Craig Crawford's Trail Mix

So glad to be first on this column Craig. Good luck with being a quitter. Your heart and lungs will love you for it. You have my full support and I believe you can do it!

~ Alicia
now smoke-free for 19.5 years

Today's song:

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

to the folks filling those sandbags
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKM4bn4kS-0&feature=related

yeah, yeah, it's probably the wrong red river. seems like every state has one. it's the thought that counts....and i'm thinking hard for those folks today as their river crests and their lives see a sea change.

If they tax cigarettes as a sin -- then alcohol prices should triple and quadruple as well.

Good luck Craig! I still smoke and am definitely ashamed of the habit. I started when I was a fetus, that is because my mom smoked. I lived with two smokers growing up. I tried many times, the last one was last year after I fell down the stairs and had a compression fracture. I was in the hospital a week where I couldn't smoke and then continued for 4 months, until we had a hurricane scare.

While helping to lift a generator 4 times I stirred up some severe back pain and later found that I had two more vertebral compression fractures I didn't know about. I was in excruciating pain and the entire town was evacuated and no where to get any pain meds. I made the mistake of thinking that maybe a cigerette would help to decrease the pain and fear. It didn't but got me hooked again.

As soon as my current crises are over with I plan to quit again. People don't smoke anymore because it is fun or even enjoyable. It is a horrible addiction. It stinks, it is expensive, it is embarrasing but it is an addiction.

most people think pres obama's big government
big spending plans are ok ' just tax the rich 'they will
pay for it' there's not enough rich people in the world to
pay for that kind of spending'''
everybody's gonna pay one way or another'''
a raise in the federal gas tax will be next'

"If they tax cigarettes as a sin -- then alcohol prices should triple and quadruple as well."

patsi, how about taxing gluttony, greed, avarice and the rest of the "sins"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct8HYm10tlI

If you walk, they'll tax your feet.........

---geo. harrison

one thing about government no matter what party is
in power 'they can find a million and one ways to
spend money' not one 'not even one way not to spend'
no matter what the goverment takes in revenue they
will spend that and then some 'every time

thats a good idea '' tax fat people'' the more you weigh
the more you pay

the purpose of a bureaucracy is to perpetuate itself......

I am watching MoJo this AM because I am off work to get my thyroid gland blasted this morning, one of my crises out of the way.

MoJo just reported something from Bob Secter and Andrew Zajac that said that Rahn had a 14 mo stint at Freddie Mac where he made $320,000 for little effort. It goes on to say that what is less known is how little he did for his money and how he benefited from the kind of cozy ties between Washington and Wallstreet that have fueled the nation's current economic mess.

This is just another example of all the connections between people in the government and people on Wallstreet. I don't see how there can ever be a reasonable fix of this financial crisis under these circumstances. They just recycle people from government to big business and back.

I don't even think the black Knight in shining armor can save the day. His army is too full of good old boys with conflicts of interest too numerous to count. What are we peons to do?

Craig and other quitters!

How selfish can you be – your concern for your own health (and others not breathing your after breath) will not only impact the tax collections – but how will the tobacco companies continue to pay the fines from all of the law suites? Many states and individuals have benefited from these legal settlements.

Oh yea, and next you will talk about how you help to reduce the cost to the healthcare system when you do not have complicated co morbidity issues later in life. This along with the fat trend in the US being among the leading cost drivers in Healthcare.

You could cause real problems by eating Right and excersie

So good for you and us! Guess we may also have you around a lot longer……

"how about taxing gluttony, greed, avarice and the rest of the "sins"

Absolutely. Diabetes is a killer...tax all fattening foods...

Since I don't drink and am under weigh at this particular time, I am all for a alcohol tax and a tax based on every pound over desired body weigh. Now I may have to axe that last tax after I get my hyperthyroid fixed and start gaining weigh fast.

Sturg - Golden !
Could that be the first music video?

Back at ya... Maybe Craig's new song.. I aint got no cigerattes.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhApYxZisBI

Great memories

ct - I will trade you some of my hypothyroid as without that little pill... ballon time.

The guy I work with said he was quitting smoking this week. For 2 days, he didn't smoke at work. He has been smoking since then. He said he will quit completely eventually. He said he has gone from smoking 2 packs a day to smoking 1 pack a day. I guess he's got a gradual plan to quit. Cigarettes went up in Michigan too. I think they are about $7.00 a pack now.

Ping I have probably been hyperthyroid for 30 years, didn't have it diagnosed until 10 years ago. I enjoyed the ability to graze all day long without weight gain. I did treat it but kept it high enough to keep the weight and cholesterol down, two pros for hyperthyroidism. Only one little con, it accelerates osteoporosis and It finally took it's toll on my bones. After 4 pelvic fractures and three vertebral fractures I have to give it up.

I am going in for my toxic dose of radioactive iodine this am. Had to be off all anti-thyroid meds for a month before and that has been hell. These last three days I had to stay away from work, I was afraid I might kill someone.

good morning gang...

Carol.... I wish you the best with what you're going through and I hope all goes well with the blasting today....

Craig... people bitch when the government doesn't help them.... and they bitch when the government does.... see.... the government is helping you to quit smoking..... so what you bitchin' about..... :0)

although I will admit that if the government takes Patsi's suggestion and doubles the price of my bottles of wine..... I'd turn into a raving bitch pronto....

Fewer smokers with more of the tax burden on them. Sounds like the shrinking middle class.

~If the re-legalization of alcohol helped bring us out the depression (despite the fact that acohol is a depressant), shouldn't Obama be pushing cigarettes? I mean, we haven't outsourced cigarette making to China, have we? Plus, think of all the risidual heat cigarettes give off.~

Seriously, glad you're off the butts Craig. The kiddies be danged.

Maybe they should focus on companies that put out junk food & junk food ingredients like corn syrup, as well as a sin tax on us Twinkie users.

How many times have you seen the pro-corn syrup ad? I see it almost every day here. Are the drug companies who benefit from the sale of medications for chronic diseases helping to fund it, or is this just a win-win for them where they don't pay, they just get more customers?

What would happen if, in addition to doing things like shutting of the lights for an hour this weekend, we all loaded up on veggies at the farmers' market & ate healthy a few days a week?

If only we could get the terrorists to smoke & eat crap. Why do they have the healthier life style? (Except for the part where they strap bombs to themselves. That's truly sick.)

