Bits Bucket for January 7, 2012
Post off-topic ideas, links, and Craigslist finds here.
The Housing Bubble
Examining the home price boom and its effect on owners, lenders, regulators, realtors and the economy as a whole.
About Me
Name:Ben Jones
Location:Northern Arizona, United States
To donate by mail, or to otherwise contact this blogger, please send emails to: thehousingbubble@gmail.com
PayPal is a secure online payment method which accepts ALL major credit cards.
Links
-
April 2024 M T W T F S S « Sep 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Photo Submission: hbbphotos@gmail.com
View the HBB Photo Gallery *updated 4/13/2008
Posted 03 January 2012 - 07:31 PM
I’ve been following the GOP campaign pretty closely over the past few months. Since stumbling across an article on Ron Paul as it happens.
Its crazy how much the ‘establishment’ in the US don’t want Paul to win. Few months ago when he was polling in the top 3/4 he was completely ignored by the mainstream media, to the extent they’d read out all the names and ignore his. loads of stuff on youtube of cnn and particularly fox showing remarkable bias against him. google ‘ron paul ignored’ john stewart has a cracking bit about it.
Now he’s polling ever more popular and it looks like might even win the Iowa caucus(?) CNN and fox are now saying if he does win it, it just means that Iowa no longer means anything in the scheme of things, and they need to focus on who comes second in Iowa as the real frontrunner.
It seems ludicrous to the extent you couldn’t make it up but there is a clear and huge bias against him moreso than any other candidate. The reason from what I can tell is that he is the only candidate who is anti big-government, anti wall street controlling washington, anti current foreign policy ie invade country that has dark skin and/or oil. And he wants to audit/end the federal reserve. He’s anti establishment and the establishment appear to be running scared! :blink:
Guy talks so much sense, has a strong grasp on [austrian] economics, called the US subprime collapse sometime back in 2005-6, and more than anything comes across as consistent and dare I say it honest. He’s hit a nerve with young people in america has a huge internet following but remains to be seen how that translates to the real vote…
Thing is his views and policies represent such a threat to the status quo and to so many VIs throughout america and probably the world that you have to wonder if ‘they’ will let him win anyway. Compelling viewing to follow from afar, he seems to have captured the mood of the american people right now, if not the ’sheeple’
http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=173619&st=0
…From across the pond. What say you? Good day everyone.
“Thing is his views and policies represent such a threat to the status quo and to so many VIs thoroughout america and probably the world that you have to wonder if ‘they’ wil let him win anyway.”
Sort of places him in a rather dangerous position, no?
I agree. Fortunately there is Libertarian Party POTUS candidate Gary Johnson who is a younger version of Ron Paul (and who is even more in favor of civil liberties than RP).
I’m starting to follow Gary Johnson’s campaign and a couple of days ago sent in my first contribution. It does not hurt to have more voices against government meddling, the police state, and so on.
I’m doing the same. Right now the oligarchs are free to loot at will, knowing their media border collies will keep the docile and stupid majority (Obama and Establishment GOP supporters) trotting along toward their incorporated globalist plantation. However, the emergence of a small but vigorous resistance centered around a handful of principled leaders and thinkers has obviously spooked TPTB (as evidenced by their relentless assaults on Ron Paul), as it shows a tiny but resolute segment of the population is still capable of independent thought and core convictions, and will not go quietly into that long goodnight.
Yup! I meant to stress Gary Johnson was born in 1953, making him 59 years old this year. Certainly not “too old” to be President like some Ron Paul bashers are saying about Ron Paul.
“Its crazy how much the ‘establishment’ in the US don’t want Paul to win.”
This line alone kind of discredits the whole article. It maybe annoying, but it isn’t crazy. Consider who the establishment is and how they make their money and what a President Ron Paul could do (even just by vetoing or threatening to veto budget bills) to them and you know that their reaction to him is anything but crazy.
The establishment is the welfare/warfare state - big government. It makes sense that the welfare/warfare establishment is against Ron Paul. Probably does not make sense to those on the inside - dependent on bureaucracy, so I see where you are coming from.
I think that Polly’s point was that the establishment isn’t “crazy” for opposing Ron Paul. He is definitely a threat to their interests, so their opposing him is annoying to those who support him. And he isn’t just a threat to “big government”, he’s a threat to the corporatist/fascist right as well, which is why the media, which they own, either ignores him or portrays him as a kook.
I did not live in Colorado in 2008 but will be caucusing for Ron Paul on February 7. What, if any, weight do Colorado caucus results carry in delegate selection? The primary isn’t held until June here.
If there isn’t a candidate already chosen by that time, then they will be very important. If the committed delegate count has already got someone over half, then they have fairly little importance as far as choosing a candidate (obviously) but can be very interesting in terms of the message it sends the party about their voters.
Imagine that by the time your caucus comes around, Romney already has the nomination sewn up by having more than half the delegates committed to vote for him at the nominating convention. Imagine that once that happens, Ron Paul starts winning every single primary and caucus by large numbers. Now, that rarely happens. By the time the answer is inevitable, people who support the losers are often discouraged and stay home. Those that bother to show up are people who are very enthusiastic about the inevitable winner and the people who just always vote. In either case, people are likely to pick the winner, because they like to think that it is “their guy” accepting the nomination.
If Ron Paul’s support went up instead of down once he was numerically eliminated, that would send a HUGE signal to the leadership that his supporters are the people they need to placate to get them to show up to vote for the other guy who is going to get the nomination. Huge. Unprecedented and huge. I don’t know what would happen to the platform or the VP pick in response. Maybe nothing. Maybe something. But remember, if Romney becomes president, he would be a first term president running for reelection essentially from the day after the election (not being sworn in, that is too late these days) until the next one 4 years later. The noise that Ron Paul’s supporters make matters if he doesn’t get the nomination.
