THE WATERSPOUT

Is This Even Legal?

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 16:08:00 +0000

The California Government is going to delay tax refunds so it has some money to play with temporarily. But isn’t a tax refund by definition the money that you overpaid and that didn’t ever belong to the state in the first place? How can they legally keep it from you to cover their own budget woes? Read the article.

The Short List

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:25:25 +0000

This is embarrasing.

Sad Sad Sad

havenhofman — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:33:05 +0000

I think this video sums up why any third party political movement is doomed before it gets off the ground.

Question. . .

havenhofman — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 03:50:25 +0000

Is “Office of the President-Elect” anything like “Assistant to the Regional Manager”?

I do have to say that came from my wife.

Pompous Blindness

havenhofman — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:44:02 +0000

I heard only a few qoutes from The One’s press conference today, but I thought them very enlightening. He complained that he could not take office until Jan 20th. I suspect that we will hear a gradual drumbeat of that from congress and the press, a low intensity grumble that has the added benefit of insulting GW. Face it Obama, you will be powerless to unpush the depression button, even if your friends do resuscitate our stock market.

The second was a reassurance that he had been “re-reading the works of Lincoln.” Not far removed from the student world, that phrase leapt out at me. If he had in fact been studying Lincoln, then he should have been able to provide an insight, even one distilled into qoute form. But to have simply said that he has been reading the works strikes me as a grasp at 150 year old ethereal coattails, and a vague attempt to reassure a nation that he is trying to do something. It is also a stark contrast with Palin, who apparently took the words of Lincoln to heart, and tried to embody one of his ideas, which is to pray that your nation is on God’s side. It does not surprise me one bit that Obama now has to claim Lincoln as an inspiration. His mentors seem especially impotent to inspire in times like this.

A better character to study for presidential repsonse to times of crisis may be Reagan or even GW. But Obama’s hatred prevents him from realizing the truth of what was overcome in the last 8 years, and his ingrown synapse can’t help but reiterate a complaint against the current president.

PS. Since when was Lincoln such a talisman to politicians? I have heard his name more than any other president this season, and that seems to be without precedent.

And the Countdown Begins

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 21:50:01 +0000

I’m not sure how long this news has been around but Simon Pegg & Nick Frost’s new project “Paul” is slated to arrive next year at this time. Hooray!!

Oh, and look for Pegg in the upcoming Star Trek!

How Facebook Can Make Money

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:45:01 +0000

“We’ve found out that having a price is really cool for making profits.”

Capitalism

havenhofman — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 01:13:45 +0000

I have heard a lot of talk about how the acts of the government are robbing this country of it’s free market system. It bothered me, but I heard an interesting story on the news the other day which gave me a new idea. The EU and America is trying to come up with a united front on the issue of insuring people’s money, so that people do not shift their money to other countries, which do guarantee their money. I realized that this is the essence of free market. Paulson can no more destroy the free market than Obama can make the ocean’s rise. Governments and businesses will always have differences on how to operate, and the consumers will always make their choice. The choices are limited, and the government is now in the business of trying to create markets, but the freedom remains.

Social Experiment

havenhofman — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 01:03:15 +0000

It was not an intentional social experiment, but it turned out to be interesting people watching anyway. We put a McCain – Palin sticker on the car. 3 days later a house in our development sported a yard sign for O’bama. Less than 2 days after that, another car sported a McCain-Palin sticker. Last week a McCain Palin sign appeared. Now that it has calmed down we put out our McCain sign tonight to see if we can liven things up again.

Oh snap.

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 22:53:07 +0000

This is the last five years of the Dow Jones. Oh Snap!