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We just woke up. Been taking a snooze. The summer went by in a haze of same old, same old. But our world has not been idle.

Gaddafi is gone, a thug killed by thugs. Gee, thanks NATO, big improvement.

The US national debt cannot be tamed because of political hacks on all sides.

The GOP presidential candidates are all…the same hacks.

Economic Wall Street commentary remains ignorant of reality, of what we at Crazy Ops predicted years ago, that the US will be in this “new normal” for quite some time, get used to it. They continue to talk of a double dip, of “another” recession. News Flash: ITS THE SAME ONE, IDIOTS.

The last 30 years, the Reagan Revolution, Supply Side, Trickle Down, Dot Coms, all built on smoke and mirrors.

The government and 99% of the population put i...

Well, it took over 3.5 years after our post on 9-11-2007 to finally get him, but we were proved wrong. Just goes to prove how hard you have to work in order to do it, but sometimes it can be accomplished.

Key points:
No Natural Causes
No More Sunbathing
Bites Dust At 54 in Firefight with elite US forces
Butch & Sundance Ending? No, he was using a woman as a shield. What a JACKA$$.

The big question now is, will the USA finally call Pakistan on the carpet for harboring this guy in a luxury compound near Pakistani Army barracks near their CAPITAL CITY? Hiding in a damp cave with a dialysis machine, really? OBL picked up a weapon and fired back before they put one in his left retina. Sounds quite spry for a 54 year old with kidney failure.

== From early news wire reports ==

Osama bin Laden, t...

Much has been written about the possible food chain effects of the earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan. Most of this has been based on the two best case scenarios of airborne and ground based radiation. This looming problem is true for Japan, Korea and their trading partners, so wise countries should ban all Japanese food imports for the foreseeable future. Sushi is now oceana-non-grata.

But therin lies the more insidious, long term problem: the ocean.

It has been proven that sea creatures migrate many thousands of miles across the Pacific, and one of the stopping points on that migration are the Japanese islands...

Some say this was karmic retribution. Not so! This is irrefutable proof of the existence of evolution.

Take that, Evangelical Christian Right Wing Nuts!

Jose Luis Ochoa, 35, of Lamont, California, was killed by his own rooster recently. The bird was armed with special cockfighting knives that caused the fatal leg wound.

Mr. Ochoa was declared dead at a hospital about two hours after he was injured in Tulare County California on Jan. 30 according to the coroner. He had been stabbed in the calf by a rooster armed with a blade attached to the rooster’s leg, which sliced into his calf, causing the “sharp force injury” cited in the autopsy report.

He was cited and fined in 2010 for participating in cockfighting. A second offense would have been a felony. So, he had fair warning...

The shooting in Tucson of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and others by Jared Lee Loughner may be tragic, but it is producing some very entertaining theater. Scratch that. It is producing some very typical reality show drivel. No, that’s not correct either.

How DO you describe a turn of events that has an unjustly accused celebrity responding with her own unjust accusation, based on an obscure anti-semetic 12th century Urban Legend?

It’s a strange, strange world we live in, Master Jack (Four Jacks And A Jill – 1967).

A dysfunctional child of a dysfunctional family rants incoherently, buys a gun and kills people.

Assigning any portion of the blame for such an event to any one person other than the shooter (lacking any factual evidence to the contrary) is speculative and unfair...

In “Empire of Lies, Kingdom of Magical Thinking”, Charles Hugh Smith (October 30, 2007) said, “We in the U.S. live in an Empire of Lies…here in the Empire of Lies, the Kingdom of Magical Thinking is only open for a limited time.”

Smith is referring to the recent real estate bubble and the delusions which led to the debacle, but he is wrong that the Kingdom is now closed. This is because Magical Thinking is not confined to a finite set of rules. Contrare; it is flexible, fluid, adaptable, a thing of beauty in the eyes of the afflicted.

It is a disease, and it is running rampant.

In late 2008, we saw the coming storm, and it has come to pass. We thought then, and now are firmly convinced that the USA (and to some extent the developed world) is in the new Age Of Reality...

With apologies to the movie Poltergiest, we are announcing our return to the internet blogosphere. During this self enforced absence, there has been much social, economic and political turmoil. No lack of raw material, for sure.

Our new plans include guest columnists and bloggers. Stay tuned.

So, sit back and relax as we continue on our journey in 2011, and have a safe and Happy New Year!

Congress is wrangling over an extension of the DTV deadline until June, or adding millions to the coupon program to get discounted boxes.

We say, do NEITHER. No more millions of coupons at $40 a crack. Switch it over right now! After all, it’s all about “public safety” and technology for the public good, right?

Just wait until these millions get their DTV boxes only to find out that fuzzy or imperfect reception now equals NO reception and a Blue Screen, instead of something at least watchable. This is truly a gambit by the saturated pay-for-tv market to force the remaining 10% of the US population who cannot, or do not wish to, add a bill for crummy programming to their already overloaded budgets, especially in these tough economic times.

Remember, this is the same industry cabal that refu...

Get ready, world. Today, a new Camelot will begin. Diverse, with a worldview and DNA to match. Partially media driven, it will turn into an unstoppable force of the imagination (see Madness and Wisdom Of Crowds).

Use this Force for Good, Mr. Obama. Do not give in to the Dark Side, as Bill Clinton did.

===========

Teddy Anoints the Heir to JFK’s Camelot Legacy

Quoted from The Independent, Dublin, Ireland

By Martina Devlin
Thursday August 28 2008

The long goodbye is under way. Teddy Kennedy’s speech in which he referred to the dream — his brother’s dream — living on in Obama, was nothing less than an anointing, a handover and a formal leave-taking.

