THE OTHER KIND OF BAIL OUTS

CRIME AS AN ECONOMIC INDICATOR










The Economics of the deepening Depression:
As Pockets Empty Jails Fill.


(Feb.16, Boston, Mass) Statistics always lag behind reality; they do not provide ‘real time’ data but rather dated information. However, reports from law enforcement officials nation wide reflect how the economic hardships battering the country are playing out on the ground, in the neighborhoods, on the streets, in towns large and small. From coast to coast arrests are rising, jails are filling and, the trend illustrates a disturbing fact of hard economic times.

In the last few months there have been some morbidly sensational crime stories that have garnered national attention not just for their brutality but also due to the underlying causations. In several cases, an unemployed man, a ‘breadwinner’, has murdered his wife and children before committing suicide. Notes found at the crime scenes have shown these murder-suicide episodes were prompted by a recent job loss and an “inability” for the murder to provide for his family. Of course, these tragic occurrences are extreme manifestations that arguably are deeper than financial stresses.

Police departments, in this day and age of technology are better equipped to track crime using methods not available just 15 years ago. Theirs is ‘live time’ tracking and, from Boston to Chicago, Des Moines to Denver, and beyond, what they are seeing does not portend well for the immediate future. “Crime is soaring. What we used to sometimes mistakenly call ‘petty crime’ such as mugging, street robbery, purse snatching and low priced shop lifting are now taking more and more of our time and resources. Our cops are busier, our jails are over crowded and sadly, many of those we are arresting committed their crimes to feed their families. It is a situation we are unfamiliar with”, commented Captain Daniel O’ Reilly of the Hartford (CT) Police Department. His sentiments are being expressed in virtually every jurisdiction in the country.

Crime has a long relationship with economic hardship and has historically been cited as one of the prime social ills that create the ‘ghetto’ environment. The fact that crime is rising in suburban and rural locations as it has never before is seen by many in law enforcement and academia as a natural development given escalating unemployment, lay offs and the lack of available jobs. “Right now we are registering first time applicants at a record number. We are having a hard time handling the work load. People are hurting and hurting badly. Most folks don’t want to be here trying to collect, they want jobs but, there just aren’t any”, said Mary Jean Milford, Director of Unemployment Services in Oklahoma City.

Harold Gizmo was being arraigned in the Hennepin County Courthouse outside Detroit. He was accused of stealing a pack of Ball Park Franks, two cans of Spam and a box of Fruit Loops from a local market. Gizmo had been recently laid off from a local window frame factory where he worked for the past 18 years. “All I was trying to do was feed my children. Ya know, they are the one’s suffering. They don’t understand what is going on and, the frustration of it for me...well. It just breaks my heart. Now, I’ll be in jail because my wife can’t bail me out. There is just no money.”

Unless the enormous federal ‘stimulus package’ begins to have a positive impact on the day to day economy of working Americans struggling like never before relatively soon, jails across the country will be packed with folks like Gizmo and their families will be left to struggle alone. If the members of the Senate and the House had any interest in helping their constituents they would not hesitate to act responsibly and bipartisanly towards rejuvinating our sagging economy. Unfortunately the Congress is too busy with their political breath holding, acrimony and self serving posturing. As John Krjumski, an unemployed sludge tank operator in Baytown Texas noted, “It would be a different story in they (Congress) and their kids were going to bed hungry every night. They all ought to rot in hell”.