Craig, If you haven't already done it, get yourself a quit-buddy to commiserate with and to help you over the rough spots. From your last attempts, you know that cravings go away after a while. The longer you are smoke-free, the shorter the duration of those cravings and the further apart they become.

I join Alicia in saying you can do it if you put your mind to it.

Now, with spring weather in Washington, it's time to open up the windows getting all that trapped smoke out of casa Crawford.

Before you know it, you'll be incredibly, deservedly proud of yourself!

The guy I work with said, "I quit smoking today and I also put a vegetable in my mouth. What a shock to my system today was!" I hope he can finally quit samoking, but we'll see. I was more worried that he'd be in a bad mood at work because he was quitting.

Good Luck Craig. I quit after more than 30 years and have been enjoying that extra $300 a month ever since (sorry about that kids).

Taxing something you don't want is a great way to get rid of it or create a black market ... take your pick because both are probably true. Being all noble "for the kids" is just plain stupid. You can't budget something that is going to disappear if the tax works the way it is supposed to.

Politicians should be honest enough to say, that tax is going to pay off debts (bonds whatever) for as long as it lasts, but the income from that source won't be considered as part of the budget.

Carol, is this your 'special' Friday? If so, best wishes for the procedure!

I have had this thought that those who strap on those bombs might have been purposely addicted to heroin. A couple of days before they are to do the dirty deed they cut them off. That just might make it easier for someone to want to blow themselves up.

If they smoked and ate crap they wouldn't have the desire or energy to blow themselves up.

ah.... the tax man....

here in lovely New Hampshire.... we have no income or sales tax.... we rely heavily on local property taxes (which are high) and rooms and meals taxes (that being so we can get our money from all them foreigners called "tourists")

there is a faction that wants to change the above by instituting a "small" income tax as they say it is a fairer way to tax being based on one's ability to pay..... I used to side with these people....

but after having it explained to me that government will not only spend every dime it collects but always be looking for more..... and it will always eventually raise the tax rate..... by someone who opposed the above, I started thinking....

and after seeing the neighboring state, Massachusetts (state of my birth and nicknamed Taxachusetts) which has every tax you can think of..... and yet it's property taxes are getting dangerously close to looking like NH.... I've decided opponents of taxes are right....

if you give it to them.... they will use it....
and raise it again and again.....

Recently they had this news story about red meat and heart disease. About 20 years ago there was this big article in one of the news magazines about a study of the relationship between iron and coronary artery disease.

It did make a lot of sense in why women were more protected prior to menopause, why diets high in red meat was a risk factor etc.. There was even stories about cardiologists giving blood to keep themselves a little anemic. I still think that there probably is a connection.

It kind of dissappeared after a short while. Just think about how much of a big business heart disease is for Docs, hospitals, big pharma. If we could all just give a frequent pint of blood to protect ourselves a lot of businesses would lose a lot of money.

mornin'.

Chin up, Craig - one of my colleagues started wuitting just over a year ago - he uses these little orange-flavored "mints". If he's any indication, you've got a lifetime to enjoy that gum.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214334

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214346

Patsi, bite your tongue. (That's all that's left - besides, they don't have a gum for alcohol, gluttony, greed, avarice or the rest of the "sins".) :-)

Ping - "Many states and individuals have benefited from these legal settlements." Of course most of the individuals that have benefitted had "J.D." after their names. :-)

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214351

Carol,

Good luck with the procedure. I hope the situation continues to improve.

If you are interested in the relationship of iron and coronary artery disease here is a good link:

http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/159/14/1542

Craig, Go visit the hypnotist. It really will help give a boost to the will power.

ct, "About 20 years ago there was this big article in one of the news magazines about a study of the relationship between iron and coronary artery disease. " You had me worried there for a minute. I thought you said there was a relationship between IRONY and heart disease. I'd be dead tomorrow.

I tried to do a tinyurl for this, but it wouldn't work:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-mehno/dont-mess-with-three-stoo_b_179425.html

This is a funny smackdown of the idea of a Three Stooges remake. Best line I've read in years...Mehno says the film will be "banished to the bin of eternal suckdom."

Funny Pogo but actually if that was the case you would have been dead a long time ago.

Pogo

Don't worry. My backbone is made of irony and it improves your life expectancy.

The purpose of cigarette taxes is to get people to stop smoking (the fact in this case it goes to children's healthcare is incidental.)

One of the other reasons for increased cost is no more tax dollars support the tobacco industry and of course the increase in the cost of fuel ...

Alicia got the message just right --you will be happier and healthier but it is always hard to say goodby to a close friend.

Fairness of taxes, everyone has a complaint. Mine is Leon Panetta left California in the middle of a discussion about tax reform and now what once was a great opportunity to change the way we pay for state government has been left to Governor Arnie, the clueless.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214368

ct, or at least at risk. Speaking of Irony, I got an e-mail from one of my friends who is presenting an ETHICS presentation to AIG in thier NYC offices this morning. As if that's not ironic enough, he was asking for smart ass comments about AIG changing the name on the building - which they are doing today apparently. Any suggestions? I'll pass them along. (My sugestion was to note that their might be some ethical consideration surrounding AIG trying to distance itself from itself. - OK, that was poor, but it was the best I could come up with on short notice.)

A number of places have considered junk food taxes --at the same time junk food is being excluded from schools-- it works the same way as the cigarette taxes. Recently NY state considered a tax on soda but IMO left out diet sodas which are just as bad.

"At one point in my haste to improve myself, I mixed up the telephone numbers of the Shick Center for the Control of Smoking and the Evelyn Woods Speed Reading School. As a result, I can now smoke up to 300 cigarettes a minute, but I gave up reading." - George Carlin

Placing higher and higher taxes on the dying shrinking cigarettes industry will do 2 things. Cause those companies to go out of business and/or move their production off shore. 2. The added tax was suppose to fund the "children" health program. With a drop in cigarette smoking resulting in less tax money being collected the question is where will Big GOVCO look to make up the difference?

jamie, I'm just glad to see that the irony industry in the US, unlike the iron industry, is doing wuite well thank you very much.

"pre-tax gouging"

.. love that term. Seems to me a lot of 'gouging' has been going on for a while now.

Craig, You said you were going to stop anyway. Maybe this is just a good excuse. :) (p.s. You'll be saving a lot more than $400 month Craig. You'll be saving your life.)

"Being all noble "for the kids" is just plain stupid. "

Jamie, Maybe that was to make it more palatable to the tax payers.