The elder statesman of the Democrats, physically failing and with a weakened voice, gave his blessing to the televisual young senator at his par...

There should be a legal recourse for Hillary Clinton, but alas, we think not.

Today the Ohio Republican Party, in support of their candidates John McCain and Sarah Palin, mailed out the political brochure shown below. It is a 4 page heavyweight full color flyer, addressed to registered Democratic female voters only, and features Hillary Clinton being praised by John McCain for being a trailblazing woman of great ability, dignity, resolve, and sound judgement, who is fully capable of being President of the USA, and who is a role model for his daughters.

The flyer shows Sarah Palin inside, but never mentions her by name. It does quote Joe Biden extolling Hillary’s virtues.

What a flaming political hypocrite.

‘Nuff said.

Sadly, the economy we predicted back in January has come to pass, and the light at the end is not yet in sight. There is change possible, beginning with the upcoming US election next week. Also, the possibility of more economic and social carnage is also possible. It all depends on who wins the election, and how the losers behave afterwards.

There is an election mandate possible here, the first actual “landslide” mandate since 1980. Will the president-elect squander his chance? Will the losers come after him in frustrated rage?

Will we have Wisdom, or Madness? Only the Crowd knows for sure. The Crowd has overspent its means, grown to expect instant gratification, lost its attention span, and has no concept of sacrifice for itself or others.

The government, banks, and corporations have all ...

The GOP convention wrapped up this week, and Sarah Palin had her coming out party. Opinions? Plenty:

– Levi Johnston knocks up Sarah Palin’s daughter Bristol. In a few hours after the story breaks, the Secret Police take down his MySpace page where he rants about being a F**king Redneck, how he is going to Kick A** on his hockey team, and how He Doesn’t Want Kids. Yep, I’ll bet Sarah is gonna love her new son-in-law. He is STELLAR father material! (HOT TIP: the GOP loses the election and Levi NEVER marries Bristol. You heard it here first!)

– Sarah Palin had a great speech, (John Was A Great POW) but the rookie used a SPEECHWRITER! Oh come on! A maverick who wants change using a CRUTCH just like all the Old White Men? I’ll bet an OWM wrote it. How disappointing...

Gee, he actually did it, and she actually accepted. Even though she is an NRA pistol-packin’ 5 kid mama with a special needs infant son, many GOP stalwarts are dissing his choice as too inexperienced. Hmmm…a mere three years ago she was the mayor of a small Alaskan town [< 9000 population].

What they don’t get, is that with the current mood of the country, the old “only a heartbeat away” from the presidency argument may not hold water, even if it is true in this case.

Palin is what the GOP recognizes as the must-have, young, fresh alternative candidate they need to compete going forward. So, the coattails of McCain have a new rider.

So long, Straight Talk Express.

Hello, NRA Cookie Mama Express!

The convention speech of freshly anointed Democratic candidate Barack Obama last night was both historic oratory, and a bunch of good intentions. Sounds good, now how in the world do you CHANGE Washington from the inside after you’re elected?

It seems he intends to use the connections and wisdom of Joe Biden. Fair enough. But is it enough? If the cabinet is chosen wisely, it may be plenty.

But now we have John McCain rumors about his VP pick today. Will it be another OWG (old white guy)?

Or will he trump the Democrats and do an end around play by choosing a dark horse rebel like first term GOP governor of Alaska Sarah Palin? A rebel in her own right, she rather resembles John McCain back in his old maverick days.

We think, however, that she will not be chosen, or she will decline if chosen...

Yes, we resort to a PUN. What else can you say after the new age golden boy of American politics chooses Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware as his running mate. As we progress through this week of the Democratic National Convention, only one thing comes to mind.

What in the hell is he thinking?

This is the same man who, over a year ago, called Barack Obama the first “mainstream” African American candidate who is “articulate” and “clean”.

Now, don’t get us wrong. Joe Biden is a smart guy, even cabinet material. He is NOT the type to put out in front and represent the country, or his previous attempts at higher office would have proven successful. They haven’t, and he isn’t.

This will prove meaningless only if John McCain does not choose wisely. We can hardly wait.

Now, we were quite impresse...

Here we sit, smack in the middle of 2008. Our earlier suspense is now over, as the fall US presidential candidates are almost formally anointed. What will they face this fall, and what issues are going to frame the debate? Here are our choices:

1) Get more oil, or just admit it’s a lost cause and admit we’d better start finding/using something else, fast?
2) Iraq is all about getting more oil, everything else is just smoke and mirrors.
3) Is this a recession, a depression, and how are both really about the Carbon Footprint, and not just bogus home loans?
4) Does the US bail out both the foolish banks AND their foolish customers? What is THAT about?

We will be covering all these and more as November approaches. Get ready for the ride, as this roller coaster is just getting started!

Our Muslim friends in the Middle East see the writing on the wall. It’s not because the US is in love with hybrids and ethanol, either. They are, after all, pragmatic businessmen. Perhaps a bit clairvoyant, also.

They will not increase production and run out of oil too soon. Why spoil a good thing? Yet, eventually it will run out. Even more realistic, is that well before then the prohibitive cost of energy will send the world into a semi-permanent recession.

So, they must diversify their holdings. They can buy up depressed US real estate at a brisk clip, and after they own us outright, they can sell us SNACKS!

