no way!

just a drive by lucky zed, I guess.

Hiya Christy! I’m waiting for the Friday night dump. Wonder who’s gonna get recess appointed? There are some shady characters on that list, I’ll tell ya.

Lawyers for Gitmo detainees are appealing FISA, via Think Progress:

“We are asking your honor, as swiftly as possible, to declare this statute unconstitutional,” said Michael Avery, a lawyer for the Center for Constitutional Rights. … “Neither Congress nor the president has the power to repeal the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirements,” Avery said.

My my, the Lady of the Lake has been busy.
Lots of linkage to peruse. BRB.

Here’s an interesting little video blub by Jim Cramer about Bush’s Fanny Mae guy, Lockhart, and how he’s trying to get America evicted from their homes:

video link

Lets not forget Mitt.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Wednesday he thinks both top Democratic contenders are “dangerously out of touch with the needs of keeping a society safe” during this time of global terrorism.

Opposing the views of Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, the former Massachusetts governor presented a three-pronged approach for national might: strong military, strong economy and strong families.

“There’s not a global war on terror,” Romney said. “There’s a global war being waged by the terrorists and if I am president, there will be a global war waged on the terrorists and we will win.”

Romney said he supports the current troop surge and, if elected president, he would encourage adding to the military.

Romney also criticized Clinton, the Democratic senator from New York, on her plans for government-funded universal health care for the 45 million people without health insurance.

“Hillary-care is not the direction we’re going to take,” he said.

Instead, he supports private market-based health insurance, he said, without a government takeover based on individual responsibility.

I sure hope “None of the above” is on the ballot in Iowa!!

Hi, Christy!!!!!!!!111111!!

Hi, Loo.

Good Morning, TiredFed

Wow, lots of peeps checked in after I read the first four posts! HI, everyone! Nice to see you. (I’m up early today…)

Yikes! Mods, what happened to my link??? Sorry.

Jacqrat @ 9

Hi, Christy!!!!!!!!111111!!

Hi, Loo.

Good Morning, TiredFed

yikes!

Oooh, a smorgasboard…

TiredFed @ 11

Jacqrat @ 9

Hi, Christy!!!!!!!!111111!!

Hi, Loo.

Good Morning, TiredFed

yikes!

You’re in Baltimore – right? I just found that out the other day…

Wow. Feds injected, not $19B, but $35B..today, and now they are offering “weekend repos”…what the hell is that? They are in high damage control mode.

Morning, Jacqrat. Hi everyone, Christy’s been on fire, huh?

A little something on “America’s Mayor” right here:

Filed at 12:20 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rudy Giuliani evokes his Catholic upbringing as he campaigns for president, yet he refuses to say whether he is a practicing Catholic.

When a voter asked this week if he is a ”traditional, practicing Roman Catholic,” Giuliani insisted his faith should be private.

”My religious affiliation, my religious practices and the degree to which I am a good or not-so-good Catholic, I prefer to leave to the priests,” the former New York mayor responded in Davenport, Iowa.

It would be difficult for him to answer yes. Someone who, like Giuliani, divorces and remarries without getting an annulment from the church cannot receive communion or other church sacraments.

Loo Hoo. @ 15

Morning, Jacqrat. Hi everyone, Christy’s been on fire, huh?

Gotta love it when Christy gets revved up…

Consumers share some responsibility for this credit mess. I have’t used a credit card or financed anything in over twenty years. And I am not rich. I teach in a public high school.

Glenn’s post on Bush and torture and what it means relative to all Americans – not confined to the troops.

HHS Asst Sec Agwunobi jumping ship to shill for Wal-Mart.

A little noticed Repub obstruction on the Mental health Parity bill (S 558)

Publix markets trumpeting free antibiotic prescription fills and then the next day quietly halting $4 prescriptions for long term use drugs, and meanwhile independent pharmacists are going to be reimbursed less than cost by Medicaid, and many are going out of business.

Sorry mods, I
m sure this is over the link limit, and I’m not even scratching the surface of the latest healthcare related craptastola.

Jacqrat @ 13

TiredFed @ 11

yikes!

You’re in Baltimore – right? I just found that out the other day…

yup.

Biodun @16,

Guiliani’s modest view on religion is one reason I like him. I wish candidates didn’t have to pimp their vine of Christianity so loudly.

When I see the truely awful Repug candidates, I wonder: Is the the GOP not bothering to put forward someone electable because there won’t be an election? From all the suggestions of an impending ‘attack’, I fear something awful will happen and Bush will try to call off the election.

– McJoan puts together the links on the latest Baghdad media offensive. As Jane said yesterday, how many times will Our Elite Media be fooled by the blatant flim flammery?

This just cries out for “fuckery” to be amid the other f-words in the quote.

LS @ 14

Wow. Feds injected, not $19B, but $35B..today, and now they are offering “weekend repos”…what the hell is that? They are in high damage control mode.

Don’t know, but they’re putting in reserves as needed. I didn’t think we had reserves…MSNBC:

The Fed, in a short statement, said it will provide “reserves as necessary” to help the markets safely make their way. The central bank did not provide details but said it would do all it can to “facilitate the orderly functioning of financial markets.”

Rudy Giuliani evokes his Catholic upbringing as he campaigns for president, yet he refuses to say whether he is a practicing Catholic

.

But YET the fucking Catholic church went after Kerry because of his prochoice leanings, even going to the point of saying he shouldn’t receive communion. Whatever happened to not creating a scandal in the ‘receipt’ of communion.

As I said, I sure wish I could inject B’s into MY bank account when I’ve got money problems…

If just Republicans had voted for George Bush, he would never have gotten in.

Loo Hoo. @ 22

LS @ 14

Wow. Feds injected, not $19B, but $35B..today, and now they are offering “weekend repos”…what the hell is that? They are in high damage control mode.

whao. there goes the trust funds (and maybe my TSP account again).

Don’t know, but they’re putting in reserves as needed. I didn’t think we had reserves…MSNBC:

The Fed, in a short statement, said it will provide “reserves as necessary” to help the markets safely make their way. The central bank did not provide details but said it would do all it can to “facilitate the orderly functioning of financial markets.”

Loo Hoo. @ 22

LS @ 14

Wow. Feds injected, not $19B, but $35B..today, and now they are offering “weekend repos”…what the hell is that? They are in high damage control mode.

