McLame Tries to Rehash the Kitchen Sink Tactic. It Didn't Work for His Good Friends the Clintons So Why Bother Now?

Sarah Palin was in the Bay Area (Burlingame) on Sunday for a fundraising trip. You know she wouldn't have dared set foot in San Francisco proper. Something about vampires and sunlight I think! You know the No-Talk Express train is headed for a possible collision - but not before running out of gas. Lame. Lame. Lame. 

You know this election is supposed to be about issues. We're supposed to evaluate the candidates on their leadership skills and even experience. McCain is supposed to have all that in the bag. So why the inferiority complex John?

Why am I hearing about Obama "palling around with terrorists" in reference to William Ayers again? You know the hockey mom deserves (some) respect for being the only female candidate running. It was the reason she was chosen. That and compliance, cuz it's not for the pay. I deserve respect as a decent human being - and for not being a fool. Politics are not so usual when your campaign has the audacity to steal your opponent's slogan, logo and lingo at every turn. There's no change when all you do is bite someone's speeches. You know they have an 'intern' play tapes, take crib notes and rewrite them for the McCain speech the next day. Like those recipes....

Didn't the slogan used to be "Experience We Can Believe In"? But it was something before that. And now it's "Country First". Shouldn't it read, "I Will Lie About Anything & Everything"?

I expect a Rev. Wright video replay by the end of the week. This is really weak. If this concerns you as a voter and turns you away - I think you would've already made up your mind about that by now. We went through all of this in February - thanks to Hill & Bill. Been there done that and we jumped off that bandwagon.

I am really insulted by the claim of no new taxes  - but McCain would make me pay taxes on my health insurance - which would in fact cost me $3000 more than what I pay now. What kind of change is that?

What kind of math is that? Oh, right it's the math that adds up to $830-850B for the Bailout + $750B for the war + the pending $400B McCain will give to large corporations (his campaign sponsors by the way) + whatever else the Neo-Cons have planned (Iran, N. Korea) = my future great-grandchildren will have a tax bill on their heads from their moment of birth. I'll need those future relatives to take care of me because Social Security won't exist anymore.

Nearly 1 million people lost their jobs across the country this past month. Only one candidate wants to discuss this and offer solutions (yes we'll see how long that takes cuz the piggy bank is empty). Like the unemployment rate figures it doesn't count all the people who've previously applied and are receiving benefits. So in fact the number of out of work, underemployed and struggling people is much higher than reported.  The other one wants to talk about William Ayers (the rebellious son of privilege who acted out and was protected due to his race and class). If this is the important issue for you then by all means vote for McCain.

As for me I want a real leader and not a show-boater. Someone who knows what it's like to struggle to pay off debts. Someone who is far more financially responsible than I've been who has no credit card debt - which means he knows how to balance a budget! Can I get someone who keeps in cool (at least in public) and uses the most important muscle - his brain? 

******

As if this wasn't bad enough I was watching the CBS5 11pm news and they had some tired rehash of how Black people (who are conveniently voting for Obama) may come out in droves to oppose the Gay Marriage Amendment. Because Black people are sooo religious and conservative and hate teh gays!!! 

And we're voting for Obama - because he's Black. Well that wasn't said in this segment but I'm sure they've mentioned it at some point I just don't usually watch. Ugh I am sick of this BS!! You know I had to fire off a phone call and email to the idiot News Director.  

By the way I am still waiting for a report on Drudge or a ticker tape on CNN or notice by the corporate media how Tuesday's debate is going to be moderated by someone favorable to one particular candidate. Oh wait, it's Tom Brokaw who's like BFF with McCain since the 1980's but he's white and male so I guess he couldn't possibly be biased, right? Right? 

Yeah...it's not gonna Black people that will need to be monitored. A bunch of white people are gonna lose their ever-lovin' minds on November 5th, unless some other 'catastrophe' occurs before then. 

