The random political thoughts thread (Part Deux) - Page 36

Not Afraid · 04-25-2006, 04:09 PM

It was a new program on KCRW. Most likely NPR-related.

innerSpaceman · 04-25-2006, 04:16 PM

Whatever you think of her, that was a firebrand statement Pelosi made ... and I love her for that alone. I'm tired of politicians sounding so frelling tentative.

Alex · 04-25-2006, 04:44 PM

Somehow I doubt you'd love David Duke for firebrand statements alone so I doubt that is literally true. But at least she does say whatever she is thinking.

But if it is a conspiracy then why is Citco's gas so expensive too? Surely Bush and Hugo Chavez haven't come to a secret pact?

Why do people have such a problem accepting two things:

1) There are market effects that will at times cause increases in the cost of gasoline and heating oil and at other times cause a decrease in cost (such as through most of the '80s and early '90s).
2) There are market-distorting effects (such as Balkanization of blends, regulatory shifts, and taxation) that will almost always simply increase the cost of gas and heating oil.

When #1 and #2 are both creating increases then prices will go up quickly, particularly in speculative spot markets.

I have no particular problem with the idea that someone is gaming the system but so far haven't really seen anybody point to anything real other than simply crying "it costs a lot and those guys are getting rich!" The possibility that we have entered into oligopolistic pricing should be considered and if necessary break up the ownership a bit. But on the surface this doesn't look like it would have much effect since the commodity is already being sold in an open market and not at prices set by the producers. The same forces that appear to be causing this uptick and making oilmen rich are the same ones that made a ghost town of Houston in the early '80s, they're just moving in the other direction now.

I still haven't seen any of the Democrats calling for Bush's head on this provide an answer for how they would have prevented this or fix it. There was the one congresswoman this morning saying "Mr. President where is all the Iraqi oil you promised us!" I wonder what happened to no war for oil.

innerSpaceman · 04-25-2006, 05:48 PM

What happened to it is that no one believed it for a second. We invaded that country for oil, pure and simple. Every school girl knows that nasty dictators in countries with no valuable resources do not have their regimes changed by military means costing billions of dollars a month.

So, since the rebuilding of Iraq was designed to pour money into the hands of multinational corporations and not the economy of Iraq, the reconstruction has not gone as common sense would have envisioned it. Contrary to popular opinion, the reconstruction was not bungled by the Bush Administration. It went exactly as they designed. And yet - 3 years later - there is less oil flowing, less electricity, and less employment in Iraq than before the invasion. Most people consider that a failure, but the rebuilding effort was not designed to have more oil flow.

It should have been, and politicians of all stripes and the American people and the Iraqi people have every cause to be outraged that it's not. Because you shouldn't spend billions of dollars a month of the national treasury to have less oil flowing.

It would be heinous enough if Bush were serving the ecomonic interests of the U.S. in invading an oil-rich nation. What he's actually doing is far worse.

Alex · 04-25-2006, 10:32 PM

iSm's post is so thoroughly asinine that I can't even respond. I'm boggled that adults think that way.

So we invaded a country to destroy infrastructure to take out of circulation oil that was already out of circulation but that wasn't really it, baby just wanted to avenge daddy but that isn't really it the monkey just wanted to distract the world away from his machiavellian domestic social policies by controlling the populace through fear instigated through the controlled demolition of the World Trade Center but that isn't it the Infant in Chief is actually a masochist that is willing to implode his own reputation to give money to people who were already billionaires. But that's not it he just made poor decisions since he fell off the wagon in May 2002 due to the stress of 9/11. But that's not it, he's simultaneously the biggest idiot in the world and the most masterful manipulator of world politics ever seen. BUT THAT'S NOT IT HE'S JUST A FIGUREHEAD AND THE REAL POWER BEHIND THE THRONE IS A BUNCH OF COMPUTERS THAT HAVE DESIGNATED HIM TO BRING ABOUT THE END TIMES SO THAT DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE CAN FINALLY REIGN SUPREME!!!!!

