Interesting Observation...

Skidmark sent in the following article, with an admonition to take my BP meds before looking at the rise in the price of coffee...

Not Just Gas! Check Out the Drastic Price Increases on These 21 Everyday Items

Tuesday’s presidential debate touched on some massive economic issues that are affecting all Americans. The immense increase in gas prices was a crucial part of the discussion, but have other everyday products seen a drastic increased in price over the same time period? According to Blaze research on data provided by the the Bureau of Labor Statistics* gas prices are not alone in skyrocketing over the last decade. Wait till you see chocolate chip cookies!

Go check out how much prices have gone up in the past ten years. It's pretty eye-opening. The one thing that struck me most about the list? The only thing that had prices go up less than beer was tomatoes. Another thing that's not listed is cigarettes - when I quit in 2001, the price of a pack of smokes at a convenience store was around $3. Now it's between $7 and $8. I can only imagine that's due to tax increases on cigarettes.

When I started smoking in the late 1980s, a pack of cigarettes cost about a dollar. A six pack of beer (err, not that I drank it, mind you) was about $4. Flash forward to today, and that same pack of smokes sells for $8 (OCTUPLE increase!). That six pack of beer? $5, a mere 25% increase over a 25 year span. I'll leave it as an exercise for the reader to determine why the price of beer is kept constant...

And for the record, coffee has gone up a shocking 90% - I blame Bush.

That is all.

Curse You, Big Business!

That's what's wrong with Washington, right? We're always hearing that the powerful businesses are buying congresscritters left and right and twisting their arms to pass bills favorable to big business - and detrimental to America at the same time.

Except, of course, that the reality is a stone-cold bitch.

Read that list. Of all donations to political parties, the GOP doesn't make the top ten largest donors. Or the top 16, for that matter. Yes, they get a slight edge on the third and fourth slots, but given that the first and second positions, the ones that donated the most, were so thoroughly left-leaning as to be one-sided,

Now read the list again. Count up how many donors have "Union" or "Brotherhood" in their names. Those are the groups that are "for the little guy", the ersatz "voice of the people. And they're out-spending "big business" by a large measure, and it's all going to one party and one party only.

If anyone is "buying influence", it ain't Big Business...

That is all.

NOTE: Thanks to Roadkill in Gunblogger Conspiracy chat for the link!

Perhaps I'm Too Cynical...

...but when I saw this story, it didn't surprise me in the least:

Up to $1 Billion in U.S. Aid Winds Up In Taliban Coffers

As much as $1 billion in U.S. aid has been diverted from programs meant to stabilize Afghanistan and has wound up in the hands of the Taliban and other insurgency groups, war analysts and government auditors say.

In fact, they say, graft has gotten so bad that the U.S. government estimates that only about 10 percent of the aid budget actually reaches the people in Afghanistan who need it.

I wish I were surprised, I really do. But we're dealing with one incredibly inefficient and bloated bureaucracy (ours) and a culture steeped in corruption, graft, and thuggery (oops, ours again but this time applicable to the Taliban as well), so the fact that literally billions are being pissed away in bribes and payoffs isn't all that shocking. It's a sad fact that I'd find it more surprising if the story were that everything was functioning smoothly...

You know what really jumped out at me? This:

But those familiar with the country say the scale of the corruption is far wider. “Virtually every transaction in Afghanistan involves some degree of payoff,” says Christine Fair of Georgetown University’s Center for Peace and Security Studies. “Everyone is getting a piece of the money. If you want to get a clinic built, you have to make sure everyone in the village is paid off.”

Replace "Afghanistan" with "Chicago" or "New Orleans" and it's still true...

That is all.

Story sent by PISSED, who is holding onto the title of "sends me the most blood pressure spiking stuff" by a good margin...

Tax Day Tea Parties

Here's a good round-up of the various protests going on today:

Tax Day Tea Party

For MA residents, there are protests scheduled at the following locations:

City: Boston
When: April 15, 10:00am - 8:00pm (main events 11am -1pm and 5pm - 7pm)
Where: Statehouse
Contact:EMAIL
Other Info: www.teapartyboston2009.wordpress.com
Facebook Group: CLICK HERE

---

City: Cape Cod
When: April 15, 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Where: Hyannis Airport Rotary
Contact:EMAIL
Other Info:pasta dinner and speeches following the protest

---

City: Lowell
When: April 15, 4:00pm - 8:00pm
Where: JFK Plaza/Lowell City Hall
Contact:EMAIL
Facebook Group: CLICK HERE

---

City: Pittsfield
When: April 15, 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Where: Park Square
Contact:EMAIL

---

City: Springfield
When: April 15, 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Where: Post Office, corner of Main and Liberty Streets
Contact:EMAIL

---

City: Worcester
When: April 15, 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Where: Lincoln Square (in front of the Auditorium)
Contact: EMAIL
Facebook Group: CLICK HERE

---

Similar information is available for all other states where Tax Day Tea Party protests are scheduled.

That is all.

Interesting...

House votes down massive bailout measure

WASHINGTON - The House on Monday defeated a $700 billion emergency rescue package, ignoring urgent pleas from President Bush and bipartisan congressional leaders to quickly bail out the staggering financial industry.

Stocks plummeted on Wall Street even before the 228-205 vote to reject the bill was announced on the House floor.

Waiting on "Crushing Defeat For Bush/McCain" headlines in 3... 2...

Never mind that the Democrats, who have controlled the House for nearly two years, have been gallivanting around just flush with excitement over this bailout, calling press conferences and looking insufferably smug (Barney Frank, smug alert on line 1...).

That is all...