Update: Monday 254pm: Palin pounces with a Rev. Wright reference. Geez that didn't take long did it? Now Obama decides to throw out a jab by reminding people about the biggest economic melt-down of its time, the Lincoln Savings & Loan Bank collapse and over-assist known as the Keating Five scandal. Shouldn't they be in jail? Along with the latest motley crew? And we're supposed to believe McLiar knows anything about the economy except how to let his friends destroy it? 

Why Trying To Find Your Lost Post Feels Like The Economic War Greedy Peeps Have Declared On All of Us

I had a nicely edited piece linking how we handle our finances and active participation in voting is not only a good thing to do, it's for our survival. I did save it and scheduled it to post then psst my internet went screwy and I could not get into my Blogger account or any Blogspot site from 5pm -10pm PST. Yet I was able to view them from my cell phone browser.

Now that I can load my blog again I found the original draft but not the finished piece I was set to publish. I am pissed! I usually write my posts in a Word doc or Notepad and copy into Blogger under Edit Html feature but I was writing directly onto the post tab this time.

I don't remember what I wrote  - sigh.

I'm gonna do stream of consciousness right now.

Ok....I wrote about the scene from The Matrix where Morpheus gives his call to arms and how their actions represented the "very meaning of their lives". I talked about this in an earlier post last month and included the clip. This was in relation to voting and being active participants in what goes on in this country. Well....as active as we can be. Knowledge is power!

I was watching Oprah as well and she had on Suze Orman and Ali Velshi to discuss how we got into this financial mess. Ali was being very coy about how 'Annie the Homeowner' was offered a higher loan amount than requested and how the rate went up and the banks and the supermarket and the supplier all fell down. Suze broke it down and called out the banks for being greedy and offering those adjustable rate loans for higher amounts than necessary for property that had an inflated value to begin with. FINALLY! 

Yes, Joe Six Pack has to take responsibility for making poor choices BUT predatory lenders and private companies supplied a lot of that funding and mortgage brokers were making 1000 times their usual fees AND they were bundling them and selling them to banks who sold them to Wall Street as hedge funds. They were also trying to trick elderly people into refinancing schemes for property that had been paid for. A 30-year fixed 6-8% loan won't make nearly the same amount of money as a no-money-down-shoot-up-to-20% or skip-a-payment loan did. 

Let's just also discuss how that debt has been tacked onto a lot of other things besides bad mortgages. What are they? We don't know because it's been buried in hundreds of pages of paperwork!! Then the gov't 'came to the rescue' (to further steal from us) and added a bunch of hand-outs and tax breaks to the very same crooks that are literally raping us right now. I'm not one to make light of such a violation but that is exactly what it is.

We have been a spend, spend, spend society for far too long. The difference between say 30 years ago and now is:

1.  Things cost less.

2.  Jobs paid more.

3.  Income vs. Standard of Living was more equitable.

4.  Companies were in the US and used US workers.

5.  The gov't helped (some) people more i.e. with the GI Bill.

6.  People did not use credit cards like water - did anyone even have one back then?

Women used to not be able to even get credit unless it was through their father or husband. Now an underaged child can qualify for a credit card. In the US you can go into a store and charge whatever you want often with no minimum. I can buy a candy bar at Walgreens and get cash back using my debit card. I could not use a credit card at the Tourism Office in Amsterdam in any amount when I visited in 2003. I was also actively discouraged from using anything other than cash at most establishments - even to buy postcards at one of the top hotels there.

Now California's got its hand out to the tune of $7B. So we're even luckier here! That plan to strip the salaries of certain union employees earning around $50K to work for minimum wage ($6.75/hr) to trim the budget didn't quite pan out. Praise Jesus!!! The fact that this current Governor would try to pull that shows how unfit he is for his post and how callous the Republican party is. 

Ok, I can modify that. It shows how much contempt these multi-millionaires (billionaires?) have for the poor and how removed they are from the daily struggles of the majority in this country. Because if you're making $50K in this state you're 'poor' when housing is 10 times the amount by comparison to the cost of living in other parts of the country. 

