Saturday, March 07, 2009
Bloomberg Admits the Obvious
A tax hike on the rich would hurt all New Yorkers. No kidding.
It's what I've been saying for quite some time now, but billionaire Mayor Mike Bloomberg has now made the same argument.
New York has been looking to soak the rich with additional taxes on those making more than $250,000, regardless of the fact that it was this group of people most affected by Wall Street. A huge chunk of state and city revenue is derived from Wall Street and the investment banking industry, and with the industry in chaos, there are simply fewer people making big money than just six months ago. That will have a huge ripple effect across the local economy.
It's what I've been saying for quite some time now, but billionaire Mayor Mike Bloomberg has now made the same argument.
Mayor Bloomberg warned yesterday that proposals to tax the rich will backfire and end up hurting the poor whom they are intended to help.All you have to do is look at tax revenues since the start of the Wall Street collapse. Those revenues have collapsed because the rich aren't so rich anymore. You can't draw any more blood from that stone, and yet the Democrats' answer is to soak the rich and increase taxes on those who are best capable of moving assets and themselves to jurisdictions with lower tax burdens.
"They [the wealthy] are the ones that buy in the stores so that people that work in the stores have jobs in the stores, generate sales tax," he said.
"The rich are the ones that go to the expensive restaurants where, as a matter of fact, I looked at a list the other day of restaurants where the staff is unionized. They're the expensive restaurants. They're not the cheap restaurants."
"You know, the yelling and screaming about the rich - we want rich from around this country to move here. We love the rich people."
The mayor's comments on his weekly WOR radio show came a day after thousands of union workers rallied outside City Hall to push for higher taxes on those at the top of the income ladder to prevent cuts in government services as revenues contract.
Bloomberg said even the protesters clamoring for increased taxes on those earning $250,000 up had to be aware of the new economic reality.
"We can tax the rich, except that, if you haven't looked at the stock market lately, they aren't making any money," he said.
New York has been looking to soak the rich with additional taxes on those making more than $250,000, regardless of the fact that it was this group of people most affected by Wall Street. A huge chunk of state and city revenue is derived from Wall Street and the investment banking industry, and with the industry in chaos, there are simply fewer people making big money than just six months ago. That will have a huge ripple effect across the local economy.
Attacking Rush Limbaugh By Attacking His Audience Size?
First the Obama Administration attacked Rush Limbaugh directly, which shows just how petty and thin-skinned the Administration can be when critics hone in on major problems with the Administration. On the one hand it's the opposite tact to what the Bush Administration did, which was refuse to defend the Administration against all manner of sordid attacks, but the manner in which the Obama Administration is responding borders on the petty. It's also indicative that the Administration will not tolerate criticism. It will attempt to destroy those who oppose its policies and practices.
Now, the media is picking up where the Administration leaves off. They're now trying to undermine Rush by attacking his audience size.
Never mind that Rush is an entertainer first and foremost. Yes, he's conservative, and reaches deep into the conservative movement, but his show is about entertainment. That's why he's been so successful.
They complain that no one knows his audience size and that it's all guesswork. Some of that is true. You can figure out what the audience size is in major markets. You can then take those figures and combine them to give an approximate reach. Consider that even if you take a figure of 12 million people per week, it's still more than most of the cable television shows like Larry King or Keith Olbermann or even Bill O'Reilly and most prime time television shows other than say American Idol or Lost.
Meanwhile, Democrats are also busy trying to attack Rush today for claiming that he is somehow attacking Sen. Ted Kennedy by naming the looming health care legislation after him. Never mind that the Democrats themselves were contemplating doing just that only back in January. Kennedy has been deeply involved in health care issues, and some in Congress wanted to honor him with naming the legislation after him. However, apparently when Rush says virtually the same thing, it becomes grounds for an empty attack. Classy.
Now, the media is picking up where the Administration leaves off. They're now trying to undermine Rush by attacking his audience size.
According to what Limbaugh delights in calling "the drive-by media," the number varies wildly. Is it 30 million (Pat Buchanan on MSNBC), 20 million (Time magazine, ABC News), 19 million (Fox News), 14 million (CNN), or "14.2 million to about 25 million" (The Washington Post)?The media is attacking Rush - a private citizen who is freely engaging in freedom of speech on his radio show. They're attacking him, they're attacking his audience size. They'll say and do anything to undermine his credibility such as it is.
Answer: Maybe.
Limbaugh is widely acknowledged to be the most popular talk-radio host, as evidenced by the record $400 million, eight-year contract he signed with his syndicator last July. But estimates of Limbaugh's nationwide (and overseas) audience are exercises in guesswork, slippery methodology and suspect data. Limbaugh himself has muddied the water with the claim that he reaches 20 million people a week, although there's no independent support for that figure.
Arbitron, the radio industry's dominant audience-measurement company, has never publicly released a national estimate for Limbaugh, and it says, in effect, that the job is too complicated, expensive and time-consuming to bother with.
Never mind that Rush is an entertainer first and foremost. Yes, he's conservative, and reaches deep into the conservative movement, but his show is about entertainment. That's why he's been so successful.
They complain that no one knows his audience size and that it's all guesswork. Some of that is true. You can figure out what the audience size is in major markets. You can then take those figures and combine them to give an approximate reach. Consider that even if you take a figure of 12 million people per week, it's still more than most of the cable television shows like Larry King or Keith Olbermann or even Bill O'Reilly and most prime time television shows other than say American Idol or Lost.
Meanwhile, Democrats are also busy trying to attack Rush today for claiming that he is somehow attacking Sen. Ted Kennedy by naming the looming health care legislation after him. Never mind that the Democrats themselves were contemplating doing just that only back in January. Kennedy has been deeply involved in health care issues, and some in Congress wanted to honor him with naming the legislation after him. However, apparently when Rush says virtually the same thing, it becomes grounds for an empty attack. Classy.
Breaking Down Ohio Provisional Ballots Reveals Interesting Facts
In Ohio, voters cast about 207,000 provisional ballots, roughly 3.6% of all ballots cast. About 167,000 were counted. That means 80% (80.6% to be more precise) of the provisional ballots were eventually counted in the 2008 elections in Ohio.
What happened to the other 20% (19.4%)?
That's 40,000 provisional ballots that were disqualified.
47% of the disqualified ballots were because the person was not registered to vote in Ohio.
That runs to 18,800 people who were not registered to vote who proffered provisional ballots hoping to affect the outcome of the election.
Another 36% were ballots rejected because they voted in the wrong district or county (14,400 ballots rejected).
In a close election, those are significant figures. To claim that voter fraud is not an issue or that it is a minor one takes away from the objective fact that people are trying to engage in voter fraud and hope they aren't caught. Ohio can claim that the process worked and that these ballots were not counted because the provisional ballots were checked against their records.
What happened to the other 20% (19.4%)?
That's 40,000 provisional ballots that were disqualified.
47% of the disqualified ballots were because the person was not registered to vote in Ohio.
That runs to 18,800 people who were not registered to vote who proffered provisional ballots hoping to affect the outcome of the election.
Another 36% were ballots rejected because they voted in the wrong district or county (14,400 ballots rejected).
In a close election, those are significant figures. To claim that voter fraud is not an issue or that it is a minor one takes away from the objective fact that people are trying to engage in voter fraud and hope they aren't caught. Ohio can claim that the process worked and that these ballots were not counted because the provisional ballots were checked against their records.
Friday, March 06, 2009
Despite the Gloom, Route 4 and 17 Retailers Hiring
Despite the gloom of the recession and the looming closure of well known companies like Linens n' Things and Circuit City, the closure of multiple furniture stores including Huffmann Koos in River Edge and Levitz and Seamens, and the bankruptcy of the venerable Fortunoffs, several other chains are readying for major openings within the next few weeks.
That means that they're hiring hundreds of people at a time when there is serious retrenchment elsewhere. It's good news for those looking for jobs in retail.
Whole Foods and Target are both preparing to open in the new Bergen Town Center. Target has hired at least 300 people for positions at the store, while Whole Foods has hired between 200 and 300 people. They're holding a pre-opening tour on March 17, with $10 donations going to Table to Table.
It's also expected that a burger joint operated by Bobby Flay will also open at Bergen Town Center at some point in 2009 (March 2009?).
Meanwhile, Fairway Market is preparing to open its first New Jersey outpost in Paramus at the Fashion Center (soon to be Fairway Center?). They've been busy interviewing for hundreds of positions at the new store.
That means that they're hiring hundreds of people at a time when there is serious retrenchment elsewhere. It's good news for those looking for jobs in retail.
Whole Foods and Target are both preparing to open in the new Bergen Town Center. Target has hired at least 300 people for positions at the store, while Whole Foods has hired between 200 and 300 people. They're holding a pre-opening tour on March 17, with $10 donations going to Table to Table.
It's also expected that a burger joint operated by Bobby Flay will also open at Bergen Town Center at some point in 2009 (March 2009?).
Meanwhile, Fairway Market is preparing to open its first New Jersey outpost in Paramus at the Fashion Center (soon to be Fairway Center?). They've been busy interviewing for hundreds of positions at the new store.
The Zimbabwe Update
Morgan Tsvangirai and his wife Susan were involved in a car crash earlier today, and Susan was killed when their car was sideswiped by a truck while they were on their way to a rally.
That comes at a time when Robert Mugabe continues pulling the strings and harassing Tsvangirai's MDC party officials.
Those victims and refugees are also increasingly finding themselves victims of rape.
That comes at a time when Robert Mugabe continues pulling the strings and harassing Tsvangirai's MDC party officials.
Zimbabwean police have arrested a magistrate who tried to release a senior politician while his case was still before the country's highest court, a police spokesman said on Friday.While South Africa may be looking to extend Zimbabwe a line of credit, the South Africans busy shuttering a clinic helping those refugees looking for relief from the cholera epidemic rampaging through Zimbabwe as a result of Mugabe's ruinous rule.
Zimbabwe's Supreme Court on Thursday granted prosecutors the right to appeal against a ruling by a High Court judge to grant bail to Roy Bennett of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which is in government with President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF.
Livingstone Chipadze, a magistrate who refused to drop terrorism and banditry charges against Bennett two weeks ago, had tried to process the High Court's bail ruling before the Supreme Court had heard the state's appeal, police said.
Bennett, who had been set to become a junior minister, was arrested on Feb. 13 and charged with plotting terrorism, which carries a possible life sentence. He will remain in custody until a hearing date is set.
Those victims and refugees are also increasingly finding themselves victims of rape.
The Reason Behind Annette Nazareth's Nomination Withdrawal
She wouldn't be able to stand up to the scrutiny of her former job. What was her job that has brought such consternation and forced her to withdraw her name from consideration?
Nazareth headed the Security and Exchange Commission's market regulation division, where she was responsible for designing the "oversight" that missed Wall Street’s excessive risk taking.
I can see why that would be a problem. I also wonder why Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner thought she was the right person for the job in consideration given the fact that the regime that Nazareth put in place completely missed the warning signs of the credit melt-down and the toxic paper crisis? Once again, it looks like Geithner's judgment isn't what it needs to be.