What? After you’ve made an island out of sand that looks like a palm tree, and an indoor ski slope, what’s left? Something the Middle East is NOT known for: FOOD.

Yes, move over Frit...

Wow! Who else but the brainiacs at Google would be able to trick me into reviewing quantum mechanics and the Grandfather Paradox, all in only two clicks? Suddenly, long dusty pages of old sci-fi novels came alive again!

Even funnier, is the fact that once again, I spent about 30 seconds in indignant “are they crazy?!?” type outrage, as I did LAST April Fools Day, before I got the joke.

Thanks, guys! We all need the laugh about now.

The NOT so funny aspect of this, is that we can even THINK that the idea would be acceptable by any standards.

In 2008, I look for someone to be hard at work on the Email Time Stamp Spoof, right now. Most likely, in China or Nigeria.

Happy April Fools Day!

Envision a single, solitary survivor of the coming economic meltdown. Who will it be? Certainly a money changer, if the US Government has anything to say about it.

The villian? Moral Hazard. The concept of rewarding bad economic behavior.

First, the Fed bails out the US banking system bad boys, aka investment bankers, led by their bad example, Bear Stearns.

Now, the US Treasury is going to codify this practice by revamping the banking regulation system.

Now, don’t get us wrong. The regulation methods in place since FDR sorely need updating. Nobody wants to see a serious recession or banking collapse [predicted here some months ago].

However, a lesson cannot be learned without a consequence for a bad decision...

This is so obvious now, it makes your teeth hurt, doesn’t it? Or are we the only ones who see this coming?

In the last month, two automotive industry events occurred that are signposts to the future. Tata Motors of India has designed and will build a 1 Lakh [sub $2500.00 US] car, something other car companies the world over said was impossible. Other Asian auto makers are planning similar sub $4000.00 (US) cars. The Tata RS 1 Lakh is being hailed as an engineering milepost. It took 500 engineers, and resulted in over 40 patents. Across the globe, Chrysler LLC recently told its dealer network that it will shrink and consolidate the network, and also its own model lineup to better reflect marketing realities and eliminate redundancy...

Microsoft Offers To Buy Yahoo: Why They Haven’t A Clue

In their bid to compete with online rival Google, Microsoft now thinks that Yahoo is the answer. Bad idea.

It is amazing, that with all of the resources available to Microsoft, they still don’t get the relationship between online ads, search engines, and those who search. This dynamic has a key ingredient that both Yahoo and Microsoft ignore, yet Google seems keenly aware of.

Simplicity.

This is not to mean your online presence has to be merely simple. It also has to NOT be many things. Obnoxious, for one. Here we are in 2008 already, and STILL we see advertisers serving up animated, blinking, misleading banner crap.

Not to imply that Google is the shining example of perfection. Far from it. It is merely the present benchmark...

Surely, they cannot be serious. A country seriously in debt proposes to give 150 BILLION dollars to its citizens, who are also seriously in debt. If there’s an economic downturn in store for the US in 2008 [rhetorical statement], then it’s merely a consequence of past misdeeds.

Indeed, time to face the music.

Yet, not one of the presidential candidates comes out against this package. Most are busy proposing their version. Only the Libertarian Ron Paul is against it in principle, yet nothing in his official releases or blog specifically denounces this stimulus package.

Where are YOU going to spend your windfall? If you do the right thing, and pay down your debt, then you won’t stimulate the economy!

Let’s sum up: the US government is officially encouraging you to be irresponsible with your ...

The NASA Messenger project to Mercury is getting ready for the next big achievement, the closest ever [124 miles] flyby of the planet Mercury. This is just the prelude to the planned 2011 orbit of Mercury by the same spacecraft, after it takes another three years to circle back around.

As we await the new pictures about three hours from now, our kudos go out to NASA and the JPL project team. Mankind is still reaching [only as we are able, at this point] for the stars, and we wish them all the best.

For the latest, visit the project web site:

http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/

The latest press release:

“Today, January 14, 2008, at 19:04:39 UTC (2:04:39 pm EST), MESSENGER will experience its closest approach to Mercury, passing just 200 kilometers (124 miles) above the planet’s surface...

Normally, we take a dim view of radio talk show hosts. They tend to favor ratings over substance. Mr. Beck, however, always seemed a bit more balanced, a bit more fair in his judgements. If he wasn’t, it was probably because the intent was sarcastic comedy or satire.

It now appears that Glenn Beck has taken leave of his senses. His rantings this morning on ABC’s Good Morning America, on his website and elsewhere, border on crass sensationalism, ala reality television.

Granted, the health care system in the US is broken and needs help before it collapses. Mr. Beck is making vague claims that the majority of the health care workers did not care about him, really. They also gave him drugs which made him feel badly.

Please, Glenn, wake up and smell the coffee of reality...

With apologies to the Dan Ackroyd character in Twilight Zone: The Movie. Imagine, if you will, the present state of affairs:

-Toyota displaces Ford and is now #2 worldwide.
-Mortgage surprises continue. What’s in YOUR portfolio?
-Oil futures flirt with $100 again and again. Yet, executives at US automakers predict rosier things in six months, as we approach the 2008 election. What are they smoking?
-Obama AND Edwards beat Hillary in Iowa. Nearly 60% of young voters choose Barack over the others.
-Huckabee trounces Romney in Iowa, after the evangelical and far right vote shows its true colors.

Where’s the scary part? Here at Crazy Opinions, our prediction on Benazir Bhutto was, unfortunately, right on the mark...

