What, Me Worry?

(Due to popular demand, the following post, originally published on September 15, 2008 in an alternate universe, proudly makes an encore appearance.)



Welcome to Black Monday.
The Dow Jones lost 500 points today. Reports state that gasoline will soon be back over $4.00/gal and is headed for $5.00. A five-pound bag of potatoes costs $5.00, and a single tomato is going for $2.00 apiece! While there are no bread lines, yet, there soon will be.

Former head of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, stated today that we are headed for a world-wide recession, and things  will get worse before they get better. Mortgage foreclosures are so bad that some of the nation's largest banks have gone bankrupt, while others avoided bankruptcy by being bought by bigger banks.

Who will come to rescue us from this plight?

Well, Heaven knows it won't be President Bush. He just spent the last eight years putting us in this mess. Someone at work today said that the Federal government should do  something to regulate gas prices. DUH! I replied to him, "Well, when you elected an oil-baron president, what did you expect?" Bush has about 100 days left in office, and he will spend every last one of them trying to wring every last penny he can (for himself and his cronies) out of the American people.

I tried to warn people eight years ago about the danger of electing an oil-baron president but they were more concerned about abortion, the danger of same-sex marriages, swearing on TV and radio, and other right-wing conservative problems.

Heaven forbid we let women decide for themselves about issues concerning their own bodies.
Heaven forbid two consenting adults want to be a family.
Heaven forbid someone should SAY something blue on the radio.

If the American people spent half the time worrying about the American people as they do listening to hell-fire-and-damnation lectures from conservative preachers, we probably would not be in this mess. I am not, by nature a political person, but if you want to know my true feelings about American democracy, read "Eeney, Meeney, Miney, Moe".

As for me, I am not worried. I passed Boy Scout survival training 40 years ago. I'm ready at a moment's notice to start digging for grubs, and eating bugs (here in Florida I'll be eating well).

Hope you fare as well.

Trying Your Luck

I got new tires today. That doesn’t sound like much, but it sure does mean a lot to me. You see, my last tires were almost bare, and I was very afraid of getting a blow out, or skidding in the rain. I was trying my luck, and luckily I survived until we could afford new tires.

Trying your luck can be very stressful. In today’s world we all have to try our luck a lot more than we would like. Money is tight, and when money is tight, things that were necessities, now become luxuries. For some people eating is becoming a luxury. The stress level of adult America is going through the roof (and so is their blood pressure).

Trying your luck can be fun and exciting at times; it can provide a great adrenaline rush. I like to try skiing down the advanced slopes even though I am not a very good skier. I will often walk under ladders, and play with fire (you should see me light my grill). Heck, sometimes I will even brave driving in rush hour traffic that is normally very exciting. I like to try my luck in certain ways; it helps to spice up my life.

There are also certain ways I don’t want to try my luck, like driving on bad tires, or with faulty wind shield wiper blades. I don’t want to gamble that my old geezer of an air conditioner will make it through another scorching Miami summer. I don’t like having to juggle paying bills, and I don’t like knowing that I am just one paycheck away from oblivion.

I certainly would like to stop having to try my luck so much. There is just one small problem; I haven’t figured out how to yet.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

When I was a young lad, the night time sky was mysterious, and full of wonder. I was taught to always make a wish on the first star appearing in the evening dusk. To this day I remember those days, and I often still do make a wish when I see the first star of the night. Well, perhaps I should say wishes; like everyone else, the older I get, the greedier I get. I thought I might share with you the list of wishes I burdened tonight’s star with.

1) I wish that my car will last at least a year longer than the payments on that car.

2) I wish that I may live long enough to someday retire.

3) I wish that when I do retire, I can afford to do so.

4) I wish that medical benefits for everyone, were a reality, and not a pipe dream.

5) I wish I could run a marathon fast enough to qualify for the Boston Marathon.

6) I wish the Oakland Raiders would win another Super Bowl in my lifetime.

7) I wish George W. Bush would crawl under a rock, and never be seen, or heard from again.

8) I wish for several cases of George Dickell No. 12 Tennessee Whiskey

9) I wish there was a playoff system to determine the National Champion in college football instead of the B.C.S. system.

10) I wish to win the World Series of Poker, at least once.

11) I wish to be a well read (and well paid), writer of meaningless drivel.

12) (oh yeah, I almost forgot) I wish there was peace on Earth, and good will towards men.

Hooray For Me ( And F#&k You )

Today's topic is corporate greed.

There has always been a war of sorts going on between the "have" and the "have not" factions of the human race. Here in the USA, the gap between the two is wider than it has been since the great depression. The reason for this is the climate brought about by the front man for the "haves", George W. Bush.

In the past eight years, Bush has championed the elitists, while totally ignoring the working men and women of America. Under Bush's watch, millions of decent paying jobs have been exported overseas, health benefits have been eroded, and workers' pay slashed. All the while, prices for consumer goods, gasoline, and food, have risen steadily. The "haves", in their smugness, are delirious with their gains, while the "have nots" are struggling everyday just to keep a roof over their heads and food on their table.

Reagan was an elitist, but with his trickle down economy, he saw to it that at least something got to the American workers. Not so under President Bush. No profit is too great for corporate America as far as he is concerned. The fact that this profit is coming at the expense of the American people is of no concern to him or his cronies. They, of course, feel that they are entitled to these huge profits. In their short-sightedness, they do not realize that they are sewing the seeds for their own destruction.

Since so many manufacturing jobs are now performed overseas, the cost to make something is much less than it used to be. But the lower manufacturing costs have never been reflected in the cost to the consumer. The prices have never come down, thereby increasing profit margins of management.

However, since there are so many unemployed people, and the ones who do have a job are making substantially less than they used to, no one can afford to buy anything unless they put themselves in huge debt. Then they end up defaulting on these loans, and everybody loses.

Companies are going bankrupt at an alarming rate! These assholes have out-smarted themselves! When will they learn that a well paid work force is their best customer? We really need someone running this country that understands that there has to be a balance between profit margins, and worker pay.

Otherwise we are in for one long hard depression.