…And my friends say I’m crazy when I blame it all on Bush!

Your “friends?” Does that make you pause?

After reading Digby’s discussion of your book, I found myself getting very curious about those expensive grills! I did a quick search, but so far the most expensive one I have been able to find is a Lynx Professional for about $9,300. They have all kinds of accessories, though, so I guess it might be possible to get one all tricked out with every gadget and extension and thereby bring the price closer to $13,000.

I wish I could say I was drooling over these luxurious grills, but to be honest I’m not one for cooking outside much. Not to mention that we can’t afford anything like that.

I suppose I could get excited over some computers and huge monitors, but I’m not sweating it. I don’t have that much longing for material things. But I do long for time and convenience and some nice, pretty place to live. That would be great. Yet I don’t think I’m much influenced by wealthy people. I’m probably an exception in that regard.

Now, as for status, that is something else. I have to confess, shamefacedly, that I am envious of status. I very much dislike being this way, and I try to suppress and hide such feelings, but then something will slip out occasionally when I’m talking, and I realize how bad I really am about being “bigger.”

This cursed longing for status seems to be embedded into my personality! Ugh. Maybe some day I’ll be able to clear it out of my head. It would be a great relief, but at the same time I don’t completely want to let it go. It’s sort of like an evil pride.

I hope my confession will not be considered off topic. This is an interesting subject, at least to me.

Great article Doctor Frank. They psychology of
that BBQ grill is so right on. I bought in a
new development in Arizona. I settled for a
tract about a 1/2 notch lower than the one I first looked at and liked. When I came back a second time a few months later, all the good floor plans and lots were gone. I continued to look and ended up buying where I am at as a
compromise. I have been unhappy almost since day one until recently. The market is so slow and i am not willing to take the type of hit I would have to take to move the house. I finally have digested this and realized that even had I of bought in the first development
I would probably be yearning for the next superior tract that is built. I decided to fall in love with my 3000 square foot home,
3 car garage, and pool, and quit being a spoiled brat American, always wanting more.

And then there are people like me and my family that drool at the thought of eating a steak!

Free Enterprisers often say “Competition is good” and then CEOs do everything they can to avoid it, so they can make more profits.

I say, let’s use government, not to regulate prices, but to ensure there are more competitions. Let’s make sure there are more kinds of cars on the road, so the public (through self-interest) can pick the best way. I say, let’s make sure there are sufficient variety of kinds of houses, so people can pick the right size, right price and right shade of “green” for them.

Instead of regulating people to death we ought to let people be relatively free and give them lots of choices (as Milton Friedman often said “free to choose”, but Republicans avoided) so in this vast economic democracy decisions are made which are better than any small unrepresentative government might make.

If done well there will be LESS (though not zero) need to break up large monopolistic corporations or to tariff international trade or to regulate industry.

Let’s test the theory of Competitive Enterprise.

To help introduce competetive enterprise we might use government to begin something and then spin it off into a private-sector (perhaps) publicly held company…just to start competition where it’s lagging.

I was doing pretty good as a low income earner 8 years ago. I ate, could afford gas, and once a month we had a family night out. Now, I am hungry more often, gas for the lawn mower is too expensive to mow the grass, and ALL family nights have been off the table now for years.
And my friends say I’m crazy when I blame it all on Bush!

Audrey @ 117

A word of caution, though. It requires some skill. The taking care of yourself part gets complicated. You’d better learn first aid and how to make everything from scratch, grow your food from seed and if you’re not vegetarian, dressing game is a big plus. (If you’re not a hunter…road kill can be made useful.) ;)

Audrey @ 116

I don’t eat road kill, although I see it a lot here in CT.

The latest road kill…(no not the dog-purse)

Mortgage Originated Credit Crunch May Just Be Beginning

Envision what would happen if most of the world’s big fixed interest fund managers suddenly decide to go risk adverse, and sharply slow, or even stop purchasing mortgage securities. The entire global mortgage market would seize up. This would be a credit crunch of a higher order than has ever been seen.

MSM-fed folks have no idea what’s coming. I didn’t expect it to hit until Sept-Oct. but it is already here and it is much more massive than all the central banks put together can staunch. You think $350 billion is alot? Hah, it’s a drop in the bucket and it won’t be the last.

The only question — how much will it take to end the panic. Call it the 64 trillion dollar question. (Risk exposure multiplied by risk beta and you get a number in that ballpark. [Actually, the number is $17T x 6 == $102T].)

Gulp. (Plus road kill will be hard to find with almost nobody driving…)

But it might delay global warming for a few years, so who’s complaining?

It’s funny, in the book Dr Frank offers a thought experiment in which you are offered one of two “worlds”. In World A you can live in a house that is 4,000 square feet while others live in a house that is 6,000 square feet. In world B, you can live in a house that’s 3,000 square feet while others live in one that is 2,000 square feet. Which would you choose?

I guess I am unusual because I would have picked World A — but that’s because I currently live in a tiny beach style cottage and yearn for a lot more room. The funny thing is that 3,000 square feet would be a great improvement too — I guess I’m just greedy. But then I also am used to being the smallest house on the block.
…

The best two years of my life I worked at a hotel overseas. I had a tiny room BUT housekeeping, laundry, and cafeteria service were included. Fewer cubic meters than where I live now, but a lot less cleaning to worry about. This would suit me fine. Upkeep and maintenance are the biggest drawbacks to living in the biggest of spaces.

30% Income tax. No Exemptions, No Deductions.
2% Property tax. No Exemptions
10% Sales tax. No exemptions.

Split the money between the government and a basic income given to all on an equal basis.

It is automatically progressive without treating anyone differantly, as the wealthy would receive the basic income as well.
The average person is unaffected.

This would also attack the tax avoidance industry and has no class warfare elements.