What was my other point? Oh...how hard it is to have an economic reality check and not overspend. The perceived minimum standard of living is continually being elevated. Nobody wants to be left behind. For example can you remember a time before Starbucks? Now there's one on every freakin' corner! And I LOVE COFEE but even I get it!!! 

It's in the best interest for a corporation's business model to get people to buy things they don't necessarily need or provide a convenience for a markup. You know we can make coffee at home or buy pastries from the supermarket. It seems normal to eat take-out, buy gourmet or designer strappy shoes and go broke for Christmas, but it is not. 

This is reinforced by society:  tv shows on the lavish lifestyles of the rich, magazines, heck looking at your neighbor who's likely to be in hock up their eyeballs but we want 22" rims!! We don't feel adequate and are judged by frankly a lot of people for not having the right bag or dress or degree or address or body type. It is the antithesis of living a spiritual life but the God of the US is Money. It's killing us. 

So of course some degreed white-collar executive is going to exploit that. That was indoctrinated by their name school as part of the plan for world domination. It's about starting wars to take all the natural resources from other countries, pocketing that money, running these industries into the ground, paying off politicians for favorable legislation and coming back to the poor of this country to foot the bill. That's why we don't have jobs. 

And they're going to keep doing it all over again 3, 5 and 10 years later. If they can keep us on a treadmill with a carrot and fighting each other for a few crumbs then all the better. Some of us can get over on the system but most of us have yet to figure out how. We must very decisively learn to disengage. 

Ok I think I'm done for today. Now it's on to the voting.

Early voting has started in many states or absentee voting as a convenience to citizens. I say do it asap and get it out of the way.  California starts today! This is where the trickle down theory should be in play. Start with the President and work your way down - get rid of all the enabling politicians or put the fear of the wrath of a vengeful God in enough of them so they straighten up and fly right. 

We got the Civil Rights Act passed and you know how much a fight that was! We can do better for ourselves if we are willing to do the work and let go of unnecessary things. 

Now I read Kit's latest post and have my concerns but since I don't believe in the wrath of a vengeful God I think we have the potential to avert something like this. At least I hope so! And yes, I am aware of the rumor that the CIA 'owns' Google in the same way they are involved with AIG, but you can dismiss this as crackpot thinking if it makes you feel better. Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing!

Is Black Actress An Oxymoron? When Will Black Women Get Fed Up With Being Marginalized In Love and Life?

Just remember if you see a drowning person be careful how you try to assist them lest they drag you undertow.

I was watching yesterday's Oprah episode which featured the cast of the movie adaptation of the book, "The Secret Life of Bees". Ok that was a long sentence. I tend to be somewhat cerebral and am therefore wordy. Work with me people! 

My heart swelled with pride at all the visions of loveliness on Oprah's couch. Oh and the talented Dakota Fanning was there too, but really it was the various shades of brown and the body shapes that had me moved. The hips, the lips, the breasts, the smiles, the teeth. I bet they smelled good too! Everybody wants to buy what we are usually endowed with naturally! It's not that these women are more special than so many others. It's just that these women are not represented as the norm, but the exception. 

So this may come as a bit of surprise but the better qualities of Black women are coveted and often appropriated by others for their benefit, while the source of all that deliciousness is often vilified or marginalized. What am I talking about you may ask?

Well, I had eagerly anticipated Chris Rock's latest comedy special feeling assured that I was going to LOL. Instead I wanted to wash my mouth out with soap as if I had let loose some litany of foulness myself instead of him. 

He attacked Black women as being domineering, greedy, castrating and unloving. He also talked way too much about his sexual proclivities as representation of all men and how women had better meet those standards or be left behind. I know he's married and we don't know what goes on behind closed doors, but his wife seems like a lovely woman to me. She ran a non-profit that assisted low income and formerly homeless back into the job market. 