So the US obsession with food may be over, according to a new study. Women since 1999 and men since 2006 are not getting fatter! Not getting thinner, mind you, just staying put.

Some experts claim this is because weight management and healthy lifestyles are taking hold in a more realistic way. People are using realistic goals to not get bigger. We’ll tackle smaller later, maybe next year.

Here at Crazy Opinions, we don’t buy it for a second. In case you haven’t noticed, food and energy [left out of most price indexes and inflation indicators, how convenient for politicians!] are heading through the roof, in tandem.

Gee, if you had a choice between gas and food, which would you choose? Your body can run on less food just fine, but your car just stops dead on the road if you give it less gas...

The Afghans are now beginning to blow themselves up, imitating everyday Iraqis. Pakistan is now fighting itself, imitating Iraqi religious politics.

Could it be that certain forces are using history against the US? The Western Front is relatively calm, under tentative control of the occupier. The Eastern Front is hands off, self regulating, nary a drain on resources. Suddenly, the balance in the East is upset and the West follows as resources are drained off.

Not enough men and material to fight a two front war? No problem. George has it under control. Great Uncle Adolph told him so.

It’s Deja Vu all over again. Obviously, Hollywood pays no attention to Detroit. After three-plus months of acrimonious negotiations, the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers are at a draw and the WGA goes out on strike. Mostly, writers want a bigger piece of DVD sales and a slice of new media too.

The last time this happened back in 1988, when the only video alternative to movies and TV were on VHS tape, about 9% of the audience was lost. Now, with the battle for leisure time against the Internet, along with the health crusade to get up off the couch, the screenwriters are going to chew a hole in the bottom of an even larger ship than the UAW!

Imagine if you will, if there were an alternative to personal transportation that could potentially ob...

We’ll tell you what all the fuss is about. There aren’t very many truly iconic brands and related characters. One of these, indisputably, is the Maytag Repairman. Almost Mickey Mouse, and since he is a business trademark, he doesn’t even need special copyright extensions from the US Congress to live forever like Mickey does.

So, when Maytag closes their flagship factory in Iowa, the US media cries “Maytag’s Gone!”. The truth is somewhat less dramatic. Just as their automobile making brethren, Maytag is a victim of buyout [Whirlpool owns them] and looming foreign competition [very, very late to the party, LG from Korea is just one example].

Truly tragic, but if you really do care, then exclusively buy more expensive American Made products. ‘Nuff said!

=====

A Brief History of Maytag Corp.
O...

Here they go again. Cut off your nose to spite your face. You cannot “cure” homosexuality any more than homophobia, or racism, or bigotry. You also cannot “pray” these away. The best you can hope for is to harness the impulses of your DNA pattern so they are not destructive.

Which means that fighting, pouting, marching and in general raising a fuss over it is largely an exercise in self-gratification.

Now if they channel all that energy into something useful, perhaps we’ll have room temperature fusion by next year.

=====

Gay Rights Group Criticizes Obama
New York Times
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
October 25, 2007

The nation’s largest gay rights organization criticized Senator Barack Obama of Illinois yesterday for scheduling a gospel concert on Sunday with a singer who has made controversial st...

Here we go again. The Japanese have a lunar orbiter in place. The newly launched Chinese will have theirs in place November 5th. India will launch theirs next April. The US? A year from now.

As the US war in Iraq wastes billions in Earth-bound futility, it is ironic that the Sputnik anniversary is ushering in a new era of spaceflight from everyone except the US. Maybe we shouldn’t be too harsh? The Mars Rovers are still functional years past their due date, and the US leads the “Mars Race” because, well, there is nobody else out there.

Pull in the focus, and the Mars glow isn’t so rosy. The Shuttle is still battling functional issues, and the US budget for a manned Mars expedition is fighting mind share issues. When’s the last time we heard about THAT Dubya idea?

At this rate, maybe the US...

We have sympathy for anyone whose house burns down. The same applies to flood, hurricane and tornado victims. Earthquakes too. Any “natural disaster”.

That said, this sympathy runs short when the risk of such disasters is ignored by the residents of the areas affected. When you build or live in a risky area, accept responsibility for the eventual outcome.

This holds no sway with the US media. Wailing and gnashing of teeth is standard. Tearful interviews abound. We wouldn’t go quite as far as satirical commentator Glenn Beck, who implies that the rich residents of Malibu do not deserve any sympathy at all. A mansion is a home, after all...

The contrasts are striking on many levels. Secular Muslims and devout practicing Muslims. Abu Dhabi and Baghdad. Cooperation and Division. Opulence and Squalor.

This would merely be an interesting observation, an exercise in Arab anthropology, if not for the amount of waste. Both in lives and treasure, on all sides.

It really doesn’t matter which Arab country you consider. Take it as a given that any governing system in the Middle East will be, at best, mildly oppressive and unequal. Then ponder that the key desired outcomes are water, food and opportunity. Opportunity takes many forms, but in this region of the globe, we’ll assume it to mean the ability to live in relative peace. Oppressed, but alive.

Does it really matter if the oppression is religious or secular? Hardly...

Two days ago, we called it right with Option #2 on the list. She landed in Karachi, which we got wrong. Mushy, however, warned his old rival that her health was in danger [duh!]. Option #3 is now well on its way, and Option #4 is probably not gonna happen with only 200,000 coming out to see her.

The media in some areas are exonerating Mushy and blaming terrorists. Bhutto says terrorists aren’t good enough to pull of this good of an attack, and it must be rogue elements of Pakistan’s intelligence services. Well, if anyone should know Pakistan’s political landscape, it’s her.

