Craig Crawford's Trail Mix

pogo, mentioning electric cars spurred me to check out the mus am hist exhibit on the ev1. here's an excerpt from online that just leads to more questions (like where are those few they retained):

"About 800 people-including some celebrities-took the plunge and signed on for the three-year leases. Many drivers liked the quick acceleration and smooth, quiet performance of the EV1. By 2003, however, GM had determined that the EV1 was not commercially viable. It decided to withdraw all EV1s from their leases, retain a few, and destroy the others. GM ended the consumer test project in 2004."

http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthemove/collection/object_1303.html

Drat YOu beat me.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/01/bushs-unpeaceful-refuge.html#comment-189625

They don't allow golf carts on the freeway except for target practice.

"they ought to answer the questions with humility and honesty"
craig, it's hard to be humble when you're perfect
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLxNbEuOO20

Sometimes bloggers attack people, but they never expect to be called out on it. Don't know if any of you saw this, but here is Tina Fey's acceptance speech from Sunday night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0qeNUfJVAA

"Bush never seemed to trust the public or Congress in deciding to invade Iraq or how to prosecute a war" - the feeling was mutual.

Yep, those Teslas are awfully attractive. The one I saw on USA Today is the Fisher Karma. And I was wrong - it starts at $87,900. There's a photo of it at USAToday.com - it's 5 of 40 from the Detroit auto show - a link to the photos is below.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/gallery/autoshows/flash.htm?gid=44

The EV1 wasn't commercially viable? Perhaps because it was built to be so and was a victim of battery technology that was essentially unchanged as compared to today?

wasn't bush's campaign plank the issue of trust? fitting he should be run out of town on the same plank.

Bob Corker went to the Detroit Auto Show yesterday:

http://www.freep.com/article/20090114/COL06/901140406

Corey, Corker probably went so he could see what Honda, Toyota and Mecedes have on the drawing board.

When I was a boy in Cleveland Heights there was an _old_ lady, always dressed in black, who periodically drove one of these electric cars down Lee Road:

http://www.ctrc.org/projects/trolleys-and-trolleybarn/1916-detroit-electric-touring-car.html

She always sat erect in the vehicle looking something like I imagine Queen Victoria would appear if she had a similar machine.

As I recall, she steered the thing with a tiller rather than a steering wheel.

It was all quite fascinating.

Flatus, I'm not sure I like the new ones any better than that one - except the Teslas and the Karmas, of course.

VIDEO: Venomous "Giant Shrew" Caught on Film

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/01/090112-shrew-venom-video.html

Ed- That I am.-1977 and graduated from Suny at Albany. Grew up on Township Rd. (Rt. 146, which goes all the way up to Gallupville) 1/2 mile before the Berne- Knox line. Love Schoharie, drive up there and around to do antique buys. I go back every Labor Day for the Highland Games and once in the spring. By summer I'm working 24-7 so no time to visit. Do you ever go to the Homefront Cafe? It's pretty neat, all WWII memorabilia around. My Dad is there every morning when he is in NY, he writes the Horseshoes column in the Enterprise too.

a reminder that there are wars and there are wars.
"According to human rights groups, since the fighting began in earnest in early 2007, more than 16,000 civilians have been killed, over 30,000 injured and a million displaced."
http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=82337

"The shrew-like animal can deliver venom through specialized teeth. It is one of the few living mammals that use poison"

patsi, something about those beady little eyes that reminds me of a familiar msm star. is it just me or can you see it too?

Patsi,

I'm almost sure I've seen mammals use poison here, at least I assumed they were mammals.

OSH,

I've often heard radio commercials for the Homefront Cafe, and "meant" to stop there, but haven't done that yet. This summer, I'll go in and look for your dad. I won't need your name, I'll just ask for the guy whose daughter makes fudge. I assume your dad does NOT refer to you as OldSeaHag.

I made a lot of trips on 146 this year because of umpiring assignments in Guilderland, a few at the high school, but mostly at Keenholts Park.

I'm a Siena guy ('71)

"something about those beady little eyes that reminds me of a familiar msm star."

Ha -- yes indeed. Early in the am....what a sight.

Last night I made a comment about my concern about Obama's selection for Treasury Secretary considering the dude forgot or just omitted paying his taxes. From what has been written it seems the latter may more likely be the case.

I thought Obama's team had a tough vetting process and from what I read they knew about this and thought it was just a "honest mistake" and nothing to stop the nomination.