Don’t know, but they’re putting in reserves as needed. I didn’t think we had reserves…MSNBC:

The Fed, in a short statement, said it will provide “reserves as necessary” to help the markets safely make their way. The central bank did not provide details but said it would do all it can to “facilitate the orderly functioning of financial markets.”

The Feds just print more money, loan it to the government I think, and charge a bunch of interest. The Fed is privately owned but is the only entity that can print our money.

Oklahoma kiddo @ 7

Lets not forget Mitt.

[snip]

“There’s not a global war on terror,” Romney said. “There’s a global war being waged by the terrorists and if I am president, there will be a global war waged on the terrorists and we will win.”

“Can you imagine Democrats in charge? John Edwards, saying there’s no global war on terror?” Romney says. It’s a shot at Edwards’ remark that Bush treats the war on terror as if it were a “bumper sticker” slogan.
Here’s the link.

Update on Ohio man’s “Impeach Bush” sign placed in a public garden (”Free Speech”) being called litter by prosecuters:

http://freewayblogger.blogspot…..-ohio.html

Stories running in USA Today and Plain Dealer.

-scarlet (4,985 signs and counting…)

cancer_cures @ 21

Biodun @16,

Guiliani’s modest view on religion is one reason I like him. I wish candidates didn’t have to pimp their vine of Christianity so loudly.

You like Giuliani? Really? *g*

LS @ 29

Loo Hoo. @ 22

Don’t know, but they’re putting in reserves as needed. I didn’t think we had reserves…MSNBC:

The Fed, in a short statement, said it will provide “reserves as necessary” to help the markets safely make their way. The central bank did not provide details but said it would do all it can to “facilitate the orderly functioning of financial markets.”

The Feds just print more money, loan it to the government I think, and charge a bunch of interest. The Fed is privately owned but is the only entity that can print our money.

The Fed is not privately owned, it is an independent agency in the federal govt. Only the Fed can print money. That’s not what they mean by reserves; they have “assets” in various accounts. It will mean more borrowing later, though.

Mods, when you get a chance, would you please free my comment from whatever I did to land it there? (and advise me so that I don’t repeat) Thanks-

I’ve said this before many times and I’ll say it again:

Smart Repugs know they’re completely f*cked with respect to presidential election ‘08.

cancer_cures @ 20

Biodun @16,

Guiliani’s modest view on religion is one reason I like him. I wish candidates didn’t have to pimp their vine of Christianity so loudly.

uh…..what are the other reasons?
Never thought I’d see the words “modest” and Guiliani in the same sentence. Ye gods.

I didn’t notice a huge public outcry about that credit/card banking legislative business a while back. Reminds me of many people howling about the price of gasoline. What the heck did these folks think they were going to get by electing two (Bush and Cheney) Texas oil types? Cheaper pump prices? Nothing was hidden about these two characters connections to the oil bidness pre-election. Like Bill Clinton said, ‘it was all out there’.

Scarlet:

At six in the morning, Police Officer shows up at Kevin’s door, says he’s guilty of “Advertising on Public Property”, apparently unaware of the difference between Free Speech and advertising. (Hint: “Free Speech” refers to speaking out politically in accordance with one’s obligations as a citizen, also known as “Patriotism”. “Advertising” means selling stuff.)

Could we just have some intelligent folks in charge for a change.

TiredFed @ 33

LS @ 29

The Feds just print more money, loan it to the government I think, and charge a bunch of interest. The Fed is privately owned but is the only entity that can print our money.

The Fed is not privately owned, it is an independent agency in the federal govt. Only the Fed can print money. That’s not what they mean by reserves; they have “assets” in various accounts. It will mean more borrowing later, though.

According to this it is:

http://www.save-a-patriot.org/…..court.html

Loo Hoo. @ 24

LS @ 14

Wow. Feds injected, not $19B, but $35B..today, and now they are offering “weekend repos”…what the hell is that? They are in high damage control mode.

Don’t know, but they’re putting in reserves as needed. I didn’t think we had reserves…MSNBC:

The Fed, in a short statement, said it will provide “reserves as necessary” to help the markets safely make their way. The central bank did not provide details but said it would do all it can to “facilitate the orderly functioning of financial markets.”

are they just printing the greenback in the back room? Where is it coming from? I have memories of this in Indonesia and the rupiah was devalued. What is backing the number?

Here’s a recent take on the FISA vote. Feedback welcome.

N=1 @ 34

Mods, when you get a chance, would you please free my comment from whatever I did to land it there? (and advise me so that I don’t repeat) Thanks-

Do a hard refresh of your screen and it shall appear.

Gotta go. When I come back later this afternoon will everything be all better?

Loo Hoo. @ 41

Gotta go. When I come back later this afternoon will everything be all better?

Might well depend on one’s preference in Friday afternoon recreational dr*gs.

speaking of the Catholic church, it is now opposing the extension of statutes of limitation on abuse claims. Apparently it’s afraid of being “bankrupted.” Fat f*****g chance.

http://www.salon.com/mwt/broad…..index.html

A truly disgusting institution, imo……and it has nothing to do with religion.

LS @ 39

TiredFed @ 33

The Fed is not privately owned, it is an independent agency in the federal govt. Only the Fed can print money. That’s not what they mean by reserves; they have “assets” in various accounts. It will mean more borrowing later, though.

now that’s just silly.

According to this it is:

http://www.save-a-patriot.org/…..court.html

The Lurking Mod @ 42

N=1 @ 34

Mods, when you get a chance, would you please free my comment from whatever I did to land it there? (and advise me so that I don’t repeat) Thanks-

Do a hard refresh of your screen and it shall appear.

Thankee!

A little more on “America’s Mayor”:

Giuliani brings up his Catholic upbringing when it suits him.

”My first class without prayers was my first day of law school,” he said last month in Le Mars, Iowa, drawing chuckles from voters at a family restaurant. An audience member had asked Giuliani to talk about his faith.

”I believe in God,” Giuliani said. ”I pray and ask him for help. I pray like a lawyer. I try to make a deal — get me out of this jam, and I’ll start going back to church.”

Oklahoma Kiddo, I totally agree with ya.