On a side note, check out the vehicle she was riding in, the armored rolling billboard! Does she have the marketing spin machine in high gear, or what? We are impressed! In fact, what better way to get your billboard sh...

US White House Press Conference, 10-17-07, 10:45 EDT

“Question: But you definitively believe Iran wants to build a nuclear weapon?”

“GEORGE W. BUSH: I think so long — until they suspend and/or make it clear that they — that their statements aren’t real, yeah, I believe they want to have the capacity, the knowledge, in order to make a nuclear weapon. And I know it’s in the world’s interest to prevent them from doing so. I believe that the Iranian — if Iran had a nuclear weapon, it would be a dangerous threat to world peace.

But this — we got a leader in Iran who has announced that he wants to destroy Israel...

So Benazir Bhutto will get off the plane in Islamabad, and:

1) be hustled back onto the plane by government goons [deja vu?]
2) be allowed to get into a vehicle which will blow up a few miles away
3) rejoin her Pakistan Peoples Party, become Prime Minister, and effectively rule Pakistan jointly with Musharraf
4) be trampled by millions of adoring fans and be given an elaborate state funeral

The best part of contemporary Asian politics, is the utterly unpredictable nature of the outcomes. Not to mention the colorful characters on the world stage!

Where else but Pakistan, can former political party leaders be accused of massive corruption, yet lounge around in exile in Dubai wearing a regulation Muslim Mini Skirt?

It makes us wonder if Osama himself will meet her at the airport with his stun...

It seems the Canadian Dollar parity has ruffled a few spooks for Halloween! The US Treasury is going to broker a scam, er, deal which forms a shell company, er, fund to absorb bad debt [e.g., mortgages] using contributions from the three biggest banks. They’ll just issue Junk Bonds, er, promissory notes or CD’s [“Commercial Paper”] to finance the “absorbing”.

Well, we wish them luck stalling the inevitable!

=====

WASHINGTON, Oct 16 (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on Tuesday reiterated that he believed a strong dollar was in America’s interests, in remarks aimed at his colleagues in the Group of Seven who will meet here on Friday.

“In terms of the upcoming G7 … the strong dollar is in our nation’s interest...

Well, maybe it isn’t that bad. Only 31 years since the last time it happened, in the middle of the US energy crunch, just before inflation took off and interest rates took a huge climb…

On second thought, doesn’t history have a long memory? Watch the foreign ownership of US bonds and debt. Recession will either be the trigger, or be triggered by a change in this market, and the result could be worse than the 1980’s.

Feeling lucky, punk? Do ya?

We’re sure much hay will be made in the conservative media about Al Gore and his new Nobel Peace Prize. Suffice it to say that you would have to look hard to find a conservative politician, living or dead, who gave up politics for idealism in a class way.Widely panned during his presidency, Carter has ignored critics and followed his convictions across the globe since 1980. Whatever you think about his convictions, going toe-to-toe with a third world Sudanese security lackey in Darfur, shows more spine than any currently alive politician or CEO. He recently turned 83! Nobel Peace Prize, 2002.

Widely panned during his vice-presidency and beyond, Gore has done the same, albeit in a different vein...

The landscape is littered with indie pop bands, and most have the same pedigree wherever they were hatched. The UK band Radiohead is no exception. After working the depressed teenager schtick as far as it would go, they woke up one day, realized themselves as “old”, and began to mix it up. I’ll give them credit for actually having a very, very deep thought, one which may have escaped most bands [with anything to lose, anyway]: What Is Music Really Worth?

Don’t get us wrong, this concept can be carried over to psuedo variations on the same [remember Priceline.com in the glory days?] “name your price” hogwash, but just stop for a minute and really ponder the ramifications. On one level, this is just music “shareware”, and we have all seen the future of that...

First GM, and now Chrysler. The UAW is flexing its muscles again. A billion hungry Asians get by on less than a dollar a day. They are all poised to eat the lunch of US workers, as they have been doing steadily for the last 40 years. Don’t rats desert a sinking ship? Not these, they prefer to chew holes in the hull!

What are they trying to prove? The downtrodden worker is not inside of a US auto plant! They inhabit retail stores and call centers, if they are employed at all. Unions are a faded reminder of the former industrial power of the USA. If they don’t reinvent their purpose to help, it will only get worse.

Here is a good example of their logic and reasoning, which has it all backwards:

Center For Labor Renewal: Reinventing the Wheel:The Future of the UAW

By: Elly Leary

The latest ne...

Not just for the military anymore, now hired security forces can kill anyone who may be a perceived threat first, and ask questions later. The military has done this in Iraq since day one, with hardly a mention. You can shoot them dead at any time, just don’t make them wear undergarments on their heads or crawl naked like a dog. Blackwater? Big deal!

To understand this in proper context, you must think like the planners of war: “If you didn’t have such a screwed up country in the first place, we wouldn’t have had to come half way around the planet to clean up your mess, kick your butt, and try and teach you how to be civilized.” Damn savages! Think Britain in India and the French in the Middle East. History repeats. Look it up.

Crazy Opinions suggestion to 24 Hour News: Change the Channel

Not just for college campuses anymore, now irate off duty law enforcement goes on a rampage at a party and kills many. Jealousy, envy, greed. Add a gun. Presto! Problems solved. Gotta love that NRA! Let’s give a nation full of IQ 80 monkeys on antidepressants firearms to defend themselves, and we’re sure all our crime problems will be over.

