Don't mess with Ron Wyden

Our defender of rights has taken on the Obama administration, which wants to keep secret their justification on assassinating people around the world, including American citizens abroad and frequent innocents caught in the "collateral damage".  Many of the policies originated With George W Bush, but are now the modus operandi of the current administration

In the process, he has picked up allies on both sides of the aisle, with Rand Paul (KY-R), Mike Lee (UT-R), and Mark Udall (CO-D) joining in the demands of more transparency on the arbitrary use of lethal force thousands of miles away.

The rich don't pay taxes, only little people do that.

Buzzflash is reporting a new tax dodge utilized by billionaire hedge fund managers, moving billions through sham re-insurance companies in the Bahamas.  Oddly enough this was first reported by Bloomberg Businessweek (ironically owned by politician plutocrat and defender of the oligarchy Michael Bloomberg).  Here is the substance of this scam.  All they do is send their spare change, billions of it, to their sham re-insurance company they set up in the Bahamas for this purpose.  The re-insurance treats the cash as "reserves" against future claims.  There won't be any claims since the re-insurance company doesn't insure anything.  The cash gets invested in the hedge fund and the money made is not taxable at all in the Bahamas, and not in the US until the "reserve" is closed out, years down the road.  The taxes, when paid, are at the lower capital-gains rate and not as ordinary income.  

Generations of investors have used reinsurance as an investment and tax-avoidance tool, and a decade ago the IRS vowed to clamp down on its abuses, with little today to show and no prosecutions.

Federal Minimum Wage Increase?

A proposal from President Obama to increase the Federal Minimum wage from $7.25 to $9.00 / hour and index it to inflation has brought objections from many of the usual suspects, like Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), who claim the minimum wage will kill jobs and hurt small businesses. 

Tennessee Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R) stated that she started as a teenage retail employee making a seemingly-measly $2.15 an hour in Mississippi (she didn't say what year that was, but based on her age it was likely between 1968 - 1970).  Think Progress did a little basic math and in this article they explain that her $2.15 / hour back then would be $12.72 - $14.18 in today's dollars.  Moreover, back then the minimum wage was $1.60 which is $10.56 in today's dollars.

The minimum wage in real dollars has actually decreased by 31% since 1969, resulting in a vast increase in the number of families in dire situations.

Is the rule of Law in the US Inoperative?

It was Richard Nixon's press secretary Ron Ziegler that made the word "inoperative" a part of American history (it was a euphemism for "We Lied").  Now during the Senate confirmation hearings for John Brennan as head of the CIA we hear echos of inoperative.
SEN. RON WYDEN: Let me ask you several other questions with respect to the president’s authority to kill Americans. I’ve asked you how much evidence the president needs to decide that a particular American can be lawfully killed and whether the administration believes that the president can use this authority inside the United States.

Brennan answers with total gibberish.

JOHN BRENNAN: I have been a strong proponent of trying to be as open as possible with these programs, as far as our explaining what we’re doing. What we need to do is optimize transparency on these issues, but at the same time optimize secrecy and the protection of our national security. I don’t think that it’s one or the other. It’s trying to optimize both of them. And so, what we need to do is make sure we explain to the American people what are the thresholds for action, what are the procedures, the practices, the processes, the approvals, the reviews. The Office of Legal Counsel advice establishes the legal boundaries within which we can operate. It doesn’t mean that we operate at those out of boundaries. And, in fact, I think the American people will be quite pleased to know that we’ve been very disciplined, very judicious, and we only use these authorities and these capabilities as a last resort.

If ever there was the epitome of obfuscating bureaucratic blather, Brennan achieved it in pointedly not ruling out the killing of US citizens on US soil.

So what is the answer to Wyden's question?  What are the rules?  Will they just kill anyone they deem dangerous, no matter where?

The Strange Journey

I ordered an electronic Weather Station and the vendor chose to ship it Fedex Smartpost.  The tracking below shows that it shipped from Coffeyville, KS to Kansas City and thence to Brooklyn Park, MN taking two days to get there.  Problem is that it traveled 440 miles or so, but only got 79 miles closer to me, and it still has 1,720 miles to go.  Updates to follow...

