Will the fake Gadfly please stand up?
Two of these haunting faces belong to Marty Aussenberg, the Memphis Flyer “Gadfly.” The third is just a mockery of a mockery.
Archive for October, 2007
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007THE COMING RECESSION?
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007Is the U.S. headed for an economic slowdown? The Financial Times seems to be expecting one. But Fred Thompson isn’t worried, and AEI’s Kevin Hassett argues the housing bust is just a market correction that isn’t as likely to “spread into the general economy” as the headlines suggest:
The accompanying chart relates real investment in housing by U.S. households to real GDP from 1952 until this year. The chart reveals that housing investment has been volatile throughout the past half-century. By the standards of past booms and busts, the current episode looks tame. By this measure, the boom was not nearly as high as past indiscretions, and the bust has already reversed it.
Here’s the chart:
Since Mr. Hassett hasn’t responded to my email, let me repeat my question here:
Is declining residential investment a fairly reliable predictor of economic recession?
The only exception to that trend seems to be the period of 1966-1967, where there was a sharp decline in housing investment but no recession until the same level was hit a second time in the period of 1970-1971.
If this reading of the data is correct, it would seem to indicate that we are currently headed to a recession. Do I have it wrong?
I find further evidence for this prediction in the October 8 issue of National Review, on the topic of the housing slump and the Fed’s recent action easing monetary policy:
“[P]romoting long-term growth is not something the Fed can do, and therefore not something it should try to do. What it can do is fight inflation. As the editors of the Wall Street Journal have observed, the inflation picture does not justify looser money. Confirming their predictions, the dollar started to fall on the Fed move. If inflation gets out of control, the Fed will have to re-tighten — and at that point we might end up with the recession it is trying to avoid.”
It might be that the housing bust on its own wouldn’t have led to an economic downturn but that the Fed’s resulting action could. It would be pretty incredible if the Fed were responsible for both driving down the dollar and tipping us into a recession simultaneously. Especially if the whole thing would have resolved itself without any intervention.
The weak dollar is already here. Will a recession follow? We shall see.
MEANWHILE: 46% of Americans incorrectly think we’re already in a recession, even as the economy continues to churn along at a brisk 3.9% growth rate.
AND: Larry Kudlow says, “Message to all you worrywarts out there: The U.S. economy remains strong. There is no recession ahead.”
TAKE THE WHARTON CHALLENGE
Saturday, October 27th, 2007In order to solve a $10 million funding gap, Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton has now endorsed and proposed John Willingham’s idea to tax county workers for the “privilege” of providing us with labor:
Wharton said it would capture those “individuals who come in here who are protected by our police officers, our sheriff’s deputies, who pollute our air and who leave … and then look down their noses at us and say how bad it is in Memphis.”
I wonder what it is these individuals are coming to Shelby County for, other than just to pollute our air and bask in the safety (!) of the Memphis area.
Coming here just to spew exhaust and dial 9-1-1 repeatedly, and then having the audacity to complain about how bad it is, well that’s just insane, and they need to be taxed.
I mean, if they were coming here to provide us with goods and services, that would be another thing altogether.
Oh wait, that is why they come; dang. Ok, forget about that. It’s just that we need the cash:
“And for those who say, ‘Well, you need to be more efficient,’” Wharton said, “I welcome them to come and tell me what they’d like to cut.”
Yeah, Mr. Smarty-pants, coming in here looking down your noses at us, polluting our city and straining our police force. You find a way to balance the budget if you’re such a hot-shot.
I mean, it’s not like we just discovered $3.6 million in waste at the city school system’s Central Nutrition Center, which amounts to more than a third of the budget gap. That kind of outrageous government waste, fraud and corruption simply doesn’t happen in Memphis and Shelby County.
Oh wait, yes it does. Over and over and over again. Well, crap.
One report from county trustee Bob Patterson notes that 120 local companies have tax freezes under PILOT (payment-in-lieu-of-taxes) programs and that some $44 million worth of county property taxes and 372 parcels of land are involved in the programs.
EXTRA. EXTRA. READ ALL ABOUT IT.
Thursday, October 25th, 2007
Can you find your favorite conservative blogger in the above photograph?
Actually, that’s just a photoshopped version of the pic that was published in the Commercial Appeal last week.
If I had really appeared in the original photograph, I would have been sitting in that first cubicle in the right corner.
That’s right, dear friends, I was a movie extra last weekend. Rod Lurie’s Nothing But the Truth is being filmed in Memphis, and I was one of several picked to be a “newspaper reporter” for a few scenes that were filmed at the CA building last weekend.
I had a great time observing the film crew as they set up the shots, watching the movie stars do their thing (I got close to Alan Alda, Kate Beckinsale and Angela Basset), chatting with the other extras, and even doing a little bit of acting myself.
But the best part of all is the thought of crashing a film based on Plamegate and imagining the facial expression certain people will have when they find out.