If Ron Paul’s support went up instead of down once he was numerically eliminated, that would send a HUGE signal to the leadership that his supporters are the people they need to placate to get them to show up to vote for the other guy who is going to get the nomination. Huge. Unprecedented and huge.
Ron Paul is the only candidate of any stature who is explicitly trying to defang the Fed and put an end to crony capitalism. If his supporters make it clear to the corrupt, sleazy GOP leadership that they are quite prepared to see the GOP go down in defeat rather than vote for whatever Hollow Man candidate the GOP puts up in “opposition” to Obama - who will continue exactly the same statist, corporatist policies as Bush/Obama/Romney - they might be forced to take meaningful action to address RP supporters’ core concerns. Otherwise, quite a number of former GOP voters will be giving the Grand Old Party the Big Ol’ Finger and voting for Gary Johnson or writing in Ron Paul (as I did last time).
Sammy,
How do you “put an end to crony capitalism” without regulation?
And thither is my beef with RP.
One of the biggest problems voters face in these elections is the failure of the media to force the candidates to reveal their picks for the various departments of governments. How many would have changed their vote if they new in advance that Obama would pick Hillary Clinton, Larry Summers & Tim Geithner and re-appoint Bernanke? When we evaluate past presidents it’s often the people in the inner circle, the “idea guys” who come up with the worst policy decisions (Iraq war, Homeland Security Inc., Medicaid Part D, etc.). Here lies the great unknown about Ron Paul, who will he pick to run the executive branch of government?
Question for the Ron Paul (or any candidate) supporters, who will he appoint as the secretaries of the various government departments? Who will be his Carl Rove or David Axelrod?
Fill in the blanks
Dept. Of Defense _____
Dept. Of State _____
Dept. Of Justice _____
Dept. Of Interior _____
Dept. Of Health _____
Dept. Of Agriculture _____
Dept. Of Environment _____
Dept. Of Education _____
Dept. Of Energy _____
Dept. Of Homeland Security _____
Dept. Of Housing & Urban Development _____
Dept. Of Labor _____
Dept. Of Transportation _____
Dept. Of Treasury _____
Dept. Of Veterans Affairs _____
As for me, I am totally in the dark about who Ron Paul would appoint to the executive branch which is a little unsettling.
Ron Paul wants to eliminate 3 or 4 of these altogether. I agree with him.
Hey, don’t forget Rick Perry wants to eliminate three of them. He just can’t remember which three.
Excellent post, Blue Star.
My turning point for how I felt about Obama began at his cabinet appointments.
As usual, if you want reasonably objective and accurate coverage of US politics, you won’t find it in the corporatist MSM, but rather in the foreign press, i.e. Asia Times.
http://atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/NA06Dj02.html
WASHINGTON - Texas Representative Ron Paul, who 24 years ago performed dismally as the standard-bearer of the Libertarian Party, has begun making waves in the 2012 presidential campaign, to the extreme discomfort of neo-conservatives and aggressive nationalists who dominate the foreign policy rosters of most of his Republican rivals.
While his third-place finish in Tuesday’s Iowa caucuses disappointed loyalists who felt he had a good shot at winning the first Republican primary test of the election year, the 76-year-old physician came within three percentage points of the top two finishers - the party’s establishment candidate, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and the latest far-right
insurgent favorite, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum - out of a seven-candidate field.
Another said…
The establishment are terrified of him, and will sadly probably succeed in keeping him out of view until another cookie cutter politician wins again.
“Politics is the entertainment wing of industry” — Frank Zappa
There is a list of contributors for MR & RP on a financial blog and Romney is owned by the banks. Paul wasn’t owned by too many big guys (IIRC, no FIRE giants). Actually, it was quite telling.
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/contrib.php?cycle=2012&id=N00000286
Romney’s campaign contributers represent the creme de la creme of Wall Street financial predators. Contrast the lineup of contributers for Obama and the Establishment GOP Hollow Man candidates, with the Ron Paul backers (overwhelmingly small individual donors).
No surprises. But there are vocal HBBers who will still vote for more of the same that they complain about. Go figure.
Seriously. The clinical definition of insanity, it has been said, is repeating the same actions over and over but expecting a different outcome. Pulling the lever for a Republicrat Tweedle Dee or Tweedle Dum, then expecting “change” is the height of stupidity. To Obama & McCain voters who grumble about the status quo, when they explicitly cast their votes for the status quo, all I can say is STFU.
+1 Sammy
$12.3 million and no home inspection? Sounds like her Realtor was a, was a, was a, was a person who forgot to stress the importance of a good home inspector.
Hello Mite, do you know where I could find a EuroCave?
Home donations from Tiger’s ex-wife aid Habitat for Humanity
By Bill DiPaolo Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted: 4:57 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6, 2012
Want to buy a 12-foot-high fountain that features water coming out of three lions’ mouths that was owned by Elin Nordegren, the ex-wife of Tiger Woods?
The concrete fountain -14 feet in diameter - is among the hundreds of items Nordegren donated to Habitat for Humanity in Martin County before her 17,000-square-foot mansion in Seminole Landing was torn down.
Habitat workers removed cabinets, brick driveway pavers, five sub-zero refrigerators, chandeliers, 14 vanities, controlled-temperature wine coolers called EuroCaves, dozens of doors and one gas range, said Bobbi Blodgett, the director of deconstruction for the non-profit organization that builds homes for the needy.
“What a wonderful thing for (Nordegren) to do. She could have tossed this stuff in the trash. The negative publicity toward her has been very unfair,” she said.
Workers found extensive damage from termites and carpenter ants in the six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, kitchen and other areas in the two-story home with two elevators. County records show the home was built in 1932. Nordegren bought the house a year ago for $12.3 million.
“No wonder she tore the place down. The infestation was all over. You could put your fingers right through the wood,” Blodgett said.
Workers were heartbroken that they had to leave about two dozen wooden Pella casement windows. The crank-out windows were riddled with bugs, Blodgett said.