Amen, Mr. Krjumski.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/226/story/62503.html

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/02/24/neighborhood.watch.economy/

http://www.freep.com/article/20090222/NEWS07/902220449/1009/Crime+may+rise+as+recession+deepens

http://www.ajc.com/cherokee/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2009/02/23/atlantans_against_crime.html

Copyright TBC 2009 © All Rights Reserved
Copyright Bronxwest Consulting 2009 © All Rights Reserved

JULIO: THE NEW “JOE THE PLUMBER”

God Help Us









Julio Osegueda

(Feb. 10, Ft. Myers, FL) The Republicans have “Joe the Plumber” and now, it appears, the Democrats finally have a worthy counterpart; Julio “The Student” Osegueda. The hyperactive 19 year old college student and McDonalds employee caught the eye of President Obama during a campaign style town hall meeting here earlier today. After the President delivered his opening remarks about the economic turmoil and his proposed “bailout “ plan, he took questions from the audience. The last audience member to ask the President a question was Julio. After jumping wildly up and down on his chair, frantically waving his spaghetti-thin arms above his head and screaming at the President, Julio was called upon to ask his question. Initially, it appeared as if he was preparing to ask a trick question or deliver a sarcastic remark but, Julio did neither. He asked a legitimate question about health care benefits for employees which the President graciously answered.

Some commentators such as the hyper moronic Chris Matthews of MSNBC implied that there was something wrong with Julio. Matthews, with spittle and foam flying from his flapping lips, seemed to interpret Julio’s animated, enthusiastic reaction upon being called on by the President as symptoms of some mental or emotional abnormality. This was an odd point of view coming from the buffoonish blowhard Matthews whose own stability, emotional control and psychological dysfunctions are called into question every night he appears on the third rate cable network.

Criticism, first impressions and appearances aside, Julio is suddenly poised to assume the standard bearer role for the Democratic Party just as the bald, illiterate, unemployed, tax evading, drunken clown Joe Wurzelbacher has for the Republicans. Joe the Plumber, as he has come to be known, gained prominence at the tail end of the Presidential campaign in 2008 once GOP candidate John McCain made the ugly imbecile a household name. Inexplicably, as recently as last week, Joe the Plumber remained deeply involved in the Republican Party addressing a gathering of GOP Congressional staffers.

“Joe the Plumber stands for everything that is good in this country and for everything the Republican Party represents. We are proud to have him as our powerful mascot and a symbol of what we can all become in this country”, commented the ferret faced Senate Minority Leader, Mitch “Little Bitch” McConnell of Kentucky. The chinless, mindless, spineless Little Bitch continued, “Julio is no Joe. I know Joe, I work with Joe, Joe has slept with my wife and, trust me , Julio is no Joe.”

Democratic Party officials showered praise on Julio while expressing deep gratitude for standing up and going berserk today. Chief Adviser to President Obama, Dave Axelrod said, “ Had Julio not gotten the attention of the President, none of us would have the pleasure of knowing him now and America would have been deprived of a great spokesman, a fantastic role model and one super hyped up guy. We think there is definitely a place for him in the Administration if not the White House.”

Julio is a student at Edison State College and has told the press that he plans to pursue a career in broadcasting or as DJ. His stellar communication skills were in full display today and he has gained national prominence in the short time since his rivetting appearance on TV stations around the world. “He will be bigger than Joe the Plumber. Bigger than Rod Blagojevich, Sarah Palin and Tom Daschle”, commented White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel. “The President is looking forward to having Julio join his staff in a position soon to be determined. There is a lot you can do with a guy like this. He will be an effective communicator and may help Americans understand our stimulus package. President Obama
is eager to get Julio involved as soon as possible”, continued Emmanuel.

Julio could not be reached for comment. It was reported that the he is currently in the custody of the Secret Service pending the results of a background check.

At the McDonalds’ where Julio has been employed for the last four years, there were mixed emotions among his fellow employees. “Julio is a great dude man...one of the smartest dudes I know, man”, said Kermit Dilwater, as he dropped frozen fish fillets into the deep fryer. The manager, Julio’s boss, Ned E. Furthz angrily told reporters, “I don’t care if he was elected Pope. He didn’t call in, we don’t know where he is and now I am really short handed. I was getting tired of him drinking all the Mountain Dew and acting like an asshole anyways. Fuck him. I hope Obama gives him a job because his ass is fired from here.”