Complicating matters is that Geithner is having trouble filling all of the needed positions surrounding him. Paul Volcker, who is Obama's Economic Advisory Board Chairman, and a former Chair of the Federal Reserve, believes that the inability to fill the other treasury slots is hurting Geithner's ability to deal with the multiple economic problems.
Who is supposed to fill those vacancies and new positions needed to untangle the toxic paper mess? Why it's going to end up being many of the same people who created the mess in the first place - and that's why Nazareth's nomination is so troubling on so many levels. You also have many players in Congress who are just as responsible for creating this mess - like Chris Dodd and Barney Frank - but who aren't going to recuse themselves from acting on these various issues despite conflicts of interest and their own incompetence.
Nazareth headed the Security and Exchange Commission's market regulation division, where she was responsible for designing the "oversight" that missed Wall Street’s excessive risk taking.
I can see why that would be a problem. I also wonder why Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner thought she was the right person for the job in consideration given the fact that the regime that Nazareth put in place completely missed the warning signs of the credit melt-down and the toxic paper crisis? Once again, it looks like Geithner's judgment isn't what it needs to be.
Complicating matters is that Geithner is having trouble filling all of the needed positions surrounding him. Paul Volcker, who is Obama's Economic Advisory Board Chairman, and a former Chair of the Federal Reserve, believes that the inability to fill the other treasury slots is hurting Geithner's ability to deal with the multiple economic problems.
Who is supposed to fill those vacancies and new positions needed to untangle the toxic paper mess? Why it's going to end up being many of the same people who created the mess in the first place - and that's why Nazareth's nomination is so troubling on so many levels. You also have many players in Congress who are just as responsible for creating this mess - like Chris Dodd and Barney Frank - but who aren't going to recuse themselves from acting on these various issues despite conflicts of interest and their own incompetence.
Rep. Weiner's Foreign Affairs
Rep. Anthony Weiner, who in the past has been connected with several very attractive women including US Senator and current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton staffer Huma M. Abedin, seems to have run afoul of campaign finance laws.
Why?
Some of those foreign models have donated to his campaign.
Why?
Some of those foreign models have donated to his campaign.
After he proposed to expand the visas available to foreign models so they can work in New York, Rep. Anthony Weiner's mayoral campaign took contributions from some cat walkers from abroad.Whoops. Weiner's press flack claims that the checks were returned and never deposited. Curiously, one of the models listed has no recollection of ever giving Weiner a check, which raises suspicions about the bundler of those donations, Kyky Conille.
Problem is, the models aren't allowed to donate because they're not US citizens or permanent resi dents.
The models involved have graced the pages of Sports Illustrated and posed for Victoria's Se cret lingerie. One was deported for an air-rage incident in which she hit a flight attendant.
Two of the models - Brazilian-born Thalita De Oliveira and Canadian Jessica Stam - are here on work visas, and do not have green cards or US citizenship, their agents said. De Oliveira gave Weiner's campaign $500, and Stam donated $600, according to Campaign Finance Board records.
And the Danish agent for May Andersen, who used to date NBA star Jason Kidd, said she's here on a work visa.
Records show Anderson gave $300 to Weiner. In 2006, she hit a flight attendant on a Miami-bound plane, resulting in her deportation.
The Rebuilding of Ground Zero, Part 60
The Port Authority released a study they commissioned that showed that the World Trade Center rebuilding project is turning out to be one of few reliable building projects in the metro area for the foreseeable future. It's expected to create thousands of jobs directly and indirectly. From the presser:
That's part of the reason I've been critical of the pace of the reconstruction efforts; rebuilding benefits all of Lower Manhattan and helps the local community restore lost business. Job creation would be even further along at Ground Zero had construction progressed at a faster pace and key hurdles overcome sooner. As it is, construction on the security center is well behind schedule because demolition of the former Deutsche Bank building has been repeatedly delayed (a deadly fire and subsequent changes to how the building would be disassembled); it's currently scheduled to be demolished by the end of the year.
Fiterman Hall remains an eyesore on the plaza overlooking 7WTC although demolition there is also expected to occur this year.
At the same time construction on the Freedom Tower is proceeding as steel is now more than 100 feet above ground level for the South core. That core will include the elevator banks that allow tenants and visitors access to the building. Among those elevators will be six that are expected to be the fastest in the Western Hemisphere, traveling more than 2,000 feet per minute, allowing travel from the lobby to the observation deck in under a minute. Contracts have already been signed for the design and construction of those elevators with ThyssenKrupp Elevator Corporation.
Elsewhere on the site, new construction cranes have been assembled over the past few days and preparation for construction along Church Avenue continues.
Leasing across the street at the World Financial Center is about to take a hit as a result of the ongoing mergers and consolidation in the financial industry. Merill Lynch is about to move out of the World Financial Center in its consolidation of space in New York City with Bank of America.
Meanwhile, for those victims of 9/11 who opted out of the Victim Compensation Board efforts to compensate those killed by the Islamic terrorists, closure is nearly at hand. More than 5,500 claims were filed through the VCB, while 95 families chose to sue the airlines, security companies, Port Authority and other parties. 92 of those lawsuits have been settled for a total of $500 million. Three of the suits are moving forward.
UPDATE:
On a safety note, the Port Authority has announced that they've entered into an agreement with the City to abide by city crane rules as they relate to crane operations including jumping, erection, and dismantling of tower cranes.
Presented at today's Board of Commissioner's meeting, the Port Authority study showed that public investments in World Trade Center projects, including One World Trade Center, the Freedom Tower; the World Trade Center Transportation Hub; the National September 11 Memorial & Museum; World Trade Center retail and other related infrastructure will result in the creation of 26,538 direct jobs, including on-site construction, architecture and engineering, and program and construction management. Including indirect jobs, such as those generated by industries that supply services, materials and machinery to the rebuilding effort, the jobs number grows to 62,336.Of course, none of this should come as a surprise. The Port Authority touted the Ground Zero rebuilding as a way to create not only construction jobs, but indirect jobs that support and are based on the construction of the transit hub, Freedom Tower (which seems to now go by the moniker 1 WTC once again) and the 9/11 memorial. Anyone following the PANY/NJ press releases on Ground Zero since 9/11 would know that thousands of jobs would come from this project.
The World Trade Center projects also are expected to generate $3.7 billion in direct and indirect wages and total economic activity of $14.5 billion.
The number of jobs at the World Trade Center is rising just as the number of overall construction jobs across the region is declining. A recent report by the New York Building Congress found that New York City's building boom will peak this year, and the number of city construction jobs is projected to fall by almost 30,000 by 2010.
That's part of the reason I've been critical of the pace of the reconstruction efforts; rebuilding benefits all of Lower Manhattan and helps the local community restore lost business. Job creation would be even further along at Ground Zero had construction progressed at a faster pace and key hurdles overcome sooner. As it is, construction on the security center is well behind schedule because demolition of the former Deutsche Bank building has been repeatedly delayed (a deadly fire and subsequent changes to how the building would be disassembled); it's currently scheduled to be demolished by the end of the year.
Fiterman Hall remains an eyesore on the plaza overlooking 7WTC although demolition there is also expected to occur this year.
At the same time construction on the Freedom Tower is proceeding as steel is now more than 100 feet above ground level for the South core. That core will include the elevator banks that allow tenants and visitors access to the building. Among those elevators will be six that are expected to be the fastest in the Western Hemisphere, traveling more than 2,000 feet per minute, allowing travel from the lobby to the observation deck in under a minute. Contracts have already been signed for the design and construction of those elevators with ThyssenKrupp Elevator Corporation.
Elsewhere on the site, new construction cranes have been assembled over the past few days and preparation for construction along Church Avenue continues.
Leasing across the street at the World Financial Center is about to take a hit as a result of the ongoing mergers and consolidation in the financial industry. Merill Lynch is about to move out of the World Financial Center in its consolidation of space in New York City with Bank of America.
Meanwhile, for those victims of 9/11 who opted out of the Victim Compensation Board efforts to compensate those killed by the Islamic terrorists, closure is nearly at hand. More than 5,500 claims were filed through the VCB, while 95 families chose to sue the airlines, security companies, Port Authority and other parties. 92 of those lawsuits have been settled for a total of $500 million. Three of the suits are moving forward.
Ninety-two families of victims of the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York were paid about $500 million in legal settlements, according to a report approved today by a federal judge.The case is In Re September 11 Litigation, 21-MC-00101, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).
Unlike the 5,560 claimants who received $7 billion from a victims’ compensation fund, 95 families sued after the attacks with only three failing to reach settlements, according to the report. The remaining cases are scheduled to go to trial.
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in Manhattan formally accepted the report by a mediator who helped settle cases involving the 92 families. Many who sued had lost family members with large incomes or high-income potential and believed the fund wouldn’t adequately compensate them, the judge said in an opinion accepting the report by mediator Sheila Birnbaum. The report included the total settlement amount of about $500 million.
UPDATE:
On a safety note, the Port Authority has announced that they've entered into an agreement with the City to abide by city crane rules as they relate to crane operations including jumping, erection, and dismantling of tower cranes.
Buildings Commissioner Robert LiMandri and Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Executive Director Chris Ward signed an agreement today that will create a new process to verify that any crane or derrick erected, dismantled, jumped, or operated on Port Authority properties in New York City conform to the safety standards set by the NYC Construction Codes and Department of Buildings (DOB) regulations.As someone who regularly commutes through the area, this is good news given that there are so many tower cranes and other heavy equipment in and around the site and that the city has witnessed two major crane accidents within the past year killing several people and causing millions in damages.
Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the Port Authority has agreed to obtain DOB review and approval of a crane or derrick’s prototype before installing and operating it on a job site. In addition, a crane or derrick on Port Authority property will be subject to annual inspection by DOB’s Cranes and Derricks Unit. The Port Authority will issue a certificate of on-site inspection of a crane or derrick when they determine the equipment complies with all of the City’s technical and safety regulations before it is operated. The Port Authority will also ensure that only riggers and crane operators licensed by DOB will erect, dismantle, jump, and use a crane or derrick on their properties.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Obama Nomination Muddle Continues
President Obama's nomination for Surgeon General, Sanjay Gupta, has withdrawn his name from contention. That comes on the heels of the Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's choice for his deputy withdrawing her name:
Once again, Obama's judgment of character continues to be wanting and his team of vetters should themselves be vetted for competency.
UPDATE:
Add to that the troubling and troubled nomination of Chas Freeman as chair of the National Intelligence Council.
Annette Nazareth, a former senior staffer and commissioner with the Securities and Exchange Commission, withdrew after several interviews and vetting of her financial history, a person familiar with Nazareth's decision said.Funny, but since when has tax trouble disqualified any of Obama's nominations? After all, Geithner, who now heads the Treasury Department which oversees the IRS, skipped paying thousands of dollars in taxes over the years.
But this person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because Geithner never publicly named Nazareth as his choice, said no problems with her taxes or other issues arose.
Nazareth, a partner at the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell, could not be reached for comment. Treasury and White House officials would not comment on the matter.
Once again, Obama's judgment of character continues to be wanting and his team of vetters should themselves be vetted for competency.
UPDATE:
Add to that the troubling and troubled nomination of Chas Freeman as chair of the National Intelligence Council.