“We probably could have got $125 each for those if they were in good condition,” she said.
The items removed are being priced and will be sold at Habitat’s warehouse on Bonita Street in Stuart. Blodgett guesses Nordegren’s donations will bring in at least $30,000, which will go toward home building.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/home-donations-from-tigers-ex-wife-aid-habitat-2085291.html - 98k
$12.3 million for a house?
Zero for termite/ant treatments.
Zero for a home inspection…
Way off topic:
Here is a website gives you access to hundreds of documentaries:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com
I like me my documentaries! Thanks for the post. A quick glance at this site, however, lists things like Life After as “documentaries”. That show is pure entertainment; it is not a documentary.
Hopefully, the site isn’t loaded with similar histrionic tripe.
“Hopefully, the site isn’t loaded with similar histrionic tripe.”
Then I suggest you select what films suit you and ignore everthing else.
Life 101.
tanks combo,… Netflix has a ton as well.
What a outstanding site….Thanks Combo…
If I Were A Rich Man
SPOKEN:) Dear God, you made many, many poor people. I realize, of course, that it’s no great shame to be poor… but it’s no great honor, either. So what would have been the difference if I had… a free house?
If I were a Deadbeat,
Daidle deedle daidle
Daidle daidle deedle daidle dum
All day long I’d biddy-biddy-bum
If I were a Deadbeat man.
I wouldn’t have to work hard,
Daidle deedle daidle
Daidle daidle deedle daidle dum
If I were a Deadbeat man.
I’d live free in a big tall house with rooms by the dozen
Right in the middle of the town,
A fine tin roof with real wooden floors below.
There would be one long staircase just going up
And one even longer coming down,
And one more leading nowhere, just for show.
I’d fill my yard with ATVs and boats and geese
And ducks for the town to see and hear,
Squawking just as noisily as they can,
And each loud “pa-pa-geeee! pa-pa-gaack! pa-pa-geeee! pa-pa-gaack!”
Would land like a trumpet on the ear,
As if to say, “Here lives a Deadbeat man.”
Oy!
I see my wife, my Golde, looking like a rich man’s wife,
With a proper double chin,
Supervising meals to her heart’s delight.
I see her putting on airs and strutting like a peacock,
Oy! What a happy mood she’s in,
Screaming at the bankers day and night.
The most important men in town will come to fawn on me–
They will ask me to advise them,
Like a Solomon the Wise–
“If you please, Deadbeat?”–
“Pardon me, Deadbeat?”–
Posing problems that would cross a rabbi’s eyes–
(chanting) Ya va voy, ya va voy voy vum…
And it won’t make one bit of difference
If I answer right or wrong–
When you’re a Deadbeat, they think you really know.
If I lived for free, I’d have the time that I lack
To sit in the synagogue and pray,
And maybe have a seat by the Eastern wall,
And I’d discuss the Robo signers with other Deadbeats
Seven hours every day–
That would be the sweetest thing of all…
Oy!
If I were a Deadbeat,
Daidle deedle daidle
Daidle daidle deedle daidle dum
All day long I’d biddy-biddy-bum
If I were a Deadbeat man.
I wouldn’t have to work hard,
Daidle deedle daidle
Daidle daidle deedle daidle dum
Lord who made the sub-prime and the pick-a-pay loan,
You decreed I should be what I am–
Would it spoil some vast, eternal plan,
If I were a Deadbeat man
Jeff
That was hilarious. A little Fiddler On The Roof, with lyrics by “The Lyrics Maestro”. You’re the best!
Mazel tov!
Tevye (sp?) knew as well as any Jew of his time that a house was a liability, because you couldn’t take it with you when it was time to flew a pogrom.
pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties.
In Colorado, Thank you. As usual, HBB sends me to the Dicitonary. You guys are great!
Awaiting,
Could you let me know what your age and ethnic background is?
I’m delighted that you learned something, but pogrom is such a basic vocabulary word where I come from that I’m a little surprised.
Then again, when my brother taught English in Hawaii, a lot of his students really had no idea that WWII was a big deal in Europe. He had them read Anne Frank and they were stunned.
polly
Where do you come from?
Eastern Massachusetts.
I guess you took advantage of the schools. I didn`t but I did have some good friends from Mass. while I wasn`t taking advantage of school. A roomate from Brockton in prep school and a real nut (but nice guy) from East Boston among others.
Then again, when my brother taught English in Hawaii, a lot of his students really had no idea that WWII was a big deal in Europe. He had them read Anne Frank and they were stunned.
That is truly frightening.
How could they have never heard about the Holocaust? Of the Blitzkrieg? Of Hitler? Did they think Japan was our only enemy?
Dont be surprised Carrie…..we have a nation of computer illiterates those 20 somethings are not very good at internet research…..its really shocking how clueless the kids are today..
But they know every last detail of the Kardashians daily routine..
The best antidote to pogroms? The Second Ammendment and a love-thy-neighbor personal philosphy.
We will have a quiz next Saturday.
Anne Frank Vocab flashcards | Quizlet
Vocabulary words for This is the vocab throughout the book of …
http://quizlet.com/4862714/anne-frank-vocab-flash-cards/ - 71k -
I am having trouble with…
Adroit (179) quick or skillful in action or thought,
I few up in Wyoming. Any time I saw that word I thought somebody had misspelled “program” until I was in my 30s. I did notice that it usually seemed to be used in discussions about Nazi Germany.
geez, “few”=”grew”
.
I pulled out my magnifying glass, and what do you know?? That little tiny dot really said “Realtors are Liars” in the smallest font I’ve ever seen!
How do you guys like the Iying banner ad for condos in the Bronx at the top of the page?
“Oops….. you missed the bottom”—–”The NYC market has already turned around. Don’t wait any longer”
The ReaItor/NAHB lies are insidious. The arrogance of these people is stunning.
