The “Goldman Sachs” Administration: 1993 – ?

On holidays in Melbourne, having an awesome time showing @fddlgrl all of my favourite haunts. Just have one quick thought to share with you.

We need to stop referring to the “Clinton” administration, the “Bush” administration and the “Obama” administration. We need to start referring to the last 16 years collectively as the “Goldman Sachs” administration.

I was prompted to think of this while reading this post on Crooks and Liars about the TARP bailout. The suggestion is that the bailout isn’t Obama’s fault, because Bush was still in power when it happened. They seem to be forgetting that the US Senate said NO to the original bailout vote, and it wasn’t until Obama took time out of his election campaign to “work Capitol Hill” that the bailout finally passed. I remember him getting the credit for it at the time. So he doesn’t get a pass on that shit.

The point, though, is that the US Treasury, under Clinton, Bush and Obama, has continued to be run by ex-Goldman Sachs executives. So let’s not fool ourselves about who is in power. Goldman were the single largest private investor in Obama’s election campaign. And now they are they have managed to wipe out their competition. As they say here, “Like on the TV program SURVIVOR – the last survivor standing is Goldman Sachs – who receives the grand prize. But in this case it is not just the fame and one million dollar prize. It is infamy with trillions of dollars in rewards.”

The banksters seem to be running things, at least in the USA. A friend of mine who works in finance told me recently how the big four banks in Australia have emerged from the GFC even more arrogant than ever. They managed to buy out most of their competition and now they have an even stronger lock on the marketplace, deciding who gets finance and at what usurious rates. Which is just another reason for all of your to join me on the “Million Bank March” campaign. It’s the only way I can see that we can start to reign them in.

CRU Hack Has Nothing Of Interest

Oh come ON. This CRU hack story is the biggest beat-up I’ve heard in a long time. Of the 4000 documents and emails they hackers got their hands on, the best dirt people can find is a request to delete some non-specified emails and some discussion about how to present the data in the best way to make it easy for non-scientists to understand the trend? That’s a pretty lame smoking gun, especially when the other side have been caught red-handed literally making shit up.

From the excerpts I’ve read, it just sounds like a bunch of scientists trying to win an infowar against a much more powerful and fully-financed opposition. We might wish they could hold to a higher standard of ethics and transparency, but these folks are in the bunker. Their credibility and intelligence is being challenged on a daily basis. They are fighting for the survival of their species. It’s only natural for them to be a little cautious about what how the data gets presented and to fight against the people who are trying to manipulate the data for nefarious purposes.

But there’s *nothing* I’ve seen that even suggests these scientists fudged data or even manipulated the data to prove a dodgy theory. If you’ve seen something like that in the evidence, point me to it.

This whole beat-up reminds me of when Michael Moore’s critics try to attack his films on the basis that he edits the footage with an agenda. No kidding.

(source of the melting ice photo is UNSW)

More than just quotes from The Wire…

… these are an entire philosophy.

For my money, The Wire was the most intelligent television show ever made. I wasn’t just the depth of the analysis of what’s wrong with America, it was also the brilliant dialogue (as the below video demonstrates) and amazing cast of many young, black actors portraying the kids on the corners. If you haven’t seen it, make it a priority. Warning: it’s probably unlike any show you’ve ever seen in that it doesn’t really succumb to typical 40 minute story arcs. I watched the first episode and went “meh”. It was only through the recommendations of people like Ben Barren that I persisted through the first season. By the end of season one, my mind was blown.

Seriously, Brits, Your Queen Looks Ridiculous

If you don’t find this whole thing totally ridiculous and abhorrent, then I suggest you need to wake the hell up. It’s 2009 and you people still allow this kind of nonsense? Listen – the whole idea that some people are born “royal” and superior to everyone else should have died about centuries ago. I know, I know – most people still believe in the sky daddy, too. But come on, UK. We really can’t take you seriously while you still pander to some old bint dressing up in a crown and sitting on a golden throne. It’s not only foolish, it’s abhorrent.

No Illusions #02 – Ideas While You Sleep

Yvonne Adele (aka Ms Megabyte) is a Melbourne-based entrepreneur and founder of Ideas While You Sleep, an overnight brainstorming service for business utilising hundreds of clever global brains. It’s a brilliant idea for helping small and large businesses around the globe leverage the power of crowd-sourcing. It’s so terrific I’m embarrassed I didn’t think of it first.