Wouldn't it be great if Obama reached across party lines and obtained either of these qualified Republicans to be his VP choice: 1) Colin Powell, a decorated and respected military leader who saw through the BS of Bush, Cheney & Rumsfeld and finally said "enough is enough." I wish he would have done it before being the sacrificial lamb when presenting the case against Iraq at the UN. 2) Chuck Hagel, another conservative who had the guts to speak out against the war and who would bring great experience to the Obama ticket.

I doubt either scenario will happen, but it's nice to dream once in awhile...

I'd love to see Colin Powell in that spot, but it's very unlikely, and not just because he's a Republican. Can you imagine an all black ticket going over well in backwards ass places like West Virginia? I can't.

Hillary and Obama met last night in secret. I can now reveal I have a transcript of the meeting which was taped and delivered here:

Obama - Is there anything else you can tell me about your attacks on my inexperience, and your Husband's race baiting.

Hillary - I was kept pretty much in the dark. All I know is they have Bill alive and he says he's not ready to shut up.

Obama - What can you tell me about the rest of this nominating process, and McCain's offer to have these unscripted town hall meetings?

Hillary - I ran into Cindy McCain in Beverly Hills. She said you were being tough on the negotiations and that there would be something in it for me if Bill and I attacked you and weakened you if you became the nominee.

Obama - And you believed that story?

Hillary -She said there would be something in it for ME on my own.

Obama - I would take care of you.

Hillary - You take care of me? Your a kid senator and I was passed over.

Obama - its the way the party wanted it.

Hillary - Its not the way I wanted it. For all these years all I heard was Hillary, go out and cook up a health care plan, Hillary put up with the Monica scandal, Hillary run from New York for the Senate, Hillary go out to the airport and get on a plane, Hillary go run some Mickey Mouse committee someplace. There was something in it for me! I can handle things. I'm smaht not dumb like everyone says, I'm smaht and I want respect.

Obama - Is there anything else you can tell me about this election?

Hillary - Crist, the governor in Florida who controls their voting machines?? He belongs to McCain.

Obama - Hillary, you're nothing to me now. You're not a colleague, you're not a friend. I don't want to see you in the Senate Cloakroom, I don't want to see you on the campaign trail. When you come to the Senate floor for a vote I want to know thirty minutes in advance so I wont be there. (He walks off)

Hillary - Barry????

You know? It could have went down EXACTLY like that.

Maybe most of the rednecks from around the country would swallow their wads of tobacco and choke out of pure shock, thus making them unable to vote on election day.

Powell would be a forceful presence on the ticket. But as much as he probably privately hates Bush & Cheney, he would want to stay loyal to his party of choice, for which I could never blame him. Imagine Powell and Obama getting in Lieberman's face like yesterday's encounter. Old Joe's lips would still be quivering...

Leiberman is a putz. Even for a politician, his word means nothing.

He should give him the Sec. Of Defence position.

He should stay within the dem Party but Hegel for Sec of Defense would be a great choice.

If he wants to win in November, Obama needs to avoid "preaching to the choir" mistake that sank Goldwater in '64 and McGovern eight years later:
Both swept their party's nomination thanks to fervent support within the party. Both named running mates who were ideologically similar. Both continued to preach the same message to the general population that they preached in the primaries. And both were defeated in landslides.

Both Obama and Clinton got millions of votes from fervently supported Democrats. But, if they were running mates and held onto every one of those votes in November, it wouldn't be enough to beat McCain. Obama needs to reach out beyond the primary voters to reel in those who didn't vote for him--either because they were for another Dem, or because they are GOP or Independent and are likely McCain voters. That's why he needs a fresh face on his ticket. I think he should choose a white male from the middle or middle-right of the Democratic Party who has defense and foreign policy credentials.

I don't necessarily agree TB. I think the vote will come down to national and international events. A terrorist attack will put McCain in the White House. On the other hand, a declining economy will put Obama in. I think it's that simple.

We're there already. Next stop - a depression.

I'm depressed just reading that, SC. Does that count?

I agree with TB. Although something could be said about uniting the party and picking Senator Clinton, it could be a fatal mistake. The two ARE similar ideologically, and wouldn't bring anything new.

He needs Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. And he needs someone who will balance the "inexperienced" thing, as badly as McCain needs to pick someone young and vital to balance out the Republican ticket.

Its the smart move. Obama was always smarter.