(and they’ve been pimping these same condo’s for two years now)
RAL
You’re right on about the arrogance. Just the other day, I had visions of strangling our buyer’s broker. LOL. We’ve heard over and over our cash is unimportant to a seller. Really, with tight lending right now?
Oh, and most of his clients are cash. Yet, the opposite is coming from local title reps I speak with. Almost no cash deals.
Liar, liar pants on fire.
And every home is a great deal, until 90 days go by, and he revises his opinion to the original price was ridiculous.
Spots don’t change.
Rule change to help immigrants with families who are U.S. citizens
By John Lantigua Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted: 9:52 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6, 2012
The Obama administration Friday said it plans to make it easier for some illegal immigrants who are immediate relatives of U.S. citizens to attain a legal right to stay in the country, a move that could affect thousands of people in South Florida.
The current procedures require U.S. citizens to apply for legal status for those relatives and for the undocumented people to leave the U.S. in order to file for waivers that will allow them to become legal residents. It is a process that takes on average six months before they are given an immigrant visa and allowed back into the U.S. If the waiver is denied, the family member could be barred from entering the U.S. for up to 10 years.
Alejandro Mayorkas, director of the U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services, said Friday that cases occur in which the U.S. citizens suffer “extreme hardship” because their loved ones are forced to leave the country for long periods of time.
He cited the instance of U.S. citizens who are seriously ill and depend on undocumented family members for medical care. Later, in a response to questions from reporters, he said extreme hardship might also be caused by financial issues and other stresses on the family.
The new rules will allow those illegal-immigrant family members to apply for the necessary hardship waivers from inside the U.S. and not be forced to leave the country for long periods while they wait for the waivers to be processed.
“The goal is to reduce the time of separation and alleviate extreme hardship to U.S. citizens,” Mayorkas said.
Some Republicans immediately took aim at the proposed change. GOP lawmakers have said President Obama’s changes to immigration policy, without Congressional consent, amount to “backdoor amnesty” for illegal immigrants.
Friday, U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a frequent critic of immigration policy, accused the president of putting the interests of illegal immigrants ahead of those of Americans.
“It seems President Obama plays by his own rules to push unpopular policies on the American people,” Smith said.
Conservative commentators were also framing the new policy as a way for the Obama administration to court favor with Latino voters leading up to the November election.
It is the second time in a matter of months that the administration has made changes in immigration policy that were applauded by immigrant advocates and by many people in the Latino community.
Late last year, the administration announced that it would review 300,000 deportation cases currently in the pipeline and postpone the deportation of many people who are not criminals and are believed to pose no threat to society.
The new waiver policy, which Mayorkas said he hopes will take effect this year, would apply only to the spouses and children of U.S. citizens, not siblings. It would also be restricted to undocumented people whose only issue with U.S. law is that they are in the country illegally. No person who has been convicted of a crime or has other legal issues will be covered by the new rule.
While the waivers will now be applied for from inside the U.S. once their cases come up and they are granted the waivers, the illegal immigrants will still have to leave the U.S., go to a U.S. consulate and apply for an actual immigrant visa.
But once the person is interviewed in a consulate, the visa will in most cases be issued in short order.
“It will not be months, it will be days or weeks,” Mayorkas said. “The period of separation is significantly reduced.”
He said statutes call for immigration law to be applied in a way that avoids extreme hardship to U.S., citizens and that the rule change is intended “to better serve the goals of the present law.”
Mayorkas said that last year, 23,000 applications for hardship waivers were received by Citizenship and Immigration Services and 17,000 were granted. But Boynton Beach immigration attorney Richard Hujber said Friday’s announcement will lead to many more people applying.
“A lot of people don’t even know these waivers exist,” he said. “It was 23,000 last year, but now they are going to be flooded with them.”
“A lot of clients come in here, and when they hear they may have to spend months outside the U.S. in order to apply, they lose interest,” Hujber said.
There is also the danger that the waiver will be denied and then the person who has been in the U.S. illegally is faced by a penalty period between three and 10 years before they can even apply for a visa again.
“They simply don’t want to leave the country and risk that, so they don’t apply,” Hujber said. “Many more of those persons will apply now. This is going to help a lot of people.”
Immigration attorney Aileen Josephs of West Palm Beach also applauded the change.
“This is a good day for America,” she said. “Hopefully, in 2012, Congress will finally act in a bipartisan way, to give our nation an immigration system that fosters legal migration and reflects our nation’s labor needs.”
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/nation/rule-change-to-help-immigrants-with-families-who-2085874.html - 83k -
Question for the HBB: in a family where the kids are anchor baby U.S. citizens with social security numbers, and ma and pa are illegal immigrants working under the table, do the kids qualify for medicaid, food stamps, school lunches et cetera since within the household ma and pa earn no taxable income?
Goon Squad asked, “kids are anchor baby U.S. citizens with social security numbers, and ma and pa are illegal immigrants working under the table, do the kids qualify for medicaid, food stamps, school lunches et cetera since within the household ma and pa earn no taxable income?”
And the answer is that the children are US citizens and are eligible for the programs just like anyone else, it doesn’t matter who their parents are.
Trapper
You just defined the problem. The mother should be a U S citizen, and maybe the father. Enough is enough. Just because your mother spit you out here, should not make you an American. Period.
14 was meant for the slaves, not border hoppers.
Yes the children are U.S. citizens but the question is how is household income factored into qualifying for benefits if the household reports little or no income?
goon,
I read recently that in Ca (my hood) if the anchor gets Medicaid (our Medi-Cal),and food stamps (our ETB card /& spending money),it opens the door for the family to be in the umbrella of benefits. To be honest, we think with the influx of Latino social workers, just “being” gets you in.