More Mortgage Woes and Burying the Lede
The latest reports indicate that 5.4 million Americans are behind on payments or are in some stage of foreclosure. That's not a good place to be, but just how many of these people are in foreclosure because of their own bad judgment? How many bought more home than they could ever hope to afford?
How many are facing foreclosure because federal, state, and local tax burdens have overwhelmed their ability to afford their homes?
The new figures also suggest that the problems have spread from the adjustable rate mortgage and subprimes into fixed rate mortgages. They have also spread from the primary hot zones of foreclosure - Florida, Nevada, California, and Arizona, into states where the financial meltdown is having the greatest effect, including Louisiana, New York, Georgia, Texas and Mississippi.
For a President who said that he was going to focus on rescuing families who've played by the rules and acted responsibly, it certainly looks like he's doing anything but.
Obama's home mortgage program isn't going to solve this mess. The primary thing that will get the real estate market back on to firm ground is letting the market shake out what the reasonable value of properties are. It means that home prices will continue trending down in many parts of the country - even as other parts of the country are already seeing a recovering and stabilization of home prices as supply and demand reflect reasonable levels and no longer include the inflated demand due to expanding the base of potential homeowners to include those who had no business ever owning homes because of a lack of credit and the ability to repay mortgage obligations.
Interest rates for new and refinancing mortgages is still close to historic lows, and that's a function of Federal Reserve policy. The homeownership program may help some who are finding it difficult to get refinancing because they are underwater, but many of these people will find that the banks can refinance their mortgages although it usually means that they will have to take PMI to cover the difference between their loan obligation and interest in the property, they will have to pay out of pocket to cover the difference, or find that they can't get lines of credit or equity taken out of their property as just a few months ago.
We'd also have to ignore the part about how pushing those rates to low levels following the 9/11 attacks helped initiate the current problem by seeding the market with insanely low APR ARM that are now in the process of resetting to much higher levels at a time when the markets values are dropping precipitously. We're going to be back in this very position within three to seven years as the current batch of ARMs reset, unless the government plans on destroying the Fed's ability to manage the economy through adjustments to the interest rates.
Many of the people who are in dire straits will not be helped by the mortgage assistance programs because they simply are in over their heads - they lack the ability to repay regardless of how much their mortgages are renegotiated.
Then, there's the whole notion that the mortgage assistance program will enable those people who took out second mortgages and home equity lines to buy expensive toys and engage in home improvements will get those obligations covered by the plan. These people should have never been given the lines of credit in the first place, but for lax credit lending standards and yet those of us who managed their money carefully will be paying off these people's debts.
Lest we think that President Obama's primary goal is to fix the economy, you would be wrong. He'd much rather impose his ideological agenda. Ace notes that Politico buries the lede.
Americans aren't going without health care. Americans have all access to health care one can possibly imagine. People just don't like what it costs. They rail against the costs of health care insurance and what happens when people lose that health care insurance. Imposing a government health care program isn't going to improve the situation - it may provide universal care, but the cost is going to be obscene and the quality is going to suffer tremendously.
How many are facing foreclosure because federal, state, and local tax burdens have overwhelmed their ability to afford their homes?
The new figures also suggest that the problems have spread from the adjustable rate mortgage and subprimes into fixed rate mortgages. They have also spread from the primary hot zones of foreclosure - Florida, Nevada, California, and Arizona, into states where the financial meltdown is having the greatest effect, including Louisiana, New York, Georgia, Texas and Mississippi.
For a President who said that he was going to focus on rescuing families who've played by the rules and acted responsibly, it certainly looks like he's doing anything but.
Obama's home mortgage program isn't going to solve this mess. The primary thing that will get the real estate market back on to firm ground is letting the market shake out what the reasonable value of properties are. It means that home prices will continue trending down in many parts of the country - even as other parts of the country are already seeing a recovering and stabilization of home prices as supply and demand reflect reasonable levels and no longer include the inflated demand due to expanding the base of potential homeowners to include those who had no business ever owning homes because of a lack of credit and the ability to repay mortgage obligations.
Interest rates for new and refinancing mortgages is still close to historic lows, and that's a function of Federal Reserve policy. The homeownership program may help some who are finding it difficult to get refinancing because they are underwater, but many of these people will find that the banks can refinance their mortgages although it usually means that they will have to take PMI to cover the difference between their loan obligation and interest in the property, they will have to pay out of pocket to cover the difference, or find that they can't get lines of credit or equity taken out of their property as just a few months ago.
We'd also have to ignore the part about how pushing those rates to low levels following the 9/11 attacks helped initiate the current problem by seeding the market with insanely low APR ARM that are now in the process of resetting to much higher levels at a time when the markets values are dropping precipitously. We're going to be back in this very position within three to seven years as the current batch of ARMs reset, unless the government plans on destroying the Fed's ability to manage the economy through adjustments to the interest rates.
Many of the people who are in dire straits will not be helped by the mortgage assistance programs because they simply are in over their heads - they lack the ability to repay regardless of how much their mortgages are renegotiated.
Then, there's the whole notion that the mortgage assistance program will enable those people who took out second mortgages and home equity lines to buy expensive toys and engage in home improvements will get those obligations covered by the plan. These people should have never been given the lines of credit in the first place, but for lax credit lending standards and yet those of us who managed their money carefully will be paying off these people's debts.
Lest we think that President Obama's primary goal is to fix the economy, you would be wrong. He'd much rather impose his ideological agenda. Ace notes that Politico buries the lede.
“Even if we’re busting the budget, we’ve got to solve some of these problems,” said a member of his inner circle. “I’d rather live with a debt than have people go without health care.”This isn't about fiscal responsibility, but advancing an agenda that is actually a strawman.
Americans aren't going without health care. Americans have all access to health care one can possibly imagine. People just don't like what it costs. They rail against the costs of health care insurance and what happens when people lose that health care insurance. Imposing a government health care program isn't going to improve the situation - it may provide universal care, but the cost is going to be obscene and the quality is going to suffer tremendously.
Nets Contemplating Move To Newark?
New Jersey Nets owner Bruce Ratner has been looking to build a new stadium in Brooklyn, New York, since he bought the team in 2003 but the real estate market meltdown and credit crisis has brought that project to a standstill even though they're claiming that ground will be broken this summer on the Brooklyn project (Atlantic Yards). The team still plays in the Meadowlands, but New Jersey built a shiny new arena in downtown Newark that hosts the New Jersey Devils and could be home to the Nets in the future.
While I think the Nets would benefit more from a move to Brooklyn, the move to the new arena in downtown Newark might be just the thing the team needs at this juncture. For now, the team is planning on holding two preseason games at the Prudential Center in October (the 2009-2010 season).
There are some obstacles to the Nets playing games at the Rock; namely that the Devils have a tight grasp on all the revenues from concessions at the arena.
While I think the Nets would benefit more from a move to Brooklyn, the move to the new arena in downtown Newark might be just the thing the team needs at this juncture. For now, the team is planning on holding two preseason games at the Prudential Center in October (the 2009-2010 season).
There are some obstacles to the Nets playing games at the Rock; namely that the Devils have a tight grasp on all the revenues from concessions at the arena.
But even if the Nets are unable to move to Brooklyn, given the difficulty in financing construction of the arena, there are obstacles to a Newark move as well.
Under the terms of the Devils’ lease, the National Hockey League team keeps nearly all of the revenue from all events held at the Prudential Center.
That raises questions about how much revenue a move to Newark would generate for the Nets. However, the value of luxury suites and corporate sponsorships would increase with a second major pro sports franchise.
The Nets have played in the Meadowlands since the arena opened in 1981. The club is losing an estimated $40 million a year playing in one of the NBA’s oldest facilities, which does not have the thousands of lucrative premium seats that newer buildings do.
Palestinian Terrorist Attempts Another Earth Mover Attack; Kassams Keep Coming
A Palestinian terrorist attempted to use an earth mover to kill more Israelis, but an Israeli taxi driver came to the rescue and wounded the attacking terrorist sufficiently that cops could finish him off.
It's a sign that the terrorists can't get their hands on explosives or through the checkpoints designed to keep terrorists out of Israel. They're left trying to come up with means to murder Israelis and are finding it increasingly difficult to accomplish even that. This isn't a sign that Palestinian terrorists have given up the ghost of murdering Israelis or that they're more peaceful now (a meme that deals with the relative lack of violence in the West Bank, but which ignores the constant Molotov cocktails thrown at Israeli security and regular clashes between stone throwers and Israelis) - only that Israelis are ever more effective in deterring terrorists access to Israel in the first place. Loosening travel restrictions, checkpoints, or removing security fencing will only enable the terrorists to resume their deadly goals of murdering and maiming Israelis.
Leave it to Hamas to cheer yet another cowardly terrorist attack and demand that more Israelis be murdered:
And yet, the West and the US would rather see Israel lower its defenses as a goodwill gesture - a concession in the name of the peace process? It's asinine. It's also suicidal for Israel to contemplate given that the security has meant fewer terror attacks and bombings and limits the terrorists to cheering that their kassams and mortars can murder Israelis in their schools and homes.
Carl in Jerusalem has more as does Israellycool.
I would be remiss if I didn't point out that Islamic Jihad and the Gazans fired off another six kassams at Israel today in retaliation for yet another Israeli airstrike that killed more of their rocket launchers. Of course, Islamic Jihad vows retaliation for the killing of their murderous thugs who wish to murder as many Israelis as possible with craven rocket and mortar attacks.
An initial police investigation indicated that the bulldozer driver reached the intersection near Teddy Stadium and managed to push a police vehicle for about 30 meters. After that, he tried to push the police vehicle into a bus, but was apparently blocked by an electrical post.Two Israeli policemen were injured as the terrorist used the earth mover to ram and flip the police car the two were driving in. The terrorists (or their copycats - there have been 3 such attacks in the past year) have killed four Israelis - all in the first attack, and in the successive attacks, only the attacking terrorist was killed.
According to ZAKA, the bus was full of girls dressed in Purim costumes en route to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital to cheer up patients before the holiday.
A number of bystanders suffering from shock were treated on the scene by MDA teams.
ZAKA operation commander Haim Weinrot said that "the girls were hysterical. They saw the enormous scoop heading toward them and saw death approaching, but they were saved at the last minute by the post. It is a Purim miracle."
It's a sign that the terrorists can't get their hands on explosives or through the checkpoints designed to keep terrorists out of Israel. They're left trying to come up with means to murder Israelis and are finding it increasingly difficult to accomplish even that. This isn't a sign that Palestinian terrorists have given up the ghost of murdering Israelis or that they're more peaceful now (a meme that deals with the relative lack of violence in the West Bank, but which ignores the constant Molotov cocktails thrown at Israeli security and regular clashes between stone throwers and Israelis) - only that Israelis are ever more effective in deterring terrorists access to Israel in the first place. Loosening travel restrictions, checkpoints, or removing security fencing will only enable the terrorists to resume their deadly goals of murdering and maiming Israelis.