I worked contract for a couple of years. I am a financial idiot and I learned I had to pay self-employment taxes and as many of you know it really bites. After a couple of years I refused to ever work contract because I didn't like paying twice the SS taxes.

There was a panel on Fox, usually right leaning, discussing this last night and they didn't think this would be a problem because the Dems will support Obama and the Repubs like the guy.

I have perused this blog since this info came out and haven't seen one comment regarding any outrage about this. Why not? It is just OK for the guy who will oversee the IRS to try to avoid paying taxes?

After a lot of soul searching and grieving over Hillary, I voted for Obama and have felt very good about it but I am sorry to have to say that this Obama decision is a strike against his credibility.

And why not much outrage about this?? Is it pretty mainstream to avoid paying taxes. I certainly spend enough torturous hours in the Spring of every year looking for every penny of income to report and pay my fair share of taxes on. That is the law!

Where is Lampe when I need her?

Ed- LOL, that depends on the day! I've got Roger Keenholt's antique couch sitting outside on my porch! My name is Kathleen and my Dad is Ed Cowley, he was the chair of the Art Dept. at Suny for 35 years. His stainglass is in the window at the Home Front. Tim Russert stopped in once and was fascinated by it. all. I'll let you know when I'll be in town and I'll buy you a coffee too! I can afford one there. Going up the hill our land starts right after the tracks and goes until the first driveway on the left. It's pretty cool in there if you like hikes , 2 waterfalls and a great ravine. Do you ever go hike up to Vrooman's Nose?

Ct- I've got nothing to say about Obama, it's better that way.

From what I read he was audited and got caught on the last two of the four years. He paid that but not until later did he fess up on the previous two years. Just recently paid those. I could be wrong. It is not easy to get the straight story.

If he was audited on the last two years seems he would have asked about the previous two. I thought he was supposed to be the brilliant one. I will apologize in advance if I am unjustly attacking this guy. I guess we will see next week.

I totally see the housekeeper issue as a honest mistake.

Electric Car with Steering "Tiller"

http://panther2.video.blip.tv/Riverwired-KGL61Rachel100YearOldElectricCar721.jpg

There was a more detailed explanation of the tax problem that I found last night but can't find it again now.

What is weird is that he paid the biggest bulk of the delinquent taxes just before the nomination. I do expect more from a Treasury nominee than I would from Joe/Joan Q. Public.

ct,

I think Geithner gets a bit of a pass because of his situation. Working for the IMF, doesn't really sound like self-employment or being a contract employee, so his oversight doesn't have the same taint that previous "nannygate" scandals had. If anything in the story bothers me, it's that he just cleaned up the rest of his payment while he was being considered for this appointment, but that may have been a scheduled thing. I know if I had to pay them $50, I'd want them to take it in installments.

I don't know anything about Geithner's talents, but I have to admit, I like the idea of having a guy in charge of IRS, who has actually had a previous run-in with those lower echelon folks. Chances are he was treated better than you or I would be, but even so, having publicly admitted his error may help one of us lesser souls some day.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/01/bushs-trust-deficit.html#comment-189659

Carol,

I did here one commentary in passing that this involved contractor income earned over seas and it was such an obscure area of the IRS law that they had to put out a special memo for the offices on how to handle it when this sort of income arose. For his standpoint it could have been an oversight since he paid taxes on his other types of income and when it came to his notice paid the interest charges as well.

Now the timing might be a bit suspect since he didn't pay them until a short time before being appointed, but that could be coincidence. I simply don't know.

I really doubt it Ed that we would get the same pass. With this financial crisis being the biggest one we are now facing, I would like someone in charge who isn't already somewhat tainted.

Those tax laws are so awful. I am leaning toward thinking a reasonable flat tax, no loopholes, might not be the best idea.

Ct, is this what you refer to?

Tax problems may plague Obama's treasury pick
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090114/D95MTVI05.html

AC,

Not the same article but very similar. You notice that he didn't pay the first two year taxes he missed until just before the nomination. Doesn't pass the smell test even though I have a cold and can't smell very well right now.

The lack of much outrage even by the Repubs makes me wonder if most have a few tax skeletons in their closets they don't want found.