Bob, Jack and others have been growing things. Here are some great links for those who make things to do a lot of good.

http://tinyurl.com/dkatgm

Good Morning.

Could someone please give me a rational explanation for stepping up (spending more money) the war in Afghanistan without mentioning Osama Bin Ladin?

one thing I've learned over the years....

you can find a study that finds a correlation between anything.....

want to prove that eating red meat is bad for you... you can find it....
want to prove that eating read meat is good for you.... you can find it....

want to prove eggs cause high cholesterol..... you can find it...
want to prove that the cholesterol in eggs has nothing to do with the cholesterol in your body.... you can find it...

hey.... I see they now have a study that proves caffeine is actually good for you...

I recently read a book that says 80% of people will regain a weight loss in 3 years and 98% will regain it in 5.... that the truth is most people can expect to comfortably maintain a weight loss of only 10%..... which means if you're 50 lbs overweight.... you can comfortably maintain a weight loss of 5 lbs...
don't know if it's true.... but it sure made me feel good reading it.... :0)

Craig,

You need this last kick in the ass to quit smoking, but you aren't alone.

Back in 1967? My father quit smoking cold turkey because he was incensed that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts would put a tax doubling the price of cigarettes...they went from 25 cents to 50 cents.

I'm sure he swore up a storm in Creole and that was it. I think that move is one of the reasons he is still in excellent health today at the age of 76.

I have another friend who saved $2000 the first year she quit smoking and that includes the cost of alternatives...so start saving the money and your health!

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214373

LOL Corey! There' will NEVER be another George Carlin.

Bear! Stick around.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214376

Chloe,

Probably, but I prefer honesty.

Of course I've seen a lot of "do gooder" commercials promising after school programs and medical services for low income children where you just shake your head and wonder if the sponsors are really that dimwitted.

Good to see you, Bear.

Hell, look at all the problems blogging has caused some of us! LOL!

yes you can find a study that will say anything but it is important to look at who paid for it and who did it....

My employers made the national news:

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Johnson-Controls-to-cut-jobs-apf-14763886.html

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214383

I don't know Jamie. I think children are a big passion with both of the Obama's. Therefore, I think we may see some improvements. I feel sure they'll at least try. They may have to wait a while, but it'll happen, imo.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214378

OSH,

Pakistan and India both have nuclear weapons.

If the tribal disturbances in Afghanistan spill over into Pakistan in a major way, the problems we have had up till now will be penny ante by comparison. A distablilized Pakistan with its nuclear weapons would make a truly horrid attack at some point in India, Europe or possibly even the US almost a foregone conclusion.

TiR - the tobacco companies have anticipated this for years. In 1985 Philip Morris became Altria - go check out what they have bought and sold since then - hint - > 25% iof SABMiller (2nd largest brewer in the world) and Kraft Foods. They spun off their ownership in both Kraft and Philip Morris to their shareholders, but you can bet they aren't sitting on their "smoking" tobacco holdings alone.

http://www.altria.com/about_altria/1_6_1_altriastory.asp

That's not a good way to make the news Corey.

'yes you can find a study that will say anything but it is important to look at who paid for it and who did it...."

... always consider the source.

Jamie,

I see you replied to my post yesterday about the UK Postal Code dispensing cancer fighting drugs. You first said they did away with it 6 years ago, then you said they will do away with it this year. Sad to report it is still in use today. I presented that sites because unlike most posting here it provided numerous references, both from the medical, government communities from here, the UK, Canada and elsewhere, to back up their claims. It wasn't a right wing site as it publishes a piece by Nicholas D. Kristof, a reporter who is anything but right wing. lol

Chloe,

I'm sure the Obamas are absolutely committed to improving conditions for children. I'm just saying that you can't depend on a tax that is meant to disappear to fund those changes.

The changes needed long term by children needs funding in the budget. That means cutting some items while increasing taxes in more stable income sources to pay for the benefits
.

If you want to continue to smoke and save money, roll your own. Most of the guys on my press crews that smoke roll their own. Saves them a lot of money, but often looks like they are smoking joints.

KGC....
I agree.... it is important to see who funded the study....

just remember that medicine and science has it's dogmas also....
people will come up with a cherished theory..... publish books that support their point of view ( leaving out all evidence that's to the contrary)....

after all.... their professional reputations are on the line and everyone wants a star and or program named after them.....

I've been reading diet books since the age of 13.... people swore by their cherished views..... swore it would work and make you thin, beautiful, and oh so healthy.... turns out most of them were crap.... but I'm sure they made their authors lots of money at the time....

A little P.S.A. about the dangers of smoking:

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

Pogo
Instead of AIG...what about BFF Bailedout for Failing

I don't recommend quitting red meat. I am a cattlewoman. Just eat smaller portions and give a pint of blood every six weeks if you qualify to give blood.

If you eat more seafood you probably consume more toxins.

Bowmanc, Michigan just raised the taxes of the "roll your own" tobacco". It's not cheap any more.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214393

TIR You really have to read everything I write if you are going to criticize it.

They stopped the medical services (i.e. surgeries etc.) by postal code with local control six years ago. They still use the local control model for drugs particularly with experimental drugs (i.e. herceptin). This model has been under review and is expected to be changed this year.

Did you see the link for the young woman here who is having to collect from others to pay for her treatment now that her insurance has maxed out? Did you see the notes about getting herceptin here, you had to be in a trial group and that no insurance pays for it only the drug company?

RR

Absolutely --I've been a little porker most of my adult life and when I finally did the common sense things (gave up coca cola and chicken wings) and eat less meat more fruits and vegetables voila lost 35 pounds. I still eat red meat and have a coke from time to time but it's not part of my daily diet anymore.

ct, I quit worrying so much about which meat I eat - I figured the stress of worrying about probably did more damage than what's in it. KC has the right idea - add a daily walk around the block and she's on the Opus diet.

"I still eat red meat and have a coke from time to time but it's not part of my daily diet anymore."

None of the stuff you eat once in a while matters. It's what you eat everyday that does.

KGC...
I've lost weight too.... and have gained it back.... lost it again..... gained it back again.... now I eat sensibly..... some meat.... lots of veggies (which I love).... some fruit.... whole grain bread.... I do drink a glass of wine with my supper... and an occasional sinful thing like a cookie.... I've now maintained my weight within a few lbs for the last 5 yrs..... I am overweight.... and a diabetic....
but my blood work (done every 3 months) comes back with good readings....
I am in control and my cholesterol numbers are fine....