The credit card debt is a problem due mostly to a new American attitude of ‘gimme now, lemme pay later’. I think it’s bullshit, and those that are battling their debts due to buying a lifestyle they can’t afford brought it on themselves. I don’t have sympathy for these people – They’re basically addicted to consumerism and trying to buy their way into a lifestyle they don’t belong to.

Wiki on the Fed:

The Federal Reserve System is a quasi-governmental/quasi-private banking system composed of (1) the presidentially-appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.; (2) the Federal Open Market Committee; (3) 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation acting as fiscal agents for the U.S. Treasury, each with their own nine-member board of directors; (4) numerous private U.S. member banks, which subscribe to required amounts of non-transferable stock in their regional Federal Reserve Bank; and (5) various advisory councils.

In other words, it’s like Amtrak and the USPS: privately-run when things are going wrong, and publicly-owned when things are going well. (My translation!)

From Wikipedia:

“The Federal Reserve Banks have an intermediate status, with some features of private corporations and some features of public federal agencies (see below). Each member bank owns nonnegotiable shares of stock in its regional Federal Reserve Bank—but these shares of stock give the member banks only limited control over the actions of the Federal Reserve Banks, and the charter of each Federal Reserve Bank is established by law and cannot be altered by the member banks. In Lewis v. United States,[17] the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stated that “the Reserve Banks are not federal instrumentalities for purposes of the FTCA [the Federal Tort Claims Act], but are independent, privately owned and locally controlled corporations.” The opinion also stated that “the Reserve Banks have properly been held to be federal instrumentalities for some purposes.” Another decision is Scott v. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City[18] in which the distinction between the Federal Reserve Banks and the Board of Governors is made.

The member banks are privately owned corporations. The stocks of many of the member banks (or their holding companies) are publicly traded.

Whatever happened to “conflict of interest”. Is that just something thrown by the wayside? If your at the head of government and also in the oil business, isn’t that a conflict of interest? How come the Democrats never even mention this any more. A banking family is in the highest halls of government and never a peep. That alone is reason to investigate. Hopeless and weak as water they are.

Just a little more on “America’s Mayor”:

Giuliani’s was a devoutly Catholic boyhood. He signed up for the priesthood after graduating in 1961 from Brooklyn’s Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School. He changed his mind a couple of months later, deciding he was more interested in girls, he wrote in his 2002 book ”Leadership.”

In 1968, he married his cousin, Regina Peruggi. They divorced 14 years later, and Giuliani obtained an annulment from the Catholic Church on the grounds that as second cousins, they should have received a dispensation to marry.

Giuliani married TV newscaster Donna Hanover in 1984. She, too, had been divorced and obtained an annulment, and they wed at St. Monica’s Catholic Church in Manhattan.

My bold. He is now married to his third wife, Judith Nathan, who, before her marriage was known as “Judi.” Yes, America’s Mayor “is more interested in girls.”

This Giuliani quote has stayed with me since I read it yesterday:

Freedom is not a concept in which people can do anything they want, be anything they can be. Freedom is about authority. Freedom is about the willingness of every single human being to cede to lawful authority a great deal of discretion about what you do.

To be fair, it’s from a speech about law enforcement in 1994, but it perfectly captures Giuliani’s authoritarian mindset, and what Lakoff found that conservatives mean when they say “freedom”.

cancer_cures @ 47

Oklahoma Kiddo, I totally agree with ya.

The credit card debt is a problem due mostly to a new American attitude of ‘gimme now, lemme pay later’. I think it’s bullshit, and those that are battling their debts due to buying a lifestyle they can’t afford brought it on themselves. I don’t have sympathy for these people – They’re basically addicted to consumerism and trying to buy their way into a lifestyle they don’t belong to.

Without detracting from any of this, I’d like to point out that the credit card industry itself is allowed to get away with so much crap that it really is criminal — and sucker punches people much further than they really need to be. Stuff like being able to change terms around right from under you, offering you bazillions in credit when you shouldn’t qualify at all in the first place and so on. Clean that up, and the ones that are left with credit problems really are the ones that brought it down on themselves.

(NB: have paid my own credit card off in full every month for the last 25 years.)

P J Evans @ 50

Wiki on the Fed:

The Federal Reserve System is a quasi-governmental/quasi-private banking system composed of (1) the presidentially-appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.; (2) the Federal Open Market Committee; (3) 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation acting as fiscal agents for the U.S. Treasury, each with their own nine-member board of directors; (4) numerous private U.S. member banks, which subscribe to required amounts of non-transferable stock in their regional Federal Reserve Bank; and (5) various advisory councils.

In other words, it’s like Amtrak and the USPS: privately-run when things are going wrong, and publicly-owned when things are going well. (My translation!)

and we’re really conflating the Federal Reserve System, that controls the money supply, with the printing of money, which is handled by another Federal agency, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (a bureau of the Treasury), and the Treasury Department itself, which exercises authority over government spending (and borrowing). Treasury is the ultimate power here – they can order funds to be taken from the Treasury (that big vault in the clouds) and sent to the markets. Treasury will then go borrow more. They don’t really have to print more paper money – that’s just for us peons who still pass paper.

Giuliani the authoritarian, even despot. His time as NYC mayor is known in NYC as “Giulinai Time.” I thoroughly detest the man.

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

LS @ 51

From Wikipedia:

“The Federal Reserve Banks have an intermediate status, with some features of private corporations and some features of public federal agencies (see below). Each member bank owns nonnegotiable shares of stock in its regional Federal Reserve Bank—but these shares of stock give the member banks only limited control over the actions of the Federal Reserve Banks, and the charter of each Federal Reserve Bank is established by law and cannot be altered by the member banks. In Lewis v. United States,[17] the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stated that “the Reserve Banks are not federal instrumentalities for purposes of the FTCA [the Federal Tort Claims Act], but are independent, privately owned and locally controlled corporations.” The opinion also stated that “the Reserve Banks have properly been held to be federal instrumentalities for some purposes.” Another decision is Scott v. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City[18] in which the distinction between the Federal Reserve Banks and the Board of Governors is made.

The member banks are privately owned corporations. The stocks of many of the member banks (or their holding companies) are publicly traded.

I know, but for other purposes, it’s still considered Federal. it’s one of those oddball things, like the Post Office. It has its own set of rules, but it is Federal where it counts: the boss (and all the Governors) have to be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. That counts as Federal to me.