So who is he talking about and what is his problem? Those rumors of marital discord are obviously true and he seemed to confirm it.  He alluded to being likely to be just as unhappy if he leaves his wife to start a new relationship with another woman. Either way - who cares? He's got plenty of money to take a 'time out' in the rubber room or clear up that chemical imbalance. I don't listen to or purchase songs that denigrate Black women and now it looks like I'll be tuning him out as well. 

And just for the record Chris - there are plenty of Black women who find white men very appealing! Or any man who considers us desirable and is of sound mind and body. You'd think if Black women were so horrid why would Black men care who we choose to be with so long as it's not them. That's part of the lie they want to continue to perpetrate, but more of us are catching on. 

I felt soooooo violated by his unfunny comedy routine and was thinking he would be best served by psychoanalysis not by trashing an entire group of women. You can't always look outwards and point fingers at what other people are doing (to you) without first checking yoself before you wreck yoself. Black women - heck ALL WOMEN - would do well to draw a line in the sand from men who clearly have unresolved internal issues and go grab a full life without them. 

It is telling that out of the four adult leads only one is known primarily as an actor. Queen Latifah started her career as an MC and now is an film executive producer amongst other endeavors in music and acting. "Set It Off" is still one of my favorite movies to this day. Alicia Keys, well you know who she is. Amazing! Jennifer Hudson went from American Idol cast-off where Simon Cowell (in)famously dissed her, to Oscar winner with her first acting role. 

You know Simon's attitude was so indicative of the narrow view held by some white men in positions of power who green light projects, offer music contracts, etc. They just don't get it. I bet you he still thinks she got 'lucky' or her success was an anomaly. Harrumph! 

Sophie Okonedo killed it in the Steven Frears movie "Dirty Pretty Things". That's also where I began my cinematic love affair with Chiwetel Ejiofor but he's been working non-stop since. I can list Serenity, Inside Man, Talk to Me, Children of Men and American Gangster just off the top of my head. Sophie's worked on a BBC/HBO drama (with him starring as her husband), Aeon Flux, Hotel Rwanda and now this. Have I missed anything? 

So many women in the entertainment industry have a variety of talent. It's just that much more challenging to get work when you are "Acting while Black and Female". They're about the go the route of the Begali tiger or the Do-Do Bird. Multi-career pursuit isn't just something to be done for fun money: it's going to help pay the rent period.  It's all about choices I know, but can't we follow our bliss? 

I haven't touched on the screenwriters, producers and directors and other behind the scene personnel. Where are they? The numbers are not remotely proportionate to others getting work in Hollywood. I wish Oprah had director Gina Prince By the Wood up there on the couch with the actresses too. I know she has some stories to tell!

Think about that the next time you slap down your $8-$12 for a film. Just like everything else that is out of balance and unfair, those that consume the products and prop up an industry have tremendous influence over what can get done IF it is demanded.  Black women especially need to be prudent buyers, look at alternate revenues or change course to get the lives we deserve. I'm not talking about driving a Benz, living in a McMansion or traveling to the Riviera. I'm talking about being safe, having a comfortable standard of living, a happy personal life and career that you feel contributes something to the world.

And it should not go unnoticed the Economic "Bailout" at $700B has suddenly become the Economic "Rescue" plan at $830B. Now if only Black women were so vigilantly protected that would be something, huh? 

IT STARTS WITH US!!!

Post Debate Analysis and How It Corresponds to My Life

Choices. Choices. Choices. Biden VS. Palin. Who won? Well...who really cares? That debate wasn't for my benefit anyway. No seriously. Sarah Palin was channeling Mary Richards with her perky, chirpy, Fargo imitation, neighbor next door routine. She was spending far too much time reading from cue cards instead of answering the questions posed. 

Joe Biden had a moment. He nearly pulled a 'Clinton in New Hampshire' teary eyed moment when discussing being a single parent after the loss of his first wife. Except I believed him. I think I would've given him the nod for that reason alone.

On the other hand he has even more experience in the Senate than McLame. So why didn't he run for President - oh wait he did. Shouldn't Biden have wiped the floor with Palin? No, because he would've been accused of picking on the girl. 