I have learned to accept my body weight.... I will diet no more....
I do wish you much luck in maintaining your weight loss....

and now.... I must really get back to work.... I'm having too much fun here again.....

meanwhile, back on the briny sea
http://af.reuters.com/article/somaliaNews/idAFLQ19825920090326?sp=true

pogo,

From that site you posted, a slight mistake. It wasn't 1985 as you posted it was 2003.

'2003
On January 27, Altria Group becomes the name of the parent company of Kraft Foods, Philip Morris International, Philip Morris USA and Philip Morris Capital Corporation."

Actually Philip Morris is now 2 separate companies. Altria which is Philip Morris USA, and Philip Morris International PMI. Philip Morris USA has drastically curtailed their cigarette manufacturing for export, that is mostly being handled by their, PMI,. factories overseas

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214371

Pogo

AIG (American International Group) is changing its name to AIU (American International Underwriters).

We need to come up with something sarcastic for AIU

Yes, as a consumer of medical research for 37 years I agree that you do have to be a little skeptical of results. You need to look at methodology and also consider who is funding the research.

Years ago I when I was a grad student in nursing doing my clinical at one of the Texas hospitals that specialized in hearts I worked with a cardiologist who smoked. Very rare. He had just read some research that concluded that people who quit smoking had a significant elevation in blood pressure. He told me that was going to continue to smoke because he would rather have a heart attack than a stroke. With research you can find some study to support what you want to do.

President Obama will be on TV this morning at 9:25. Like right now, talking about his Afghan strategy

TiR, you are correct - the Altria name wasn't adopted until 2003, but the company formed in 1985.

"Although the company today known as Altria Group has only been in existence since 1985, our operating companies have roots that stretch back, in some instances well over 150 years."

The Axis of Upheaval
Forget Iran, Iraq, and North Korea—Bush’s “Axis of Evil.” As economic calamity meets political and social turmoil, the world’s worst problems may come from countries like Somalia, Russia, and Mexico. And they’re just the beginning.

"After nearly a decade of unprecedented growth, the global economy will almost certainly sputter along in 2009, though probably not as much as it did in the early 1930s, because governments worldwide are frantically trying to repress this new depression. But no matter how low interest rates go or how high deficits rise, there will be a substantial increase in unemployment in most economies this year and a painful decline in incomes. Such economic pain nearly always has geopolitical consequences. Indeed, we can already see the first symptoms of the coming upheaval."
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4681

Nice pictures of Hillary in Mexico a couple days ago. She always looks like she's having a good time.
http://hillary.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/03/26/hillary_clinton_in_mexico_photos

AIU - Amateur Investment Union?

pogo

I walk around the block too --The Commander insists on going out otherwise the results are unpleasant in the cracker household...and we do pick up after the Commander as well.
I'm not running at the moment because I am having some foot problems as yet unresolved.

The Opus diet is also the Marion Nestle diet not too mention many other people... Basically the moderation diet...The US produces something like 4000 calories a day in food per person...that doesn't mean we each should be eating that...

I knew you were on the Opus diet - Milo would be proud.

"The US produces something like 4000 calories a day in food per person..."

... wow! I didn't know that.

Old Sea --

I just sent you an e-mail so you know to look for it...

Not to put him on a pedestal or anything (:-)), but here's Krugman's column from today's Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/opinion/27krugman.html?_r=1

And a little economic news - consumer spending is up (a little) for the 2nd consecutive month.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/business/economy/28econ.html?hp

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214419

chloe, and a fair portion of that is in C3, C4 and C5 in our snack machine at work - which, combined with a pocketful of change and no will power, explains why my formerly skinny body struggles not to become confused with a beached whale when we go on our Thanksgiving sojourns to the beach.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214422

LOL Pogo! A fellow junk food lover.

craig...imagine if they decriminalized marijuana and taxed it. They could send every child to college.

I already read Krugman this morning - and it is more of the same. Criticizing the current plan without offering a viable alternative.

Well I guess that is not true - he always offers the solution of nuking Wall St. and starting all over again.

Maybe I am drinking the Wall. St. Kool-Aid - but I don't think ALL securitization is bad. Fact is that it started in the late 70's and served us pretty well for years. The problem is bad lending. Yes - securitization encouraged that. But it seems that improving our lending practices is a better alternative than throwing out securitization.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214415

Agrigious Investments Unwise

Pogo

Go ahead and put him on a pedestal. That column should be must read. I know we can't go back to the days when your friendly neighborhood banker would call and ask if you had failed to desposit a payroll check because you were about to overdraft, but it would be nice to know that you were dealing with one that wasn't taking your deposits to some sort of financial Vegas.

wino:

I think Obama's short and dismissive response to the legalization question at the virtual town hall yesterday showed us two things:

-He does not have a decent rational argument against it.

-It is a political third rail that he does not want to touch right now.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214424

I'm with you Blonde -- every kid could go to college, health care for all, and a more copacetic country. With all the smokin' and tokin' and no one would care anymore if they don't have a job or lost their houses. Less fuel consumption since everyone would drive reeaaallll sloooowww....

I thought Obama's response to the marijuana issue showed how shallow he really is and what a dip he is

someone should remind him that most of the people in jail for minor marijana offenses are black and that the laws were started and are continued to allow harassment of minorities.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214424

Blond,

Maybe not, but quite a few gardens would have pretty new plants.

warren...I believe you are right as it is much easier to keep the decision at state level. It's just that pesky DEA....and that is a change he can make.

chloe, I developed my sweet tooth on Zero bars and Coke, which as I matured evolved to Snickers and Diet Coke (I know), with a side obsession for Sheetz's no bake peanut butter cookies. And that doesn't even count the love I have for all things pastry.

diva - Agrigious? LOL

Imagine if they legalized steroids! A-Rod might hit 60 this year...Bonds would hold the HR record....Clemens might have won over 300 games....
Now, if they legalized prostitution...it would make life so much easier for politicians.

Diva...food consumption would increase, too.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214425

Warren,

Securitization wasn't the problem. It was the merger of the banking, insurance, and underwriting to create the "financial services" industry without adequate regulation or oversight.

Instead of a checks and balances system of several separate types of entities we had a hodge podge that could shuffle and deal all over the place until all those securities exceeded the amounts of the loans on which they were based.