Ct

Your nose seems to work sufficiently well.
New Boss same as the Old Boss

Signs of the times. Film industry closing its charity hospital and nursing home:

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-moviehome15-2009jan15,0,2131643.story

Ct, this is an interesting tidbit:
"Timothy Geithner’s father, Peter F. Geithner, is the director of the Asia program at the Ford Foundation in New York. During the early 1980s, Peter Geithner oversaw the Ford Foundation’s microfinance programs in Indonesia being developed by Ann Dunham-Soetoro, mother of President-elect Barack Obama, and they met in person at least once."

http://drorly.blogspot.com/2009/01/geitner-soetoro-ford-foundation.html

I don't know which is worse -- this guy's pathology or his stupidity:

SAN FRANCISCO - A California man has been arrested for arranging for his 14-year-old daughter to marry a neighbor in exchange for $16,000, 100 cases of beer and several cases of meat, police said.

Authorities in Greenfield, a farming community on California's central coast, said they learned of the deal after Marcelino de Jesus Martinez, 36, asked them for help getting back his daughter after payment wasn't made.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28629054/?GT1=43001

RE: Tim Geithner & taxes not paid

Here is the Wall Street Journal article that first revealed the potential dilemma for the Treasury nominee.

As to whether it will affect the nomination---to date there have been no calls for the nomination to be withdrawn & Geithner continues to have full support from Pres. Elect Obama, therefore, in all likelihood it will be of minimal impact, if at all.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123187503629378119.html

Timothy F. Geithner –The quintessential Washington insider.
http://www.muckety.com/Timothy-F-Geithner/2158.muckety

Same old, same old!

Craig.. and fellow TMxrs -

This post of Craig's - is on point!

The handling of the Iraq war and waiting so long to Dump Donald Rumsfeld was significant.

Remove the horrible middle - and now with the Obama not Surge which is a success - does Bush have a different legacy? Yes !

But he did not so therefore he does not...

A series of articles at Politico discusses the Tim Geithner matter, including when Geithner was president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank.

It raises intriguing questions----which may or may not ever be asked/answered.

"Geithner's risky oversight of Citigroup"

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0109/17437.html

Should the NY Fed have seen trouble coming & prevented it?

What oversight did Geithner/NY Fed exert as Citigroup took on more risk & its capital eroded?

What contacts, if any, did Geithner have regarding regulatory matters with Citigroup officials, including Robert Rubin, Geithner's former mentor?

"I worked contract for a couple of years. I am a financial idiot and I learned I had to pay self-employment taxes and as many of you know it really bites."

Carol, I know all about it. Although we were paid, elected officials in my city weren't considered employees. For income tax purposes we were regarded as self-employed so I had to do the same thing as you (don't know if any of the other commissioners did).

Adding insult to injury, we couldn't deduct our personal campaign contributions as business expenses. So, yeah, I'm disappointed that Mr Obama couldn't find someone who obeys the rules. But, hey, he's from Chicago where, evidently, rules are made to be broken. And, if you break the rules yourself, you find that type of behavior acceptable in others.

If Shock and Awe had never happened, then all those deaths, maimings, and dislocations plus a rise in Shia Irani influence never would have happened, so a "successful" surge would never have been necessary.

It finally almost got cold today...............

And now no chance to visit Fantasy Island since Ricardo Montalban (Mr. Rourke) has died.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aPbN0_ikRnf4&refer=us

Coreen,

His wife of many years died back in 2006, so given his age, his death isn't a surprise but still sad. I loved some of his old MGM movies as silly as they were. He made every movie charming.

Jamie,

Yes, I too enjoy those old movies. And you are right even if they may seem silly--they are great fun.

As a child who had one of the first TV's in the neighborhood (from the days of the bubble in front of the screen)--each loss of the actors who were so much a part of childhood stings a bit more.

Your tribute to Cheryl brought back many memories, though Annette was my favorite mouseketeer.

In an effort to make my comment in the time zone where most people will see it, I want to say to Patsi that she is right about the remarks re liars and word twisters being mis-interpreted.

They did appear to me to be suggesting banning such as lies, inhibiting free speech. If they were not meant that way, I am relieved. So, thanks, Patsi, for going to the trouble of reading and comments and reassuring me. I agree that distortions should be vigorously pointed out and un-twisted. That's always been one of Bill's strongest messages to his party. Stop a disease before it spreads.

I'm off to see babies again so will probably get back just in time to see another fight break up, and post my own particular brand of wisdomn -HA! - too late for anyone to see it. Oh, well, as long as I can put my thought into words, that's rewarding.

Baby 3 is scheduled for appearance next Tuesday at 12:30 - can NOT wait.