But that's not it. Sometimes **** happens and people really want it to be the result of a hidden hand so that they can have someone to blame. It is the same ****ty thinking that results in religion.

wendybeth · 04-25-2006, 10:34 PM

Who said I was an adult? I'm still into connect the dots, remember?

Alex · 04-25-2006, 10:42 PM

Yeah, but give me a hundred dots and I can draw you a pretty good kitty cat. Give me a thousand and I can draw you a self portrait. Give me a hundred thousand and a good imagination and I can draw whatever you want.

Did you know that in 1978 former governor Ronald Reagan spent several minutes talking to Gene Simmons? Did you know that each word in the name Ronald Wilson Reagan has 6 letters? Connect the dots.

wendybeth · 04-25-2006, 10:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

Yeah, but give me a hundred dots and I can draw you a pretty good kitty cat. Give me a thousand and I can draw you a self portrait. Give me a hundred thousand and a good imagination and I can draw whatever you want.

Did you know that in 1978 former governor Ronald Reagan spent several minutes talking to Gene Simmons? Did you know that each word in the name Ronald Wilson Reagan has 6 letters? Connect the dots.

Do you know someone who knows Kevin Bacon?

Nephythys · 04-26-2006, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

iSm's post is so thoroughly asinine that I can't even respond. I'm boggled that adults think that way.

So we invaded a country to destroy infrastructure to take out of circulation oil that was already out of circulation but that wasn't really it, baby just wanted to avenge daddy but that isn't really it the monkey just wanted to distract the world away from his machiavellian domestic social policies by controlling the populace through fear instigated through the controlled demolition of the World Trade Center but that isn't it the Infant in Chief is actually a masochist that is willing to implode his own reputation to give money to people who were already billionaires. But that's not it he just made poor decisions since he fell off the wagon in May 2002 due to the stress of 9/11. But that's not it, he's simultaneously the biggest idiot in the world and the most masterful manipulator of world politics ever seen. BUT THAT'S NOT IT HE'S JUST A FIGUREHEAD AND THE REAL POWER BEHIND THE THRONE IS A BUNCH OF COMPUTERS THAT HAVE DESIGNATED HIM TO BRING ABOUT THE END TIMES SO THAT DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE CAN FINALLY REIGN SUPREME!!!!!

But that's not it. Sometimes **** happens and people really want it to be the result of a hidden hand so that they can have someone to blame. It is the same ****ty thinking that results in religion.

I think I love you.

No- really- that was beautiful. (save for my disagreement on the last bit)

Fvcking poetic-damn

scaeagles · 04-25-2006, 06:06 PM

I disagree with that post on so many levels that I don't know which part to quote or what to begin with, but as it would simply lapse into a back and forth done so many times before, it isn't worth it.

Suffice it to say, then, I disagree.

