's.
And the steam calliope towed by an old (1950's vintage) International Harvester.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Red Light Camera, Meet Red Light Camera
Seen at Muses last night...
Muses ran a float pillorying the Red Light Cameras (and Nagin's monkey business with the crime cameras).
Here's the float passing a real red light camera. Wonder if they got a ticket for running a red light?
Muses ran a float pillorying the Red Light Cameras (and Nagin's monkey business with the crime cameras).
Here's the float passing a real red light camera. Wonder if they got a ticket for running a red light?
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Links to peruse while waiting on Parades...
How to ensure a constant supply of bacon on hand.
3,000 cars sit abandoned in the parking lot at the Dubai Airport, left by fleeing, debt-ridden foreigners (who could in fact be imprisoned if they failed to pay their bills). Debtor's Prison. Wonder when someone will try to institute that in this country... Dubai, while you're at it, could you take care of this guy for us?
The Sean Tevis Bill could pose a big threat to future internet-based fundraising. More on Sean Tevis at Wikipedia.
Run a university that looses $200 million on mortgage backed securities and "running it like a business?" Need cash? Sue the alumni! Tulane sues Newcomb alumni, claiming copyright infringement for newly-registered trademark. Can we say, "Patent Troll?"
A bright side to the Financialapocalypse? Lawyers laid off in record numbers. Related: More "FDIC Friday" seized banks. Some more related: Laundering drug money? Yet more related: Tale from the Bush Recession. Very wise business advice: Never deal with someone you wouldn't work with over just a handshake.
Hipster movers. A checklist.
Court to kill exclusion rule? Despite Justice Scalia’s claims, police misconduct is rampant.
As bad as Louisiana's legislature is, at least they haven't pulled this. Yet. What qualifications does one need to be a member of the Tennessee House Republican Caucus? The ability to fall off a log and then claim it’s the fault of the log because real American logs don’t spin when a fat man stands on them?
The Broadmoor urban farmers featured in this week's The Gambit cover story. Great read.
For great local blog reads, check out some of the latest posts at The American Zombie and Oyster's profiling of how Jindal is pushing Creationism on Louisiana public schools and the economic effects. Be afraid. Be very afraid. Also, don't forget about Nagin's missing emails. Is this yet another time when Nagin = Our Bush?
And for one last link, the winner of the "honesty in advertising" award: "CAUTION THIS VEHICLE IS FULL OF POLITICAL PROMISES"
3,000 cars sit abandoned in the parking lot at the Dubai Airport, left by fleeing, debt-ridden foreigners (who could in fact be imprisoned if they failed to pay their bills). Debtor's Prison. Wonder when someone will try to institute that in this country... Dubai, while you're at it, could you take care of this guy for us?
The Sean Tevis Bill could pose a big threat to future internet-based fundraising. More on Sean Tevis at Wikipedia.
Run a university that looses $200 million on mortgage backed securities and "running it like a business?" Need cash? Sue the alumni! Tulane sues Newcomb alumni, claiming copyright infringement for newly-registered trademark. Can we say, "Patent Troll?"
A bright side to the Financialapocalypse? Lawyers laid off in record numbers. Related: More "FDIC Friday" seized banks. Some more related: Laundering drug money? Yet more related: Tale from the Bush Recession. Very wise business advice: Never deal with someone you wouldn't work with over just a handshake.
Hipster movers. A checklist.
Court to kill exclusion rule? Despite Justice Scalia’s claims, police misconduct is rampant.
As bad as Louisiana's legislature is, at least they haven't pulled this. Yet. What qualifications does one need to be a member of the Tennessee House Republican Caucus? The ability to fall off a log and then claim it’s the fault of the log because real American logs don’t spin when a fat man stands on them?
The Broadmoor urban farmers featured in this week's The Gambit cover story. Great read.
For great local blog reads, check out some of the latest posts at The American Zombie and Oyster's profiling of how Jindal is pushing Creationism on Louisiana public schools and the economic effects. Be afraid. Be very afraid. Also, don't forget about Nagin's missing emails. Is this yet another time when Nagin = Our Bush?
And for one last link, the winner of the "honesty in advertising" award: "CAUTION THIS VEHICLE IS FULL OF POLITICAL PROMISES"
Cao-ward?
Cao may be one of few to break Republican ranks on stimulus "Steve Scalise doesn't know kung fu. I know kung fu. He can't whip me." Hmmm...
In one particularly vivid demonstration, Joseph Cao, the new Republican congressman from New Orleans, told reporters he was "leaning yes." Then, as Politico reported, "the party's chief deputy whip . . . stood near Cao during the entire vote" -- until, in the final minutes, he voted no. This was, I suspect, bad for Cao, whose district is overwhelmingly Democratic, but good -- in the short term, anyway -- for his party.
I guess Kevin McCarthy must know jujitsu...
In one particularly vivid demonstration, Joseph Cao, the new Republican congressman from New Orleans, told reporters he was "leaning yes." Then, as Politico reported, "the party's chief deputy whip . . . stood near Cao during the entire vote" -- until, in the final minutes, he voted no. This was, I suspect, bad for Cao, whose district is overwhelmingly Democratic, but good -- in the short term, anyway -- for his party.
I guess Kevin McCarthy must know jujitsu...
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