Obama and Native America.........

The mainstream Native American media can't get enough of the Chief Teleprompter.

The other day when Obama made his annual appeal to the Native American crowd he was in full campaign mode.

He spoke once again on the "fair shot" doctrine he is famous for.  Man this is getting so old.  His comment,  "that your nations could be full partners in our economy and your children can have a fair shot at pursuing the American dream and that no one has to live under the cloud of fear or injustice"  is so transparent to anyone with even a below average IQ. 

Obama, you got the fair shot, man. If you can make it, a guy who never went to a Fourth of July picnic or parade when he was a kid, a guy who lived in Indonesia growing up and then was raised by communists, and then changed his name from Barry to Barack Hussein Obama. If that’s ‑ if that’s what you got, man, I’d say we’ve got a country that is very tolerant and will give anyone a fair shot.

If anyone should get a fair shot it's the 50% who don't pay a dime in taxes.  Those who have no skin in the game.  Those who only take and don't give back.   Those who made some unfortunate choices.  Those folks need a fair shot in my book.  A shot to get in the game and put some "skin" back into society and the economy. 

As a member of the White Earth reservation of the MN Chippewa Tribe I am  living the dream.  Growing up I was a product of Pine Ridge, Mandaree, Sisseton and Crow Agency.  I danced in Ft. Yates, Crow Fair, New Town, White Shields and at the Sun Dance in Pine Ridge.

I trapped coyotes, fox, coon, beaver, mink and muskrats to make tuition payments.  I put fresh venison and antelope on many Native elders kitchen tables in Pine Ridge.   I probably made more trips through White Clay, Nebraska than any college graduate in the country when I was in high school.

I never asked for a fair shot.  Never expected a fair shot.

Never wanted a hand out or a hand up.  I just wanted to get a degree and find a job. 

The rest was up to me, not the BIA,  not the federal government.

Thank you Mom and Dad for all you did to instill so much into my thinking.

And to Gramma and Grampa for helping so much along the way. 



  

Obama then, Obama now. Change anyone???

It really never gets old...

Date: March 16, 2006

Place: Senate Floor

Speech:

The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. Government can’t pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government’s reckless fiscal policies.

Over the past 5 years, our federal debt has increased by $3.5 trillion to $8.6 trillion.That is “trillion” with a “T.” That is money that we have borrowed from the Social Security trust fund, borrowed from China and Japan, borrowed from American taxpayers. And over the next 5 years, between now and 2011, the President’s budget will increase the debt by almost another $3.5 trillion.

Numbers that large are sometimes hard to understand. Some people may wonder why they matter. Here is why: This year, the Federal Government will spend $220 billion on interest. That is more money to pay interest on our national debt than we’ll spend on Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. That is more money to pay interest on our debt this year than we will spend on education, homeland security, transportation, and veterans benefits combined. It is more money in one year than we are likely to spend to rebuild the devastated gulf coast in a way that honors the best of America. 

And the cost of our debt is one of the fastest growing expenses in the Federal budget. This rising debt is a hidden domestic enemy, robbing our cities and States of critical investments in infrastructure like bridges, ports, and levees; robbing our families and our children of critical investments in education and health care reform; robbing our seniors of the retirement and health security they have counted on.  Every dollar we pay in interest is a dollar that is not going to investment in America’s priorities.

Fast forward to today, when the same senator, now president, is openly threatening with using a veto to impose his will on raising the debt ceiling over that of what, at least according to the Congress, is still the majority of Americans.

So much change in 6 years indeed...

My final thought on the CLIFF today............

Best ignore all of the media’s coverage of this topic as well as various politicians’ announcements pertaining to the subject.

All you need to know consists of just one simple sentence.

Politicians are in charge of this issue.
These are the same folks who haven’t produced a budget in four years. The same folks who have run $1+ trillion deficits for four years. The same folks who rarely if ever leave office as a result of their fiscal mistakes.  In simple terms, none of the people in this group will likely suffer any consequences if and when we go over the cliff.

Math will win the day.........

The fiscal cliff is a done-deal.

The math will win.  It always does unless it is Obama math.

Selective memory is alive and well.     Remember this?

"Obama in 2011: We can get $1.2 trillion in revenues without raising tax rate"

Here's the 4th grade math:

TOTAL SPENDING $3.603 trillion
2011 Federal Government’s spending: $3,603,000,000,000.00 (3.603 trillion)

There are a million “millions” in a trillion or 1,000 millions in a billion and 1,000 billions in a trillion. If you spent 1 million a day since 1AD you’d have not spent a trillion.
MANDATORY SPENDING $2.073 Trillion FY2011
Entitlements:

Social Security…………………………………………………………………………$726 billion
Medicare……………………………………………………………………………………$480 billion
Medicaid……………………………………………………………………………………$275 billion
TARP & Other mandatory programs…………………………………….$631 billion
Total………………………………………………………………………………………….$2,073 trillion

2011 Other Mandatory Spending includes: Food Stamps (47 million recipients) Unemployment Benefits (22.8% unemployment rate), Child Nutrition Student Loans, Disability and Tax Credits.
INTEREST ON FEDERAL DEBT $230 billion
Interest:…………………………………………………………………………………..$230 billion
DISCRETIONARY SPENDING $1.3 trillion
Must be approved by Congress each year, breaks out into 2 key areas: Security related Military Foreign Aid, Veteran Services and non-security related (What we think of when we think of the government, Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Justice, State, Energy Treasury, Interior, Transportation, HHS, HUD, etc.)