Additionally on the pot question Obama tried to diminish the interest by making a lame joke implying the online communities were a bunch of stoners instead of recognizing that people think the marijuana laws are stupid and expensive and make no sense.

I guess he hadn't read the Mother Jones poll indicating more people support legalization of pot then think Republicans are worth anything

KGC...good spot on another lame joke by Obama.

I can grow my own weed in Michigan, provided it's for medical purposes. I never realized how many people want weed legal. I guess I'm mssing out on something.

The sports industry legalized the use of steroids with the press to break records ...now they are just trying to cover it up

Here's a link to a history of MJ laws in the US. Buckle up - it's a long ride.

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/LIBRARY/studies/nc/nc2.htm

If they legalized drugs, that Amy Winehouse song would have never been popular. LOL!

corey...hemp makes great paper and fuel. It is easy and cheap to grow. It has wonderful medical properties including ability to prevent strokes in some cases (Scientific American). I have often wondered "why" the medical community has not created a spray inhaler for the stuff. It is the smoke and smell that I believe offensive for most folks.

Corey

I don't think the majority support for legalization comes from people who want to fire up a doobie. I think it comes from the recognition that it is a stupid waste of money to make it illegal.

I think a legal sex industry is also not a problem. It works in Nevada. Why do some people think they have the right to restrict the activities of others simple because they want to take a false moral stand --what a bunch of poop.

warren, I don't know enough about the financial industry to know whether Krugman is right or wrong about the root causes of the near collapse of the financial services industry. I would like to know, considering the state of that industry and its effect on the overall economy (which considering that it's share of GDP is - or was - roughly 8%), how you see securitization as having served us well since the 70s. And fair warning - this is going to cause me to have to do some research and learn something in order to throw things up to discuss.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214421

"After 1980, of course, a very different financial system emerged. In the deregulation-minded Reagan era, old-fashioned banking was increasingly replaced by wheeling and dealing on a grand scale. The new system was much bigger than the old regime: On the eve of the current crisis, finance and insurance accounted for 8 percent of G.D.P., more than twice their share in the 1960s."

Pogo, that Krugman piece was jam packed with 'facts'. Like he said, sooner or later, things were bound to go wrong, and eventually they did.

"...the underlying vision remains that of a financial system more or less the same as it was two years ago.....I don’t share that vision......I don’t think this is just a financial panic; I believe that it represents the failure of a whole model of banking, of an overgrown financial sector that did more harm than good. I don’t think the Obama administration can bring securitization back to life, and I don’t believe it should try."

Do you agree with him? Because I think I do.

oops, pogo. I guess you just answered that in your 10:20

Did you ever see the HBO show called "Dream On"? The main character found a joint in his son's bedroom dresser. He then scolded him and told him how bad drugs were. His buddy stopped by and reminded him about how much fun they had smoking weed. So, they decided to get high. They got the munchies and ordered in Chinese food. As the one guy was ordering his friend kept yelling "BEEF AND BROCCOLI! BEEF AND BROCCOLI!" He tells the guy taking the order, "Oh! 4 beef and broccolis too!"

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214446

KC, I think somehow that's tied to religion and convervative politics - but hey, what do I know?

I just never could get the hang of smoking. Couldn't inhale. Really. Also, usually left the house and forgot the pack I'd bought with just one cigarette used. I think there was 20 to a pack. Would buy another pack, take one, and forget again the next time. Finally gave up trying - gave all the 19-cigarette packs I'd collected to my sister.

chloe - my 10:20 wasn't an answer. Really. It was meant to be a question of warren, whose viewpoint is apparently about 180 degrees divergent from Krugman's. I'm honestly not knowledgable enough to know what the different views on theissue are, much less to have a solid opinion about their merits.

Must head out...Jamie thanks for the info you posted a couple of day ago, after much wrangling with the hospital and doctors, the ablation takes place on Monday. I hope the surgeon has a wonderful weekend and loves to work on Monday mornings.

Blonde, I haven't caught up yet. Is your husband going to pre-op on Sunday still?

"We need to come up with something sarcastic for AIU"

as**oles is us

KC, I think somehow that's tied to religion and convervative politics - but hey, what do I know? pogo

Those who practice the religion and politics of hypocrisy

How would they handle legalizing weed? Treat it like alcohol? Can't drink and drive....can't smoke and drive? You can use it at home and in public?

hey.... I just had to sneak a peek in here again.... guess I don't feel much like working this morning....

I haven't smoked pot for 25 yrs..... I think it should be legal.... I have no problem with legalizing prostitution.... IMO.... it's crazy to let some things like booze, gambling, cigarettes, etc. be legal while saying other sinful things (which will always be with us as long as humans are humans) is illegal....

but I do want to tell my father's story.....
he had a quadruple bypass 9 yrs ago.... he's now on oxygen 24/7....

I was with him for a consultation with his cardiologist after he recovered from his bypass surgery.... the doctor told him he must quit smoking... he told the doctor he'd quit 20 yrs earlier.... the doctor said that's funny as his lung xrays looked like he was a current heavy smoker.... that's when he admitted to the doctor that he never gave up smoking pot..... the doctor said there's your problem....

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214454

Didn't see this Blonde. Best of luck! Glad things are back on track.

Is your Dad Willie Nelson, Renee? :)

Posted by: Corey Author Profile Page | March 27, 2009 10:31 AM

Yes --it would be treated and regulated like alcohol..can't smoke and drive, and the smoking laws would apply as well

and no underage use either.

"We need to come up with something sarcastic for AIU"
as**oles is us

patd.... ROFL!.... that gets my vote for post of the day.....

ps just to be clear since you can ingest pot in other ways

you cannot drive high no matter how it got into your system

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214446

ksg, absolutlety a "stupid waste of money"... aside from the revenue issue, costs are astronomical for state and fed law enforcement, courts, prison system etc. and it's an opportunity to regulate and cut down on health and social risks as well as helping to curtail addiction and abuse....

oh.... and Corey....
HBO stole the idea for that scene from the Marx Brother's Night At The Opera....
the one where Chico keeps ordering hard boiled eggs every time Harpo honks his little horn....

My friend is a cop, KGC. Years ago, he worked the night shift. He would drive through black neighborhoods in the middle of the night and see a stray car or two parked on the street. Usually with 1 white guy in the car. He would ask the guy, "What are you doing in this neighborhood at this time of the night?" The guy would usally say, "I'm just waiting for a friend." My friend would say to him, "Bullshit. You are either waiting to score drugs or waiting to get a blowjob! Get outta here!"

