Politics
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- eieio0
where are all the liberal minded intelligent educated types who are protesting taxes and corruption in the government? Why have the teabaggers taken over and everyone thinks they're full of shit, Obama hasn't changed a thing, USA is korrupt.
- ukit0
http://www.salon.com/technology/…
While discussing J.P. Morgan Chase's blow-out first quarter profits in an earnings call Wednesday morning, CEO Jamie Dimon put a price tag on the derivatives regulation currently being considered by Congress. His bank, reported the New York Times' Cyrus Sanati, stood to lose as much as $2 billion annually, "depending on the real details."
Which really means: Depending on how successful Dimon and his big bank colleagues are in gutting proposals for derivatives reform over the next couple of weeks. The fight over banking reform is suddenly white hot, and derivatives regulation is a critical battlefield.
According to an enlightening new briefing paper by the Brookings Institution's Robert Litan, around 97 percent of the market in currently unregulated derivatives trading is dominated by just five banks. Among them are some familiar names: J.P. Morgan Chase, Citibank, Goldman Sachs, and Bank of America. Combined, the so-called derivative dealers club earns around $30 billion a year from their ability to control this market. Defending this cash machine is an extremely high priority.
So never mind the to-and-fro over the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, or the endless sparring over whether a "resolution authority" proposal will deal with the problem of too-big-to-fail banks. The politics of fighting the CFPA now appear to be too ugly even for the GOP, and the banks don't seem especially worried about any short-term impact on their profits from the resolution authority. Their main focus, according to the Wall Street Journal, is derivatives regulation, for a very simple reason. The measures that will make derivatives trading safer, more transparent and competitive, will unfortunately cut into their profits.
Until Tuesday, the big worry among proponents of derivatives reform was that Blanche Lincoln, the Arkansas Democrat who chairs the Senate Agriculture Committee, which oversees the regulatory body responsible for most current derivatives regulation, the Commodity Trading Futures Commission, would attempt to undermine the provisions already included in the Dodd bill. But on Tuesday, Lincoln, possibly mindful of a primary attack from her left flank accusing her of being too weak on Wall Street, surprised the conventional wisdom by recommending a set of proposals that are even stronger than what's currently incorporated in the Dodd Bill. While some commentators are skeptical that Lincoln's plan has any chance of real success, the New York Times did note that the outline "drew praise" from Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe.
Which may explain why Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has been blasting away at the Dodd bill in increasingly vehement tones of frustration all week. If the Democrats hold firm, they only need one or two Republican senators to break ranks to score their second big legislative success this year. And that puts the Republican leadership in a very tight spot. McConnell doesn't want to be seen publicly as doing Wall Street's bidding, but at the same time he is eager for Wall Street's financial support as the midterm election campaigns heat up.
On Monday, Fox Business News' Charlie Gasparino reported that McConnell and another conservative Republican senator, Texas' John Cornyn, met with a group of Wall Street executives to explain how "how financial executives might help prevent some of its least market-friendly aspects from becoming law by electing more Republicans."
- ********0
- ********0
“Of this core group of Tea Party activists, 6 of 10 are male and half live in rural areas,” CNN reports. “Nearly three quarters of Tea Party activists attended college, compared to 54 percent of all Americans, and more than three in four call themselves conservatives.”
Sixty-six percent of the tea party activists reported an income higher than $50,000 per year. Among the overall sample in the poll, that figure was 42%. The group is 80% white, as opposed to 71% among all respondents to the poll.”
20% aren’t white
33% make under $50K a year
40% are womenWith those numbers, it's a Republican landslide in 2010.
- Wow, that's odd, the Dems plans are backfiring on them, huh?********
- yea, if only white's voted.. dipshitBonSeff
- and only those white's polled.
man you are fucking dense.BonSeff - come tell me that in November dipshit********
- you're so full of shit, because you know damn well that whites voted BO into power in the first place. majority...********
- just those independents that voted him in see him as worthless now, hahahahaa********
- You forgot to mention that they are 90% white males, already Republicans and conservative.utopian
- Wow, that's odd, the Dems plans are backfiring on them, huh?