Biodun @ 55

Giuliani the authoritarian, even despot. His time as NYC mayor is known in NYC as “Giulinai Time.” I thoroughly detest the man.

second that

cancer_cures @ 21

Biodun @16,

Guiliani’s modest view on religion is one reason I like him. I wish candidates didn’t have to pimp their vine of Christianity so loudly.

Considering Giuliani’s ego and the primary voters he’s going after, I can’t imagine that modesty has anything to do with it. I rather suspect the two reasons he doesn’t pimp it are that traditionally, fundamentalists didn’t consider Catholics to be Christians, and their alliance is only with the extreme conservative wing on issues such as abortion, and he knows that the contrast between his lifestyle and his ostensible religion’s teachings is probably near the top of every opponent’s oppo research file, and he’d rather not attract attention to it.

Final something on “America’s Mayor”:

At key moments in his church life, Giuliani’s close friend, Monsignor Alan Placa, has been at his side. Placa was best man at Giuliani’s first wedding, officiated at the second and baptized Giuliani’s son and daughter.

Placa was barred from the ministry after he was accused of sexual abuse, but he received special permission to preside at the funeral of Giuilani’s mother, Helen, in 2002. Placa has been working for his friend’s consulting business, Giuliani Partners, despite the urging of abuse victims that he be terminated.

My bold. There you go.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 58

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

dang. have we forgotten the first rule? Impeach Darth first!

PSA – Tornado warning for Creighton/Bloomfield Nebraska

Wiki:

“The United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) is an government agency in the United States Department of the Treasury that primarily prints Federal Reserve notes for the Federal Reserve, but also produces a variety of other government security documents.

The Federal Reserve notes are printed at the bureau’s facilities in Washington, D.C. and Fort Worth, Texas.”

The International Peace Day,Sept.21,is the focus of my interest today.
I’m tired of being manipulated into thinking about who will be the Next President.I just want to think about the One in power now.Richard Cheney.And how to sort out this bloody,horrific mess he and his friends have made.
We’re busy planning a rally that includes a community picnic and silent auction.Dr. Maryam and the man who wrote ‘What will we talk about today you and I’ inspired me to take a bigger action.
If the Irak people must sell their treasures to buy medicine,then I can sell my treasures and buy medicine for the Red Crescent Society to help.Many other people feel the same.
I’m mailing the permit to the city today.I’m signing it myself as a private citizen.Having done local fundraisers for years,I know I’ve got the gig.And I’m kinda scared because the new Executive Order goes into effect Aug.18th{I think}.
As Helen Keller wrote,
” Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure.The fearful are caught as often as the brave.”

Christy Hardin Smith @ 58

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

Impeach Cheney now.

I do not usually promote Neo-cons such as Hewitt and Kristol. But there were a few amusing moments in this revealing interview. Would you believe six months ago Baghdad “was a no go zone”. Now The Surge is Working. Only another six more months…
_________________
HH: Tell me, how long were you inside Iraq for?

BK: I was there with Fred Kagan and Kim Kagan, the two military experts, for eight days.

HH: We’ll come back and walk through the specifics, but give us the bottom line. Is the surge working?

BK: Yes. No one there thinks it’s not…

HH: Tell me, how long were you inside Iraq for?

BK: I was there with Fred Kagan and Kim Kagan, the two military experts, for eight days.

HH: You’ve also got O’Hanlon and Pollack and a number of other people, .. Does that mean that the Democrats will listen?

BK: Well, I hope a few will. I mean, Ken Pollack and Mike O’Hanlon are Democrats, and they went over there and saw things with their own eyes, and reported back the truth.

HH: Now when you say it’s working, unpack that a little bit for the audience… What’s it mean?

BK: Parts of Baghdad which are mixed, or more complicated to deal with, but even there, we walked around Haifa Street, now we walked around in body armor, and it was, you know, it wasn’t the most peaceful, and there were threatening things there. But we walked around Haifa Street. Six months ago, that was a no-go zone. There were bitter, bitter firefights, a famous video of one which you can watch on YouTube… The national government’s pretty dysfunctional, and that’s something of a problem..

HH: How did you live for that eight days?

BK: We stayed mostly in the international zone, right by the Embassy…We were not given a Potemkin tour. There were certain places that are very dangerous that I didn’t, we didn’t go to. I don’t want to put American soldiers at risk having to like shepherd people like me around, you know, so we went to places where we weren’t too much of an intrusion or a strain on the military.
.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 58

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

hair-raising…

I know I said “final” but what the heck:

Giulani’s third wedding, to Judith Nathan, took place at the mayoral residence, Gracie Mansion, in 2003, after the nasty and public fight waged over his 2002 divorce from Hanover. Hanover learned that Giuliani wanted to split when he announced his decision at a news conference.

(snip)

Some of Giuliani’s critics, such as conservative blogger Stephen Dillard, believe his marital history is fair game. Dillard started a ”Catholics Against Rudy” Web site that raises that issue, among several others.

”The way he treated his wife gives us insight into how he views the role of family, how he views marriage, how he views the church’s teaching on adultery and divorce,” Dillard said.

Redshift @ 54

This Giuliani quote has stayed with me since I read it yesterday:

Freedom is not a concept in which people can do anything they want, be anything they can be. Freedom is about authority. Freedom is about the willingness of every single human being to cede to lawful authority a great deal of discretion about what you do.

Wow. Just wow.

As I said in one of Scarecrow’s posts this a.m., let ‘em keep talking. They ultimately reveal their true selves. (If only the MSM was paying attention & would point it out occasionally.)

TiredFed @ 59

LS @ 51

From Wikipedia:

“The Federal Reserve Banks have an intermediate status, with some features of private corporations and some features of public federal agencies (see below). Each member bank owns nonnegotiable shares of stock in its regional Federal Reserve Bank—but these shares of stock give the member banks only limited control over the actions of the Federal Reserve Banks, and the charter of each Federal Reserve Bank is established by law and cannot be altered by the member banks. In Lewis v. United States,[17] the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stated that “the Reserve Banks are not federal instrumentalities for purposes of the FTCA [the Federal Tort Claims Act], but are independent, privately owned and locally controlled corporations.” The opinion also stated that “the Reserve Banks have properly been held to be federal instrumentalities for some purposes.” Another decision is Scott v. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City[18] in which the distinction between the Federal Reserve Banks and the Board of Governors is made.