Corey, I think you and KC are exactly right. When pot is legalized, it will be regulated and taxed, and alcohol will likely be the model.

pogo:

I think Krugman is trying to "prove too much" by focusing on what has occurred recently, i.e., subprime lending getting out of control.

My point is that securitization can be a good thing when it is based on the mortgages of responsible people that pay their bills, i.e., the large majority of borrowers of so-called "prime" loans.

Securitization of prime loans increased lenders' ability to give responsible people loans. It increased the liquidity in the mortgage market and allowed a lot of hard working Americans the chance to own their own home.

Now here is the basic rational behind securitization: no one really wants to hold onto a mortgage as an investment. This is because it usually has a low rate of return over a long period of time (15-30 years). However, you can make that investment more attractive by pooling together a large number of loans to provide a significant sum of capital in the here and now.

Now we all now you need a lot of money to make money when it comes to investing. So theoretically, an investment bank - should be able to wisely invest the capital obtained from the securitization and get a better rate of return on that money than the rate of interest paid on each individual mortgage. To me that makes rational sense.

The problem occurs when (1) securitizations are based on risky loans, and (2) the money from securitizations is put into risky investments.

So I think the government and Wall St. should focus on eliminating these two problem areas as opposed to scrapping securitization entirely.

I am so glad to know I didn't cause the world financial crisis, now that the Brazilians have said it was because of white people with blue eyes. My eyes are hazel. So I'm in the clear.

Hopefully the new pot laws will skip the alcohol distribution model which created wholesaler monopolies and has been a problem for small wineries.

Obama for someone who wants real change showed himself to be chicken-sh-t in an area where it could make a difference

instead of standing up to conventional (and in this case false)wisdom he make a cheap shot joke. True I have never liked him and this just confirms what i always thought --

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214433 "Snickers and Diet Coke (I know)"

LOL Pogo! Just caught this post. Sounds like a perfect combo to me. Except, I'd probably make it a butterfinger. :) (and agree, all things pastry, of course!)

geez Patsi....
guess I should scrap those plans of vacationing in Brazil....

Warren.... it's great to see you here again..... I've stopped watching Lost....
I missed a few episodes and now I can't figure out what the hell is going on....

"Why aren't there any recreational drugs taken in suppository form?" - George Carlin

" Would buy another pack, take one, and forget again the next time. Finally gave up trying - gave all the 19-cigarette packs I'd collected to my sister. "

ROFL@Ivy! Years back a music executive friend of mine was trying to quit smoking. There's a little market near Music Row that we all went to, and for months, every time I went in I could expect a free pack or two. This guy would stop in, buy a pack, smoke one, then leave it with the owner for me. I loved it.

"smoking pot..... the doctor said there's your problem...."

renee, check the health of the rest of the family living with him.....even getting the smoke second hand is a problem. no matter what the substance. breathing in burning paper, fibers, petroleum, whatever is harmful.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214469

... mine too Patsi. So it wasn't me either.

Patsi, I saw Jamie refer to your 3 blogs. Please share.

I don't know about anybody else, but I got an old familiar feeling when Obama was talking about importance of more troops for Afghanistan and how 3000 innocents were lost on 9/11, etc....

"even getting the smoke second hand is a problem."

Patd, The latest is even 'third' hand smoke is harmful to children. On clothes, drapes, furniture, etc.

Change we can believe in.

I think another argument re: legalization that must be addressed is that pot is a "gateway" drug.

I think pot is a gateway drug precisely because it is illegal. In other words, kids are told that alcohol is legal and acceptable. But pot, cocaine, meth, etc. are illegal and bad.

As kids grow up, they see people using pot - and it doesn't seem so bad. They might even see some responsible and successful adults using it. Then they try it - and it turns out - it ain't so bad. You don't get as out of control as you do on booze - and you certainly don't feel as bad in the morning.

So now that you have tried one illegal drug - I certainly acknowledge that you may be more willing to try others.

However, if pot is made legal and kids are informed that there is a significant difference between pot and dangerous illegal drugs such as cocaine and meth - than pot is no longer a "gateway" drug.

Pot is not a gateway drug another pile of poop

there is no evidence to support that statement

Marijuana Not A Gateway To Hard Drug Use, Rand Study Says
Conclusions Raise Serious Doubts Regarding The Legitimacy Of U.S. Drug Policy
Share This Page Share This Page on del.icio.us Share This Page on digg Share This Page on Stumble Upon Share This Page on Facebook Share This Page on Twitter

December 3, 2002 - Washington, DC, USA
http://www.rand.org/news/press.02/gateway.html

"Pot is not a gateway drug another pile of poop"

LMAO Katherine.
Don't you think it's more fun for teenagers because it's illegal? :)

warren - somebody ends up holding the low return for 15-30 year mortgages. That's the part that never made any sense to me. And I agree that securitization could work as a vehicle for responsible investing - if I understand the history of the practice, it existed for about half its history before the risky investments that arose in the mid 90s, and existed since then for just a scosh less than it had prior, then it collapsed. To Krugman's credit, he only has the history of securitization that has existed since the practice began to work with - you seem to be saying that it could have worked if the risky loans hadn't been let and the risky investments hadn't occurred. I'm pretty sure that he isn't condemining securitization in whole cloth, but is condeming unregulated securitization - which sounds like what you are saying, the difference being that Krugman would have the practice regulated, and you would leave it to the lenders and investors to self regulate. Is that right or am I misreading what you're suggesting?

Katherine, I was laughing at the wording, not the point you were making. I actually transposed in my brain, and read 'getaway' drug, for some reason. 'til I reread it.

patsi, your post has a lot of blue eyes crying in the rain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6wBxQVBozI&feature=related

btw, wasn't there a book about a decade ago that argued most of the evils of the world have been brought about by blue-eyed people?

Chloe

For the same reasons kids drink... A couple of years ago I talked to a number of parents who smoked pot about their attitudes towards their kids smoking pot. I was surprised at the number of people who smoked with their kids ..but it was sort of what you are talking about...taking the fun out of it by making it ok.