- ukit0
How bout some optimism for a change?
http://www.slate.com/id/2250374/…
The long-term decline of the U.S. economy has been greatly exaggerated. America is coming back stronger, better, and faster than nearly anyone expected—and faster than most of its international rivals. The Dow Jones industrial average, hovering near 11,000, is up 70 percent in the past year, and auto sales in the first quarter were up 16 percent from 2009. The economy added 162,000 jobs in March, including 17,000 in manufacturing. The dollar has gained strength, and the United States is back to its familiar position of lapping Europe and Japan in growth. Among large economies, only China, India, and Brazil are growing more rapidly than the United States—and they're doing so off a much smaller base. If the U.S. economy grows at a 3.6 percent rate this year, as Macroeconomic Advisers projects, it'll create $513 billion in new economic activity—equal to the GDP of Indonesia.
So what accounts for the pervasive gloom? Housing and large deficits remain serious problems. But most experts are overlooking America's true competitive advantages. The tale of the economy's remarkable turnaround is largely the story of swift reaction, a willingness to write off bad debts and restructure, and an embrace of efficiency—disciplines largely invented in the United States and at which it still excels. America still leads the world at processing failure, at latching on to new innovations and building them to scale quickly and profitably. "We are the most adaptive, inventive nation, and have proven quite resilient," says Richard Florida, sociologist and author of The Great Reset: How New Ways of Living and Working Drive Post-Crash Prosperity.
- ukit0
Republican "intellectual" tells black law students they are inferior
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonl…
The National Review's resident white supremacist intellectual John Derbyshire was invited by the Black Law Student Association at UPenn Law School to speak about government's role in addressing racial disparities in education and employment. "The Derb" gave his standard "Racism 101" lecture:
"When the organizers first emailed me to suggest I appear on the panel, I told them that this is my view of the matter. I said that I was flattered to be invited to speak at such a prestigious institution, and that, having two teenage children, I am always glad to get out of the house for a few hours; but that racial disparities in education and employment have their origin in biological differences between the human races. Those differences are facts in the natural world, like the orbits of the planets. They can't be legislated out of existence; nor can they be "eliminated" by social or political action."
In the early days of the National Review, William F. Buckley championed the white supremacist governments of South Africa and the American South. He never fully renounced these views and with John Derbyshire racism is once again the predominant ideology of America's "most respected" conservative publication.
- MyMommies0
Happy tax day you leftist retards. I hope you sons of dike-leaning, bra-less bitches actually filed your tax returns today.
Hey, I just wanted you fags to know that it has been, shall we say, "interesting" to get to know each and every one of you. Sadly, today, our new-found relationships must end.
Take care of yourselves assholes, and be sure to keep up your misinformed, delusional political and sociological ignorance, as over the past many months, you've each proven to be such valuable treasures to our great country, and to the global community at large. I've learned so much from you all— lessons that I am sure to take with me and use for the rest of my life.
In parting, your momma always DID dress you funny, and, sucked the very meanest of meat-poles. :-)
Fuck you, Sup
- ukit0
^^Wait you're....leaving???
- PonyBoy0
^^so wait... you're actually truly never gonna post here again? (mommies)
You finally going back to high school?
I may just come back to the discussion - it's fucks like you that give right-leaning folks a bad image... it's nice to see you go, chump. ;)
- ukit0
You seem to think we didn't like you in a good-hearted, joking kind of way...when it fact we REALLY didn't like you.
JazX I can tolerate, at least he's an accomplished new wave/ rock musician.
- bahahaha New Wave and accomplished? lol********
- I like JazX when he's not in the Politics thread or posting shitty techno in the FMTfooler2
- bahahaha New Wave and accomplished? lol
- ********0
- ukit0
Vitter Fights For Formaldehyde
http://www.politico.com/news/sto…
The Environmental Protection Agency has been trying since 1998 to update its official assessment of formaldehyde, which was first written in 1989 and describes the chemical as a “probable” rather than a “known” carcinogen, even though three major scientific reviews now link it to leukemia and strengthen its ties to other forms of cancer.