Leave it to Hamas to cheer yet another cowardly terrorist attack and demand that more Israelis be murdered:
Hamas spokesman Munir al-Masri praised the terror attack, and was quoted by Reuters as saying that "this is a natural response to the home demolition in east Jerusalem and to the Israeli aggressiveness in the Gaza Strip."Israel responds with home demolitions and has been retaliating in Gaza for Hamas terrorists incessantly and repeatedly attacking Israelis. The attacks in Jerusalem are a result of terrorists looking to find ways to infiltrate into Israel and cause mass casualty attacks despite Israel's security cordon.
And yet, the West and the US would rather see Israel lower its defenses as a goodwill gesture - a concession in the name of the peace process? It's asinine. It's also suicidal for Israel to contemplate given that the security has meant fewer terror attacks and bombings and limits the terrorists to cheering that their kassams and mortars can murder Israelis in their schools and homes.
Carl in Jerusalem has more as does Israellycool.
I would be remiss if I didn't point out that Islamic Jihad and the Gazans fired off another six kassams at Israel today in retaliation for yet another Israeli airstrike that killed more of their rocket launchers. Of course, Islamic Jihad vows retaliation for the killing of their murderous thugs who wish to murder as many Israelis as possible with craven rocket and mortar attacks.
GM Circling the Drain?
This is a story that could have been written months ago. In fact, it was. When the Bush Administration was preparing to punt the problems with the automakers into the Obama Administration's open arms, they were going to provide billions to the automakers to tide them over into the 1Q 2009. Well, it's the 1Q 2009 and the automakers are still failing miserably to do anything that can turn their bleak situation around.
General Motors is a black hole for federal assistance, and yet they've received tens of billions. Now, we're told that it looks like bankruptcy is ever more likely? What happened to the billions that taxpayers provided? We're never going to see it back. Ever.
Bankruptcy will be the only option, and the question for taxpayers is whether they want to send tens of billions more to the automaker now to watch it go bankrupt, or allow the company to proceed into reorganization without federal assistance and become a leaner and more competitive company without federal funds? I want the latter, but Congressional Democrats who carry water for the unions will not permit the latter to happen. Instead, they will do all they can to complain that it is the management of the company to blame for the situation.
At least Ford is doing something about their situation. They are looking to retire nearly $10.4 billion in debt. They're trying to get ahead of the game and restructuring certain costs, including health care benefits, without federal assistance.
US automakers aren't alone in looking to the government for assistance. Honda and Toyota are looking to the Japanese government for loans so that they can turn around and lend to prospective car buyers. I see that more as a function of tight credit and a need to lure buyers into showrooms, rather than fundamental problems with either of those companies.
General Motors is a black hole for federal assistance, and yet they've received tens of billions. Now, we're told that it looks like bankruptcy is ever more likely? What happened to the billions that taxpayers provided? We're never going to see it back. Ever.
General Motors Corp.'s auditors have raised "substantial doubt" about the troubled automaker's ability to continue operations, and the company said it may have to seek bankruptcy protection if it can't execute a huge restructuring plan.There's no reason that the federal government should provide another dime to GM. It cannot restructure effectively because the unions refuse to make sufficient concessions that will reduce the per-vehicle costs to where they are competitive with other automakers. Instead of working to reduce the gold-plated benefits packages, the unions are much more receptive to massive layoffs. 47,000 jobs and the closure of five factories is among the plans being considered and yet I suspect that even those drastic measures wont be sufficient because the companies existing workers will still cost far too much per vehicle to keep the company afloat and turn around its bottom line.
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The automaker revealed the concerns Thursday in an annual report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
"The corporation's recurring losses from operations, stockholders' deficit, and inability to generate sufficient cash flow to meet its obligations and sustain its operations raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern," auditors for the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche LLP wrote in the report.
In pre-market trading, GM shares fell 14 percent from Wednesday's close, to $1.90.
GM has received $13.4 billion in federal loans as it tries to survive the worst auto sales climate in 27 years. It is seeking a total of $30 billion from the government. During the past three years it has piled up $82 billion in losses, including $30.9 billion in 2008.
Bankruptcy will be the only option, and the question for taxpayers is whether they want to send tens of billions more to the automaker now to watch it go bankrupt, or allow the company to proceed into reorganization without federal assistance and become a leaner and more competitive company without federal funds? I want the latter, but Congressional Democrats who carry water for the unions will not permit the latter to happen. Instead, they will do all they can to complain that it is the management of the company to blame for the situation.
At least Ford is doing something about their situation. They are looking to retire nearly $10.4 billion in debt. They're trying to get ahead of the game and restructuring certain costs, including health care benefits, without federal assistance.
US automakers aren't alone in looking to the government for assistance. Honda and Toyota are looking to the Japanese government for loans so that they can turn around and lend to prospective car buyers. I see that more as a function of tight credit and a need to lure buyers into showrooms, rather than fundamental problems with either of those companies.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Cruising The Caribbean 2009
While I've already detailed my adventures in getting back from our vacation due to the Nor'easter on March 1, I haven't actually written about our actual cruise. We took this much needed vacation on the Carnival Legend from Tampa and our destinations included Cozumel, Belize City, Isla Roatan, and Grand Cayman. It's a very nice ship (Spirit class) and our extended balcony stateroom was just what the doctor ordered (more on that later).
Embarkation was a pretty simple process as we booked airport transfers via Carnival and they had people waiting at the airport to see us to the Port of Tampa and then guide us through the process. We were able to clear customs and board the ship with our carry-on luggage as our checked luggage would be delivered to our staterooms in the course of the afternoon.
So, we made our way to the Lido Deck to partake in the buffet spread they prepared for lunch. Carnival really knows how to throw a spread and the highlights definitely include the fresh fruits that are sweeter than most anything you can find here in the NY metro area even when the fruits are supposed to be in season. After lunch, we made our way to the muster drill where we were told how to evacuate the ship in case we hit icebergs or had any other problems. From there, we headed topside to enjoy the going away party.
We sailed out under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and then out in to the Gulf of Mexico.
Our day at sea included attending an art auction where we bid and won three pieces of art (and won a raffle - woohoo!) Weather at sea was glorious and the sunrises and sunsets were generally spectacular.Going into Cozumel, we docked and headed ashore to wait in line for the ferry to take us to the mainland. If there's a theme aboard cruises, it's that taking excursions require lots of patience and waiting in line for boats, tenders, or the buses to take you to your destination.
It's pretty much a full day excursion to Tulum from Cozumel, and you never get to spend nearly enough time exploring the magnificent coastal Mayan ruins. We got about 20 minutes to take a dip in the ocean at the magnificent beach there, and took a few photos, but it was all too brief. I would definitely want to go back there on my own to explore for the day. 
Among the most photogenic features at Tulum had to be the abundance of iguanas that sprawled all over the ancient ruins. It was fun trying to pick them out among the ruins and here's one lucky contestant:
Belize was our next destination, and we had to tender into Belize City, which took 20+ minutes on tender because the seas are so shallow. The waters themselves were gorgeous, but Belize is perhaps the poorest place I've ever visited. We took the Altun Ha/Belize City tour, and it was simultaneously depressing and educational. These people live in conditions that would make most people blanch - and much of it is due to the fact that most residents live near the coast and most live at or just below sea level, which means that when the inevitable storms roll in, much of the area gets wiped out. The cruise lines have a secured docking area, but many of the Belize City residents don't benefit from the cruises nearly as much as you would think or hope for.Altun Ha was an exciting bus ride from Belize City, and it was definitely worth the trip, even if you once again spent far too much time getting there and not enough time to explore it on your own. The Mayan ruins emerge from the jungle like a silent sentinel from a time long past.
Now, our next destination was Isla Roatan in Honduras, but I can't tell you all that much about the place since I never got off the ship there. I got sick after getting back from Belize City and was confined to my cabin for the day on doctors' orders (not like I could do much anyways). Whether you want to call it Montezuma's Revenge or Norovirus (which I think is the PC term for the same thing), I had the 24 hour variety. Mrs. Lawhawk did go off the ship and wandered around the port and did some window shopping, but here too you could see that there was intense poverty just beyond the tourist areas. She spent an hour or two off the boat, and then spent the rest of the day between our cabin's balcony and going out and about on the ship.
Our final destination was Grand Cayman, BWI, and the boat tendered in with a short 3-minute hop. The place is spotless and Georgetown is truly set up to be a haven for shoppers and the financial industry. Our Best of Grand Cayman tour took us to the usual destinations - the turtle farm, Hell, and the Tortuga Rum factory. After the Caymans, we had another day at sea so we entertained ourselves with yet another art auction. We didn't buy anything, but we did win a Tortuga Rum Cake! Entertainment on board was quite good, and included several comedians who were quite the cutups. We also got to see one of the chefs do an ice sculpture in under 10 minutes which was quite fascinating and that was followed by a hairy man contest (which was quite disturbing to say the least). The cruise director, Jen Baxter, was also quite entertaining and kept the crowds going.
Finally, we docked back in Tampa on Sunday and after having a final breakfast on board, we disembarked. It took less than 10 minutes to get us off the boat and on to our transfer to the airport, which is quite impressive, but wholly understandable since the ship had to be cleared and prepared for the next set of passengers who were preparing to go on their cruise later in the day. Unfortunately for them, weather would be an issue as there were early morning showers and it remained overcast throughout the day.
All in all, we had a great time despite my getting sick for one of the days, and we'd consider cruising at some point in the future. I'm just not sure when that will be. Having the cruise meant we could go to exotic locales that wouldn't be possible ordinarily and that aspect definitely satisfied our wanderlust. I'm just not sure that we can find our sea legs fast enough to go again.
Both of us ended up quite rested and relaxed, despite our adventure getting home, so it definitely did work out for us.
As far as value is concerned, I'd say that this trip was right in the middle in terms of cost - although the air flight home was a fiasco and cost us dearly. Neither I nor Mrs. Lawhawk are going to win any food eating contests, so the all-you-can-eat aspect of cruising loses a bit of its luster on us, but the quality of the food, and especially the fruit, was quite good. I understand that some of the other cruise lines have even better food than Carnival, and that's always a possibility, but for this trip, this itinerary was the only one that worked for our schedules and you have to go with what you have.
And if you like the photos, know that they were taken with a Canon Rebel XTi 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens, or using the Tamron AF 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di LD VC (Vibration Compensation) Aspherical (IF) Macro Zoom Lens. The main drawback on the Tamron lens is that it doesn't have nearly as wide angle as I would like but it benefits greatly when trying to capture wildlife at long distance or for close up shots. I find myself shooting primarily with the Tamron lens because of its versatility and it takes a pretty sharp photo at most lengths.
Grading Obama
It's early, but never to early to start grading President Obama on how he's done on several key areas.
It's an online poll, so keep that in mind. It will be interesting to see if and how they break down polling results.
It's an online poll, so keep that in mind. It will be interesting to see if and how they break down polling results.
Israel Goes After Islamic Jihad In Gaza
A day after Islamic Jihad fired rockets into Israel, Israel struck back, launching an airstrike against Islamic Jihad leaders and against the smuggling tunnels.
It is the political failure that undermines Israel's deterrence capabilities.
Palestinian sources reported on Wednesday evening that two Palestinians were killed and at least four others were wounded in an IDF strike in northern Gaza.The Jerusalem Post reports that the IDF got its man. Israel has shown itself to have excellent intel on those involved in the rocket war against Israel, but political considerations have limited Israel's ability to strike at those terrorists responsible.