I wouldn’t be surprise if we’re right.
goon
90% of my current neighbors are illegals with anchors. The anchors open the door for family benefits, and the parents (many don’t legally marry) get all kinds of entitlements. The key isn’t just low or no taxable income, it’s a legal fatherless household. And don’t forget all the nice fat checks from tax credits. I see the abuse every freak’in day. Even our new mobidly obese Mex new mgr, has 2 little ones and no husband. Lots of nice vehicles in the carport, and the owners speak no English. Can’t wait to find a home.
excuse the duplicate “new”. I get steamed thinking about it. Americanos should have it so easy.
“excuse the duplicate “new”. I get steamed thinking about it.”
No hay problema.
My mother’s neighborhood has had about 12 dentist offices open up, most in former convenience storefronts. All have huge banners saying they take Medicaid and CHIPS in Spanish.
People may be unemployed and have no medical insurance, but the dental industry is booming.
Until the medicaid money runs out, and I think it will be the first thing to go when we have our taste of bankster required “austerity”.
Medi-Cal (Ca. Medicaid) use to cover Orthodontics until they just couldn’t afford it anymore.
Thank God!
KFE?
Ore. Wind Farm a First Under New Eagle Kill Rules
BEND, Ore. January 7, 2012 (AP)
A proposed Central Oregon wind project is the first in the country to be considered for a permit that allows wind turbines to kill a few golden eagles so long as developers make up for the loss, federal officials say.
The West Butte Power project plans to retrofit power poles where wires are so close together that golden eagles can stretch their 7-foot wingspans and get electrocuted.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the retrofits could mitigate the loss of any golden eagles killed by the 50-turbine wind farm east of Bend, The Bulletin reported (http://bit.ly/ADNYs2) Friday.
The permit would allow three golden eagle deaths over five years and require no net loss of the breeding population.
The agency said it was the first application it got under the terms of rules it adopted in 2009 under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Conservation groups had called for a permitting system to stop what one called Friday “a free-for-all that kills hundreds of thousands of birds each year.”
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ore-wind-farm-eagle-kill-rules-15309295 -
“… allows wind turbines to kill a few golden eagles…”
Note: The wind turbines are not killing the golden eagles, the problem of eagles being killed lies with the power poles.
This reporters sucks; He should quit his job and become a realtor.
I am not so sure Combo. This summer I saw lots of hawks and owls lying dead in the sand on Wolfe Island in the shadow of the wind turbines. I didn’t see any kills directly, but it rather convinced me these critters cannot gauge the trajectory of those blade tips.
Thank You Ben and everyone for your short sale reply yesterday. During my due diligence I read that your earnest deposit doesn’t always get returned in a reasonable amount of time should the deal not go forward, and never give them more than $2,000. We’ll stay away, thank you very much. (Yeah, the house was a beaut, but the dealings aren’t.)
You can get away w/$1000 earnest money deposit here on not just the SS but everything.
CarrieAnn
Thanks for the tip. I wonder if that’s a universal guideline or it varies by state?
(Local R E Boards/State R E Depts)
The REO we rescinded on had a 3% deposit, but we backed out before the counter due to coming to our senses ( pool/spa alone needed $10K minimum/repairs). We got our $13K back immediately.
Your earnest money is typically held in escrow by YOUR agent’s broker. So any delay in getting it returned either means that they are abusing that privilege, or that there is a hint of a lawsuit potential (in which case they will typically hold it). In other words, if both parties are asserting a right to the earnest money, they will simply hold it and let the courts sort it out.
But the fact that it is a SS should not cause undue delay in getting your earnest money back if you withdraw an offer.
Prime -Thank you for that information and post. I read multiple real estate forums and buyers had delays in SS earnest money refunds.
earnest deposit … returned = Rebate from Fry’s
Hwy-Thanks for the wake-up on the euphemism. Good call.
Any amount of money satisfies the law, I do believe. The amount is a gauge of how much of a bully the Real Estate agent is. I bought a place 25 years ago with $100 earnest money.
Unemployment rate hinges on more than job gains
By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER
AP – 15 hrs ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — For most people, the 8.5 percent unemployment rate is the most visible sign of the economy’s health. The rate’s every movement is closely watched, especially in an election year.
But when the rate declines, it’s not always because many more people were hired. In fact, the unemployment rate can rise or fall even when no jobs are created or lost.
Here’s why:
The unemployment rate counts only people who don’t have a job and are looking for one. Once you stop looking, you’re no longer considered unemployed.
In December, the economy created 200,000 jobs. That helped drive the unemployment rate lower. But there was a contributing factor: About 50,000 people stopped looking for work. So they were no longer captured in the unemployment rate.
Consider what would happen if lots of people without jobs suddenly resumed looking for one. Such an influx could raise the unemployment rate — even if the economy added jobs.
So far that hasn’t happened.
http://news.yahoo.com/unemployment-rate-hinges-more-job-gains-221538475.html - -
“For most people, the 8.5 percent unemployment rate is the most visible sign of the economy’s health.”
IMO for most people the most visible sign of the economy’s health is whether they themselves - or their family members -
have a good paying job or not.
The PTB can fiddle with the unemployment numbers all they want but the bottom line of what these numbers really mean rests with individuals.
ADP’s numbers have some relevance, but I tried to find a site showing recent federal govt receipts from personal income tax withholding on a monthly basis. I struck out. Anyone out there have a link?
Dean Baker has a fabulous post up this morning taking the jobs report apart. His basic conclusion is that the 200K number is really closer to 150 or 160K because heavy internet shopping for the holidays is not old enough for them to have a seasonal adjustment in place for the new courier (Fedex and UPS) positions that are created in December and eliminated in January.
He also discussed the discouraged worker issue.
Final conclusion is that this report leaves us getting back to a normal employment rate in 2028 and is nothing to get excited about.
Google “Beat the Press” to read the whole thing. Here is a tease:
Economists tend not to be very good at economics. We know this because almost none of them were able to see the $8 trillion housing bubble that was driving the economy from 2002 to 2007. This was an oversight of astonishing importance, sort of like a physicist not noticing gravity.