It took 7 days and arrived in Kent, WA on 2/19 and was delivered the next day 2/20.  Oh well, I didn't get charged for it.

Date	Time	Location	Event Details
February 15, 2013	03:10:52 AM	Fedex Smartpost Brooklyn Park MN US	Departure Scan
February 15, 2013	03:10:00 AM	Fedex Smartpost Brooklyn Park MN US	In transit to pickup location
February 14, 2013	06:44:00 PM	Fedex Smartpost Brooklyn Park MN US	Arrival Scan
February 13, 2013	06:42:48 PM	Fedex Smartpost Kansas City KS US	Departure Scan
February 13, 2013	06:42:00 PM	Fedex Smartpost Kansas City KS US	In transit to pickup location
February 13, 2013	03:18:00 PM	Fedex Smartpost Kansas City KS US	Arrival Scan
February 13, 2013	08:50:00 AM	Coffeyville KS US	Shipment has left seller facility and is in transit to carrier

Wow, Duck! Meteor Incoming

The meteor over Russia has been documented with some amazing videos.  See here and here again and also here.  Some wags are blaming the Pope.  There was some humor following the event.

The panic and confusion that followed Friday's meteorite crash quickly gave way to typical Russian black humor and entrepreneurial instincts.
Several people smashed in the windows of their houses in the hopes of receiving compensation, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.
Others quickly took to the Internet and put what they said were meteorite fragments up for sale.
One of the most popular jokes was that the meteorite was supposed to fall on Dec. 21 last year – when many believed the Mayan calendar predicted the end of the world – but was delivered late by Russia's notoriously inefficient postal service.

Death and Taxes

The only for-sure things you can count on are death and taxes, right?  Wrong if you're a corporation, they can live indefinitely and do a pretty good job of not paying taxes.

LA Police shooting wrong people

The situation in California was already on the razors edge of tipping into craziness in the hunt for the rogue cop Christopher Dorner, then it crossed the line.  In an apparent moment of panic LA police shot up two pickup trucks in Torrance even though neither truck matched the color or license of a truck Dorner was thought to be driving.  The police chief made matters worse when he held a press conference and started trying to do damage control.  They need to overcome their panic before they kill lots of innocent people, it caused some people to suggest that you not drive any pickup truck in LA until he's caught.

Is there a correlation between gun ownership and gun deaths?

I like Mark Reid, a data wonk in Australia, and his analysis that he published on the correlation between gun ownership and deaths by guns.  It was a gutsy thing to do and he had a blizzard of comments to contend with, both love and hate, but he kept his cool and maintained that he was just publishing data, not drawing conclusions.  However the conclusions about whether or not "more guns = more deaths" is true looks pretty true to me.  You can judge for yourself.

A walk in the Woods

Our family (Richard, Kate and Duke) joined Ahren, Khanh and Alysha for a hike in the woods.  We went to the Molalla River Recreation Area and took one of the many trails in the area.  We didn't see another soul until we were walking out, then we saw two or three others.  It was cool and cloudy with some rain during the drive, but it was dry for our walk.  Here are some pictures.

End the war on Marijuana

Our Representative Earl Blumenauer wants to do just that.  I think it's time to do it too.

Gay Rights

We have a number of National Treasures in Oregon, and  Senator Jeff Merkley is one of them.  He is urging the Boy Scouts to admit gays to their ranks.  Good for him.

Another Day, Another Crooked Bank Deal

I don't know what it takes to ever get a banker felon sent to jail, they are still enjoying freedom to steal anything that isn't nailed down.  The Royal Bank of Scotland is the latest to get a $600 million fine from the DOJ.  In a rather disgusting piece of information, the guy who is supposed to be prosecuting them said

"These are extraordinary results, and our investigation is far from finished." said U.S. assistant attorney general Lanny Breuer. "Our message is clear: no financial institution is above the law."