The IDF confirmed the attack was a joint operation with the Shin Bet to target senior Islamic Jihad operative Khaled Khareb Khaled Sha'alan – who the army said was involved in the firing of rockets towards Israel, including the attacks against Ashkelon in recent days.
According to the Palestinians, Israeli aircraft fired at least one missile towards a vehicle near a mosque in the town of Beit Lahiya. The two killed apparently belonged to the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad.
It is the political failure that undermines Israel's deterrence capabilities.
More WW I Era Munitions Found On Jersey Beaches
Watch your step takes on new meaning when you consider that the Army Corps of Engineers beach replenishment project at a New Jersey beach resulted in bringing thousands of World War I era munitions to the beach. There have been repeated efforts to clear the beach of munitions, and the latest effort since January has found more than 450 fuses and other items from Surf City beaches.
The corps unwittingly sucked the munitions from the sea bed and pumped them ashore as part of a beach replenishment project begun in late 2006. Beachgoers began finding them in 2007.
Crews hope to finish work by May 22, days before Memorial Day weekend and the start of the summer beach season.
Homeowner Aid Program Details Announced
The Obama Administration is launching its homeowner aid program today. This is a multibillion dollar program that will likely do little to improve affordability of homes, but is rather intended to keep certain areas that have been hard hit by the real estate bubble collapse from being eviscerated further.
The idea is to allow homeowners to get their mortgages modified so that they do not have to pay more than 31% of their gross income per month for the mortgage. Borrowers would have to meet certain qualifications.
Of course, the most troubling aspect of all is that the Obama Administration believes that Freddie Mac is qualified to audit compliance with the program. Since when has anyone actually audited Freddie Mac (or Fannie Mae) and held those at the entity responsible for their handling of lending practices that started and exacerbated the credit meltdown and toxic paper crisis?
One of the keys of this program as per their handy-dandy fact sheet is that the program is supposed to, and I quote "Support Low Mortgage Rates by Strengthening Confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac". How can anyone have confidence in either of these entities when neither has been held accountable for its past practices that led to this mess, let alone have had their former and current executives grilled by Congress for their fiscal irresponsibility and imprudence.
I'm sorry, but low mortgage interest rates will not come from strengthening confidence in either entity, but by allowing banks to lend to those borrowers who are actually qualified to repay the loans, rather than dishing out loans to those who are incapable of repaying, even with modifications.
Loan modification doesn't help those who become unemployed. Loan modification doesn't help those who took out grossly irresponsible mortgages on homes that they could never afford even under good economic times, to say nothing of the turbulence we experience now.
I recently refinanced my 30-year fixed rate mortgage from 6.625% to 5.375%, all without the help of the government. There are many people who are unable to do so because their homes are under water (loan worth more than the value of their home), and the Obama plan claims that they will address this situation, but I'm dubious that the solution will make homes more affordable since it will actually serve to prop up markets that are still correcting to more affordable levels for prospective qualified buyers.
The plan also claims that it will not benefit speculators, but the problem is that many of the foreclosures and those markets that have the most people underwater are in states like Florida, Arizona, Nevada, and California where speculators bet large on real estate prices running up, and the collapse has put a huge number of properties on the market. Relatively stable real estate markets like many parts of Northern NJ do not have the rampant speculation that the aforementioned states did, and the Obama programs will not have the intended effects.
In fact, as we've seen with prior loan modification programs, 50-60% of modifications redefault because they cannot afford to own these homes. It actually draws out the time in which the markets correct and makes it more difficult for everyone in the process. Keep in mind that more than 90% of homes are not in default and that claims that 20% of homes are underwater doesn't mean that those 20% are under threat of default either. It just means that those homeowners can't use their homes like piggy banks to take out additional loans and cannot easily resell their homes without ponying up additional money to satisfy their debts. For people who aren't about to sell their homes, this isn't an issue. It becomes an issue for speculators and those who have to sell for job relocations, deaths, and other life changes.
Oh, and there's one area in which this plan falls woefully short. It doesn't take into account the fact that many people are finding themselves facing foreclosure or being forced from their homes because of higher taxes and fees - local and state property taxes that have gone literally through the roof.
UPDATE:
Is the solution worse than the problem of foreclosures? 62% of all foreclosures are in just four states - Florida, California, Arizona, and worst of all - Nevada. Note also the following:
The idea is to allow homeowners to get their mortgages modified so that they do not have to pay more than 31% of their gross income per month for the mortgage. Borrowers would have to meet certain qualifications.
Of course, the most troubling aspect of all is that the Obama Administration believes that Freddie Mac is qualified to audit compliance with the program. Since when has anyone actually audited Freddie Mac (or Fannie Mae) and held those at the entity responsible for their handling of lending practices that started and exacerbated the credit meltdown and toxic paper crisis?
One of the keys of this program as per their handy-dandy fact sheet is that the program is supposed to, and I quote "Support Low Mortgage Rates by Strengthening Confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac". How can anyone have confidence in either of these entities when neither has been held accountable for its past practices that led to this mess, let alone have had their former and current executives grilled by Congress for their fiscal irresponsibility and imprudence.
I'm sorry, but low mortgage interest rates will not come from strengthening confidence in either entity, but by allowing banks to lend to those borrowers who are actually qualified to repay the loans, rather than dishing out loans to those who are incapable of repaying, even with modifications.
Loan modification doesn't help those who become unemployed. Loan modification doesn't help those who took out grossly irresponsible mortgages on homes that they could never afford even under good economic times, to say nothing of the turbulence we experience now.
I recently refinanced my 30-year fixed rate mortgage from 6.625% to 5.375%, all without the help of the government. There are many people who are unable to do so because their homes are under water (loan worth more than the value of their home), and the Obama plan claims that they will address this situation, but I'm dubious that the solution will make homes more affordable since it will actually serve to prop up markets that are still correcting to more affordable levels for prospective qualified buyers.
The plan also claims that it will not benefit speculators, but the problem is that many of the foreclosures and those markets that have the most people underwater are in states like Florida, Arizona, Nevada, and California where speculators bet large on real estate prices running up, and the collapse has put a huge number of properties on the market. Relatively stable real estate markets like many parts of Northern NJ do not have the rampant speculation that the aforementioned states did, and the Obama programs will not have the intended effects.
In fact, as we've seen with prior loan modification programs, 50-60% of modifications redefault because they cannot afford to own these homes. It actually draws out the time in which the markets correct and makes it more difficult for everyone in the process. Keep in mind that more than 90% of homes are not in default and that claims that 20% of homes are underwater doesn't mean that those 20% are under threat of default either. It just means that those homeowners can't use their homes like piggy banks to take out additional loans and cannot easily resell their homes without ponying up additional money to satisfy their debts. For people who aren't about to sell their homes, this isn't an issue. It becomes an issue for speculators and those who have to sell for job relocations, deaths, and other life changes.
Oh, and there's one area in which this plan falls woefully short. It doesn't take into account the fact that many people are finding themselves facing foreclosure or being forced from their homes because of higher taxes and fees - local and state property taxes that have gone literally through the roof.
UPDATE:
Is the solution worse than the problem of foreclosures? 62% of all foreclosures are in just four states - Florida, California, Arizona, and worst of all - Nevada. Note also the following:
Different data comparisons can yield different impressions. Here we compare foreclosures to housing units to arrive at a foreclosure rate. Comparing foreclosures to mortgages is more common and yields a higher rate as well as leaves out owner-occupied housing where mortgages have been paid completely (32 percent of owner-occupied dwellings). This method also diminishes the importance of rental housing (32 percent of housing nationwide and 46 percent of housing in central cities) on which there are fewer foreclosures. By comparing foreclosures to housing units we include all housing. This measure, however, understates the burden of delinquent mortgage payments on lenders. With 51 million mortgages in 2007, one million foreclosures would be two percent of all mortgages, a major increase from the previous norm of 0.4 percent of mortgages starting the foreclosure process from 1997 to 2006.So, 98% of all mortgages are not in foreclosure, but we're supposed to treat the 2% as though the sky is falling.
Arrest Warrant Issued For Sudan's Thuggish President
This should have happened years ago, but it is a step in the right direction. Sudan's regime in Khartoum has been a willing and capable participant and enabler of the Darfur genocide and ethnic cleansing. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has repeatedly thwarted international efforts to assist the millions of Darfur refugees, whether it was the United Nations or the African Union. An arrest warrant was issued for Bashir.
Actually, Bashir did more than just shrug it off. He said that the ICC could eat it.
Sudan has done little to provide stability in the region, and the Darfur genocide and ethnic cleansing has meant that there are more than 2 million refugees scattered in the region and neighboring countries that are ill equipped to deal with the situation.
Of course, there are others who think that the ICC indictment will actually lead to greater woes for Darfur and Sudan. They're worried that it might lead to a renewal of the civil war that resulted in more than 2 million dead.
UPDATE:
Sudan expels an aid group that was helping Darfur refugees. Classy.
The Netherlands-based International Criminal Court on Wednesday announced an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Darfur region — a move that could provoke a violent backlash.The arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court in the Hague, Netherlands but it falls short of indicting him on charges of genocide. I don't see much coming from it and the Sudanese thug will simply shrug this off, just as he has watched hundreds of thousands murdered and millions displaced by the janjaweed and his own militias throughout Western Sudan. Sudan doesn't recognize the court's jurisdiction.
But the three-judge panel said there was insufficient evidence to support charges of genocide.
"He is suspected of being criminally responsible ... for intentionally directing attacks against an important part of the civilian population of Darfur, Sudan, murdering, exterminating, raping, torturing and forcibly transferring large numbers of civilians, and pillaging their property," court spokeswoman Laurence Blairon said.
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Many observers are nervous about the fallout over the ICC's first warrant against a sitting head of state since it started work in 2002.
ICC prosecutors accuse al-Bashir of ordering war crimes in Sudan's western region of Darfur, where the Arab-led government is trying to put down a rebellion by the ethnic African population. At least 300,000 people have been killed and 2.7 million driven from their homes in fighting since 2003.
Actually, Bashir did more than just shrug it off. He said that the ICC could eat it.
Campaigning for his National Congress Party (NCP) outside Khartoum on Tuesday, President Bashir discounted the importance of the ICC's looming decision, saying that the Court could "eat" the indictment. Vice President Salva Kiir, a former southern rebel leader who now shares power with Bashir in a coalition government, struck a more conciliatory line.In Khartoum, some foreign embassies beefed up security for fear that Sudanese thugs might engage in some kind of demonstration or violence against governments that back the ICC efforts to bring the murderous thugs in Sudan to justice.
"In the event of the court agreeing with the chief prosecutor," Mr. Kiir said on Tuesday, "the [Sudan People's Liberation Movement] will work with its partners in the NCP on how to politically and diplomatically handle the decision of the court." He urged the international community to remain engaged in Sudan, whatever the decision, warning, "The collapse of peace in Sudan shall not only hurt the Sudan itself, but shall also have serious repercussions in the region."
Sudan has done little to provide stability in the region, and the Darfur genocide and ethnic cleansing has meant that there are more than 2 million refugees scattered in the region and neighboring countries that are ill equipped to deal with the situation.