“Economists tend not to be very good at economics.”
IMO that’s because, being economists, they think they are annointed with having “The Answer” to all things economic.
Those who think they have The Answer are no longer searching. And because they are not longer searching they will probably not be able to uncover anything new.
And they certainly aren’t about to listen to anything said concerning economics from someone who is not annointed with a degree in the field.
IMHO true of many fields, not just economics.
Too many are welded into the efficient markets theory, which in short means that all buyers and sellers have all available information and make good (efficient) decisions which leads to overall efficient markets.
We know this is not true in the least, especially when risk is mispriced and the existence of the “Bernanke/Greenspan put” means unequal outcomes for various parties to the transactions.
We add jobs every month. We are down 10 million jobs now.
Not planning to buy a house this year, but I am planning to stimulate the economy through a car purchase. I am aiming for the highest MPG rating I can find in a car I can stand to drive. Any suggestions on high MPG cars that are still comfortable to drive them 15,000+ miles per year?
P.S. The annual savings from increasing your mileage from, say, 30mpg to 50mpg, assuming $4/gal gas and 15,000 miles driven, is
$4*(1/30-1/50)*15,000 = $800.
“Any suggestions on high MPG cars that are still comfortable to drive them 15,000+ miles per year?”
Family Car (FOR SALE, contact info@jayohrberg.com for information).
http://www.jayohrberg.com/Flintstones_Flintmobile.html - 19k - Cached - Similar pages
Market for everything.
The car guy at the Washington Post likes the Prius V.
Last week I saw a girl driving a Prius and smoking a cigarette. It didn`t look right.
I tested the Prius today. Definitely a chick car (designed by a chick, for chicks to drive). Not that there is anything wrong with that…
Jeep station wagon aka: Jeep Patriot (must accept not having your back pressed against the seat when accelerating however.)
$16,500 / 28mpg
Hey highway…… you ever spend time at JU?
Jeeper here, get about 13 miles per. A little lower when rock crawling.
eh….JU fan?
If you mean Jeepers Unlimited, yes a little. I tend to stick to the Rubicon Forum a lot more. My rig is mothballed at my place in Montana so it’s been a little off the radar for me recently.
Oh yeah, supplements my learning curve with Click & Clack.
PS, we’ve got 93,000 on 2008
x0 Zero problems thus far…
Thinkin’ of get another, only this times eyes get to remove the logo’s & replacement with Studebaker emblems.
Ha!
Lucy: ‘Hwy50 you’re such a BLOCKHEAD!’
Hmm…Great question. I love my Toyota economy car, but I have long legs and my car seat does not go back far enough so that I can stretch them enough.
My Toyota was built in 2003, and does not have those notorious problems that later-built Toyotas had. However I think Toyotas will make a comeback in quality. If I can get a Corolla with better legroom, that would be my next purchase. I have 65,000 miles on my 2003. My dealer keeps trying to get me to trade my car in on a new one of the same model. I need that like I need to eat liver and onions.
I have driven Ford Focus cars lately (I rent cars in Florida). They have more legroom. However I don’t really drive long distances. The longest I drive is down to Siesta Key Beach every two or three weeks for about 70 miles.
I don’t trust the economics of hybrids. I would say 30mpg is about the best for me. Anything around 40 mpg means my legs would really be scrunched up in a tiny car.
“…but I have long legs and my car seat does not go back far enough so that I can stretch them enough.”
Check out the new Camry next time you buy a car. Lotsa leg space for a car priced under $30K.
“I don’t trust the economics of hybrids.”
You need to drive more than I do (around 17K miles per year) for the premium price (maybe $6K over comparable non-hybrids) to pencil out at current gas prices. I’m not going to buy one.
Yeah 65,000 miles divided by 118 months is 550 miles per month or 6,610 miles per year. That’s what I put on my own Toyota all this time. Good Grief! I probably could get away with driving a top of the line 5.0 litre Mustang GT or Hyundai Equus 6,600 miles per year and still be more “green” than those who buy green products.
I have a Prius with 150,000 miles on it. Bought it new in 2006. It has really been super reliable and economical. It’s not just the gas savings. First set of brakes were replaced at 95,000 miles. I’m 6′3″ and find it comfortable. I do my own oil changes. Cool gadgets inside too. Never take your keys out of your pocket…touch unlock, touch start…back-up camera. It’s my best car ever, although my heart lies with the completely opposite Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.
Yeah I drove a Prius a couple of times and was pleasantly surprised. It has good enough acceleration.
Very interested in the Prius C (introduced as the Aqua in Japan) that will be debuting at the Detroit Auto Show this month.
heart lies with the completely opposite Jeep Wrangler Unlimited ??
There will be a new one in scdave’s garage this month…:)
Right on! Mr. scdave.
“back-up camera”
I need one. Why didn’t we think of that great necessity. The Prius has come along ways from the ugly duckling, I’ve noticed.
As a 265,000 Jeep Cherokee owner, I’m partial to the Wrangler 2-door (to me, the Unlimited looks weird unless you jack it up a few inches, especially in the front, and put on huge tires) and the new Grand Cherokee. The styling on the new Grands is phenomenal. The price tag? Not so much.
er, 265,000 MILE Cherokee owner…
I liked the Prius I tested today. But the console was too confining — had to sit like a girl, which made me uncomfortable.
It also accelerates like a girl car, unless you really hammer the accelerator. By contrast, the all-gas Camry was far more responsive to the accelerator pedal.
I’ve heard the Lexus version of the Prius is comfortable, even though it doesn’t get as good of mileage. You might want to consider a European diesel.
Diesel Jetta or Passat get 42 mpg for $26k.
+1. I consider these to be way “greener” than a Prius.
You do not have to factor in the environmental costs of battery production and recycling.
Plus if you are sufficiently motivated and it is available in your area, you can run them on biodiesel, for a near-zero-carbon footprint, in addition to the satisfaction of knowing that you are not sending money to the middle-east.