Uh, yeah right, I don't see any of those crooks in jail.

Legal Executions

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has asked the Obama administration to answer questions about when and how they decide a US Citizen can be summarily killed after this leaked White Paper was leaked to the press.  He has long been concerned on the lack of transparency by the administration on this subject.  He is in a delicate position since as a member of the Select Committee on Intelligence, he knows a lot of the answers, but he can not arbitrarily release them publicly.  He will be bringing up the issue in the John Brennan confirmation hearings as director of the CIA.

Update 2/6/2013 6:45 PM, Wyden wins after threatening to derail Brennan nomination.

Wall Street Whimpers

If you had to pick out some of the principal bad guys in the financial meltdown, S&P would be high up on the list along with all the other rating agencies.  Their negligence allowed the Wall Street crooks to unload billions of toxic assets on the entire world, and finally the Department of justice is proclaiming they'll sue, along with a few State Attorney generals.  In January 2011, the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission called the agencies "essential cogs in the wheel of financial destruction" and "key enablers of the financial meltdown."  The Senate panel released internal documents showing how Moody's and S&P failed to heed their own internal warnings about the deteriorating mortgage market.
 
The self-serving response by S&P is enough to make me angry.  They ought to be in prison by now.

How many dogs does it take to change a light bulb?

Afghan Hound: Light bulb? What light bulb?
Golden Retriever: The sun is shining, the day is young, we’ve got our whole lives ahead of us, and you’re worrying about a burned out light bulb?
Border Collie: Just one. And I’ll replace any wiring that’s not up to code.
Greyhound: It isn’t moving. Who cares?
Dachshund: I can’t reach the stupid lamp!
Poodle: I’ll just blow in the border collie’s ear and he’ll do it.
Rotweiller: Make me!
Shih tzu: Pul-leeze, dahling, I have servants for that kind of thing.
Labrador Retriever: Oh, me, me!!!! Pleeeeeasze let me change the light bulb. Can I? Can I? Huh? Huh? Can I?
Alaskan Malamute: Let the Border Collie do it. You can feed me while he’s busy.
Cocker Spaniel: Why change it? I can still pee on the carpet in the dark.
Australian Shepherd: Put all the bulbs in a little circle …
Jack Russell Terrier: I’ll just pop it in while I’m bouncing off the walls and furniture.
Bulldog: Just one, but it takes them 3 years to do it.
Doberman Pinscher: While it’s dark, I’m going to sleep on the couch.
Mastiff: Mastiffs are NOT afraid of the dark.
German Shepherd: I’ll change it as soon as I’ve led these people from the dark, check to make sure I haven’t missed any, and make just one more perimeter patrol to see that no one has tried to take advantage of the situation.
Beagle: Light bulb? Light bulb? That thing I ate was a light bulb?
Chihuahua: Yo quiero Taco Bulb.
Irish Wolfhound: Can somebody else do it? I’ve got a hangover.
Pointer: I see it! There it is! Right there!
Great Dane: Just give me back my blanket and do it yourself.
Siberian Husky: Light bulb?!? I ate the light bulb, and the lamp, and the coffee table it sat on, and the carpet under the coffee table and …
Cat: You need light to see?

Super bowl, Best and Worst Commercials

The Ravens won, but the big story is the commercials.   The best ones are a tough choice, but the worst are easy, they are so bad.
WORST:

GoDaddy the kiss from hell.
Samsung, this was almost #1 worst.
Oreo, hated it.
The silly M&Ms commercial.
Calvin Klein.  Mens underwear commercials just don't cut it.
Another GoDaddy abortion.  Put your ID Online.
Gildan underwear.  Their stuff sucks, I know, I bought a few, they're falling apart.
MacDonalds.  Nothing makes them look good.

BEST:

Got Milk.  Most ridiculous humor.  My favorite.
Doritos, guys in drag.  Really cheesy, but it worked.
The Toyota Genie.  I'm a sucker for puns.
Bud Clydesdales.  These guys know how to get at your heart.
Kia.  Another cheesy but funny one.