After the agency’s efforts were repeatedly stalled by the chemical industry and Congress, a new administration and a new EPA administrator, Lisa Jackson, seemed close to finalizing the EPA’s assessment last summer — until Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) began raising objections on behalf of the formaldehyde industry.
Vitter argued that the reassessment was premature and put a hold on a key EPA official’s appointment. And two days before Christmas, he won what the industry declared was a victory. Jackson agreed to an outside review — this time by the National Academy of Sciences — and Vitter released his hold.
Democrats in Congress and public health watchdogs have criticized the academy in the past for being slanted toward industry because some of the scientists who serve on its review panels have written studies funded by the chemical companies whose products they are evaluating.
- ukit0
CBS News/New York Times Survey on the Tea Party Movement
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President?
Approve 50%
Disapprove 40%Among Tea Party Supporters
Approve 7%
Disapprove 88%Who do you think is mostly to blame for the current state of the nation's economy?
Bush administration 32%
Wall Street 22%
Congress 10%
Obama administration 4%Among Tea Party Supporters
Congress 28%
Wall Street 15%
Obama administration 10%
Bush administration 5%Who do you think is mostly to blame for most of the current federal budget deficit?
Bush administration 39%
Congress 19%
Obama administration 8%Among Tea Party Supporters
Congress 37%
Obama administration 24%
Bush administration 6%Which political figure in the United States living TODAY do you admire most?
Barack Obama 16%
Bill Clinton 9%
Hillary Clinton 3%
Newt Gingrich 3%
Jimmy Carter 3%
Sarah Palin 3%
John McCain 2%
George W. Bush 2%
George H.W. Bush 2%
Rick Perry 1%
Ron Paul 1%
Mitt Romney 1%
Mike Huckabee 1%Among Tea Party Supporters
Newt Gingrich 10%
Sarah Palin 9%
George W. Bush 5%
Mitt Romney 5%
John McCain 3%
Ron Paul 3%
Mike Huckabee 3%
George H.W. Bush 3%
Barack Obama 2%
Bill Clinton 2%
Jimmy Carter 2%
Hillary Clinton 0%
Rick Perry 0%Is your opinion of George W. Bush favorable or not favorable?
Favorable 27%
Not favorable 58%Among Tea Party Supporters
Favorable 57%
Not favorable 27%Is your opinion of Sarah Palin favorable or not favorable?
Favorable 30%
Not favorable 45%Among Tea Party Supporters
Favorable 66%
Not favorable 12%Do you think Barack Obama does or does not understand the needs and problems of people like yourself?
Yes, does 58%
No, does not 39%Among Tea Party Supporters
Yes, does 24%
No, does not 73%Do you think of Barack Obama as more of a liberal, a moderate, or a conservative?
Very liberal 31%
Somewhat liberal 18%
Moderate 28%
Somewhat conservative 6%
Very conservative 4%Among Tea Party Supporters
Very liberal 77%
Somewhat liberal 9%
Moderate 7%
Somewhat conservative 0%
Very conservative 1%According to the Constitution, American Presidents must be "natural born citizens." Some people say Barack Obama was NOT born in the United States, but was born in another country. Do YOU think Barack Obama was born in the United States, or do you think he was born in another country"?
Born in U.S. 58%
Born in another country 20%Among Tea Party Supporters
Born in U.S. 41%
Born in another country 30%In general, do you think the policies of the Obama Administration favor the rich, favor the middle class, favor the poor, or do they treat all groups equally?
Favor the rich 17%
Favor the middle class 19%
Favor the poor 27%
Treat all equally 27%Among Tea Party Supporters
Favor the rich 16%
Favor the middle class 6%
Favor the poor 56%
Treat all equally 9%So far, do you think the Obama Administration has increased taxes for most Americans, decreased taxes for most Americans, or have they kept taxes the same for most Americans?
Increased 34%
Decreased 10%
Kept the same 48%Among Tea Party Supporters
Increased 64%
Decreased 2%
Kept the same 30%Do you think global warming is an environmental problem that is causing a serious impact now, or do you think the impact of global warming won't happen until sometime in the future, or do you think global warming won't have a serious impact at all?