Lat year at this time if someone told me that Clinton would be pulling out of the race and supporting Obama I would have laughed (and not believed it).

I don't know if Obama won it or Hillary lost it.

I think it was hers to lose. I certainly never saw this coming. I was pretty sure, given his age, that he was setting himself up for the next election.

Move-On has an ad using an old tv theme, that's quite funny.

TIS



Cousins

The pieces are in place for a depression: a horrible domestic economy, a weak US dollar, out of control gasoline prices, soaring food prices, the mortgage crisis, and a roller coaster stock market. All we need is 1 or 2 things to push us over the edge, such as another terrorist attack or major natural disaster.

Pieces in place for a depression? Hyperbole, I trust.

What constitutes "a horrible domestic economy"?

In 1988 the unemploymeent rate was 5.5%; in 1992 it was over 7%; in 2004 it was over 6%. The current unemployment rate among adults is 4.9%

Over 146 million Americans are employed, the highest ever.

The mortgage default rate is 4.95%. That means that over 95% of mortagees are not in default.

What constitutes "out of control" gas prices? The price is established by those who sell the gasoline just as the price of anything that is sold is established by the seller.

The weak US dollar makes US produced goods cheaper when sold in foreign markets.

In 1999 infalation rate was 2.19%; currenly it is under 3%

In December, 1974, the Dow Jones average was 577; currently it is over 12K. Check a chart of the Dow over that time period and you'll see that it has always been a rollercoaster.

Soaring food prices. Several weeks ago I paid over $4 for a gallon of milk; today I paid $3.

So Olivant, in all seriousness, are you saying that gas prices aren't out of control?

Well, you cited my statement about gas prices in your post and I haven't changed my mind since I posted that statement.

Okay, I'll rephrase. I know it's a vague question, so please don't feel the need to point that out to me. Here goes; is there ever an instance where you can admit to yourself that our Government is capable of screwing us?

You know, a slight mistrust in Government policy doesn't necessarily make one unpatriotic.

Thanks for your rose colored assessment, George Bush. There's absolutely nothing wrong in this country, the world, etc. As long as all is well in your view, that's all that matters.

Well, you can do what anyone on the Board can do: defend your statement. Let me quote it for you in case you forgot: "a horrible domestic economy".

"Horrible" is a normative, or as some would say, a relative term. So, define your meaning of the term, then defend it. Go ahead; the floor is yours.

In the words of Optimus Prime: "We are waiting."

The truth is, people are paying more and more for the basic necessities, and their paychecks aren't keeping pace. Property taxes are out of control (mine have more than doubled in the 12 years I've owned this house;our salaries haven't), our water, gas and electric bills are enormous, our bridge toll has doubled, gasoline has quadrupled in the last few years, food has skyrocketed. Housing prices have tumbles, the number of houses for sale has increased, and locally the default rate has increased by 50%.

If that's not a dismal picture, then I don't know what is. And congratulations to you, Olivant, for getting cheap milk. But when my local Costco has increased the price of a 20 lb. bag of rice from $9 to $16 since February, and is limiting how many you can buy for fear of stockpiling, that doesn't ring any alarm bells??

Haven't consumers always paid more and more for basic necessities? When has more and more not happened?

My property taxes are not out of control (by the way, that's another undefined term). In fact, my local school district property taxes decreased last year thanks to State legislation. The municipal property taxes I pay are just $0.62 per $100 of valuation. County property taxes are just $0.25 per $100 of valuation. My natural gas bill for last month was $27; my combined electric, water, sewer, and solid waste bill last month was $136 and last summer never exceed $300 (and I have a swimming pool, and a sprinkler system). The valuation of my house has actually increased. There is one tollroad in the area, but I never drive on it.

The increase in gasoline prices has been discussed extensively on this Board. At what price is gasoline supposed to be sold? Food prices skyrocketed? Some have; not all by any means. We can afford not to, but we buy cheaper store brand goods. Costco competes for wholesale goods as any business does. What's unusual about that? Increases in default rates? As I stated above, 95% of homeowners are not in default.

Why in the world are paychecks and salaries supposed to be pegged to increases in any price(s)? Aren't they pegged to competition for the position, performance in the position, and value to the employer? Yes, they are.

You fucking quote a MICHAEL BAY movie?

Boo.