The member banks are privately owned corporations. The stocks of many of the member banks (or their holding companies) are publicly traded.

I know, but for other purposes, it’s still considered Federal. it’s one of those oddball things, like the Post Office. It has its own set of rules, but it is Federal where it counts: the boss (and all the Governors) have to be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. That counts as Federal to me.

I know exactly what you are saying. I’m pointing out that in actuality, the people calling the shots are the people that own the banks that support it. Bottom up, rather than top down, if you know what I mean. The appointed people do the bidding of the bankers.

Biodun @ 60

Final something on “America’s Mayor”:

At key moments in his church life, Giuliani’s close friend, Monsignor Alan Placa, has been at his side. Placa was best man at Giuliani’s first wedding, officiated at the second and baptized Giuliani’s son and daughter.

Placa was barred from the ministry after he was accused of sexual abuse, but he received special permission to preside at the funeral of Giuilani’s mother, Helen, in 2002. Placa has been working for his friend’s consulting business, Giuliani Partners, despite the urging of abuse victims that he be terminated.

My bold. There you go.

His other “close friends” include mobsters, coke heads and street thugs. yep, regular altar boys’ club.

As Jane said yesterday, how many times will Our Elite Media be fooled by the blatant flim flammery?

They are not being ‘fooled’ they are doing what they are paid to do.

Lie.

So Cheney wants to airstrike Iran. Well, Sid Blumenthal said a little while ago that Cheney is still by all means a force to be reckoned with. If anything, he’s more dangerous than ever. He’s not running for office. He’s got nothing to lose. He has no horizon. And he’s playing an end game.

Nola Sue @ 71

Redshift @ 54

This Giuliani quote has stayed with me since I read it yesterday:

Wow. Just wow.

As I said in one of Scarecrow’s posts this a.m., let ‘em keep talking. They ultimately reveal their true selves. (If only the MSM was paying attention & would point it out occasionally.)

Good grief!! Make him go away!

Fozzetti @ 22

When I see the truely awful Repug candidates, I wonder: Is the the GOP not bothering to put forward someone electable because there won’t be an election? From all the suggestions of an impending ‘attack’, I fear something awful will happen and Bush will try to call off the election.

No, two much better reasons is that they have no fucking way of winning next election.

The next reason is that they’ve already ransacked the country – Let the democrats try to ‘clean up’ and after the clean-up takes too long, they can criticize the democrats for not doing ‘good enough’.

(it’s gonna take a LONG time to clean up after the GOP fucked everything up so magnificently, so be prepared for a 4-year term for our next democratic president)

I’d much rather watch Christy, but Sara Taylor’s “performance” for SJC is re-running on C-SPAN2.

BigMitch @ 30

Oklahoma kiddo @ 7

Lets not forget Mitt.

[snip]

“There’s not a global war on terror,” Romney said. “There’s a global war being waged by the terrorists and if I am president, there will be a global war waged on the terrorists and we will win.”

“Can you imagine Democrats in charge? John Edwards, saying there’s no global war on terror?” Romney says. It’s a shot at Edwards’ remark that Bush treats the war on terror as if it were a “bumper sticker” slogan.
Here’s the link.

Unfortunately for Mitt’s prospects, we don’t have to imagine Republicans in charge.

Redshift @ 67

Christy Hardin Smith @ 58

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

Impeach Cheney now.

Impeach Cheney. This man is a WMD. There is no way he’ll leave office without completing destruction of the axis of evil, and I think he’s planning to try to stay on past 1/09.

oddmommy @ 73:

His other “close friends” include mobsters, coke heads and street thugs. yep, regular altar boys’ club.

Indeed. His term as NYC mayor was disastrous. Have I told you how I thoroughly detest the man? If he wins the Repug primary, a lot of bad stuff that he did will come out–and will sink him faster than the Titanic. The nasty campaign ads will first come out in drips, then in cascades.

Biodun @ 68

I know I said “final” but what the heck:

Giulani’s third wedding, to Judith Nathan, took place at the mayoral residence, Gracie Mansion, in 2003, after the nasty and public fight waged over his 2002 divorce from Hanover. Hanover learned that Giuliani wanted to split when he announced his decision at a news conference.

(snip)

Some of Giuliani’s critics, such as conservative blogger Stephen Dillard, believe his marital history is fair game. Dillard started a ”Catholics Against Rudy” Web site that raises that issue, among several others.

”The way he treated his wife gives us insight into how he views the role of family, how he views marriage, how he views the church’s teaching on adultery and divorce,” Dillard said.

no sh*t. Why……this man’s a genius.

I love it…..LOVE it……when these snarling sanctimonious sermonizers devour each other…..

Biodun @ 81

oddmommy @ 73:

His other “close friends” include mobsters, coke heads and street thugs. yep, regular altar boys’ club.

Indeed. His term as NYC mayor was disastrous. Have I told you how I thoroughly detest the man? If he wins the Repug primary, a lot of bad stuff that he did will come out–and will sink him faster than the Titanic. The nasty campaign ads will first come out in drips, then in cascades.

Abner Louima
Amadou Diallo
Patrick Dorismond

LS @ 80

Redshift @ 67

Impeach Cheney now.

Impeach Cheney. This man is a WMD. There is no way he’ll leave office without completing destruction of the axis of evil, and I think he’s planning to try to stay on past 1/09.

It’s almost to the point that members of Cheney’s personal medical team are violating the Hippocratic oath by keeping him alive.

A.Citizen @ 74

As Jane said yesterday, how many times will Our Elite Media be fooled by the blatant flim flammery?

They are not being ‘fooled’ they are doing what they are paid to do.

Lie.

They call it “the noble lie”.

Tweety unhinged: http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..monologue/

“I thought in listening to the president, I was listening to one of the great neoconservative minds,”

OldCoastie @ 69

Christy Hardin Smith @ 58

The new Froomkin is up for today — and it is a doozy.

hair-raising…

I’m on page three of Froomkin’s collection, and so far, I haven’t seen an article he cites that hasn’t been discussed at fdl recently, or earlier. The main issue – Is Cheney preparing an end run around President Bush to escalate in Iran? – has been brought up here since late last winter.