Gwen Ifill was sandbagged from jump with this whisper of inpropriety because she wrote a book that will be released next year about race and politics and 'Obama' is in the title. It would have validity if she had not been approved by both McCain and Obama as a moderator AND they already knew about it.  

If I were a veteran journalist covering politics I would've written a book about this very same subject. I see no conflict of interest - certainly none in an era of pundits without journalism degrees (Tucker Carlson), so-called journalists who were members of a former administration (George Stephanopoulos) and a chorus of partisan voices who have access to distribution sources of media. 

If Palin was able to hold her own there wouldn't be a need to claim people are being hard on her. How insulting is that by comparison to the public scrutiny Hillary Clinton received? Palin has certain amenable qualities but she is not a good debater. (She was wearing a little electronic device to get fed answers for assistance as well). She does not know how to manage people who work for her or how to make wise choices on the job. She can't even show up for work most of her term thus far. As a woman who touts her motherhood as an electable quality why did she refuse to meet with representatives from Moms Rising? She serves her purpose of obfuscation by being a willing servant of men in higher positions of authority. She's the pretty window dressing of a broken down Republican party.

Oh I have my criticism for the Democrats as well. No discussion on eradicating poverty in this country let alone around the world. How about adjusting the PELL grant amount to fit inflation and raising the maximum income eligibility? Has anyone discussed getting homeless people into housing and treatment? All that bobbing and weaving and dancing around issues, except when it came to teh gays! Then we got a clear and definitive answer from both candidates. Is it asking too much that they learn how to pronounce nuclear (new-cle-ar and not nu-cu-lar)?

Our entire economic infrastructure is built on popsicle sticks. One strong gust of wind is going to bring it all down. Did you notice how the Bailout plan has been reworded by the corporate media as a Rescue plan? And they just padded it with an additional $130B so it's now $830B. Add that to the $500B and counting for the armed occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Add to that all the bills with past due notices that Bush is letting collect dust until Obama gets elected - then BAM! It's really gonna hit the fan. We're being set up. We're feeling good and putting in work meanwhile the farm's been sold out from under us. Only we don't know it yet. The next President gets the hold the bag. I really hope people don't forget to see the forest for the trees. We've got to stop living on borrowed money. 

I'm rethinking my life in San Francisco - such that it is. It costs too much to live here but I like living in major cities. I won't even consider New York City right now. If I go to Los Angeles I'd need to buy a car and the price of gas is a grip and a half!! I live quite frugally. I buy whole milk and mix it with water to stretch it for example. Well... I hate skim milk! 

I can't be in a small town or live around small minded, xenophobes. I don't want to feel out of place. I also have certain creative career objectives that require me to be near a major entertainment market. It doesn't make the choice any easier though. If I leave and go away to a less expensive area what would I be giving up? What would I gain? I feel like I'm just treading water right now. And it's pissing me off! It's all about choices. 

I need a candidate who does more than tolerate my presence, opinions, lifestyle and existence. That's just one step away from ignoring me and letting others dictate how I get to live my life. Which makes it easier to not have laws in place that protect me from persons, companies or institutions that might do me harm.

Like banks that defraud customers, draconian drug laws with minimum sentencing requirements, telling teachers to forget about getting paid a livable wage when their reward is in heaven, calling for the annihilation of another sovereign nation and other things like that....

I Predict A Debate Will Occur And the Sun Will Set.....

....but who knows what's gonna happen afterwards?  It's anybody's guess. Sarah Palin might skin and eat Joe Biden for dinner, but in the end will it be a game-changer? This woman may be a twat but she's still a white woman and that kind of privilege has allowed her to coast through an abuse of power investigation, an extra-marital affair, punishing victims of rape and being dumber than a doornail but still she rises. From "I can see Russia from my backyard" to not being able to name one single newspaper if she were a woman of color she would not have ever been chosen let alone still be in serious contention. 