Well, Hip Hip Hooray for You! However, the rest of the country does not apparently live in the Shangri La that you do. My gas and electric bill was almost $500 last month. That was May, which is usually a comparatively less expensive month. I compulsively shut lights, run my dishwasher on a timer so it runs at 1:00 am because it's less expensive, even in the coldest months I have my heat on a timer as well, so that it goes down to 62 during the night, even in the coldest months. We're not exactly energy hogs.

As for property taxes, mine are running about $45 per $1,000 of assessed value for school taxes and then another $20 per $1,000 for town/county, plus fire, ambulance, garbage collection, etc., for a grand total of just about $15,000 per year. When I bought my house, my taxes were less than half of that.

And if you lived in Florida, you certainly wouldn't be acting as if nothing has happened to the housing market. Take a look online at homes for sale there. Ad after ad describe "short sales". My neighbor moved to Tennessee with a job transfer. Their house has been for sale since last September. They priced it at about $100,000 less than the homes had been going for, hoping for a quick sale. They've since dropped their price another $50,000 since last year, and it's still for sale.

And my point about salaries is that if you expect people to pay double for their goods, but their salaries don't keep up, how do you expect them to keep paying??

And I'm glad that you don't have to cross your little toll road, but my husband has to get across the river to go to work, and the toll has doubled.

As for the food items not increasing, where do you shop? Because they certainly have around here. And when things like rice, which poor people use do stretch meals, doubled in 4 months, then you have increases that people can't keep up with.

But let us know when some houses come up for sale in your area, because it sounds like a freaking paradise that would be the envy of the entire world. Apparently, the give away gas and electric, the home sales are rather brisk, and the food is cheap. It sounds terrific! No wonder you're the happy, carefree soul that you are!

I have to disagree with olivant too...

Prices are rising, wages are not. At the same time the dollar is getting weaker.

I don't think I've seen so many houses for sale in my (short) life.

Unemployment rates are misleading because it doesn't account for the number of people stuck in part time jobs because they can't get full time jobs.

As I stated in a previous post, almost 95% of those who own homes are paying their mortgages on time and 95% of those who want jobs have them. One's universe of observed houses for sale is limited to where?

Wages and salaries grew 3.4% during 2007. If you have more recent statistics, we would welcome them.

The dollar's weakness means that US produced goods are cheaper for foreign consumers and that provides revenue to US companies. It doesn't affect domestic consumption of such goods.

Regardless of what unemployment rates represent, they have been calculated the same since their inception. Again, as I stated in a prior post, the unemployment rate in 1992 was 5.5% in '88, over 7% in '92, and over 6% in '04.

And Babe: your property taxes are a function of decisions made by those whom the citizens within their respective taxing jurisdictions elect. The solution to any tax related problems is also a function of the electoral process.

We in Texas had the foresight back in 1876 when the State's current Constituion was composed and ratified to place extensive limits on what government, state or local, can do. Apparently, New York state residents did not. Thus ,taxes in Texas are relatively low, business developmet is encouraged, the regulatory environment is benign, and the state is experiencing a huge growth in population, both indigenous and through migration. There are many states in the Union in the same position.


There is a tendency among some Board members to make rather all-encompasing statements on many subjects while their scope of observation and supporting information is rather parochial. Thus, they forget that this nation comprises over 3.5 million square miles, 50 states, 3,000 counties, 20,000 cities and towns, and over 300 million people. We all don't look at our economic situation as dismal or, as someone else posted above, "a horrible domestic economy."

Well, I certainly don't look at my own economic situation as dismal. To be blunt, I consider myself quite successful and I'm very proud of it. But that doesn't mean I don't feel for people less fortunate. That's actually rather callous.

Maybe it's just that New York is such a broad place. We get to see the great economic divide on a much bigger scale than you might see it elsewhere in the country.

In this part of north-central Arizona, we're seeing the economic downturn in several ways:

--Inventory of unsold houses went from 100 in 2005 to 1100 now.
--All of the towns in the Tri-City area (Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley) have experienced a serious dropoff in sales tax revenues. The county is feeling the pinch because declining real property values have led to a wave of lower real estate taxes. As a result, county and municipal budgets are in deficit. Teachers have been laid off, raises for all municipal employees have been suspended, and major capital projects (like a new firehouse for our town) have been put off.
--Higher gas prices have led to some employees of our hospital here being unable to get to work; or, if car-pooling, to work assigned shifts.