Posts from — October 2013

One of the best descriptions of the group of Republicans that are behind the current mess was given over 150 years ago in the Cooper Union Speech of future Republican President Abraham Lincoln referring to the Slave States:

Your purpose, then, plainly stated, is that you will destroy the Government, unless you be allowed to construe and enforce the Constitution as you please, on all points in dispute between you and us. You will rule or ruin in all events.

Knowing this reality, after the end of the Civil War the framers of the Fourteenth Amendment inserted Section 4:

The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

The framers knew that the Southern states would regain political power, and wanted to prevent them from reneging on the debt of the United States.

After the ‘Southern strategy’ the politicians from those states are now in the ‘Party of Lincoln’, and are talking about doing that very thing.

The Treasury has the legal authority to mint a trillion dollar platinum coin, depositing it with the Federal Reserve keeps the government well within the current debt limit and eliminates that leverage. It is legal. It is Constitutional. It is logical. Just do it and stop playing games with the whackoes in the House.

Note that this use is pay for current expenditures that have already been approved by Congress, it is not for any unapproved expenditures, so there is no conflict with the power of the Legislative branch. Congress passed the law that makes it possible.

Normally, a move like this would be inflationary, but this economy isn’t even warm, much less over-heated.

Position: 29.7N 42.0W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: Northeast [050°] near 7 mph [11 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 35 mph [ 55 kph].
Wind Gusts: 45 mph [ 70 kph].
Minimum central pressure: 1010 mb ↑.

Currently about 1030 miles [1660 km] West-Southwest of the Azores.

It looks like it has found a path to follow, but has lost energy.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Men never do evil so completely or cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction. – Blaise Pascal¹

Congresscritter Devin Nunes (R-CA 22) called his follow House Republicans who shut down the government over Obamacare: “Lemmings with suicide vests”. Tonight on All In with Chris Hayes there was a segment called GOP acting like ‘lemmings with suicide vests’ with two Republicans who were insiders in government for many years that is quite informative.

Via Steve Bates, Paul Krugman wonders:

Coming back to the class warfare issue: my working theory is that wealthy individuals bought themselves a radical right party, believing — correctly — that it would cut their taxes and remove regulations, but failed to realize that eventually the craziness would take on a life of its own, and that the monster they created would turn on its creators as well as the little people.

And nobody knows how it ends.

I see two possible solutions. In the first the townspeople trap the creature and its creator in the castle and burn it down. The second solution goes back a 150 years when it was rooted out with blood and gunpowder.

This isn’t going to end quickly, we are too close to the debt ceiling, so they are just going to stonewall until they gain that leverage to the shutdown. This is a crusade for the ‘lemmings’ against those they perceive are agents of evil, so there will be no compromise.

1. Via Kryten in comments.

Position: 28.1N 43.7W [10PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: West [270°] near 1 mph [ 2 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 40 mph [ 65 kph].
Wind Gusts: 50 mph [ 80 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 45 miles [ 75 km].
Minimum central pressure: 1008 mb ↑.

Currently about 1290 miles [2075 km] East of Bermuda.

It is just spinning in place.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]