Also, I’ve decided to donate my earnings to the Lewis Libby Legal Defense Trust. 
See also:
WaPo: Hollywood Plugs Its Tale of a Leak
TheoGeo: various posts tagged “Nothing But The Truth”
M3mphis: Um, Ms. Beckinsale, you don’t have an extra jacket in your wardrobe, do you?
SOMETHING FOR YOU TO LOOK AT
Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007
I’m taking one of my legendary blogging breaks, which usually means I’ve been too busy to write, and certainly not that I’m out of material. These announcements are typically followed by increased blogging activity, but not always. See you soon, I hope.
WANNABE MARTYR, STATESIDE
Monday, October 15th, 2007Hi, my name is Samir Khan. I’m 21, and I cheer on the jihad from my parents’ basement in North Carolina. Watch my cool video. (And, no, I haven’t signed the letter.)
See also: this post.
ON PERFECTION
Sunday, October 14th, 2007All the usual suspects are up in arms again, taking things out of context, desperate to call out anything that might possibly offend someone. Funny how they’re even ignoring the “as they say” qualifier. Here are some relevant Bible verses:
It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. – 2 Sam 22:33, Psalm 18:32
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. – Matthew 5:48
We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is for your perfection. – 2 Corinthians 13:9
We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. – Colossians 1:28
In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. – Hebrews 2:10
If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come—one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? – Hebrews 7:11
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. – Hebrews 10:1
Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. – Hebrews 10:13,14
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. – Hebrews 12:2
But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. – Hebrews 12:22-24
MUSLIMS SEND CHRISTIANS “A COMMON WORD”
Thursday, October 11th, 2007More than 100 leading Muslim scholars have signed a letter inviting Christian leaders “to come together with us on the common essentials of our two religions.”
Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world. The future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians.
The basis for this peace and understanding already exists. It is part of the very foundational principles of both faiths: love of the One God, and love of the neighbour. These principles are found over and over again in the sacred texts of Islam and Christianity. The Unity of God, the necessity of love for Him, and the necessity of love of the neighbour is thus the common ground between Islam and Christianity.
You can continue reading the letter here, or download the PDF.
It looks like a good start to me. What’s your take?
WHO’S WATCHING YOU?
Wednesday, October 10th, 2007
It truly frustrates liberals when we take terrorism seriously. That’s why John Edwards considers the war on terrorism a “bumper sticker” and local blogger autoegocrat thinks of terrorists as cavemen or insects and prefers that we pay them no attention.
But if there’s one thing they consider even worse than that, it’s doing anything to actually thwart terrorism.
It’s no surprise, then, that the local liberal bloggers are completely losing it over what they consider Democratic treason (which is essentially the opposite of real treason) on FISA reform.
Just a few months ago, Democrats in Congress agreed to reform the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act on a temporary basis, allowing the NSA to intercept terrorist communications routed through the United States.
The Protect America Act of 2007 passed with the support of 41 Democrats in the House and 16 in the Senate. The entire Tennessee delegation voted in favor of the bill, with the exception of Memphis Democrat Steve Cohen.
This reform became necessary after the FISA court ruled that our intelligence services could not monitor foreign communication if it has passed through U.S. networks, which is now common due to advances in technology:
Foreign-to-foreign communications now travel in diffuse packets of digital data through sophisticated networks, which route them not via the shortest route but via the least-congested terminals. Because American networks are the system’s best, a Peshawar-to-Kabul phone call or e-mail may pass through the United States.
Now some Democrats have sponsored a bill called the Restore Act of 2007, which offers some necessary concessions but is nevertheless opposed by the White House and GOP leaders in both chambers.
The liberal bloggers want no part of it. Peskyfly was the first to criticize the Democrats, exclaiming “fuck ‘em” if the party intended to cave in to the administration. Earlier this week, “Bob” of 55-40 chimed in to admit his embarrassment being associated with party leaders who are “soft on GOP terrorists,” and Jeff formulated a conspiracy theory, saying the move only makes sense if Democrats are trying to protect themselves:
Ever since they first got wind of the illegal NSA wiretapping, their main concern has always been what have they got on me? Thus – their silence. Thus – their compromises. Thus – their spinning of the wiretapping story as politically dangerous for Democrats…
We can be pretty sure that the Bush administration isn’t protecting it to keep Al Qaeda from learning the extent of our capabilities. They’re covering up crimes, which most likely means surveillance of political opponents and journalists. Democrats like Steny Hoyer are willing to trade immunity for those crimes in exchange for information that can’t be used to prosecute anyone. Therefore, their only interest in the information must be personal.
I’m glad some Democrats are at least willing to consider allowing us to listen in on terrorist communications. But I feel so bad for the liberal Memphis bloggers that I’d like to dedicate a song to them, embedded below the fold: (more…)
OCTOBER IS THE CRUELLEST MONTH
Saturday, October 6th, 2007And that’s all I have to say about that.