Green Fields of France

To man's blind indifference to his fellow man, and a whole generation that were butchered and damned.

Presidential Ponderances

Reagan regretted becoming a douche bag Republican.

When I worked as the president of the Screen Actors Guild I understood the need for people to stick together for the greater good to get their goals accomplished. I admired other great presidents of the past such as Franklin Roosevelt, and Dwight Eisenhower who knew that in order for the nation to thrive, we must all thrive. I am also saddened that the Republican party of today thinks I wanted God in the White House and to rule the nation. That is not true at all, after I was nearly assassinated I wanted God more in my own personal life. I acknowledged that I was to be here for a reason and serve him and my nation together, but they always stayed separate in my mind just as in the Constitution. The Republican party today merely just uses God as a means to get votes, and I don't believe Jesus would want to be used as a marketing tool. I regret my decision to become Republican and if I had to do it all over again I would have remained in the Democratic party and ran on their ticket. They seem to instill the core values I believe in, such as a collective philosophy. I thought for a while the Democrats left me, because we used to agree on so much, it turns out that I did indeed leave them, and I would do anything to take it all back. Now as I sit here as an old man, I can only imagine, "what if…"

In other news, JFK is still regarded as the best US President of the 20th Century and he didn't even finish his first term!

How will Obama fair in recollections of the 21st Century?

Dragon by the Tail

SpaceX's Dragon capsule arrives at space station in historic first - San Jose Mercury News



The space race as it is currently being run is all too slow. I hope these private enterprise/healthy competition types can get this thing going again.

If we spent as much on science as we do on foreign wars we'd have a Moon base and orbital colony by now.

Congratulations to SpaceX.

Normal Consumers, Not the Super Rich, Drive the Economy

That TED Talk You Weren't Supposed To See...

Power to the People!

Naked Short Selling and a Raging Banking Boner

Accidentally Released - and Incredibly Embarrassing - Documents Show How Goldman et al Engaged in 'Naked Short Selling' | Common Dreams

Last week, in response to an Overstock.com motion to unseal certain documents, the banks’ lawyers, apparently accidentally, filed an unredacted version of Overstock’s motion as an exhibit in their declaration of opposition to that motion. In doing so, they inadvertently entered into the public record a sort of greatest-hits selection of the very material they’ve been fighting for years to keep sealed.

That is one hell of a boner. And nobody likes it when everyone points and laughs at your boner.

Yes, Nake Short Selling really is that dirty. So dirty I don't even have a pic to post for it.

Left To Die

Castaway sues Princess Cruises over rescue failure:

After 16 days adrift, he says, they saw a cruise ship sailing past, and had made attempts to flag it down with a red sweater.

"We felt happy, because we thought they were coming to rescue us," he said.

Mr Vasquez was eventually rescued 1,000km (620 miles) off the mainland, near the Galapagos Islands. His friends had already died of thirst.

I can only imagine the dread of the initial engine failure, feeling certain you will die, the jubilation of spotting a ship and realizing you won't die today, the horrid sinking feeling as the ship sails away. At least 24 hours of desperate hope that the ship contacted someone and help is on the way, raging anger and an even deeper despair that you were left to die by rich vacationers, and then having to watch your two mates die.

Personal opinion; the cruise line owes this man a lifetime supply of anything and everything he wants. That's letting them off easy.

Kill Capital Punishment

From Jimmy Carter...

Show death penalty the door.

Southern states carry out more than 80 percent of the executions but have a higher murder rate than any other region. Texas has by far the most executions, but its homicide rate is twice that of Wisconsin, the first state to abolish the death penalty. Look at similar adjacent states: There are more capital crimes in South Dakota, Connecticut and Virginia (with death sentences) than neighboring North Dakota, Massachusetts and West Virginia (without death penalties). Furthermore, there has never been any evidence that the death penalty reduces capital crimes or that crimes increased when executions stopped. Tragic mistakes are prevalent. DNA testing and other factors have caused 138 death sentences to be reversed since I left the governor’s office.

I agree with the former President for many of the same reasons. Kill the death penalty.

Join the Revolution!

A story missing from our media: Iceland's on-going revolution.

Contrary to what could be expected, the crisis resulted in Icelanders recovering their sovereign rights, through a process of direct participatory democracy that eventually led to a new Constitution.

What are we waiting for? Let's do this thing! Throw the bastards out and try some REAL democracy for a change.

401k Exorcism

I am not an investment specialist nor do I play one on TV, in film, or even a second rate web series. Do not follow my example! When it comes to matters of finance I am certifiably insane. Consider this your warning.

This is not about how we got duped into the 401k sham. That's a different rant. This is about investing and it is really bad advice. That was another warning.

Like most working people I have a 401k. In the past I have taken a very hands off approach to my investments. I know for a fact that there are people far better at making investment decisions than myself and chose to let them do it.

While reading through the prospectus for a venture fund that was part of my portfolio, I cringed. There were several holdings as part of the fund that I had moral objections to.

After a total review of my portfolio and the options available to me through my current 401k plan, I managed to purge most of the evil. Most.

While being mature enough to take an interest in my retirement savings, I still harbor plenty of that youthful rebellion that doesn't want anything to do with large, exploitative companies.

I'd love to hear stories from others who have faced this investment dilemma.

APO PANTOS KAKODAIMONOS!

FOX Patriarch Thrashed

Rupert Murdoch deemed 'not a fit person' to run international company.

I concur with the Parliamentary committee's findings.