Of course, there are others who think that the ICC indictment will actually lead to greater woes for Darfur and Sudan. They're worried that it might lead to a renewal of the civil war that resulted in more than 2 million dead.
UPDATE:
Sudan expels an aid group that was helping Darfur refugees. Classy.
Ahmadinejad Rants On To Receptive Audience
Once again, Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is busy calling for the putting to death of Israeli leaders and the destruction of Israel.
These terrorists and thugs are united in seeing Israel's destruction and Iran continues to stoke genocidal and apocalyptic visions for the destruction of Israel and destruction of the Jews living there. There's no talk of conciliation or common ground; it's all about death to Jews and Israel.
Iran is busy putting money where it's mouth is as well; it's busy funding Hizbullah to the tune of $1 billion.
The legal measures will bear results and the criminals of the Zionist regime will eventually be put to death, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday.Let me repeat that last bit: according to a report, Hizbullah's Nasrallah was the head of the Lebanese delegation. Also attending this hatefest: Palestinian terrorist Samir Kuntar, Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar and Moussa Abu Marzouk, Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ramadan Salah, and Fatah's Farouk Kadumi, the PLO leader in Tunisia.
Speaking at a Tehran conference in support of the Palestinians, Ahmadinejad called for "a global front against Zionism which would work to support the people in Gaza and in Palestine on the one hand, and work to punish the Zionist criminals on the other hand."
The conference was attended by senior members of the Palestinian terror organizations. According to one report, Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah headed the Lebanese delegation to the event.
These terrorists and thugs are united in seeing Israel's destruction and Iran continues to stoke genocidal and apocalyptic visions for the destruction of Israel and destruction of the Jews living there. There's no talk of conciliation or common ground; it's all about death to Jews and Israel.
Iran is busy putting money where it's mouth is as well; it's busy funding Hizbullah to the tune of $1 billion.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Arrest Warrants Signed In Chandra Levy Case
This was one of the biggest stories in the media immediately prior to 9/11, but now we have someone not named Gary Condit being charged with the murder. It's a laborer who is serving prison time in California and can be placed in the same park where Chandra Levy disappeared and her remains were discovered.
A judge on Tuesday signed an arrest warrant for Ingmar Guandique, 27, who is serving a 10-year prison sentence in California.Yet another career criminal.
He was convicted of two assaults in Washington, D.C.'s Rock Creek Park that occurred around the time of Levy's disappearance. Levy's remains were found in the park.
"We believe Levy was a random victim of Guandique, who attacked and killed her as she jogged in Rock Creek Park," said Jeffrey Taylor, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.
If convicted, Guandique could face a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 30 years and a maximum of 60 years, Taylor said.
Thanks President Obama For the Laugh
I needed a laugh today given the recent Wall Street meltdown, and President Obama and the Administration didn't disappoint. The Administration will start going after international tax dodgers.
Let's also ignore all the other Democrats that President Obama nominated for positions requiring Senate confirmation who skipped out on their patriotic duty to pay their full tax share, including Ron Kirk, Hilda Solis, Tom Daschle, and Nancy Killifer.
Let's go after international corporations or individuals who haven't paid taxes because of tax havens or other currently legal setups that allow them to avoid paying US taxes.
Let's ignore that Charles Rangel sits on the House Ways and Means chairmanship despite failing to pay thousands in taxes and multiple ethics flaps.
This is one of the last bastions of a government entity looking to find tax revenue when none is forthcoming from other sources. The Administration is hoping to find a few billion more from these sources, even though that means that these corporations will find themselves paying more tax rather than investing the money or distributing it to their investors.
The dire fiscal situation is also why we see states beefing up their compliance efforts and pushing to expand sales tax collection of Internet sales. They're trying to wring every last dollar out of taxpayers to pay for their incredibly irresponsible spending packages.
UPDATE:
Slublog points out that Geithner also attempted to defend tax hikes on those making over $250,000. My irony meter is pegged right off the scale.
UPDATE:
Obama is full of laughs today. His latest? People need to buy stocks because they may be potentially a good deal. Why would anyone put money into the stock market these days with the Obama budget looming with all kinds of hits to various sectors of the economy - from hitting up the utilities and those that produce carbon emissions to the financial sector and investment houses that can't get their books in order to the health care field and drug stocks when he's looking to completely rejigger how those industries operate.
It makes little sense other than to say something today that is more optimistic than he's been in some time. Obama inherited a bad situation, but he's made it so much worse in so short a time frame by massively expanding government spending and then claiming that he will cut spending by hiking taxes and treating the end of the war in Iraq as a spending cut.
UPDATE:
Charles at LGF points out that Obama couldn't even get basic financial terms straight like P/E ratio. Just imagine the outcry if Obama's predecessor made that mistake.
President Barack Obama's Treasury secretary says the administration will unveil a series of rules and measures in the coming months to limit the ability of international companies to avoid U.S. taxes.It's pretty hilarious that it's tax cheat Tim Geithner who is announcing this new plan.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told the House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday that Obama will propose legislation to limit U.S. companies' ability to shelter foreign earnings from taxation in the U.S. He also said the administration will try to limit wealthy Americans' ability to use tax havens to avoid taxation.
He did not immediately provide details.
Let's also ignore all the other Democrats that President Obama nominated for positions requiring Senate confirmation who skipped out on their patriotic duty to pay their full tax share, including Ron Kirk, Hilda Solis, Tom Daschle, and Nancy Killifer.
Let's go after international corporations or individuals who haven't paid taxes because of tax havens or other currently legal setups that allow them to avoid paying US taxes.
Let's ignore that Charles Rangel sits on the House Ways and Means chairmanship despite failing to pay thousands in taxes and multiple ethics flaps.
This is one of the last bastions of a government entity looking to find tax revenue when none is forthcoming from other sources. The Administration is hoping to find a few billion more from these sources, even though that means that these corporations will find themselves paying more tax rather than investing the money or distributing it to their investors.
The dire fiscal situation is also why we see states beefing up their compliance efforts and pushing to expand sales tax collection of Internet sales. They're trying to wring every last dollar out of taxpayers to pay for their incredibly irresponsible spending packages.
UPDATE:
Slublog points out that Geithner also attempted to defend tax hikes on those making over $250,000. My irony meter is pegged right off the scale.
UPDATE:
Obama is full of laughs today. His latest? People need to buy stocks because they may be potentially a good deal. Why would anyone put money into the stock market these days with the Obama budget looming with all kinds of hits to various sectors of the economy - from hitting up the utilities and those that produce carbon emissions to the financial sector and investment houses that can't get their books in order to the health care field and drug stocks when he's looking to completely rejigger how those industries operate.
It makes little sense other than to say something today that is more optimistic than he's been in some time. Obama inherited a bad situation, but he's made it so much worse in so short a time frame by massively expanding government spending and then claiming that he will cut spending by hiking taxes and treating the end of the war in Iraq as a spending cut.
UPDATE:
Charles at LGF points out that Obama couldn't even get basic financial terms straight like P/E ratio. Just imagine the outcry if Obama's predecessor made that mistake.
Islamic Terrorists Strike Sri Lankan Cricket Team in Lahore
Cricket is a hugely popular sport in Pakistan and throughout much of the former British colonial empire. Terrorists struck at a Sri Lankan team as they were being transported through Lahore, wounding several players and killing several police escorts.
(video via Dustyvet at LGF)
Bill Roggio has more details on the terrorist attack:
The International Cricket Council has banned Pakistan from holding any games until the security situation improves. I don't see that happening anytime soon.
This was one of the worst attacks on a sports team since the 1972 Munich Olympics when Palestinian terrorists murdered 11 Israeli athletes.
UPDATE:
Rusty at the Jawa Report has much more, including the fact that the reason that Sri Lanka was in Pakistan for the match was because India canceled their match following the Mumbai attacks.
So, why was the Sri Lankan team hit? It was a high profile target of opportunity that the Islamists could use to discredit and undermine the Zardari government.
Some might think that this attack would undermine the support for the Islamists, but I think that the Islamists will proffer that it was instead the Indian government, or perhaps the pesky Zionists who were responsible for the attacks. They'll propose conspiracy theories that will spread like wildfire rather than hold on to the fact that show the serious problems with the Islamic terrorists inside Pakistan.
At least a dozen men ambushed Sri Lanka's cricket team with rifles, grenades and rocket launchers Tuesday as they drove to the stadium ahead of a match in Pakistan, killing six policemen and a driver.
The attackers struck as a convoy carrying the squad and match officials reached a traffic circle 300 yards from the main sports stadium in the eastern city of Lahore, triggering a 15-minute gunbattle with police guarding the vehicles.
Seven players, an umpire and a coach were wounded, none with life-threatening injuries.
(video via Dustyvet at LGF)
Bill Roggio has more details on the terrorist attack:
The "well-trained terrorists" killed five policemen and two civilians, and wounded seven Sri Lankan cricketers before melting away and 11 security and rescue personnel. Two of the Sri Lankans " received serious bullet injuries" while the head coach received minor injuries, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported.The attackers are still at large, and security in Pakistan remains a huge question mark. The country is rife with Islamists who are hellbent on inflicting all kinds of mass casualty attacks and expanding their influence beyond just the border of Pakistan.
The attack took place as a bus transporting the Sri Lankan team was traveling to the Gaddafi Stadium. Twelve well-armed "masked gunmen" ambushed the bus and its police escorts, sparking a 25-minute gun battle, Lahore's police chief told AFP.
"There were 12 masked gunmen," Habib-ur Rehman, Lahore's Chief of Police chief told reporters. "They appeared to be well-trained terrorists. They came on rickshaws. They were armed with rockets, hand grenades, kalashnikovs." Police eventually fended off the attack, and the terrorists disappeared in the streets of Lahore. The attack has led to the Sri Lankan team to cancel its Pakistan tour.
The International Cricket Council has banned Pakistan from holding any games until the security situation improves. I don't see that happening anytime soon.
This was one of the worst attacks on a sports team since the 1972 Munich Olympics when Palestinian terrorists murdered 11 Israeli athletes.
UPDATE:
Rusty at the Jawa Report has much more, including the fact that the reason that Sri Lanka was in Pakistan for the match was because India canceled their match following the Mumbai attacks.
So, why was the Sri Lankan team hit? It was a high profile target of opportunity that the Islamists could use to discredit and undermine the Zardari government.
Some might think that this attack would undermine the support for the Islamists, but I think that the Islamists will proffer that it was instead the Indian government, or perhaps the pesky Zionists who were responsible for the attacks. They'll propose conspiracy theories that will spread like wildfire rather than hold on to the fact that show the serious problems with the Islamic terrorists inside Pakistan.
Chagall Collateralization
The Metropolitan Opera of New York has faced a cash crunch like many other art institutions around the nation. Some have closed their doors while others have severely pared their offerings.
The Met has opted instead to use its famed Chagall artwork as collateral for lines of credit to keep operating.
The Met has opted instead to use its famed Chagall artwork as collateral for lines of credit to keep operating.
The Met said last month its $300 million endowment had shrunk, along with donations. It cut senior staff salaries by 10 percent and dropped four performances from its next season.