And can I just say the fake outrage over journalist Gwen Ifill is just lame. More distraction tactics. 

I don't remember the debate between George Bush the Lessor and Fiery Ferraro. Can somebody please upload it in its entirety on You Tube?!!! I'm certain it will make for an interesting viewing. 

Those who've already decided which side they're on are likely to remain unmoved. This isn't for us: it's for the undecideds. This is a nice example of wielding power so pull out some paper and take notes. 

Sometimes not voting is the most powerful thing you can do as a voter. 

A strategic vote is a much-fought for and valued vote than the vote one expects or has already been granted. 

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Join me on Twitter as we live blog the debates tonight.

Life's A Bitch And Then You Die

I used to think the philosophy behind that expression was so avant-garde and anti-establishment. I had no idea how easily it could apply to one's station in life. Now I am not trying to wallow, but I am angry and I need to vent. Yes I'd like to have a little less piss and vinegar and be a bit more Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm in attitude but sometimes being mad is all you have. Then you can take a course of action. 

Wall Street is going to get more of its thievery on and a get out of jail free card and not have to pay taxes and we get to feel special. They are just a bunch of crooks and liars who were trying to pull an Emperor With No Clothes scam. They got busted ass-out and demanded Bush bail them out. 

WAMU did not fail because of Latinos and reversing years of racial discrimination against Blacks did not cause the mortgage crisis. The so-called sub-prime loans were mostly underwritten by private loan companies not banks. Many people were told that was their only option for a mortgage and were charged 10-20-30% higher rates than what they actually qualified for. Why? So Wall Street could make a bigger profit. 

I live in San Francisco where the average price of a home is close to 1 million dollars. And not for something all that nice either. I always wonder who these people are that buy these properties and how they get their income. Depending on location it would be a mere 1BR condo at best and around 750 sq feet. That's not very big either. The price of housing is over-inflated as it is. There is not a loan in the world I'd be able to qualify for, sub-prime or not. I'd be paying nearly $5K per month for my mortgage, upkeep, taxes and utilities. Unless I made at least $250K, had been at that salary level for several years, had no debt and at least 50K saved I wouldn't even consider it. Don't let me be sick or lose my job either. Or have dependents.

I see the tax advantages of being married if only to have an additional income for consideration. For what I pay in rent I could have a mortgage - in another state. But I don't want to live in Georgia or Colorado or Indiana. No offense to those that do. 

So I get to be broke in California, pay the highest taxes, have an idiot for Governor (though not as bad as Sarah Palin but only because we stay on his ass) all for the 'privilege' of being here. 

What have you done for me lately California?

Why do I live here? San Francisco is beautiful. We've got wine country. Great food. Sunshine (when you don't live in the City). I hear rumors that our current District Attorney Kamala Harris will run for Mayor for 2010. I think she's been surprisingly fair considering how unjust the justice system can be. We have a female Police Chief and Fire Chief. These things are unheard of for a lot of cities.

But the rents here are ridiculous and the vacancy rate is at .002%. Nobody can afford to move. If you live in a more affordable apartment your landlord can claim they want the unit for themselves to live and evict you. 

So I've ranted. What's my plan? Focus on being positive and continue applying myself. I should be able to use principles from The Secret, A New Earth or You Can Heal Your Life to get all the things I think I deserve, right? Or are these things part of that Western mindset that we can have more? Are my expectations too high? Is this the 'curse' of American entitlement? What's going on? I wonder if I'm doing something wrong. 

When I was 20 I thought all I had to do was want something, pursue it and everything would work out. Now that I'm older - and more (jaded) knowledgeable about the ups and downs of life I honestly don't know. I'd like the universe to bail me out though and help me get on track. Bring sexy back or something.  Sooner rather than later. 