04-25-2006, 04:44 PM	#3
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	Somehow I doubt you'd love David Duke for firebrand statements alone so I doubt that is literally true. But at least she does say whatever she is thinking. But if it is a conspiracy then why is Citco's gas so expensive too? Surely Bush and Hugo Chavez haven't come to a secret pact? Why do people have such a problem accepting two things: 1) There are market effects that will at times cause increases in the cost of gasoline and heating oil and at other times cause a decrease in cost (such as through most of the '80s and early '90s). 2) There are market-distorting effects (such as Balkanization of blends, regulatory shifts, and taxation) that will almost always simply increase the cost of gas and heating oil. When #1 and #2 are both creating increases then prices will go up quickly, particularly in speculative spot markets. I have no particular problem with the idea that someone is gaming the system but so far haven't really seen anybody point to anything real other than simply crying "it costs a lot and those guys are getting rich!" The possibility that we have entered into oligopolistic pricing should be considered and if necessary break up the ownership a bit. But on the surface this doesn't look like it would have much effect since the commodity is already being sold in an open market and not at prices set by the producers. The same forces that appear to be causing this uptick and making oilmen rich are the same ones that made a ghost town of Houston in the early '80s, they're just moving in the other direction now. I still haven't seen any of the Democrats calling for Bush's head on this provide an answer for how they would have prevented this or fix it. There was the one congresswoman this morning saying "Mr. President where is all the Iraqi oil you promised us!" I wonder what happened to no war for oil.
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04-25-2006, 05:48 PM	#4
innerSpaceman Kink of Swank Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Inner Space Posts: 13,075	What happened to it is that no one believed it for a second. We invaded that country for oil, pure and simple. Every school girl knows that nasty dictators in countries with no valuable resources do not have their regimes changed by military means costing billions of dollars a month. So, since the rebuilding of Iraq was designed to pour money into the hands of multinational corporations and not the economy of Iraq, the reconstruction has not gone as common sense would have envisioned it. Contrary to popular opinion, the reconstruction was not bungled by the Bush Administration. It went exactly as they designed. And yet - 3 years later - there is less oil flowing, less electricity, and less employment in Iraq than before the invasion. Most people consider that a failure, but the rebuilding effort was not designed to have more oil flow. It should have been, and politicians of all stripes and the American people and the Iraqi people have every cause to be outraged that it's not. Because you shouldn't spend billions of dollars a month of the national treasury to have less oil flowing. It would be heinous enough if Bush were serving the ecomonic interests of the U.S. in invading an oil-rich nation. What he's actually doing is far worse.
	Submit to Quotes

04-25-2006, 10:32 PM	#5
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	iSm's post is so thoroughly asinine that I can't even respond. I'm boggled that adults think that way. So we invaded a country to destroy infrastructure to take out of circulation oil that was already out of circulation but that wasn't really it, baby just wanted to avenge daddy but that isn't really it the monkey just wanted to distract the world away from his machiavellian domestic social policies by controlling the populace through fear instigated through the controlled demolition of the World Trade Center but that isn't it the Infant in Chief is actually a masochist that is willing to implode his own reputation to give money to people who were already billionaires. But that's not it he just made poor decisions since he fell off the wagon in May 2002 due to the stress of 9/11. But that's not it, he's simultaneously the biggest idiot in the world and the most masterful manipulator of world politics ever seen. BUT THAT'S NOT IT HE'S JUST A FIGUREHEAD AND THE REAL POWER BEHIND THE THRONE IS A BUNCH OF COMPUTERS THAT HAVE DESIGNATED HIM TO BRING ABOUT THE END TIMES SO THAT DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE CAN FINALLY REIGN SUPREME!!!!! But that's not it. Sometimes ** happens and people really want it to be the result of a hidden hand so that they can have someone to blame. It is the same **ty thinking that results in religion.
	Submit to Quotes

04-25-2006, 10:34 PM	#6
wendybeth Nevermind Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 7,847	Who said I was an adult? I'm still into connect the dots, remember? __________________
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04-25-2006, 10:42 PM	#7
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	Yeah, but give me a hundred dots and I can draw you a pretty good kitty cat. Give me a thousand and I can draw you a self portrait. Give me a hundred thousand and a good imagination and I can draw whatever you want. Did you know that in 1978 former governor Ronald Reagan spent several minutes talking to Gene Simmons? Did you know that each word in the name Ronald Wilson Reagan has 6 letters? Connect the dots.
	Submit to Quotes

04-25-2006, 04:09 PM	#1
Not Afraid HI! Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 17,108	It was a new program on KCRW. Most likely NPR-related.
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04-25-2006, 04:16 PM	#2
innerSpaceman Kink of Swank Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Inner Space Posts: 13,075	Whatever you think of her, that was a firebrand statement Pelosi made ... and I love her for that alone. I'm tired of politicians sounding so frelling tentative.
	Submit to Quotes

04-25-2006, 06:06 PM	#10
scaeagles I LIKE! Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 7,819	I disagree with that post on so many levels that I don't know which part to quote or what to begin with, but as it would simply lapse into a back and forth done so many times before, it isn't worth it. Suffice it to say, then, I disagree.
	Submit to Quotes