The murals, titled "The Triumph of Music" and "The Sources of Music," are among the most famous works by a Russian-born artist who created everything from stained-glass windows at the UN to tapestries, mosaics, and theater costumes.
More of the Same
While I spent the past week cruising in the Caribbean, the situation in Israel is little changed. Palestinian terrorists continue firing rockets at Israel, and instead of launching another major military operation against Hamas, which has not stopped attacking Israel since the end of Operation Cast Lead, Israel is now resorting to the dreaded letter to the United Nations.
That will go over well. How exactly is a letter to the UN going to stop Hamas and the other terrorists from firing rockets and mortars into Israel? They aren't. The UN isn't interested in stopping the terrorists from attacking Israel but rather limiting Israel's ability to defend itself from those very attacks.
What will stem the attacks is Israel's airstrikes against smuggling tunnels along the Philadelphi route between Gaza and Egypt, but more importantly, going after Hamas terror masters. Israel cannot allow itself to fall back into the position it was in just a few short months ago - tolerating an incessant stream of rockets and mortars on its cities. Israel is engaging in limited strikes, which does little to deter the terrorists. Palestinians claim that nine people trapped in those tunnels were rescued.
Since Operation Cast Lead, Hamas is not only firing short range kassam rockets into Israel, but is firing longer range Grad rockets that are coming into Gaza courtesy of the smuggling tunnels and some appear to have been procured from Iran. More than 120 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israel in just the past week. That's not calm. That's not a ceasefire. That's open war, and Israel is not responding in kind.
Oh, and the reward for the ongoing war against Israel? Donor countries have pledged billions to the Palestinians.
Israelis are increasingly asking questions about the rationale for capturing terrorists when it is all too likely that they will be released for political purposes. It's a question that keeps popping up as the Obama Administration contemplates releasing terrorists from Guantanamo Bay despite evidence that the terrorists resume their plotting, preparations, and attacks against the US.
The PA is concerned that the peace process might come to an end, and with it the notion of a 2-state solution. They'll frame it in terms of it being Israel's fault, but the fault resides with no one but the Palestinians who have not accepted Israel's existence, and which call for jihad and Israel's destruction and supplanting Israel with a Palestinian thugocracy. Hamas doesn't want a 2-state solution; it seeks Israel's destruction at every turn and engages in repeated hudnas to regroup and rearm for that very purpose. Fatah can't muster the courage to amend its own charter to eliminate references to Israel's destruction. The Hamas Charter demands Israel's destruction as a religious and political obligation. No Palestinian leader has the courage to take the necessary steps to make necessary concessions to make a peace deal actually work, but instead demand still more money from the US that gets siphoned off to terrorist groups and concessions from Israel that undermine Israel's security all without doing anything to improve the chances for a real and lasting peace.
At the same time, the Obama Administration continues to make overtures to the Assad regime in Syria, which makes little sense since Syria continues harboring terrorist groups including Hamas and Hizbullah, both of which have American blood on their hands, to say nothing of Syria's support of the Iraqi insurgency.
That will go over well. How exactly is a letter to the UN going to stop Hamas and the other terrorists from firing rockets and mortars into Israel? They aren't. The UN isn't interested in stopping the terrorists from attacking Israel but rather limiting Israel's ability to defend itself from those very attacks.
What will stem the attacks is Israel's airstrikes against smuggling tunnels along the Philadelphi route between Gaza and Egypt, but more importantly, going after Hamas terror masters. Israel cannot allow itself to fall back into the position it was in just a few short months ago - tolerating an incessant stream of rockets and mortars on its cities. Israel is engaging in limited strikes, which does little to deter the terrorists. Palestinians claim that nine people trapped in those tunnels were rescued.
Since Operation Cast Lead, Hamas is not only firing short range kassam rockets into Israel, but is firing longer range Grad rockets that are coming into Gaza courtesy of the smuggling tunnels and some appear to have been procured from Iran. More than 120 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israel in just the past week. That's not calm. That's not a ceasefire. That's open war, and Israel is not responding in kind.
Oh, and the reward for the ongoing war against Israel? Donor countries have pledged billions to the Palestinians.
The lull in a military response coincided with the international donors conference in Sharm el-Sheikh Monday, where the international community pledged more than $4 billion for Gaza.Hamas isn't giving up attempting to attack the Gaza fence with Israel either.
Terrorists in Gaza fired more than 120 rockets and mortar shells on southern Israel the past week, returning the region to the routine of fear and panic which prevailed before the IDF launched Operation Cast Lead in late December.
Knesset Member Dr. Yuval Steinitz (Likud), former chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, has dismissed the IDF tactics of hitting tunnels as ineffective. He said that the only way to stop the smuggling is to close off a security zone in the area of the Philadelphi Route, along the Egyptian-Israeli border.
Channel 2 television reported last week that Hamas is continuing to smuggle advanced rockets through the tunnels despite occasional Israeli attacks.
Israelis are increasingly asking questions about the rationale for capturing terrorists when it is all too likely that they will be released for political purposes. It's a question that keeps popping up as the Obama Administration contemplates releasing terrorists from Guantanamo Bay despite evidence that the terrorists resume their plotting, preparations, and attacks against the US.
The PA is concerned that the peace process might come to an end, and with it the notion of a 2-state solution. They'll frame it in terms of it being Israel's fault, but the fault resides with no one but the Palestinians who have not accepted Israel's existence, and which call for jihad and Israel's destruction and supplanting Israel with a Palestinian thugocracy. Hamas doesn't want a 2-state solution; it seeks Israel's destruction at every turn and engages in repeated hudnas to regroup and rearm for that very purpose. Fatah can't muster the courage to amend its own charter to eliminate references to Israel's destruction. The Hamas Charter demands Israel's destruction as a religious and political obligation. No Palestinian leader has the courage to take the necessary steps to make necessary concessions to make a peace deal actually work, but instead demand still more money from the US that gets siphoned off to terrorist groups and concessions from Israel that undermine Israel's security all without doing anything to improve the chances for a real and lasting peace.
At the same time, the Obama Administration continues to make overtures to the Assad regime in Syria, which makes little sense since Syria continues harboring terrorist groups including Hamas and Hizbullah, both of which have American blood on their hands, to say nothing of Syria's support of the Iraqi insurgency.
Monday, March 02, 2009
I Prefer To Drink My Wine From A Glass Thanks
A New York City restaurant has decided to come up with a gimmick to sell their wine.
They're selling it by the bottle.
Baby bottle that is - complete with the nipple.
Only in New York?
They're selling it by the bottle.
Baby bottle that is - complete with the nipple.
Only in New York?
New York Still Looking To Toll the Bridges
Mayor Mike Bloomberg proffered the idea of congestion pricing as a solution to the traffic congestion in Manhattan. It would have meant tolling the East River bridges in New York City, which have been free for pretty much their entire history (the Brooklyn Bridge had a very short lived toll). His stated goal for the tax was to ease congestion in the City and make the city more green, but the only green he was truly concerned with was the tax revenues generated from the tolls - he's never met a tax he didn't like as Mayor.
Bloomberg's idea died in the state legislature after coming agonizingly close to fruition. The whole plan was little more than a regressive tax that would hit residents outside Manhattan hard, and make businesses in Manhattan even less competitive with those outside the borough because they wouldn't have to incur the transportation costs. The plan would have made the most expensive place to live in the nation even more expensive, and that's saying something.
The plan was coming at a time when the economy was still in decent shape. It was widely opposed and businesses opposed it on grounds that it would make people seek to live, work, and spend their money elsewhere - places that they wouldn't have to spend still more money just to get to.
And yet, like a zombie, the idea of tolling the bridges keeps coming back as a way to balance the MTA budget and prevent a steep increase of the fares.
It's not congestion pricing, but the results will be nearly as bad for the city of New York and the State.
The latest tolling plan doesn't even make sense from a fiscal perspective. The MTA is looking at a multi-billion dollar hole, if you believe their current figures (and there's no reason not to believe that they're staring massive deficits given the way that they've mismanaged their assets and capital projects including the Fulton Street project). The idea is to impose a $2 toll on the East River and Harlem River bridges that are currently free. The $6 congestion pricing toll would have raised several hundred million (not counting the hundreds of millions to implement the system in the first place and to maintain the new toll infrastructure along with enforcement). The $2 toll wont even reach a fraction of that amount and it begs the question of just how much money could be raised above and beyond the implementation costs.
The toll would hit commuters and those looking to spend their hard-earned money in Manhattan worst of all - at a time when they can ill afford to see still more of their money taken by the government. The City is in dire fiscal shape because Wall Street has left it without the billions it ordinarily relied upon in years past. Now, they'll try to tax everyone else because the business revenues are no longer there.
The problem is as it has been in the past - when you start raising taxes and fees into the teeth of a recession, you not only don't meet your revenue projections, but you intensify the recession and make it an even more inhospitable business climate. That's precisely the wrong direction to take.
Bloomberg's idea died in the state legislature after coming agonizingly close to fruition. The whole plan was little more than a regressive tax that would hit residents outside Manhattan hard, and make businesses in Manhattan even less competitive with those outside the borough because they wouldn't have to incur the transportation costs. The plan would have made the most expensive place to live in the nation even more expensive, and that's saying something.
The plan was coming at a time when the economy was still in decent shape. It was widely opposed and businesses opposed it on grounds that it would make people seek to live, work, and spend their money elsewhere - places that they wouldn't have to spend still more money just to get to.
And yet, like a zombie, the idea of tolling the bridges keeps coming back as a way to balance the MTA budget and prevent a steep increase of the fares.
It's not congestion pricing, but the results will be nearly as bad for the city of New York and the State.
The latest tolling plan doesn't even make sense from a fiscal perspective. The MTA is looking at a multi-billion dollar hole, if you believe their current figures (and there's no reason not to believe that they're staring massive deficits given the way that they've mismanaged their assets and capital projects including the Fulton Street project). The idea is to impose a $2 toll on the East River and Harlem River bridges that are currently free. The $6 congestion pricing toll would have raised several hundred million (not counting the hundreds of millions to implement the system in the first place and to maintain the new toll infrastructure along with enforcement). The $2 toll wont even reach a fraction of that amount and it begs the question of just how much money could be raised above and beyond the implementation costs.
The toll would hit commuters and those looking to spend their hard-earned money in Manhattan worst of all - at a time when they can ill afford to see still more of their money taken by the government. The City is in dire fiscal shape because Wall Street has left it without the billions it ordinarily relied upon in years past. Now, they'll try to tax everyone else because the business revenues are no longer there.
The problem is as it has been in the past - when you start raising taxes and fees into the teeth of a recession, you not only don't meet your revenue projections, but you intensify the recession and make it an even more inhospitable business climate. That's precisely the wrong direction to take.
Still Another Obama Nominee Has Tax Troubles
The hits keep on coming for the folks who supposedly vet the nominees for various posts within the Obama Administration requiring confirmation. They allowed Ron Kirk to be put forward and only later did they realize that he failed to pay $10,000 in taxes.
How many Democrats can Obama's people dig up that didn't pay their taxes? What does this tell you about those Democrats that Obama was considering and didn't make the cut?
What does it say about the judgment of the Obama Administration? Why does that not get more attention from the media. I guess they were looking for change in DC and decided that they'd rather have tax deadbeats running the show.