There may be a minor bloodbath as all the emotionally retarded act out their frustrations, but we’ll get over it.

Crazy Opinions Suggestion: Get A Flak Jacket!

One of the reasons developed countries never believe that third world countries want nuclear power [that reactor must be for weapons!], is simple: no advanced civilized society should want to mortgage their future for a quick energy fix in the present. At least, none advanced enough to build a nuclear reactor. Now, if you buy one instead of build it, then you just might be a squalid backwater of tin shacks with a grudge.

Which brings us to the Russians, who will soon be sealing up the Chernobyl reactor site [again; the first concrete cap is coming apart] that melted down 21 years ago. They will add a steel enclosure which should last 100 years, enough time for them to dismantle the contaminated reactor core inside. Right. Any volunteers? Who’s first?

Think advanced coutries are any better?...

If the kids stop eating the house [paint], and stop eating the toys [paint], perhaps they’ll be safe? Not a chance. The lead hysteria has moved to the grass roots level; now you can take your kids and toys for free lead screenings and lead blood tests. Hysterical parents are then tearing up their houses and belongings when their kids test positive for lead, suspecting everything from Mexican candy wrappers to coffee mugs and salsa bowls.

Crazy Opinions Official Reality Check: Ever hear of “background radiation”, the level of rads in the environment around us? Guess what? There is also “background lead” contamination. Lead is everywhere, in the air, in the soil, in the water...

The concept is ridiculous, really. Let’s say that a captive market with a voracious appetite for your product exists. The demand always exceeds supply. Your main worry is the exhaustion of the supply.

In this scenario, competition is an illusion. There are more customers than existing supplies of the product sold by all the sellers. As one would expect, the price has been on an unchecked upward trend for many decades. Let us not be fooled by lengthy inflation plateaus, or economists who talk in terms of inflation over time. The simple fact is, more of us are using it faster than ever before, paying more for it than ever before, and there is less of it available than ever before.

Is it oil? Sort of. What it really is: man-made energy from finite and limited availability fuels...

Of course, if the children aren’t working out, or if the thought of rebellion against your authority rankles you, just get a pet. Everyone else is. At this rate, there will soon be colleges for pets to attend. They already have pet equivalents for most child-rearing objects and situations, even pet health plans.

Keep in mind that pets, like kids, still ingest things they should not without your approval, and will stay out late and leave home without warning if ignored for too long or at the wrong time.

Imagine that. Let the government pay for health care for your kids, while you pay for health care for your pet.

News item: Pet Supply industry forecast to be $41 billion in fiscal 2007, 2nd after the leader, Electronics.

If the kids survive lead poisoning, perhaps they will live long enough to commit suicide or merely mutilate themselves. Now they are taking their pierced, cut and tattooed selves into the woods and finding new things to ingest which aren’t yet illegal. Nothing common like banana peels. Merely weeds such as Salvia and Jimson Weed, or anything the ‘Net serves up as the cool-new-drug-of-the-moment.

What is missing here, the common denominator, a missing link, the overlooked thread which news never reveals [or chooses to ignore]?

Parents. Families. The sad fact is that with the new society evolved over the last 50 odd years, the “extended family” has replaced the “nuclear family”. the problem with “extended” anything, is that by definition, they are stretched thin...

50 Years After Sputnik, some “Space Age”!

What happened? The future seemed so bright even back in 1970’s, when we left the Moon for good. The space shuttle just doesn’t cut it. You must have some chutzpah, and some awesome goal to hit. Otherwise, if you cannot capture the public imagination, there won’t be any tax dollars going to NASA anytime soon.

Of course, there now is an emerging private sector [think Space Ship One and the X Prize] which is willing to start the venture where man has gone before.

Can they be prodded to follow James T. Kirk, to “go where no man has gone before”?

In the New York Times, in essays related to the Sputnik anniversary, we find these comments: “Some space age,” writes an author...

Amazing. Racism? In a small, poor southern US town? In 2007?? If you’re surprised, don’t be. Let’s list the present day symbols and realities that shed light on race relations in America:

– In the town of Jena, the 85% majority whites run the school board and the school. If there is no way to hold them accountable, there must be countless lawyers willing to take on a 1964 revisit of civil rights to further their careers at little or no charge. Or, the NAACP should surely help out where they are REALLY needed, in the South.

– Race relations in the US have come a long way since 1964, but they won’t go any further. Those who are able to deal with equal rights do so, and those who cannot will not be “educated” or “enlightened” into becoming color blind...

In one of his many moments of candor on the Iraq War, Defense Secretary Gates admits during an interview that he “doesn’t know” if he would have started this war, if he knew then what we know now.

Why is it so earth-shattering to hear a politician or public official speak with either truth or common sense? The fact that this is this even a news item, says volumes about the USA grip on reality.

The coming recession and meltdown is now likely to spread across the Atlantic. This is because the staid BOE has agreed to cut interest rates in order to prod a US-like economic recovery on the back of easy credit. Oh well, at least the Brits won’t have a real estate bubble to worry about.

Meanwhile, the Fed admits this move is only to postpone the effects of the US mortgage crisis. “Recent developments in financial markets have increased the uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook,” Bernanke said. We’re not lowering them to manipulate the stock market, really we’re not.

Quick! Buy Gold!

We have no sympathy for OJ, but we can empathize with his sorry state of affairs. Trying to retrieve lost pieces of his storied past, he falls into a self-made trap. Now a Las Vegas DA out to make a name for himself [can you say “book deal”?] will attempt to put him away for life, on charges far more ludicrous than the first OJ go-round last century.