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/10/julio-osegueda-florida-co_n_165673.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29128020/

http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/503104.html

http://theminorityreportblog.com/blog_entry/steve_foley/2009/02/10/cnn_interviews_obama_questioner_julio_osegueda

Copyright TBC 2009 © All Rights Reserved

CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP?

THE REAL PROBLEM IN WASHINGTON











Boehner, Cantor and Little Bitch: GOP ass wipes










Hoyer, Pelosi, Barney Fag and Hapless Reid: Majority vultures


(Feb. 8, Capitol Hill, DC) They are politician’s politicians; the top level of rodent floating on the surface of the huge cesspool of flotsam, jetsam and vermin that is the 111th United States Congress. They are not elected in a nationwide election yet their decisions have national implications. Some come from small, obscure Congressional districts and sparsely populated States. They are the ‘leadership’ of the House of Representatives and the Senate - the true holders of power in Washington DC.

By wheeling, dealing and all manner of nefarious, underhanded doings within their Party’s caucus, these particular eels manage to be ‘elected’ to these positions of prominence and power by their ‘peers.’ If that isn’t a sham and swindle of epic proportions, nothing else in our government is.

Our tripartite Federal government construct seems to vest most of the power in the Legislative Branch - Congress. The Executive and Judiciary Branches function as counterweights, in a sense, providing some degree of “checks and balances” to the whims and wishes of the Congress. While most Americans are under the impression that the President, our highest elected official chosen by the people, all the people, is possessed of the greatest authority in the land, this is most certainly not the case. The historical context of how our Federal government came to be a tri-branched republic makes for interesting reading. However, at issue today is not why our system is as it is but rather the current Congress and, in particular, the caliber of those individuals who attain the power positions in both Chambers.

This handful of people, accountable only to their small constituencies, literally control our Federal government absolutely. Yes, Presidential powers allow for some mechanisms by which the Executive can circumvent or over rule the Legislative but, for all intents and purposes, to maintain any semblance of order, the President must work within the confines of the Constitutionally supported, three, coequal branch architecture. Arguably and, as evidenced daily, there seems to be little “coequal” about it in practical terms.

Government framework aside, the Congressional ‘leadership’ is the nexus of power, able to set the agenda and allocate funds. Unfortunately the current leaders of both Party’s are among the worst of the worst the halls of Congress have ever seen (and that is saying a lot).

The Republican Leaders are a collection of heartless, mindless, unethical, corrupt, greedy, snakes completely devoid of any notion of upholding the Constitution, conducting the people’s business or having any positive impact on the way our government is administrated. Just looking at them is sickening; listening to their nonsensical rants is horrifying in light of the significance of the problems plaguing the Nation today. Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, the ferret faced, oily stain in the boxer shorts of the Senate is not merely an angry, ugly, evil, ignorant man: he is a dangerous man due to his position as Minority leader. His fellow Senators like John Kyl, John Cornyn, John McCain, Tom Coburn, Kit Bond, David Vitter and ALL the others, represent the polar opposite of what the Senate once stood for, what the Senate was meant to be.

The House GOP with scum bags like John Boehner, Eric Cantor and their fellow cowardly, criminally incompetent bastards are even more mindlessly partisan. These are the people to blame, America. These are the people holding the true power, the real strings to which all must dance. Not elected by all, accountable to none, free to obstruct and distract with impunity, these assholes are the root of all the government’s ailments today. They are unable to legislate or oversee effectively. They serve no one other than themselves and their supporters, as they malignantly seek only financial gain enhanced influence and power


For the Democrats, Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid and the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi are contrasts in style yet equally unqualified for the roles they currently play. Reid is a hapless old idiot whose rise to Majority Leader had more to do with his spinelessness than his ambition. His caucus needed a public face and a fall guy and Harry fit the bill to a tee. On the House side, Speaker Pelosi got her gavel employing ruthless, back room manipulative tactics and presides over her minions as an evil, vindictive, self absorbed, egotist. Her climb to the top was over the broken, bleeding heads and careers of many others. While the fossil Reid could use a face lift, Pelosi has had more plastic surgery (obviously unsuccessful) than Joan Rivers.