Security:…………………………………………………………………………………..$700 billion
Nonsecurity……………………………………………………………………………..$462 billion
Total……………………………………………………………………………………….$1,300 trillion
GOVERNMENT INCOME TOTAL RECEIPTS $2.303 Trillion
Income (Government Revenues): $2,303,000,000,000.00 (2.303 trillion)

Mandatory Programs……………………………………………………………….$2.073 trillion
Interest……………………………………………………………………………………….$ 230 billion
Discretionary Spending…………………………………………………………..$1,300 trillion
Total……………………………………………………………………………………………$3.603 trillion
Government “Balance” Sheet
Income………………………………………………………………………………………..$2.303 trillion
Total Spending………………………………………………………………………….$3.603 trillion
DEFICIT………………………………………………………………………………………$1.300 trillion

David Miller takes the "bite" from Apple

And so yet another saga of a trader who bet on AAPL rising, just before it tumbled, ends in tears, this time with what appears to be near certain incarceration of another small, 2-bit trader. As previously reported, back in November, as AAPL stock was in free-fall, none other than Rochdale Securities ended up being a proud if involuntary holder of nearly $1 billion in AAPL stock. The scapegoat for AAPL's price drop: one ex-trader David Miller. What Miller is accused of, is buying 1.6 million shares of AAPL on the day of the company's last earnings announcement in hopes, of course, the stock would surge. It didn't. Furthermore, Miller was in reality executing a trade for a client who had only wanted to buy 1,625 shares, but Miller was confident enough the stock would go up, he bet the firm's money to buy the difference. Sadly, neither the AAPL earnings announcement, nor its stock price, did quite as planned. End result: $5 million loss, Miller terminated and now arrested and charged, and Rochdale left scrambling for a bailout.

I guess I´ve been desensitized to amounts of money such as $5 million. When you hear nothing but billions and trillions as the new norm for everything from deficits to debt levels, takeovers to blown IPO´s and of course the famous national debt and the uncovered liabilities, $5 million sounds almost comical.

Meanwhile, Jon Corzine is free and laughing. In this environment I wouldn't be surprised if Obama appointed Corzine as a cabinet member. Turbo Timmy didn't didn't pay SS and Medicare taxes for three years until he got caught. Can't stop having cheats and criminals in charge of US money now can we?

Kalashnikov IPO?

Recently, the surges in both sales and capitalization of several far, far smaller weapons-makers in the US: Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger (along with the world's seemingly inexorable demand for 'bulk ammo') have been huge but one can only wonder whether the market cap of Kalashnikov (the maker of the world's most popular rifle) would be greater than that of AAPL if the firm had been based in the US and gone public at inception.

And 2013 is around the corner........

Abraham Lincoln once said that he believed in the people and that if you told them the truth and gave them the cold hard facts they would meet any crisis. That may have been true in 1860, but not today.

The ignorance is astounding. 

Look at the cities, the masses huddled waiting to be fed a check,  the fatherless children without role models.  Disasterous in so many ways.   


 

Alabama Georgia SEC Title Ramblings

I don't go to many college games but figured that coming from the University of Minnesota  system and hearing so little about winning football I should watch some "winners" play the game.  Am darn glad I did!    Coach Richt is a cool dude.    I don't know what his lockere-room schtick is but his pre-game "face" is all business.  During pre-game warm-ups, Coach Richt isn't patting himself on the back with his other coaches, he's busy.  Busy offering encouraging words, busy watching his kickers and punters, busy watching players warm-up.   His coaching was done for the week.   During the game, after his punter had a poor kick, Richt sought him out and unlike so many coaches were are so quick to berate, Richt brought up some humor and by the smiles on both their faces at a rather heated moment, both enjoyed a laugh.   Talk about keeping things in perspective.  Keeping it light. 

Coach Richt was very quick to ask the "12th Man" to bring it early in the game and the Bulldawg Nation responded like none other.    It really helped during that particular series to help slow down that potent Crimson Tide offense.  Alabama fans?  Classy.    I was so impressed with how they relate to and love their football team.   No trash talking, no tough guy attitudes on the streets.

Amazing that more fans don't bring binoculars to the games.   What a great addition to so many facets of the game!      Atlanta traffic management is a joke.    Why the idiots scheduled a parade downtown and shut down so many streets around Phillips Arena prior to an SEC Championship game defies any common-sense, but then, after all, it is the City of Atlanta government we are talking about.    Arthur Blank should not be allowed to use a single dime of taxpayer money to fund any kind of new stadium, especially not a dime of mine.   The Georgia Dome works just fine.    He gets the taxpayer to build, his revenues go up, the value of his team increases.  Just like Obama and Geithner and Paulsen,  they throw the down and dirty on the back of the citizenry and the profits, long down the road, go to the big guns in charge.   Socializing losses and privatizing profits.   Easy money if you can get it.  

Both teams were winners last night.  The fans will never forget the night.   I wish Alabama continued success in the BCS game against Notre Dame.