Of course, green may not be your primary motivation for going with a high-mileage model—can you clarify that?
Fuel economy is my primary motivation, though the thought of doing my little part of helping to reduce U.S. dependency on Middle Eastern oil is always appealing.
“With the old car, you pay much less up front and far less down the road.” - Eric Peters.
Try these:
VW Beetles (old Beetles; the air-cooled, rear-engined ones).
Almost any GM compact/intermediate, such as a Nova/Ventura/Malibu (mechanical parts are common and easily obtainable).
Old F-trucks, Jeeps (popular, large aftermarket support).
Ford Mavericks (running gear is Mustang), Fairmonts.
Any questions, ask this guy, he seems to be very knowledgeable:
http://epautos.com/2012/01/03/going-old/
A new Mob Museum?
OK HBBer’s start the list (prioritize later):
1. “K” Street “Lobbyist” aka: (Thee Gang)
2.
3.
4.
5.
Nevada casinos lost nearly $4 billion last year
Bad luck: Nevada casinos post second straight year of multi-billion dollar losses.
Published: Jan. 6, 2012 / GARY A. WARNER / Register Travel Editor / OC Register
Nevada’s biggest casinos are on a bad streak of luck, dropping just under $4 billion last year.
The Nevada Gaming Board report says that the 256 largest casinos in the state earned $22 billion but posted a loss of $3.9 billion. It’s the second straight year of big losses. In 2010, the largest casinos lost $3.4 billion on total revenues of over $20.8 billion.
The report covers all casinos that made over $1 million in revenue last year. Most are in the Las Vegas area. Revenues reflect money from gambling, rooms, food, beverages and attractions. Gambling accounted for $10.2 billion, or 46 percent, of earnings.
The bad economy has claimed some high profile victims. The Fontainebleau resort sits half-built on the north end of Las Vegas Boulevard. Its new furnishings were purchased by the recently remodeled Plaza Hotel at the foot of Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas in a bankruptcy asset sale. The Sahara, one of the famous “Rat Pack” era hotels of the 1960s closed in 2011 after 58 years in business. The Hooters themed hotel is operating in Chapter 11 bankruptcy and will likely be sold.
Las Vegas officials said there were 314,000 visitors in the city for New Years Eve, a record. An amazing 98 percent of rooms in Las Vegas were occupied for the holiday.
Casinos hope the trend will continue this year. A new Mob Museum is slated to open downtown in February.
The state said casinos paid $792 million in taxes and fees, equating to 7.8 percent of gambling revenue.
“Nevada casinos lost nearly $4 billion last year.”
Because?
1. Nevada used to have a lock on gambling but now they don’t.
2. People used to have lots of money but now they don’t.
And I am sure there are many people who could not have seen any of this coming.
#3 Internet gambling
#4 Nearly every state now has casinos. 10 years ago it was LV and AC only (and a few indians)
wtf is a fair deal on your mortgage?
Well I know I bought near the peak using an 80/20 Liar loan and then took out $175k of “my equity” in 2006 to start my Home inspection business but then the market crashed! I have not been able to make a house payment in 41 months, all of the waranties have expired on my ATV, my Harley, my boat, my flat screens and my Silverado. We won`t be able to go back to Europe this year, I am $350k upside down and I don`t think I`m getting a fair deal on my mortgage. I think I`ll call..
1-800-DEADBEAT
POLITICO
Obama in Ohio, 1/4
By BYRON TAU | 1/4/12 1:52 PM EST
“Son of Ohio. A good, good man. Today I’m appointing Richard as America’s consumer watchdog. That means he’ll be in charge of one thing: looking out for the best interests of American consumers. Looking out for you. In fact, just this week, his agency is opening up a simple, 1-800 number you can call to make sure you’re getting a fair deal on your mortgage, and hold banks and brokers accountable if you’re not.”
http://www.politico.com/politico44/2012/01/obama-in-ohio-109603.html - 90k -
“wtf is a fair deal on your mortgage? ”
For a start?
Being told that the “pick a payment” option means that if you pick a payment less than $x your loan balance will be going up, not down.
Being told what the payments will be for the entire term of the loan, not just the first 2 to 24 months.
Being told that you qualify for a fixed rate fully amortizing loan, not just the subprime one they want you to take.
Being told what the broker makes on commission for the various types of loans you are being offered so you can more clearly understand why loan D is being pushed so hard.
Being told that the appraiser that the broker recommends is the broker’s son-in-law.
etc., etc., etc.
And getting all this disclosure in plain language so you can start the decision making process without paying a lawyer a $200 retainer.
My last LL had a Wamu pick a payment loan. They sent the bill to the house I was renting for a few months after I had moved in. At the time they were picking the neg-am payment which was around $1,300 a month (I was paying them $1,700 a month) The full 30 yr. payment was around $2,300 a month. About a year later they picked the $0 payment and continued to collect $1,700 for a few years.
“And getting all this disclosure in plain language so you can start the decision making process without paying a lawyer a $200 retainer.”
I wonder if it would have made a difference if people who now say they didn`t understand what they were signing when the bought a 3 - 4 or $500k house had paid a lawyer $300 to find out what they were signing up for. With the people I know it wouldn`t have made any difference because they knew what they were doing and they were going to be rich because house prices only go up.
Jeff,
Reminds me of my situation. Paid $1100/mo faithfully for years, after 1.5 years of no contact and them not replying to emails I didn’t pay one month as I didn’t even know if they still owned the place. Wasn’t but a couple days later that hell hath no fury than a deadbeat LL who doesn’t honor her contracts, but gives me hell for not honoring mine, threatening to trash my credit (good luck, they had a fake SSN & BDay), giving me lines like they have been so gracious to let me rent under market rates for years, that it’s not their fault they weren’t able to flip the condo and are now being sued, etc.
http://www.youtube.com/user/fknnewz?feature=watch
Best.newscast.ever (warning: foul language).