Americans cannot contact these people. Their web sites and contacts are designed only for comments from their constituents yet, they run the Country. Why is this? Why are they not accountable and accessible to the entire populace? The “Leaders” remoteness is but another sign of their arrogance and the protective nature of their incumbency, influence and hubris.

Not in over 70 years has this Country faced the complex tangle of problems we do today. Economically alone, we find ourselves not only on the verge of an unprecedented recession but perilously teetering on the edge of a broader collapse the likes of which would take decades to recover from.

Our profound problems at home are not hidden from the world; a hostile world where we are currently engaged in wartime activities on two fronts, bogged down simultaneously in George Bush’s Iraq War of Choice, and the terribly mismanaged fight against the actual terrorists who attacked on our soil, and their supporters in Afghanistan. The scale and scope of our domestic challenges are intricately woven into our national security concerns. We are stretched paper thin around the world while we list dangerously at home taking on more water every day.

The people’s anger should be directed at the so called “leaders” in Congress. They are the true enemy, they are the real threat. As they play politics in the cloakrooms of the Capitol, childishly seeking advantage over each other, tritely keeping score in the game where only they know the rules and only they can benefit from the outcome. The rest of us be damned is their motto as clearly demonstrated by their actions and inactions.

The status quo seems to be an intractable reality where no larger truths can penetrate. After the horror, in the wake of the exposed failures after 9 11 01, nothing changed. Apparently that epic event was not sufficient to end the partisanship and motivate Congress to act appropriately for the good Our Nation as a whole. Nope. Now, in the face of catastrophe, the belligerent infighting continues, the scum bags keep evolving into greater scum bags as the process of actually governing remains rusting in silence.

Where does it end?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-westen/change-vs-bipartisanship_b_165144.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/politics/

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/opinion/09krugman.html?_r=1&em

Copyright TBC 2009 © All Rights Reserved

WANT TO ICE FISH? LEARN HOW TO ICE SWIM FIRST

134 OF THE MIDWEST’S BRIGHTEST
STRANDED ON LAKE ERIE ICE FLOE









(Feb. 7, Oak Harbor, OH) A group of 140 obese, barely literate, intoxicated ice fisherman were rescued today after being stranded on an 8 mile long ice floe on Lake Erie. An unseasonably warm day along with steady winds from the south were factors creating the ice floe that broke off from the larger 16 inch deep ice pack that hugs the south shore of Lake Erie. One of the fisherman died of an apparent heart attack after falling into the freezing waters.

The United States Coast Guard, and numerous state, county and local first response agencies participated in the rescue effort. Some of the stranded imbeciles were plucked off the floe by helicopters, others were ferried to safety in various water crafts. The rescue unfolded over the course of several hours earlier today.

This and several adjacent coastal locations are popular with ice fisherman and, due to the thickness of the ice this year, more and more fishermen have been frequenting the area.

The fisherman began arriving on the ice in four wheeled drive vehicles laden with fishing gear, beer, bratwursts and beef jerky in the predawn hours. Several reports indicate that a weak spot in the ice pack developed after several extremely drunk fishermen urinated simultaneously at one point on the ice. “The warm urine created a fault line of a sort in the ice that allowed the huge ice floe to break free” said Dr. Arnie Blatterspladt, a Professor of Hydroscience and Ice Dynamics at Ohio State University. “We understand that some of the pissers were very fat and drunk. Studies have proven that fat, drunk fishermen can discharge urine at over 290 pounds per square inch (PSI). It is safe to say that these drunks created what essentially became a pissburg”, added Professor Blatterspladt.

Many of those stranded were members of the United Auto Workers Union (UAW) who had recently been laid off from various manufacturing plants were they work producing low quality automobiles in Ohio and Michigan. A large Winnebego owned and operated by the AFL-CIO was also out on the ice. The dying labor union was conducting a membership recruitment drive and was giving away free pretzels, perogies, Dale Earnhart caps and cheap vodka to the fishermen.