After looking into the collectibles dealer he is alleged to have “robbed” [and more], it seems like a case here of criminal-on-criminal crime. Shady behavior on all sides, in a shady hotel room, in shady Las Vegas.

We say, let what happens in Vegas, stay in Vegas. Please, don’t let us know about it!

It is now official. Muslim Islamic radicals admit, through their most public hero, that they are all parasites. Well, not even THAT good, since a true parasite makes sure it doesn’t kill its host. Actually, Islamic radicals are a different type of parasite, called a parasitoid. Imagine declaring war on the entity [Pakistan] that protects and preserves your way of life. Gee, what a great idea!

If you have ever seen the movie Aliens, the developing aliens are parasitoids. Parasitods are different from normal parasites because they kill their hosts. Ergo, Islamic radicals are Aliens!

Here we go again, and this time it isn’t just Spinach, now its the specialized lettuce. It’s a common perception that common Iceberg Lettuce hasn’t any nutrients compared to specialized varieties, but at least so far, it won’t kill you!

Would eating organic lettuce have prevented this problem? No! You need to be careful with any bagged salad, organic or nonorganic, due to the additional handling required to process it with human hands, and the fact that leafy vegetables are grown ON THE GROUND. A head of lettuce, by comparison, has never seen daylight until you cut it open, or peel away the outer leaves.

The last outbreak in 2006, was traced to a next-door cattle ranch. We think they were using some REAL organic fertilizer, aka “cow patties”!

For a refesher course on this issue, with a his...

Our old friend Alan Greenspan, financial sage and former Fed Reserve Bank chairman, is about to publish his memoirs. Now, we never put much stock in the hysteria his opinions would generate while he was the Fed Head, but we always thought him to be an intelligent fellow with wit, honesty and candor. This means that his memoirs will be widely discredited from the get-go by all those with some political or reputational capital at stake.A pity, because he is likely to be right on the mark with most of his comments.
This piece puts it all down:

“Greenspan Memoir Links Iraq War to US Thirst for Oil | WASHINGTON (AFP) | Edited For Brevity

Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, for years an inscrutable seer on the economy, is causing a stir by alleging in his new memoir that “the Iraq wa...

Here we are, on the eve of a recession induced by bad credit, energy and food (the last two always left out of the inflation and economic indexes, go figure), and the merry campaign to kill the ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) powered automobile is in full swing.

Now don’t get us wrong, the alternative fuel idea is way behind need and demand, but please, technology just isn’t ready. Here come all the half-baked designs!

The latest news is the fresh court decision in Vermont, to allow that state to adopt California emissions regulations. This, in a state with the fewest cars per capita. This paves the way for ten other states top do the same: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and New York.

The District of Columbia...

In a post awhile back, we may have been too flippant, suggesting that kids stop eating their toys. After all, kids will be kids, and purveyors of toys must be ever vigilant.

What follows is an excerpt of a fresh piece from US News and World Report. We believe this sums up the issues at hand rather well:

“China Isn’t the Villain Behind Dangerous Imports | September 12, 2007 05:24 PM ET | Newman, Rick | US News & World Report | Edited For Brevity

There’s plenty of bluster from Washington these days over imported toys and other products that might be dangerous. But for the typical consumer worried about unsafe imports, nobody has been able to answer the simple yet confounding question: What can I do about it?…The answer, unfortunately, is not much.

“Made in China” isn’t the problem...

Yet another earthquake in Southeast Asia, a threat of two simultaneous hurricanes off US coasts. The globe is warming, and weather patterns become more and more unpredictable. Drought becomes more widespread and cyclical, followed by floods. A dustbowl in the US, a replay of the 1930’s, becomes more possible with every passing year.

NASA better get us to Mars soon. I want a ticket!

Here we are on anniversary #6 for 9/11 and past #4 for GW’s shell game in Iraq. We can’t catch this guy [on dialysis in the mountains], but never mind, he doesn’t matter anymore. News flash: he’s a Personality Cult! Unlike my earlier posts on Rove and Gonzalez, Osama Bin Laden DOES matter!.

But hey, we don’t want to touch Pakistan, they’re a sovereign country with a dictator. Iraq is different. Really it is. It’s a democracy [giggle].

Crazy Opinions Prediction: Bin Laden will die of natural causes, and we will still have troops in Iraq.

Oh, for crying out loud! Ever since the introduction of the original Apple II, IBM PC, and PONG, early adopters and bleeding edge types have absorbed the cost of being the coolest before anyone else.

Jobs at least waited for the 1M mark! Stop your whining, dammit. Look at the bright side, you coulda had a Zune…

All hail the general. Didn’t we do this before? Didn’t Westmoreland address Congress to help LBJ continue the Vietnam war 40 years ago? Why must history always repeat itself?

Because some of us continue to ignore history. Iraq is nothing, if not history personified. Why is Iraq such a mystery?

Just imagine, for a moment, foreign troops from half a world away, who believe in a different religion, invade our country to save us from ourselves. We would cooperate and welcome them, right?

Right? [bang, bang]

It’s deja vu all over again! [We’re sorry, Yogi Berra]. The sad lineup of GOP hopefuls who know they are being fed to the scrapheap of history have added to their midst. Fred Thompson, an actor who once had a fling with politics, is now officially in the race for 2008.

So what.

We suppose it is merely wishful thinking that the electorate of the USA will wake up from their slumber and stop idolizing actors. Or do we have it all wrong? Is a politician supposed to be an actor, even a prerequisite for the job?