Every day I wake up and an Iran War hasn’t started, I’m both grateful and surprised.

Re Christy’s “What is catching your eye in the news?” question, what has been interesting to me over the past 16 days in Washington state is the uniformly low impression our Alaska legislators have made on people around Puget Sound. Not just recently with the corruption scandals, but over the years. Sen. Stevens and Rep. Young are regarded as ignorant, power-hungry, petulant bullies down here for their anti-environmental stances over the years. Unlike the folks back home in Alaska, no sadness here over their impending demises.

I guess Darth wants to follow this guy to Iran:

Filed at 2:14 p.m. ET

BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. military said on Friday that firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr had returned to Iran, where he had spent several months earlier this year as the United States was sending 30,000 additional troops to the Baghdad area. Al-Sadr’s office said he was still in Iraq.

Following up on the Village Voice’s demolition of Giuliani’s past descriptions of himself as a terror-buster extraordinaire, Perrspectives went back and looked at the record. Contrary to claims we can expect Rudy Giuliani to make during campaign ‘08, the self-anointed mayor of 9/11 played no role in any of the following…

For the details, see:
“Giuliani Telling Tales on Terrorism Record.”

The big Cheney spin will probably be that if the US doesn’t eliminate Iran and Syria while courageous leaders like Cheney and Bush are in office…we are all gonna die….and if Dems get elected, now that you all know they are a bunch of chickens, we are thoroughly doomed…wait..they’ve been saying that…

wigwam @ 86

Tweety unhinged: http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..monologue/

“I thought in listening to the president, I was listening to one of the great neoconservative minds,”

I guess being a great neoconservative mind isn’t difficult.

cancer_cures @ 77

Fozzetti @ 22

When I see the truely awful Repug candidates, I wonder: Is the the GOP not bothering to put forward someone electable because there won’t be an election? From all the suggestions of an impending ‘attack’, I fear something awful will happen and Bush will try to call off the election.

No, two much better reasons is that they have no fucking way of winning next election.

The next reason is that they’ve already ransacked the country – Let the democrats try to ‘clean up’ and after the clean-up takes too long, they can criticize the democrats for not doing ‘good enough’.

(it’s gonna take a LONG time to clean up after the GOP fucked everything up so magnificently, so be prepared for a 4-year term for our next democratic president)

There’s another reason (someone, I think Matt Stoller, wrote about this, but I don’t have it handy now.) They’ve spent a couple of decades driving anyone with even slightly moderate views out of the party and certainly out of the leadership. They’re left with no one but the Tancredo/Brownback types who sincerely believe in all the wingnuttery, or the Giuliani/Romney types who are sleazy enough to pretend to believe it to get the nomination (and of course sincerely believe the parts that translate to “more power for me!”)

The really don’t have anyone who’s less awful.

Ed*ard Teller,
Are you here in the Evergreen state?

wigwam @ 84

Tweety unhinged: http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..monologue/

“I thought in listening to the president, I was listening to one of the great neoconservative minds,”

I just do not get how this guy can say this stuff with a straight face. I mean, even if you supported Bush, I’d think you sounded completely insane. Is he on drugs? Aren’t public displays of self, erm, gratification, normally frowned on? I mean, you practically have to wipe your screen clean after he’s finished. Eeeew.

retirin’ in five @ 44

Loo Hoo. @ 41

Gotta go. When I come back later this afternoon will everything be all better?

Might well depend on one’s preference in Friday afternoon recreational dr*gs.

Wear your beer goggles.

PB @ 93

wigwam @ 84

Tweety unhinged: http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..monologue/

I just do not get how this guy can say this stuff with a straight face. I mean, even if you supported Bush, I’d think you sounded completely insane. Is he on drugs? Aren’t public displays of self, erm, gratification, normally frowned on? I mean, you practically have to wipe your screen clean after he’s finished. Eeeew.

Spew!

Badwater @ 90

wigwam @ 86

Tweety unhinged: http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..monologue/

I guess being a great neoconservative mind isn’t difficult.

I was thinking the same thing — damning with faint praise. Somehow, though, I don’t think Tweety meant it that way.

A very sobering take on the current fiancial panic.
The author is a finance professor at NYU.

We’re not in Kansas anymore.

Evergreeners should come to Bellevue on August 27 to protest with me and others. Bush is coming to town to raise money for Representative Dave ‘Fourth’ Reichert.

SeattleActivism has all the details.

Badwater @ 84

LS @ 80

Impeach Cheney. This man is a WMD. There is no way he’ll leave office without completing destruction of the axis of evil, and I think he’s planning to try to stay on past 1/09.

It’s almost to the point that members of Cheney’s personal medical team are violating the Hippocratic oath by keeping him alive.

This reminds me:

That “fit for duty” phrase that was used by the Bush medical team. That team included a neurologist, but not a psychiatrist. A cardiologist, but not general internal medicine. Those would be specialists who would be in the best position to weigh in on a dry drunk, or an alcoholic, or someone who is taking mood altering drugs, or sleep enhancing drugs. It leads me to wonder which specialist is managing those health problems, and who, if anyone, declared him mentally fit for duty? There is also one reference in the MSNBC story to his suffering periods of disorientation. That is distinct from disequilibrium, and I wonder if he is disoriented – and why.

Relative to Cheney: I sure would like to know his fitness for duty status around “pump head syndrome” – the often permanent brain damage, memory impairment and personality changes that occur after being supported on a heart bypass pump (that’s where the name comes from) for extracorporeal circulation. The recent bios have uniformly stated that he didn’t change after 9/11 – he was already “changed”. That leads me to more strongly consider pre-existing mental cognition and judgment disorders which would correlate to his open heart surgeries and possibly his MIs.

Everyone should go read yesterday’s two posts by Chris Floyd at http://www.chris-floyd.com. He is a phenomenal blogger who deserves a bigger audience.

I’m drawing out plans on what my sign or poster will say for the big day. I’m thinking ‘Wiretap Cheney’ . Anyone got some snarky suggestions???

Biodun @ 79

oddmommy @ 73:

His other “close friends” include mobsters, coke heads and street thugs. yep, regular altar boys’ club.