Aside from the estimated 134 overweight men out on the ice, there were tons of equipment they had brought along with them as well. This particular brand of asshole doesn’t travel lightly; they use over sized, expensive four wheel drive vehicles towing heavy, poorly loaded trailers carrying snowmobiles, kegs of beer, barbecue grills, satellite TV’s, Port-A-Potties, cigarettes and other assorted junk food and crap the fishermen refuse to travel without. Some erect small “fishing houses” which can be heated. A few of the more elaborate portable structures contain microwaves, Fry-Daddys, Crock Pots, spittoons and Lazy Boys.

Ralph Krapinski, a welder at manure tank plant in Sandusky, told reporters after he was lead off the ice, “I been fishin’ this spot since my grand daddy was a boy. I knows this ice and these fish. I ain’t never had a problem out on the ice except the time my ass got froze to a bucket we was usin’ as a crapper. Goddamned that hurt, but, at least we didn’t need the Coast Guard.”

Immediately after the rescue was complete a strong backlash was expressed by members of local professional and volunteer rescue departments. “As if our jobs aren’t hard enough, we have to go chasing after a bunch of brain dead assholes who want to go playing out on the ice. They should all be put in jail...in the same cell...for a week”, commented a very angry Captain Wilfred Hoyt Perblrkjya, Chief of the Maggott Point Consolidated Rescue Squad. “These goof balls should have known better. It’s that simple. Thank god none of our guys or any rescuers were hurt. Fucking weekend warriors”, added Byron Jarnxzs, a volunteer with the Oak Harbor Fire Department.

Links:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/07/Ohio.stuck.on.ice/index.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/07/hundreds-trapped-on-ice-i_n_164908.html

http://www.freep.com/article/20090207/NEWS07/90207039/1009/1+dead+after+Lake+Erie+ice+floe+rescue

Copyright TBC 2009 © All Rights Reserved

JUSTICE IS IN THE EYE OF THE BE-HOLDER

During his senate confirmation hearings,
Holder was asked to imitate a chicken.





Eighth in a series examining the Obama Cabinet


(Feb. 3, Washington, DC) Eric Holder was sworn in today as the 82nd Attorney General of the United States. Holder received Senate confirmation by a comfortable margin even though he was expected to have a tough grilling during the confirmation hearings. Mr. Holder was involved in several high profile controversies while working in the DOJ during the Bill Clinton Administration such as the FBI raid that seized Elian Gonzalez and the Presidential pardons of members of the Puerto Rican radical group, FALN, and Mark Rich, a big time Clinton donor. Holder presented himself well during the hearings explaining his position on the legality of torture and many other Constitutional issues from the Bush Administration. He may have to decide to charge Bush and others with war crimes in the future.

On the same day that saw two other Obama Cabinet appointees have to remove themselves for consideration due to personal tax problems, (Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer, the President's picks for Health and Human Services Secretary and Chief Performance Officer, respectively) the Holder swearing in was the bright moment in Obama’s day. “Eric has my full faith and confidence and he will restore impartiality and respect to the Department of Justice which was severely tarnished during the Cheney - Bush Administration. He is also capable of imitating many barnyard and domestic animals. He’s great fun at a party”, commented President Obama.

AG Holder will be put to the test very early in his tenure as he and his Department are expected to deliver what will be the first of many opinions on matters of national security, domestic surveillance, and torture within the next month. Any appearance of partisanship in his opinions will certainly escalate the already partisan environment evidenced in the Capitol thus far into President Obama’s term.

Mr. Holder is the first African American to serve the nation as Attorney general.


Links:

http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/02/holder_to_doj.html

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/03/holder.swearing/

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/DOJ/story?id=6794590&page=1

Copyright TBC 2009 © All Rights Reserved