After demolishing serial hypocrite Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul blasts another sleazeball Establishment GOP Hollow Man: Rick Santorum.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/burns-haberman/2012/01/new-paul-sc-ad-hits-santorum-on-betrayal-109895.html
Ron Paul is a kook. I’m all in with Romney for 2012.
P.S. Regarding people that work within the bloated Federal bureaucracy, I will use my mindset as an example. My family’s station is less than many but better than most. But bearing witness to the wholesale destruction of our society and the very fabric of our nation troubles me. While some people who are doing ok may be saying “screw them, I’ve got mine” I can’t. I see a cabal of criminals looting the public and it burns my @ss.
My point is the right things need to be done regardless of the short term pain. We as a nation had better make the hard choices now or suffer more and greater consequences later. My god, the European settlers of this nation boarded vessels not knowing whether they would live or die during their journey. But the religious oppression and the Bank of England’s yoke was enough reason to set sail. Where do we find ourselves now? Under the bankers yoke, all of us. Yet most find themselves so numbed by their government gruel and elite approved media that they don’t have the time to look beyond the 1” layer of dust on their work boots. The #1 right thing to do is eliminate the foreign bankers that control OUR currency via the Fed Reserve (located within the DeathStar). Everything is is #2 at best.
I will gladly take the short term hit, whether it’s 1 year or the rest of my lifetime, to see this experiment prosper. I would hope even a bureaucrat would be able to distinguish the greater good.
Wow, I may have to rethink this Romney thing?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rephMjLmT9Y&feature=player_embedded
While you’re rethinking, check out Mitt Gekko’s equity vulturism at Bain Capital.
Hell hath no fury……….
This comment was supposed to nest below Tiger’s mansion being demolished.
… like a Newt scorned?
Like an intern scorned.
http://www.examiner.com/elections-2010-in-wilmington/jon-huntsman-staff-creates-a-hit-piece-about-huntsman-claims-ron-paul-did-it
Jon Huntsman’s staff creates a “false flag” hit piece on their candidate which they falsely attribute to Ron Paul supporters.
If true– and the saved screen image would suggest that it is– this is truly a cheezy stunt by the Huntsman campaign.
Will be interesting to see how long daughter, Abby, stays on the payroll….
The MSM has been beside itself over this “appalling attack ad” attributed to Ron Paul. Naturally, any suggestion that it could be a dirty tricks operation by a rival candidate is never mentioned as a possibility.
Isn’t that something like Karl Rove used to do in his formative years?
Real estate office clearing out - TONS OF FREE FURNITURE (NYC)
Date: 2012-01-07, 1:48PM EST
Reply to: sale-8hnj9-2788121320@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
Closing down shop and moving..
I don’t want to be bothered with hauling everything
I’ve got:
a really nice cubicle system
10 desk chairs (Black, swivel chairs w/ armrests)
10 dell comp w/ monitors
tons of office stuff
wall posters
Fax machine
and other stuff - would prefer it going to a non profit business or something….
First come first serve, want it gone asap.
Next time you hear Santorum and other neo-con chickenhawks issuing belicose threats, bear in mind who pays the bills for AIPAC’s wars.
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/mcallen-135558-soldier-year.html
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=200244
Reality check on pensions. It will be horrible to behold the rage of public sector unions when they realize their symbiotic lifelong votes-for-entitlements arrangements with the Democrats will culminate in betrayal.
I always thought this Serj Tankian song was political:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd7yyJLQHVk
Take my hand and lets end it all,….
She took my hand and I let her go
She broke her little bones
On the boulders below,
Took my hand and she ended it all,
Broke her little bones on the boulders below,
And while she fell, I smiled.
Lalalalalalalala lie lie lie
Lalalalalalalala lie lie lie
Lalalalalalalala lie lie lie
Lalalalalalalala lie lie lie
Isn’t this what happens to all the parasite’s hosts in the end?
http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000065908
Bunny Ranch Brothel in Nevada supports Ron Paul! (The whores on Capitol Hill, however, continue to support whatever Establishment Republicrat Hollow Man candidate the Wall Street kleptocrats tell them to).
It’s great to see honest prostitutes supporting politicians for a change, rather than political prostitutes supporting the dishonest.
http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/12/ff_riots/all/1
Self-Organized, Hyper-Networked Revolts—Coming to a City Near You
Let’s start with the fundamental paradox: Our personal technology in the 21st century—our laptops and smartphones, our browsers and apps—does everything it can to keep us out of crowds.
Why pack into Target when Amazon can speed the essentials of life to your door? Why approach strangers at parties or bars when dating sites like OkCupid (to say nothing of hookup apps like Grindr) can more efficiently shuttle potential mates into your bed? Why sit in a cinema when you can stream? Why cram into arena seats when you can pay per view? We declare the obsolescence of “bricks and mortar,” but let’s be honest: What we usually want to avoid is the flesh and blood, the unpleasant waits and stares and sweat entailed in vying against other bodies in the same place, at the same time, in pursuit of the same resources.
And yet: On those rare occasions when we want to form a crowd, our tech can work a strange, dark magic. Consider this anonymous note, passed around among young residents of greater London on a Sunday in early August:
Everyone in edmonton enfield woodgreen everywhere in north link up at enfield town station 4 o clock sharp!!!!
Bring some bags, the note went on; bring cars and vans, and also hammers. Make sure no snitch boys get dis, it implored. Link up and cause havic, just rob everything. Police can’t stop it. This note, and variants on it, circulated on August 7, the day after a riot had broken out in the London district of Tottenham, protesting the police killing of a 29-year-old man in a botched arrest. So the recipients of this missive, many of them at least, were already primed for violence.
http://www.alt-market.com/articles/487-new-jersey-will-pay-you-1000-to-destroy-the-2nd-amendment
New Jersey (Corzine country) will pay you $1000 to destroy the Second Amendment.