Indeed. His term as NYC mayor was disastrous. Have I told you how I thoroughly detest the man? If he wins the Repug primary, a lot of bad stuff that he did will come out–and will sink him faster than the Titanic. The nasty campaign ads will first come out in drips, then in cascades.

I actually like to picture it in terms of that old cliche, “skeleton in the closet.” Someone opens Rudy’s closet door…….and is instantly flattened to death by a crash of fallling skeletons.

Bustednuckles @ 92

Ed*ard Teller,
Are you here in the Evergreen state?

I am – in the borderlands between Burien and Normany Park. I tried to get an fdl get-together going like we did last summer this past week, and failed. Sorry, RGB, oscarsmom, other pups…

Was out of town for a few days and when I came back I couldn’t get the stolen wifi signal from my mom’s back yard anymore, and had left my Seattle fdl contact phone numbers in Carnation (!), and had two conductors leaving messages like “Why didn’t I get the music yesterday?”

Ms. ET and I are still here today and tomorrow. I’ve stopped off at a Starbucks to catch up on news, and say “hi, doggies!” before I return to attack about a quarter acre of blackberry vines in my mom’s woods.

kinmo @ 94

retirin’ in five @ 44

Might well depend on one’s preference in Friday afternoon recreational dr*gs.

Wear your beer goggles.

“La Cucharacha”, 2nd verse.

cancer_cures @ 102

I’m drawing out plans on what my sign or poster will say for the big day. I’m thinking ‘Wiretap Cheney’ . Anyone got some snarky suggestions???

Go wiretap yourself Mr. Cheney!

From Furious’s PERRspective link in 89:

Self-proclaimed terrorist fighter Rudy Giuliani is telling tall tales again. Just days after the Village Voice thoroughly refuted Giuliani’s claims about his supposedly central role prosecuting the 1985 murder case of Leon Klinghoffer by PLO terrorists aboard the cruise ship Achille Lauro, the GOP presidential front-runner is at it again. In Ohio on Thursday, the former New York mayor favorably compared himself to World Trade Center rescue workers on and after 9/11:

“I was at ground zero as often, if not more, than most of the workers…I was there working with them. I was exposed to exactly the same things they were exposed to. So in that sense, I’m one of them.”

As I said: a lot of stuff will come out. And I love that list.

Thanks for the DEVO video. I saw them in concert when I was in college and this particular song was one of my favorites. Today I’ve been reading alot of comments about Bill Richardson’s comments about homosexuality being a choice rather than genetic. I do hope though that for right now the gay community of which I am a part would just put aside the issue of same sex marriage and focus more of thier time on ending the occupation of Iraq, impeaching Bush and Cheney and the environmental issues we are facing. As is pointed out by the video here it is not a beautiful world but we could make it better however we need to get our priorities straightened out. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

twolf1 @ 106

cancer_cures @ 102

I’m drawing out plans on what my sign or poster will say for the big day. I’m thinking ‘Wiretap Cheney’ . Anyone got some snarky suggestions???

Go wiretap yourself Mr. Cheney!

Go cheney yourself Mr Cheney…

I’m sorry, but after reading Ellen Goodman this morning, I was expecting umm… some diaper changing tips, or the rules for the proper packing of a school lunch. This blog is run by women, correct? If so, can you ladies get back in the blog kitchen and fix some lunch, Goodman and I are hungry.

steeelthing @ 106

Thanks for the DEVO video. I saw them in concert when I was in college and this particular song was one of my favorites. Today I’ve been reading alot of comments about Bill Richardson’s comments about homosexuality being a choice rather than genetic. I do hope though that for right now the gay community of which I am a part would just put aside the issue of same sex marriage and focus more of thier time on ending the occupation of Iraq, impeaching Bush and Cheney and the environmental issues we are facing. As is pointed out by the video here it is not a beautiful world but we could make it better however we need to get our priorities straightened out. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Republics want desperately to make the next elecion about anything other than them. If they can’t make gay marrige the issue, they’ll try pornography. Any issue will do so long as it is devicive and not about their years in power.

Biodun @105,

Guiliani’s exposed to the same environment – Does that mean he’s got damaged lungs as well?

Humboldt at 110 — HAHAHAHAHAHA Yes, that Goodman piece was awfully appalling. I didn’t feel like giving her any attention for her utter lack of comprehension…I’ve had enough dismissal for cleavage this week as it is, thanks.

I figured it out. The reason the Republican candidates don’t make sense is that they are oh so esoteric. Hard for me to understand from the real world.

And since this is Friday, the light fare (so to speak):

Filed at 2:04 p.m. ET

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Adulterers, beware: Your cheatin’ heart might be exposed by E-ZPass. E-ZPass and other electronic toll collection systems are emerging as a powerful means of proving infidelity. That’s because when your spouse doesn’t know where you’ve been, E-ZPass does.

”E-ZPass is an E-ZPass to go directly to divorce court, because it’s an easy way to show you took the off-ramp to adultery,” said Jacalyn Barnett, a New York divorce lawyer who has used E-ZPass records a few times.

LS @ 90

The big Cheney spin will probably be that if the US doesn’t eliminate Iran and Syria while courageous leaders like Cheney and Bush are in office…we are all gonna die….and if Dems get elected, now that you all know they are a bunch of chickens, we are thoroughly doomed…wait..they’ve been saying that…

The President and Vice President would not need additional authorization. The right of “hot pursuit” is known in war. Iran cannot be used as a sanctuary for the insurgents or a supply depot.

What’s catching my eye, like a poke in it with a sharp stick:

U.S Torture, from the New Yorker via Digby via Crooks & Liars.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/category/torture/

I think my America is gone, or permanently scarred.

badwater at 111. I agree with you on repulican strategy however if the gay community would put the issue of ‘marriage’ aside for now and ask questions of those in power and seeking power that are more pressing on society as a whole maybe we can come up with leaders who can come up with solutions to the current mess we are in and perhaps lead to a higher level of discourse rather than speculate on sexual orientation and the origins thereof.

cancer_cures @ 49

Oklahoma Kiddo, I totally agree with ya.