All chefs, cooks, and knowledgeable folks - it's ok to frezze cheese, isn't it? I bought two kinds of raclette cheese for nil for Christmas, and bought way too much - whudoiknow? So we're hoping they can freeze ir for a LONG time.

Coreen,

It's the ones my age and younger departing that is making me nervous. :-)

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/01/bushs-most-fateful-day.html#comment-189430

"Tony,,lunch buckets like you and I are fearless,,,,we have stepped out of our( littleworld) world cos,,,we see another interesting one"

Hi Solar
Nicely put! Thank you for that!! I am tired after a long 10 hour day,i feel like a glass of Chardonnay and the bed...

For the Musical lovers amongst us, the media reel for The Boy From Oz is finally hitting You Tube. It's not as good as seeing the whole show in person with all the stars, but it is professional quality and has the stars doing the numbers from the show.

Since Hollywood hasn't had the good sense to bring it to the screen and no one has filmed the whole stage production for a DVD, this is as good as it is going to get. Two samples are on my blog and you can link from there to the rest of the videos.

http://jdurward.blogspot.com

Bethy

Hard or semi-hard cheese can be frozen if cut in 1/2 to 1-pound blocks. Wrap in plastic wrap and then put in freezer bags. After freezing, cheese may become crumbly and mealy, but, it will retain its flavor. It works best for cooking.

Plan to use frozen cheese within 4 to 6 months. Thaw cheese in the refrigerator. Use soon after thawing.

The cheeses that freeze best are brick, Camembert, cheddar, Edam, mozzerella, muenster, Parmesan, provolone, Romano and Swiss. Blue cheeses are more prone to becoming crumbly but they'll still taste good. Cream cheese and cottage cheese do not freeze well.

ct: So sorry I missed your blog earlier. I would have loved to ruffle a few feathers. Seems to me, that a few of the people Obama has chosen for his cabinet ,have unanswered questions in their past.

Just checked out the links you guys provided. I had to detour to notify neighbors of a suspicious character who jumped over a fence into an empty field next door. A field with access to all of their backyards. I sure wish I had a gun right now even though I am a fairly peaceful girl.

Maybe the Treasury fellow is on the up and up but that WSJ article you linked Coreen didn't help. Even though he did pay up on what the audit found on the last two years he seemed to hope that the first two years would be missed.

He does seem to be Obama's friend. We will see at the hearings next week if anyone will have the guts to ask some tough questions.

The panel on Fox last night said unless there is some type of public outcry he will most likely be approved. I guess it will be up to we the people to listen to his answers. We certainly can't count on the news media these days to ask tough questions.

Hi Tony,
Thanks for asking, but no, the baby still isn't here yet. Hope everything is going well with you. Ten hours working - wow, you sure do have a long day. With the way the economy is going though, It's good to have the business.

I'm tired tonight too. See you tomorrow.

Hi Lampe,

I started out feeling like you still seem to feel about Obama but then I opened up my heart and mind and let him in. That doesn't mean he gets a free pass though. I am not a sucker.

Eight years of our being abused by our government/president has left many of us just too willing to just put up with anything that looks like an improvement.

We can't forget that those people represent Us! They work for Us!

ct: I agree with you, these politicians seem to forget, that they are working for us. I think our biggest problem is we have just let the politicians, do what they want, when they want . And, that makes some of this mess our fault. I think with all that is going on in our world today, no one, and I mean no one from either party, should be given a FREE PASS. That is why, I will be sitting in the wings watching like a HAWK, with both of my eyes wide open,and my fingers crossed.

babybush may be lazy and crazy, but he's no idiot. babybush posed as an ignorant redneck to get the confederate and mountain man vote. How else does a Yale and Harvard educated son of Eastern Elitist George Herbert Walker Bush convince backwoods morons that he is one of them ?

Since cheney got boozed up and mistook his best friend for a pheasant (must have been those blue wattles), Hurricane Katrina, and the arrest of pooperscooper libby, the old veepaholic hasn't exercised much power.

Of course cheney is going to claim credit for all the bush crime family triumphs. What would one expect him to say ? That he spent the eight years in a Hazeldon treatment facility ?

The bush cheney crime family's 3 greatest triumphs :

1. They erased the disappointments of the Clinton years,

2. They weren't removed from office,

3. They prevented bin ladin from destroying New Orleans,

Craig, you're so right.

"Americans can be quite forgiving unless you stubbornly deny that anything is wrong."

Most often it's the COVER-UP that's more of a problem.

tt

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