I Want My Cake and To Eat It Without Consequence

My internet has been down for a month. I was able to piggyback from a neighbor's wireless account who didn't have a firewall but as more people in my building figured it out we lost the signal. Internet is supposed to be provided because there are a lot of foreign language students in my building. I tried to use my cell phone as a modem to connect to my laptop but it would disconnect for no reason. I have a Blackberry and apparently RIM and MACs haven't quite figured out how to get along. I still use Tiger and I'm not upgrading to Leopard. I've already heard about lost files and system crashes for no reason. Plus it's $130. 

I surfed the net for a viable modem script, set up the Bluetooth, paired my phone to my laptop and called my service provider like 20 times. Argh!!! This is the one time I wish I had a PC ... or a different phone, but T-Mobile's got me under contract for another 6 months. Also their service plan is about $40/month cheaper. AT&T charges an extra fee to use your data plan for laptop internet usage - and that's on top of the fee for the data plan. Also there's that FISA issue. How can I support a company that willingly sold out its customers to the gov't without so much as a peep? And even actively tells you to eff off with their new service agreements: no arbitration, no lawsuits. Yeah the iPhone might be pretty and yes I want 3G though it's not available nationwide quite yet. Asia and Europe are still far ahead of the curve with internet speed, cell phones and features.

But where do you draw the line? Plus you can't even insure that thing yet. I know people can't afford every gadget, gizmo, house, car or shoe that comes out. That doesn't stop us from wanting them though, does it? It's so easy to have your self-worth wrapped up in where you live, how fly your ride is, what you look like (even better what your friends look like) or how young you are. 

We are sold on the American Dream. We must acquire. We must do better. Remember Shrub telling us to go shopping after Sept 11th occurred? Remember when McCain said the fundamentals of our economy were strong - that was what two weeks ago? And now those of us making less than $100K per year (really much less than that) are going to disproportionately pay to prop up the fundaments of white supremacist structures. Who are the key executives running the companies on Wall Street, making millions, when quite a few food banks are out of supplies because their client lists have quadrupled in the past month? 

Bernake and Paulson are worth several hundred million. You know the idea of Reganomics was that wealth from the top was supposed to trickle down. Well it got stuck somewhere in the middle, huh? And now we're going to have to do without AND give up a chunk of any future earnings to keep this beeatch going. If we don't we're going to collapse under the weight of a 10,000 pound beast of greed.

It's not fair. It's not right. I don't think anybody has actually learned anything from this situation either. This is just a stop-gap until the poo spews out again. I don't think it'll take more than two years for another crisis to just magically transpire that those experts couldn't see coming from a mile away. Then it's really gonna hit the fan, but you know what? Those super wealthy people got caught up in greed as well as many less than wealthy people. We are watching the decline of the United States right before our eyes. And we did it ourselves.

I like to relieve stress by overindulging in sugar. There's nothing like a good sugar coma to temporarily numb the pain, but there's a price to pay for that! An expanded waistline. Adult onset diabetes. Brain freeze. I used to like shopping but even that got old after a while. Being a pack rat is very taxing. So many vices and so much time to indulge: sex, drugs or watching tv. 

Others like to get their religiosity on and will beat you with a hot poker to get you to walk the straight and narrow. Literally and figuratively. Every choice has a consequence. Running away is a more immediate choice than sorting through internal conflicts and being aware. Sometimes we can get caught up in those vices and that adds another layer to work through - if we ever do. 

Others have much more limited choices and options available to them. See sometimes less is indeed more. The thing is though - we still have time to change. We can fix things. We can have a more fulfilling life by focusing on each other instead of living the bling lifestyle. Everyone can't and should not be trying to 'party like a rock star'. 

There has to be balance. There's so many people, especially women and children who don't even have their basic needs being met right now. Yeah, yeah I know it's not your fault or my fault, but it is something we can solve, even during this crazy time of upheaval. I'd love to be able to live a median standard of living despite the fact the over-inflated market has it set up to get the max it can. We could be a pay-it-forward society instead of a me-me-me one. Those people at the top of the echelon really don't need any more than what they have. It would be great for them to realize that.  

On the other hand it might be time for some serious commando take no prisoners by any mean necessary type planning and execution so as to not be left in the dust.