Michael Pollan in his book the Botany of Desire talks about the history of getting high.... The book isn't just about pot but about tulips and apples too. Johnny Appleseed planted the trees for the purposes of sweetners and alcohol.

hey guys....
I just remembered something..... back when I was convinced that vegetarianism was the way to go... I read as many books on the subject as I could get my hands on....

one such book.... and I forget it's title..... not only advocated no meat and eating only organic whole foods.... the author was convinced that a lot of chronic diseases were caused by parasites people picked up from their pets..... therefore, he strongly recommended that everyone get rid of all household pets....

at the time I had 4 cats and a dog..... I actually considered this proposal....
if I were to read that now..... I'd react by going to my local animal shelter and getting myself a new kitten.....

This was a story about the lead singer of Jamiroquai. It was posted on a website called "Female First".

Jamiroquai star Jay Kay was saved from an out-of-control cocaine addiction by a broke ex teenage friend - who became his boot camp commander in return for cash. Jay Kay revealed: "I bumped into an old friend Ollie. He had been on hard times financially so I said to him, 'OK, so you haven't got any money. Well I'm addicted to Class A drugs and I really need some support - if you'll help me, I'll help you. The only rule was that he made the rules and man his rules turned out to be fierce.On day one of the new regime, he had me up at 7am to go running. Then we went to the gym And that evening I went to the fridge for a beer, he was at my shoulder to say, 'No mate... No alcohol, and no spliff, either' I was thinking, 'I'm not sure I can do this." But after the gruelling 13-month get-healthy campaign, which ended last January, the handsome singer was clean and had a friend for life . He added: "I'm no longer a slurring mess of a man slumped in the corner of some VIP area, unable to talk to anyone properly and wanting only to do more drugs." "Ollie and I are bonded for life now Fate brought me the right person at just the right time." If he hadn't watched over me so well, or been so tough, I'd never have broken the chain."

Here is Jamiroquai's first big hit it's from 1996. This video got banned from MTV.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62ZXWwz0Asw

pogo:

I am not for allowing the lenders and investors to self-regulate. I realize that won't work. And I am all for government regulation. However, with one important caveat. I want it regulated by politicians that actually study this stuff and understand how it works.

Krugman on the other hand said this at the end of his column:

"As you can guess, I don’t share that vision. I don’t think this is just a financial panic; I believe that it represents the failure of a whole model of banking, of an overgrown financial sector that did more harm than good. I don’t think the Obama administration can bring securitization back to life, and I don’t believe it should try."

Now, I have been slamming Krugman recently. But - apart from his hyperbolic statement above - I really think that I agree with him on a lot of things. My main argument is with his tone and style.

I think in his op-eds and TV appearances - he stops acting like a Nobel prize award winning economist - and starts acting more like a talking head looking for "a reaction" or attention as opposed to really moving the debate forward.

warren - weren't you told when you were a kid that the reason you couldn't drindk was because it was illegal for you o do so? I was, and I've told that to my son when he's asked why his mom and I can drink wine and he can't. (That and he can forget about any new guitars if I catch him drinking before he's of legal age to do so). Hey, I know he'll do it (probably pot, too) but I knew the risks I ran with the 'rents when I was underage - and feel it only fair to let him know the consequences with us if he does. Thanks to D.A.R.E. I don't have to explain the legal risks and health consequences to him - Officer Thompson already has.

Katherine,
I just went and looked up that book you mentioned.
"Weaving fascinating anecdotes and accessible science into gorgeous prose, Pollan takes us on an absorbing journey that will change the way we think about our place in nature."

I think I might enjoy it.

patd....
my father hasn't smoked pot in 5 yrs..... he doesn't have a choice.... he's housebound and no one will bring it to him...

he still begs my brother to bring him some...... which has me wondering about the addictive properties of pot..... some claim there aren't any.... and some claim there are..... I didn't have any problem giving it up.....

Renee, Those books are all written by fanatics. Just about anything important you want to know about nutrition, has been said here by Katherine. And she uses moderation in her suggestions.

warren, OK, I've got it now. I'd read his hyperbole as recognizing that it's not possible to get the genie back in the bottle once he's out, so instead of trying to come up with fixes, scrap the practice and start over if at all. And you want it regulated by politicians who study it - as opposed to politicians who are informed about it by financial industry lobbyists? I think we'll be like Diogenes the Cynic if that's the goal.

Maybe your father just likes to get high.

We had a relative who was in a nursing home that banned alcohol but he liked a gin and tonic in the evening --so we smuggled in airline bottles...he was an alcoholic or addicted but it did give him some pleasure --why deny that

pogo:

I believe what is supposed to happen is that the people who purchase mortgage-backed securities get the right to the mortgage and interest payments and then they also get a premium on top of that.

The idea is that the lending company can make enough by investing the huge pile of cash they receive from the securitization to pay off that premium and still have some profit left over for themselves.

warren,
Oh, and I cut Krugman a fair amount of slack for his style. He's forgotten more about economics than Bush, Reagan and their advisors have ever known, he's been a harsh critic of Reaganomics and Bushanomics, and he's got a fair right to gloat over the failure of that (those) approaches IMHO.

On a slightly different note, I almost laughed my ass off yesterday seeing Boner hold up the Republican Plan for Recovery - or whatever the hell it's really called - which the analysts said was a thinly veiled repackaging of Reaganomics and Bushanomics - recovery based on tax cuts for the wealthy. I wonder what the chances of that plan getting another read is? LMAO. I guess he's trying to rebrand the Repubs from the party of "No" to the party of "oh-oh".

Good point pogo.

I guess hoping for well-informed politicians who are seeking out the best policy - as opposed to the most profitable or most popular - is as naive as hoping that Wall St. can regulate itself....

KGC...
because 5 yrs ago while at a family gathering he had a very bad reaction to some pot my brother had brought him..... it scared the crap out of all of us... but especially my mother.....

my brother doesn't feel comfortable bringing it to him any longer..... and my sister and I don't smoke and aren't about to start looking for a dealer....

otherwise.... I absolutely agree with you..... my aunts and uncles used to sneak booze into the nursing home for my grandfather..... and I think the nurses knew it....

Chloe -- my blog isn't really a blog...it's info about the book I have coming out in May -- the book company is serious about internet marketing and insisted I do one...then, after I did that, I decided to mess around with some other ideas...this one is about music or books I like, starting with the new book called How Lincoln Learned to Read:

http://booksandmusic-patsi.blogspot.com/

Craig,

I'm certain that if smoking is that important to you, you could surely "Cough Up" a few bucks more for a carton.