Impact now 38%
In the future 29%
No serious impact 24%
Doesn't exist (vol.) 5%Among Tea Party Supporters
Impact now 12%
In the future 19%
No serious impact 51%
Doesn't exist (vol.) 15%In recent years, do you think too much has been made of the problems facing black people, too little has been made, or is it about right?
Too much 28%
Too little 16%
Just right 44%Among Tea Party Supporters
Too much 52%
Too little 6%
Just right 36%
- ********0
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/04…
Those middle-line Christians that the Dems had, just got off the sinking ship.- Your reality is a very different place.********
- uhmm you mean like the immigrants that flood across the border each day? they're not Catholic at all area they?********
- "The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance"...IRNlun6
- "The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith ...and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance"IRNlun6
- ...does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance."IRNlun6
- Isn't The National Day of Prayer a form of religious observance?IRNlun6
- Stupid thing for the government to recognize anyway.Mimio
- Your reality is a very different place.
- luckyorphan0
Obama Widens Medical Rights for Same-Sex Partners
WASHINGTON — President Obama on Thursday ordered his health secretary to issue new rules aimed at granting hospital visiting rights to same-sex partners.
- luckyorphan0
^^ To continue...
Gay rights advocates said the rules change was inspired by one of those cases involving a same-sex couple, Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond, who were profiled in The New York Times last year. After Ms. Pond was stricken with a fatal brain aneurysm, Ms. Langbehn was denied visiting rights in 2007 by a Florida hospital. Although Ms. Langbehn had power of attorney and she and Ms. Pond were parents to four children they had adopted, the hospital refused for eight hours to allow her and the children to see Ms. Pond, her partner for 18 years. Ms. Pond died as Ms. Langbehn tried in vain to get to her side.
Yet another story that shows why gay marriage (or civil unions with equal benefits) should be legal.
- Equal rights indeed.luckyorphan
- blah, blah, blah..********
- Totally agree with you lucky.mathinc
- My man, math-tastic.luckyorphan
- Hope you die of a fucking brain aneurysm you fucking douchebag. Like today wouldn't be too soon.********
- ********0
- Come November, he'll be singing a new tune. "Well, I really am for bi-partisanship after all..."********
- Obama is right. Tea baggers are tilting windmills.Mimio
- Plenty of Bi-partisan effort was made.Mimio
- They might be windbags, but even windbags get a vote, much like the 99% vote he got from uneducated blacks.********
- same is true with mccain/palin with uneducated whites.. dickfaceBonSeff
- Vote away. It's not going to be the referendum right-wing media is hoping for.Mimio
- It'll make it awfully difficult to pass anything for the next two years though.********
- You teabaggers will be sadly, sadly disappointed.And then that's when one of you will take a shot at the sitting president.********
- Because that's what "real" Americans do. Shoot the nigers. Ain't that right Alex?********
- Amazing every image you post is of a black man.********
- you racist douchebag. You really need a fist down your throat.********
- But just like your buddy Wil who ignoired my call to meet him in a boxing ring your all hot air.********
- Typical rightwing pussy. All talk, no balls.********
- So die of a fucking aneurysm already.********
- Come November, he'll be singing a new tune. "Well, I really am for bi-partisanship after all..."
- BonSeff0
- hahahaha, that piece of shit will never live this down.DrBombay
- tool.jpg, fucking classic!DrBombay
- this needs its own thread!utopian
- Is that Mrs. X?Josev
- Ohh my girl is back, yessssss!********
- if that's all you could come up with, that's pretty sad. What about all the barbs at BO?********
- "barbs at BO" from a guy who needed an imaginary girlfriend?********
- Your a douchebag alex. One day this will became blazingly apparent to you.********
- utopian0
Bank of America reported profits of $3.2 billion during the latest quarter...
Must be nice having the support of the Republicans!
http://money.cnn.com/2010/04/16/…
"Greed is Good!"