Okay, now it’s official: if you breathe, you’ll die. If you don’t, you’ll die anyway. Add popcorn dust to the already long list of hazardous inhalables. Or, to be more specific, the artificial chemical butter flavoring diacetyl. Those crazy Europeans, however, have banned the use of diacetyl and its chemical brethren for several years, after it became known of the genotoxic nature of these flavorings. Genotoxins are known to mess with your DNA. But, hey, these foreigners are always overreacting, aren’t they?

Right? [cough, cough]

Don’t even get us started on the chemicals in/on our food…

We are in the 21st century? The USA is a “modern” country? A midwest state, with four distinct seasons and no permafrost should be considered civilized, right? Certainly not backwoods Alaska?

Well, then. The only reason anyone is using “quick” road paving methods anymore is MONEY. The marketers of such “chip seal” paving, and most state DOT’s all hail chip seal as improved road maintenance. Car owners, however, should be outraged. Why the silence? Do you enjoy driving down a perfectly good road on your way to work, only to find that on the way home, the same road has been freshly coated with a layer of liquid asphalt and loose gravel?!

With most new vehicles costing upwards of $20,000, this should be a legal slam-dunk...

Ah, the exodus begins as the rats desert a sinking lame duck. The AG was always mere window dressing, a Latino Republican since his days as White House counsel. Even worse, he was always slated to be the fall guy.

At least he has a career to fall back on, unlike his fellow administration scapegoat “Scooter” Libby. If you don’t count Lobbyist, that is.

Heat Index, Wind Chill, BOO! Be afraid, be very afraid!

When they run out of REAL scary weather phenomena to frighten us with, weather salesman resort to HEAT INDEX and WIND CHILL. The “feels like” numbers.

These artificial numbers are designed to keep your thermostats set for the maximum oil use setting (MOUS), summer or winter. This also happens to be the fastest tolerable rate money leaves your wallet.

What, you say? But these are scientific numbers! Read on:

Is The Wind Chill Temperature Accurate?
By: weathersavvy.com

It’s impossible to measure accuracy for such a subjective “feel like” temperature. The formula was designed during World War II to better measure battlefield conditions. In November of 2001 a new wind chill formula was put into use by the National Weather Service...

Blame reality shows, the media, or maybe ourselves. One of the most irritating trends in recent broadcast journalism is interviewing children. Bad enough to give “mike time” to a tot during an episode of Nanny or Makeover, but now every other news story involves getting the perspective of the Young & Restless!

Wow, glad I saw that thoughtful insight! What’s up with THAT?!

As these notorious bandits make their first appearance in a Georgia court, it becomes apparent that they are merely the front women in a four person plot which also involves the bank teller. They were strippers at a local club. One had a tennis scholarship to a college. They did give some of the 11K bank heist to the homeless, but they also bought drugs. Oh my, they seem merely confused.

The tearful parents are making excuses for the media, but let’s face reality. Don’t dis Barbie! These women are BRATZ!

It’s nice to know that the GOP is on the right side of the abortion debate, but after birth, it’s tough luck, kid! ABC’s Good Morning America had a feature this morning about an impending child health crisis: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CardiacHealth/story?id=3507125&page=1

But hey, we wouldn’t want socialized medicine. Live free or die, literally!

Copyright: McClatchy Newspapers
Source: Knight Ridder Washington Bureau (KRT)

“WASHINGTON: Congressional Democrats and state officials are mulling their options on how to counter sweeping new policy changes by the Bush administration that will make it nearly impossible for states to expand a popular health care program for children.

The State Children’s Health Insurance Program was created in 1997 to provide health coverage for kids whose...

In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a Nigerian convert to Islam was thrown in prison for helping a sick female get to a hospital. He got “too close” to an unattended single female.

Muslims STILL wonder what all the fuss the West makes over them is all about!

The nostalgic Woodward Dream Cruise took place again this past Saturday, August 18, and your esteemed Opinionator was there. So was a group called Hands Across Woodward, who attempted the next day to form a 16 mile long human chain [to equal the impact of the 40,000 plus cars and quarter million car loving people in attendance?].

Let’s just say that the HAW event was less than the planners hoped for. The evil, gas guzzling WDC, however, was spectacular.

Then again, if GM ever gets a tire squealing Volt out on the streets anytime soon, all bets are off regarding Oil Futures…

So now we have another hapless Chinese executive, calling it quits by his own hand. All because of the continuing bad habit of children ingesting their toys, and consuming any coating on the same. When will the madness stop? I say, follow Darwin. If you put toys in your mouth (as well as parts of your living quarters, and other non-food items), you may die. Are parents or caretakers paying attention? Stupid is as stupid does. ‘Nuff said.

In a nutshell, he is no longer relevant. Surprised he waited so long, actually. Let’s see which presidential campaign he joins, next.

While the recent Minnesota bridge collapse was a rare event, it is only statistically so. There are many faulty structures ready to fail, as the risk versus reward system is standard procedure in the United States Of America. Cost of structure? Cost of human lives? Never mind. Happens in the military all the time, anyway.

So US retailers are forecasting gloom to come. Is anyone paying attention to housing and credit? To how much the USA is spending in Iraq? Just print more money! When US consumers finally come out from behind the smoke and mirrors that the Fed has given them since 2001 to prop up the economy, look out. Has this begun? Isn’t the Canadian Dollar gaining on the US Dollar? Uh-Oh! Time will tell.

Enjoy your visit. I hope it will be enlightening, and cause you to think about your world.