A professor from Kuwait speaks

Economy Fixed!

This was an article from the St. Petersburg Times Newspaper on Sunday. The Business Section asked readers for ideas on "How Would You Fix the Economy?" I thought this was the BEST idea. I think this guy nailed it!

Dear Mr.President,

Patriotic retirement:
There's 40 million people over 50 in the work force; pay them $1 million apiece severance with stipulations:

1) They leave their jobs. Forty million job openings - Unemployment fixed.

2) They buy NEW American cars. Forty million cars ordered - Auto Industry fixed.

3) They either buy a house or pay off their mortgage - Housing Crisis fixed.

Barney is helping again

Is the professor wrong?

An economics professor said he had never failed a single student, but had once failed an entire class.

The class (students) insisted that socialism worked since no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism."

"All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so no one will fail and no one will receive an A."

After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The students who had studied hard were upset while the students who had studied very little were happy..

But, as the second test rolled around, the students who had studied little studied even less and the ones who had studied hard decided that since they couldn't make an A, they also studied less. The second Test average was a D.

No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average grade was an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame, name calling, all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for anyone else.

To their great surprise all failed. The professor told them that socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed the greater their reward (capitalism) but when a government takes all the reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.

Oh oh

Huh?

If they gave out Olympic medals for fiscal irresponsibility, President Bush would take the gold, silver and bronze.

-- North Dakota Sen. Kent Conrad, July 2008, commenting on a projected 2009 deficit of $482 billion.

I would describe it as a good beginning.

-- Sen. Conrad, February 2009, commenting on President Barack Obama's 2010 budget.Projected deficit: $1.75 trillion.

Only a government would do this.

TAL is a really interesting radio show/podcast. This episode includes a story about the NY Board of Education. I file it in the "this weeks sign that the apocolypse is upon us" file.

This American Life 350.

Rubber Room Movie.

Can you imagine a non-governmental entity doing this?

Not a joke

Let me see if I have this right. I'm supposed to depend on these guys? Aren't they the same bastards that told me that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were AAA rated?

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Companies ranging from Eastman Kodak (EK.N) to Unisys (UIS.N) are at risk of defaulting on their debt in the eyes of credit ratings agency Moody's Investors Service, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Moody's is expected on Tuesday to publish a list detailing 283 such companies, called "The Bottom Rung," which it will update monthly, according to a story published on the newspaper's website on Monday.

About 45 percent of companies on the list will default on debt in the next year, Moody's says, which could include anything from filing for bankruptcy to missing debt payments.

Companies in the U.S. car industry, retail chains, media and casino gambling dominate the list, and energy firms, airlines and restaurant chains appear often, the newspaper said.

The story quoted a Kodak spokesman as saying that speculation of this kind was "irresponsible" and added that the company "is financially solid."

A Unisys spokesman was not immediately available.

(Reporting by Franklin Paul; Editing by Jan Dahinten)

An oldie but a goodie

YOU MIGHT BE A TALIBAN IF..............

1. You refine heroin for a living, but you have a moral objection to beer.

2. You own a $3,000 machine gun and $5,000 rocket launcher, but you can't afford shoes.

3. You have more wives than teeth.

4. You wipe your butt with your bare left hand, but consider bacon "unclean”.

5. You think vests come in two styles: bullet-proof and suicide.

6. You can't think of anyone you haven't declared Jihad against.

7. You consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing.

8. You were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses other than setting off roadside bombs.

9. You have nothing against women and think every man should own at least two.

10. You've always had a crush on your neighbor's goat.