Ron Kirk, nominated as U.S. Trade Representative in the Obama administration, owes an estimated $10,000 in back taxes from earlier in the decade and has agreed to make his payments, the Senate Finance Committee said Monday.How does this happen?
The committee said the taxes arise from Kirk's handling of speaking fees that he donated to his alma mater, and for his deduction of the full cost of season tickets to the Dallas Mavericks professional basketball team.
The disclosure made the former Dallas mayor the latest in a string of top-level Obama administration appointees found to have underpaid their taxes, following Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Tom Daschle, who withdrew as candidate for Health and Human Services secretary. Nancy Killefer, Obama's pick for chief performance officer, also bowed out amid tax problems.
How many Democrats can Obama's people dig up that didn't pay their taxes? What does this tell you about those Democrats that Obama was considering and didn't make the cut?
What does it say about the judgment of the Obama Administration? Why does that not get more attention from the media. I guess they were looking for change in DC and decided that they'd rather have tax deadbeats running the show.
Photos of the Day
It's a pelican briefly enjoying the sun before resuming the hunt for food on Cozumel, Mexico and an iguana basking in the glorious sun at the magnificent Mayan ruins of Tulum.
These are just the first few photos from our Caribbean cruise. More will be posted over coming weeks.
March Storm Madness
For those who haven't noticed, I've been light on blogging this past week. I was out in the Caribbean on a 7-day cruise and got back into the NYC metro area last night. The trip was great, but getting back was an absolute mess because of the Nor'easter that we're experiencing in the NYC metro area and throughout the entire Eastern United States as the storm dumped snow from Alabama and Georgia all the way up through to Maine. More than 50 million people are being affected directly by the storm, and many areas will see more than 10 inches of snow before all is said and done.
It's a pretty bad storm no matter how you look at it and yet, it wasn't the weather in NYC that made travel so horrible yesterday. It was the mess in Atlanta, which was hit by the storm before it hit the East Coast. It may have been fun for some, but to the airlines, and Delta Airlines in particular, it was a disaster.
Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed because they couldn't deal with the snow at the airport or to get equipment to the right place.
Normally, I would try to schedule direct flights between New York and our destination and for the return flights, but because I was using Skymiles, I got a connecting flight through Atlanta on our way back to Newark.
When we got to the airport from the cruise ship at 9AM, the airport was already a madhouse because Delta Airlines was having a meltdown. They were canceling flights left and right and people were scrambling to find alternatives. The line at the Delta ticket counter was winding through the airport and there were no representatives to direct people what to do. The situation was also bad at some of the other counters, including Northwest and Southwest, but Delta was having the worst of it. It was like that for hours. We were waiting on line with no guidance and no instructions.
The folks in the line were all well behaved and were quite helpful to each other, giving what little tidbits of information to each other. Phone lines to Delta's reservations line were useless as they were jammed and all you got were busy signals - and that situation remains unresolved even today. It didn't matter if you were a Skymiles member or not - you couldn't get through under any of the phone numbers except the flight information line - and there were significant waits for that too.
After three hours of waiting on line and still no closer to the counter, I made my way over to the jetBlue desk, and attempted to get tickets. I finally managed to get two tickets on a direct flight to JFK (our car was, and still is, at Newark), but it was a steep price to get back to NYC. The two tickets were $640, and we still had to deal with Delta. That was at 1PM. The new flight was scheduled for 6:32PM.
Oh, and there was no guarantee that the jetBlue flight would happen since there were weather delays and cancellations popping up all over the East Coast because of the storm that was now hitting all over the place.
Delta finally sent some people out into the crowd to provide additional phone numbers - all busy of course - but also that they shouldn't bother to stay on line since they wouldn't get any other information than what was being provided at the ticket counter. To say that this was not helpful was an understatement.
Still, it was a highlight of the day when a contingent of US Marines lugging what looked like 200 pounds of gear and bags entered the ticket area and attempted to get through the crowd to secure their own ticketing. Some of the Marines had bags and packs that were bigger than they were. The crowd parted easily and spontaneous clapping erupted as they made their way back and forth through the area. They were on their way to Camp Pendelton, but had to fly through Atlanta.
I would keep checking back with the Delta counter to see if the line slackened any, but that never happened. The line looked like it was a consistent two to three hour wait, and we were hearing that the earliest flights back to the NY metro area would be Tuesday at the earliest. That was completely unacceptable so I figured that I would deal with Delta when I got back to NY.
We kept a wary eye on the arrival/departures status boards, as we saw cancellations and delays mount. A delay on an inbound flight from Boston would mean delays on outbound flights from Tampa, and the domino effect was truly in play. Flights in and out of Newark, LGA, and JFK were being canceled or delayed. Our own flight ended up showing a delay because our plane was coming from Boston, where they got an early taste of the storm and that meant that our flight to NY was not expected to leave Tampa until 7:10PM.
The airport has some shops and a couple of restaurants so we made use of both - having lunch and wandering the airport terminal for amusement and to stretch our legs. Many other folks were in the same boat, although some gave up trying to fly out yesterday and instead looked to find a room for the night either at the Marriott on the airport property or at off airport locations.
Well, the folks at the jetBlue counter couldn't be any nicer and helpful and were able to get us on that flight and keep us informed. The Boston flight did get in late, but the jetBlue staff turned the plane around in literally 20 minutes time. They were deplaning the passengers through both the front and rear of the plane, checking it out, cleaning, and restocking it in minutes. We actually boarded the plane and pulled back from the gate at 7PM. It was still 20 minutes later than the originally scheduled time, but earlier than anticipated.
The plane was absolutely packed to the gills because people were scrambling to get back home. We finally touched down at just about 9PM. That's right - we made the trip in nearly 2 hours flat. Apparently we got a 50mph tailwind and were flying most of the trip at over 630mph. The ride wasn't too bumpy either although we did get a few thunderstorm displays out the window.
Touchdown in NYC was uneventful even though the runways and taxiways were wet and starting to slush up at the margins. We disembarked from the plane without a hitch although it took quite a bit longer to get our bags than we hoped. My brother got us from the airport and drove us home, which meant the world to us given the day we had.
Thousands of other passengers were in a similar situation yesterday and today because of the storm. Thousands of flights were canceled or delayed, and the problems aren't expected to ease for a couple of days. Meanwhile, while I can't say I'm glad to be home to shovel snow and deal with the storm, it is nice to be home.
And I finally managed to get through to a Delta rep today and they credited my account for the unused Skymiles. It's a start.
It's a pretty bad storm no matter how you look at it and yet, it wasn't the weather in NYC that made travel so horrible yesterday. It was the mess in Atlanta, which was hit by the storm before it hit the East Coast. It may have been fun for some, but to the airlines, and Delta Airlines in particular, it was a disaster.
Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed because they couldn't deal with the snow at the airport or to get equipment to the right place.
Normally, I would try to schedule direct flights between New York and our destination and for the return flights, but because I was using Skymiles, I got a connecting flight through Atlanta on our way back to Newark.
When we got to the airport from the cruise ship at 9AM, the airport was already a madhouse because Delta Airlines was having a meltdown. They were canceling flights left and right and people were scrambling to find alternatives. The line at the Delta ticket counter was winding through the airport and there were no representatives to direct people what to do. The situation was also bad at some of the other counters, including Northwest and Southwest, but Delta was having the worst of it. It was like that for hours. We were waiting on line with no guidance and no instructions.
The folks in the line were all well behaved and were quite helpful to each other, giving what little tidbits of information to each other. Phone lines to Delta's reservations line were useless as they were jammed and all you got were busy signals - and that situation remains unresolved even today. It didn't matter if you were a Skymiles member or not - you couldn't get through under any of the phone numbers except the flight information line - and there were significant waits for that too.
After three hours of waiting on line and still no closer to the counter, I made my way over to the jetBlue desk, and attempted to get tickets. I finally managed to get two tickets on a direct flight to JFK (our car was, and still is, at Newark), but it was a steep price to get back to NYC. The two tickets were $640, and we still had to deal with Delta. That was at 1PM. The new flight was scheduled for 6:32PM.
Oh, and there was no guarantee that the jetBlue flight would happen since there were weather delays and cancellations popping up all over the East Coast because of the storm that was now hitting all over the place.
Delta finally sent some people out into the crowd to provide additional phone numbers - all busy of course - but also that they shouldn't bother to stay on line since they wouldn't get any other information than what was being provided at the ticket counter. To say that this was not helpful was an understatement.
Still, it was a highlight of the day when a contingent of US Marines lugging what looked like 200 pounds of gear and bags entered the ticket area and attempted to get through the crowd to secure their own ticketing. Some of the Marines had bags and packs that were bigger than they were. The crowd parted easily and spontaneous clapping erupted as they made their way back and forth through the area. They were on their way to Camp Pendelton, but had to fly through Atlanta.
I would keep checking back with the Delta counter to see if the line slackened any, but that never happened. The line looked like it was a consistent two to three hour wait, and we were hearing that the earliest flights back to the NY metro area would be Tuesday at the earliest. That was completely unacceptable so I figured that I would deal with Delta when I got back to NY.
We kept a wary eye on the arrival/departures status boards, as we saw cancellations and delays mount. A delay on an inbound flight from Boston would mean delays on outbound flights from Tampa, and the domino effect was truly in play. Flights in and out of Newark, LGA, and JFK were being canceled or delayed. Our own flight ended up showing a delay because our plane was coming from Boston, where they got an early taste of the storm and that meant that our flight to NY was not expected to leave Tampa until 7:10PM.
The airport has some shops and a couple of restaurants so we made use of both - having lunch and wandering the airport terminal for amusement and to stretch our legs. Many other folks were in the same boat, although some gave up trying to fly out yesterday and instead looked to find a room for the night either at the Marriott on the airport property or at off airport locations.
Well, the folks at the jetBlue counter couldn't be any nicer and helpful and were able to get us on that flight and keep us informed. The Boston flight did get in late, but the jetBlue staff turned the plane around in literally 20 minutes time. They were deplaning the passengers through both the front and rear of the plane, checking it out, cleaning, and restocking it in minutes. We actually boarded the plane and pulled back from the gate at 7PM. It was still 20 minutes later than the originally scheduled time, but earlier than anticipated.
The plane was absolutely packed to the gills because people were scrambling to get back home. We finally touched down at just about 9PM. That's right - we made the trip in nearly 2 hours flat. Apparently we got a 50mph tailwind and were flying most of the trip at over 630mph. The ride wasn't too bumpy either although we did get a few thunderstorm displays out the window.
Touchdown in NYC was uneventful even though the runways and taxiways were wet and starting to slush up at the margins. We disembarked from the plane without a hitch although it took quite a bit longer to get our bags than we hoped. My brother got us from the airport and drove us home, which meant the world to us given the day we had.
Thousands of other passengers were in a similar situation yesterday and today because of the storm. Thousands of flights were canceled or delayed, and the problems aren't expected to ease for a couple of days. Meanwhile, while I can't say I'm glad to be home to shovel snow and deal with the storm, it is nice to be home.
And I finally managed to get through to a Delta rep today and they credited my account for the unused Skymiles. It's a start.
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