See y'all later

rr

Well there is always a little bit of old vine zin

too bad about the bad reaction. Something like that happened to a friend of mine -- that's why it's important to know your grower and distributor :))))

Chloe....
agree.... moderation is the way to go.... just as our mothers always said....

but you know us baby boomers..... when something caught on, we had to try it...... this was in the days of "Laurel's Kitchen" and the Diamonds "Fit For Life"...

and if you don't know about any of it .... just google the stuff in quotation marks...

BTW.... some of us use our real names in our blog monikers ( Renee is my real name).... and some of us don't.... those of us that know her well call her KGC and never "Katherine" for a reason....

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214481

Warren, There was an extensive piece about the Mexican drug cartels that mentioned pot being a "gateway" for drug dealters as well. Young kids who couldn't afford cocaine purchases can deal in pot to get some money and then move on to dealing the more expensive drugs. Legalize pot and you cut off the "gateway" for teen dealers and their movement into drug street gangs.

warren - if I understand that correctly - it could work in a perfect world in which investments are a sure thing. That world doesn't exist - or so my investment advisors remind me every time I go to adjust my 401K investments. Anyway, I don't buy it.

Then what will the young dealers do, Jamie? Collect unemployment? :)

Thanks for telling me that Renee. I appreciate it. Sorry KGC.

Patsi, I'm going to check out your site when I get back. Thanks for linking it.

Claire McCaskill just tweeted about Veterans benefits. A few days ago we had some charges of Obama not taking care of Vets, so this might be of interest:

"Just off phone with Gen Shinseki. Most don't realize that large part of increase in discretionary spending in Pres budget is for veterans."

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214511

Corey,

Cute! Maybe if we aren't spending so much money on stupid "Just Say No" programs or tieing up police in hunting down smokers, there might be some money for after school programs and apprenticeship job training.

KGC...
as I understand it..... my brother knew his source and has never had a problem.... but like a lot of the elderly.... my father is always on new medications and or having older ones doses changed..... we speculated it was one of his medications along with the pot that caused the reaction....

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214488

KGC, The next time Colorado Bob pops up, ask him about Johnny Appleseed

pogo:

It is not supposed to work everytime. And of course there is risk. But the people who purchase the securities are willing to assume that risk. And the fact that they assume that risk and infuse the system with capital - means there is more liquidity to make more loans.

And if the system works - the investment banks that do the best job of avoiding losses and making money off investments - are the ones that are rewarded.

"I guess he's trying to rebrand the Repubs from the party of "No" to the party of "oh-oh"."

Another great comment submission from Pogo

jamie:

Make it legal and you allow farmers to profit instead of cartels and hitmen.

Posted by: patd | March 27, 2009 7:11 AM :
"patsi, how about taxing gluttony, greed, avarice and the rest of the "sins" "

We already tax greed/avarice - just not enough. Make it illegal for corporate officers to serve on more than one for profit board of directors at a time. That should slow the avarice for a time.

I go for a carbon tax, plus a graduated tax on non-commercial vehicles, including vans, suvs, and pickups, that get less than 35 mpg. Both taxes to be dedicated to the replacement of carbon based energy by renewables.

For a period of 10 years, eliminate corporate income tax on company divisions of that produce solar, wind/wave, biomass, or geothermal power equipment or systems. Give a tax break for buyers/users of said equipment.

Eliminate payroll taxes for the next 2 - 3 years.

"Arrogant Rove" commercial if you've missed it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6ccxcdir4I

Actually , I'm only concerned with taking down cigarette companies.

solar, sorry you're not here to see this - lunch.

KGC... I hope I didn't overstep any personal bounds with giving Chloe that info.... it was just driving me crazy to see her and Coreen call you Katherine...
I apologize if I have....

Warren.... I definitely don't know enough to get into your and Pogo's debate.... but I am reading it with interest..... I just want to say the problem I have is with the word "risk"..... it implies that not only are there potential rewards.... but potential losses as well.... I understand why it's probably a good thing in the long run why the government ( ie taxpayers) will become responsible for some of those losses now.... but I hope it doesn't continue to happen in the future....

as "they" say.... if you can't risk losing it.... don't put the money up to begin with....

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/trailmix/2009/03/smoking-is-now-only-for-the-ri.html#comment-214520

Warren,

Being able to replace tobacco farms with Hemp wouldn't be bad either. Lots of pluses for legalization.

I've no objection to pot smokers as long as they don't do it in any room I'm in. That smell and my stomach are not in agreement. Everyone should be able to sin in their own chosen fashion as long as it doesn't injure anyone else.

NEW THREAD

Math question for all of you:

How can 2 x $16.93 come out to be $54.11?

RR

No problem....Chloe can always go with Dexter's nickname for me KatyCrack

NEW THREAD

Pot is not a gateway drug. Agreed.

Marijuana was the main cash crop for KY in the late 1700s, early 1800s. For many years, Abe Lincoln's family's cash crop was mj. The West (Kentucky was the West in the 1790s) needed tough cordage and durable garments. Mj provided the fiber for both, and a little entertainment to boot. They didn't have blogs, tv, or talk radio in those days. They had to make do with the only substances available to get their daily dose of stupid. Marijuana, whiskey, and tobacco supplied the necessary stupid.

Anywhat, just because B happens after A, does not prove there is a causal relationship. For example, I never met a doper who didn't start on milk. However, to suggest that milk is a gateway to hard drugs is just silliness.

If there are such things as gateway drugs, surely they are coffee, cigarettes, and beer.

Congratulations, Craig. I got off the obnoxious weed in 2000. May you have a long and happy quit.

Thoughts on banking and securitization.

I think the changes in law under Reagan allowing banks to open branches in any state produced a terrible outcome. It signaled the end of the era where a banker's primary responsibilities were to know his/her customers, and to make only prudent loans. Good bankers were also trusted advisers as to who were the good lawyers and accountants in town.

I see nothing wrong with securitization. That's essentially what a mutual fund is.

What has gone wrong is that the character of the loans in securitized portfolios has been misrepresented. Pogo, wouldn't that be fraud in the inducement or some such thing? Which begs the question, why should insurers pick-up the pieces for their policy holders when those holders were the miserable perps to start with?

And, if portfolios are accurately described when sold, there absolutely must be a mechanism for recharacterizing their quality as time moves forward. After all, every mutual fund is required to divulge their holdings periodically for all to see. Servicers of securitized portfolios must perform a like disclosure.