It’s one of those days. Feeling ill. So for now, I present this lazy meandering post.
Wisconsin’s own Paul Ryan will have a “Mobile Office Schedule“ through September 27 in parking lots of various buildings in his district.
I don’t know if this is wise. We could go all Wisconsin on him in these exposed locations.
In April citizens gave him flack in a packed Kenosha townhall inside and outside (as seen below).
Image from Politico
In May in Chicago protesters held anti-Ryan signs that said “Hands off my Medicare,” “Hands off my Social Security,” and “Paul Ryan plan: Let them eat cat food.” [MoveOn protest below]
– image from cemillerphotography
In June 100s gathered outside the Washington D.C. Newseum to protest Ryan’s medicare slashing budget plan. [nice protest speech in DC below]
In July and last Monday protesters made fun of Ryan’s $350 bottles of DC wine outside his offices with fake tastings. [That’s Dem. candidate Rob Zerban next to the cow. He’s the man challenging Ryan for his seat.]
Paul Ryan has some time to be in Wisconsin since he will not be on the 12-member found-nowhere-in-the-constitution-of-the-United-States congressional “Super Congress” or “Super-Committee” which will decide on further U.S. budget cuts by his own request: “I asked the Speaker not to consider me for the Joint Committee, because only the Budget Committee can write legislation to reform the budget process. As Budget Committee chairman, my plan has long been to work on this critical issue throughout the fall.”
Whether he’s covering up for the fact that he was excluded anyway because he’s more a Cantor man than a Boehner man [none of Cantor’s buddies got picked for the mostly boy’s budget band. Ryan co-wrote Young Guns with Cantor *barf* so he’s a Cantor man] or if it’s saying he doesn’t want to risk his political career being tied to the crappy compromise legislation that comes of it….what’s your take on Ryan staying off the Super Congress?
What Me Worry?
Yesterday I heard the phrase “take the long view” so many times it had to be part of a drinking game somewhere. Honestly, I haven’t had a chance to worry about the S&P messing with our AAA rating and setting the economy into a tailspin etc. because I was so focused on Wisconsin. But I noticed Robert Reich saying, “Pardon me for asking, but who gave Standard & Poor’s the authority to tell America how much debt it has to shed, and how?” And I saw my twitter pals go nuts when mass media ignored this quote from S&P’s report ”We have changed our assumption on this because the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues, a position we believe Congress reinforced by passing the act.” [which was pointed out by Thom Hartmann.]
So that’s up to speed, right? Well now I look into it and 1 hour ago Bloomberg posted that the SEC is investigating whether the S&P broke the law and leaked its confidential rating early. Whoa. If a person got that sort of information early – wouldn’t that be some sweet information to use on the market. Could there be some corruption of epic proportion there?
I know corruption ordinarily gets me hopping mad and alarmed. Tonight I’m going to let Dylan Ratigan of MSNBC do the rant for me in this next priceless you-must-see-it broadcast. Which for a while there seems to be causing the co-hosts to have kittens.
Ratigan says we’ve got a mathematical fact:
“10’s of trillions of dollars are being extracted from the United States of America! Democrats aren’t doing it. Republicans aren’t doing it. An entire integrated system – financial system, trading system, taxing system – that was created by both parties over a period of two decades is at work on our entire country right now! And we’re sitting here arguing about whether we should do the $4 trillion dollar plan that kicks the can down the road for the President for 2017 or burn the place to the ground -both of which are reckless, irresponsible, and stupid!”
Ratigan says the root of the problem is our “bought Congress” and says Obama is the one person who can halt the flow of corrupting money into politics and he’s not doing it. Jimmy Williams agrees but says that Congress has to also stop the way things work.
In stark contrast is the Onion’s “Area Loser” [who I resemble in more than 1 way]:
Area Loser Blissfully Unaffected By Whims Of Stock Market
BOULDER, CO—According to economic experts, local man and complete reject Dale Everett, 37, remains 100 percent unaffected by the dramatic ups and downs of the American stock market. “No matter what sort of calamity befalls Wall Street, this total failure of a man remains exactly, and happily, the same as he was before,” said market analyst Ben Tanaka, who since 2008 has developed high-blood pressure and a stomach ulcer from worrying about the financial crisis. “As long as he has money for rent, cable, and food, which he usually does, he is fine. I have to say, I kind of envy the loser.” Tanaka added that unless there was suddenly a 550 percent nationwide spike in the price of beer, Everett’s condition would likely continue on without change. – The Onion
blue cheddar 