The credit card debt is a problem due mostly to a new American attitude of ‘gimme now, lemme pay later’. I think it’s bullshit, and those that are battling their debts due to buying a lifestyle they can’t afford brought it on themselves. I don’t have sympathy for these people – They’re basically addicted to consumerism and trying to buy their way into a lifestyle they don’t belong to.

But there are situations that come up where people need credit:

SufiLizard says:
August 10th, 2007 at 9:34 am

Here’s a personal example of what’s wrong with our political system (okay, one of many things).

I was incredibly frustrated with our state legislature in 2006 over a number of serious state-wide issues and then I found out my rubber-stamp state rep was going to run unopposed.

So with no political experience whatsoever, I decided to run against him.

Of course I lost, being in one of the most “red” districts in the state and maybe event the country.

But I essentially did everything myself. I was my own campaign manager, treasurer, webmaster etc.

Yesterday I got a letter in the mail from the state election board saying that I’m being fined $1000 because I turned in my final campaign finance report late.

Right after the election I found out I was going to lose my job and spent the next couple of months scrambling to find another job.

I found a good job, and happened to start on the very day my final campaign finance report was due, and I just dropped the ball on it in all the turmoil around leaving one job and starting another.

Now I owe the state $1000 that there is no way I can come up with in the next 28 days.

It’s no wonder ordinary people don’t run for office more often.

Of all the candidates who do so much shady crap with their campaign finances and get off scott free, I get hit with a big fine when I didn’t do anything wrong, I just filed paperwork late.

It’s so frustrating.

And it’s criminal that they can charge the kind of interest rates that they do.

CSPAN2 is replaying the 7-24-07 Gonzo testimony.

Biodun @ 115

And the not-so-light fare: EZ-Pass being used by government to track/monitor your travel & whereabouts.

Fresh thread from Siun.

Siun is upstairs… And I added another zed to my collection…*g*

Ed*ard Teller @ 104

Bustednuckles @ 92

Ed*ard Teller,
Are you here in the Evergreen state?

I am – in the borderlands between Burien and Normany Park. I tried to get an fdl get-together going like we did last summer this past week, and failed. Sorry, RGB, oscarsmom, other pups…

Was out of town for a few days and when I came back I couldn’t get the stolen wifi signal from my mom’s back yard anymore, and had left my Seattle fdl contact phone numbers in Carnation (!), and had two conductors leaving messages like “Why didn’t I get the music yesterday?”

Ms. ET and I are still here today and tomorrow. I’ve stopped off at a Starbucks to catch up on news, and say “hi, doggies!” before I return to attack about a quarter acre of blackberry vines in my mom’s woods.

well, beware of the poison ivy. it is really bad this year.

Gunga Djinn @ 117

What’s catching my eye, like a poke in it with a sharp stick:

U.S Torture, from the New Yorker via Digby via Crooks & Liars.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/category/torture/

I think my America is gone, or permanently scarred.

That was really distrubing stuff. I read the digby article and about a third of the New Yorker article on which it was based. Wow!!

Christy Hardin Smith @ 113

Humboldt at 110 — HAHAHAHAHAHA Yes, that Goodman piece was awfully appalling. I didn’t feel like giving her any attention for her utter lack of comprehension…I’ve had enough dismissal for cleavage this week as it is, thanks.

FWIW, this middle-aged white guy who went to the far north in the prime of life to kill millions of sea creatures and more than a few mammals, prove his machoness over and over again, and still falls into those sorts of lapses, has learned about 20 times as much from female bloggers and from non-white bloggers of either sex than I have from the types described by Goodman in her essay.

Whether it is Siun, Phoenix Woman, Christy and Jane here, or Emptywheel or Lindsay Beyerstein, or – I could go on for pages! – or the wonderful female commenters here, I learn a lot from you women. I can never repay the debt, but trust that “Thanks!!!” is appreciated.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 113

Humboldt at 110 — HAHAHAHAHAHA Yes, that Goodman piece was awfully appalling. I didn’t feel like giving her any attention for her utter lack of comprehension…I’ve had enough dismissal for cleavage this week as it is, thanks.

I mean, I’m as male as the next guy (well, except for that weirdo Florida guy who prevents muggings by ominous black dudes by offering them blow jobs and 20 bucks) … so it’s easy for me to gloss over the points Goodman tries to make, but hell, if I want a lawyer blogging on Gonzalez or FISA I am naturally going to find a liberal blog to read.

Gender plays no role in that decision, it just so happens that by starting with the Huffington post, (she’s still a chick, correct?) I slowly built up my bookmarks of blogs I like. Every single one had to be informative and funny, again, gender played little role in that decision.

But when I get the chance to read Digby every day, and Jane Hamsher, and McJoan, and CHS, well, call me an angry white male if you will (and I am angry, white and male, but not necessarily in that order) but I’d rather go where the writing is good, the arguments are sound and the chicks err…. I mean, the bloggers are hot … doh, I mean smart.

Edited and released by Mods

O.K. But people aren’t using their credit cards to finance election campaigns. The average American has 9,000 dollars in credit debt. How much of that has to with needs instead of wants?

I’m guessing more than 75 percent is wants. I’m guessing more than that previous guess is when someone could have bought chairs for 50 bucks but spent 400 bucks on them instead. Personal responsibility is kinda heading out the window with these credit debts, and it requires a brutal lesson, or SOME sort of lesson. Forgiving debt because my neighbor wanted to buy a new HD plasma TV is not something I’m going to support.

don’t feed the troll people. facts and sanity don’t penetrate.

TiredFed @ 59

LS @ 51

From Wikipedia:

“The Federal Reserve Banks have an intermediate status, with some features of private corporations and some features of public federal agencies (see below). Each member bank owns nonnegotiable shares of stock in its regional Federal Reserve Bank—but these shares of stock give the member banks only limited control over the actions of the Federal Reserve Banks, and the charter of each Federal Reserve Bank is established by law and cannot be altered by the member banks.
…

That counts as Federal to me.

Of course, it’s dangerous to forget who’s in charge…Bushie. He thinks he’s a Unitary Executive and in charge of ‘independent’ agencies. He said there was enough liquidity and the government wasn’t going to step in. So, after somebody DID step in I wouldn’t be surprised if Dubya countermands that order by the morrow.

We live in surreal times. Let’s get surreal!

Whoops. Sorry about the quotation TiredFed. I didn’t put in the right end of blockquote.