Saturday, May 17, 2008

Open Thread

Feel free to share your thoughts, comments, links etc in this post.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Randy;

I don't believe Jim Sinclair would mind me posting this, from his commentary today. He & I are the same age so I can vouch for the 'reasonableness' of this comparison. The big question is: What can the next 50 years bring?!

Thanks,
David

Posted On: Wednesday, May 14, 2008, 12:44:00 AM EST

In The News Today

Author: Jim Sinclair and Monty Guild


Dear Friends,

Having gone to Iona Prep, being taught by the Irish Christian Brothers in the 1950s, you can be sure that I am a seasoned and tested survivor.

Leaving Iona to go hunting for the weekend after classes on Friday, being 16 years old, going to my shack in the Adirondack Mountains with my Winchester 94 in the cab of my sort of trusty Ford, I really can see times past in this article.

I made a few small changes because, hey, it isn't the 50s any more.

School -- 1957 vs. 2007

Scenario: Jack goes quail hunting before school, pulls into school parking lot with shotgun in gun rack.
1957 - Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack.
2007 - School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers.

Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.
1957 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.
2007 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.

Scenario: Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.
1957 - Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by the Principal. Returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.
2007 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie. Tested for ADD. School gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.

Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.
1957 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2007 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.

Scenario: Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school.
1957 - Mark shares aspirin with Principal out on the smoking dock.
2007 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations. Car searched for drugs and weapons.

Scenario: A foreign student fails high school English.
1957 - He goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.
2007 – His cause is taken up by state. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system and his English teacher. English banned from core curriculum. He is given a diploma anyway.

Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.
1957 - Ants die.
2007 - BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Scenario: Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary hugs him to comfort him.
1957 - In a short time, Johnny feels better and goes on playing.
2007 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison. Johnny undergoes 5 years of therapy.

Anonymous said...

Randy,

I have been reading your post for several months and find your content extremely informative. I blog (postings and video commentary) out of Pittsburgh, PA on a weekly basis. You are my inspiration!
( http://eye-on-washington.blogspot.com ).

We are on the same page in regards to the economic state of affairs. We are just beginning to see the negative effects of the housing bubble upon hard working Americans. I believe the entire mortgage scam was planned from the very beginning, but that is neither here nor there, at this point. It is now here.

Consumer spending is tightening. Commodities are creating inflation ( a place for the ultra-rich to put their money). And, the middle class and lower income population will be using up their credit card option. That aspect of the market will hit the pavement face down, too. Without America spending, the recession will be mighty severe. The rich are transferring their assets to foreign markets and currencies. This is a war--an economic war upon ourselves. That is why the rich are finding economic safe havens, if there are any.

I am no economist, far from it, but I can surely see it coming. I am really hoping I am wrong!! I want to be wrong. I want to be proved wrong.

Unfortunately, most Americans are not paying attention, and just don't want to believe it. What is now brewing and percolating is the Iranian (and Syria, too?) attack by US/Israeli forces. All the candidates and congressional leadership seem to be on board. They were in regards to Iraq. They aren't talking about it. The press is not asking them questions about it, either. Hillary already said obliterate. McCain sings bomb Iran. Obama will follow suit, I bet.

This escalation of war and aggression will hurt the United States more than any other one single factor, at this point in time. I sense it will happen before September.

Let us all keep reading, studying and blogging. This is our only source of potential truth.

Randy said...

David,

Those comparisons are so true it at once makes you want to laugh yet cry at the same time.

What have we become? We're so friggin doomed as a society..

Jerry P,

I'm very humbled yet honored with your post. Thanks

With regard to your comments on the economy and Iran: "I am really hoping I am wrong!! I want to be wrong. I want to be proved wrong.
Unfortunately, most Americans are not paying attention, and just don't want to believe it."

You are so spot on and I feel the same way.

I'll check out your blog when time allows -- If you haven't noticed, my posts have been lagging in content/frequency of late. I've been extremely swamped w/work and family obligations over the last couple of weeks.

Again, Thanks for posting your comment and for helping to wake people up with your blog.

Randy

Anonymous said...

Middle Class Women Now Forced To Live In Their Cars

The new homeless

Economic hard times are forcing Americans to move out of their homes and into their cars.

http://money.cnn.com/video/#/video/news/2008/05/15/news.gutierrez.parking.cnnmoney

Randy said...

Patrick,

Thanks for the link -- really good video that illustrates truth behind the sad economic state we're in. I tried for over 1 hr last night to rip the code and display that video on this blog, but CNN makes it very difficult and I gave up.

For those of you interested in watching, here's a better link: Middle class women forced to live in cars

Randy