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deposits and despots

In my short time on this Earth, I have to come to accept that ignorance is bliss for many. I have revisited this as of late with the current elections and the economic consternation that threatens the people who inhabit this dear planet. In particular as of late I have been reminded of the prophetic statement of Mayer Amschel Rothschild: “Give me control over a nation’s currency, and I care not who makes its laws.”

This was the man who I think, as well as others we can contribute the theory of economic inductance too. Like a fine mathematician, he figured out that by using currency (or depository loan accounts), he could get folk to give up real wealth (land for example) in exchange for the promise of greater wealth. He even gave governments these promissory notes for real collateral and then make the flow of loot tight so he could take other folks shit (collateral) and could even make governments go to war through the obligation of their contracts. Yes like a physicist even – inductance via the energy of the debtor.

We have only seen the start of this tumultuous period in America. I know I said that all great empires will eventually crumble as did Rome. I don’t know if is the decline of the united States of America, but I speculate if we don’t come out of this period with our heads turned to the front, it will be. In today’s world, the US government has privatized all profits while at the same time socialized all losses. If it were me, I would have been straight free enterprise jones and let bad economic occurrences related to business fail. But not this government, they would rather pick and choose the companies they want to live without any logic or rationale. None of this shit they doing going to do nothing for Profit to earning ratios. And as an investor, if you have short dated paper at the bank, watch your loot – cause if it goes bust folk can on a whim, pick and choose if they will freeze bonds and even worse, all associated interest income.

Yep it’s real in the field and foul. The truth is unlike other places where folks save, 80 to 85% of Americans are broke. Not to mention we aint even felt the impact of the recession yet for I feel that it will be a good 10 years plus before we even have a real good economy again. No this aint no depression, I don’t see no 10 % decline in GDP, but it is a sever repression; protectionism is on the rise and to play it safe, most countries are reducing imports. I will not even mention that the Euro has had its biggest gain against the dollar ever – that’s another story.

But do head my warning. I mean it aint like this aint ever happened before. It has, but this is the first time such has happened to America. In Thailand, following months of speculative attacks against the Thai baht, which was closely pegged to the U.S. dollar, the Bank of Thailand allowed the baht to float in July 1997. This led to a loss of export competitiveness which required the devaluation. At the time it was a constitutional monarchy.

In Argentina, in what has been called the Tequila Banking Crisis, we saw the same thing. It was called such because it was set in place by what occurred in Mexico in December 1994. The problem with the Mexican banking system lead to an accelerated the restructuring of the banking sector in Argentina – namely the privatization of provincial banks, consolidation of private banks, and selective bank liquidations. Banks, (as we see here to day) had limited bank deposits and were unable to provide credit. Not to mention the ratio of broad money to GDP had been declining for decades which resulted in hyperinflation, and the problem being - was a large volume of nonperforming loans that increased the fiscal burden (just like mortgage backed securities here).

Irony of it all, In all them places, Argentina, Thailand, Indonesia and Russia among others, after the banking system collapsed, in three the governments were deposed, over thrown by the people, in the case for Russia, a new and more autocratic (communist) leadership/government was installed. Them folk over there handled theirs, my query is what we gone do? Are we gone be proactive and make certain that liberty and justice is for all – or just the wealth and political class? Are we gonna inform ourselves and pay attention, or attend to whether or not we like Beyoncee’s new song or be in the habit of stunting for folks who don’t eat, live, die or shit for us? That’s all folk here asking jones mane. The writing is on the wall as well as in history books. But yawl don’t here me though.

For any person in power who acts tyrannically, or any ruler with absolute power, or a person who wields power oppressively, to me is a tyrant – a despot and no different from Maximillien Robespierre, the mastermind of the Reign of Terror (1793–1794) during the French Revolution. Strange aint it, how deposits and despots have the same root word.

icemans inheritance

point of order: My folk treated me to sea urchin (raw) and sake all last night - yum.


My first encounter with Anthropology, outside of an old text book my mother had from Tuskegee, was a book written by Michael Bradley called the Iceman’s Inheritance. Written in the 70s, the book provides a terse perspective regarding the Sources of European and Western Man's Racism and Aggression. He suggest that the historical pattern of racist behavior and actions of modern man is the social result of Neanderthal genetic traits of high aggression and emotional instability caused by Ice Age psychosexual maladaptation likely to have been engendered during the second glaciation Diop refers to as Wurm III Glaciation period beginning around 22000 B.C. to 8850 B.C. In summary racism is a result of the genetic psychosexual maladaptation of the Neanderthal – which were only in Europe.

Recently, seeing that we are just a few weeks away from the possibility that Senator Barack Obama, an African American, may be the next president of the United States. This could happen; however, if Bradley’s premise is accurate, it won’t for there may not be enough White voters to vote for him. The reality is that America was founded on racism, especially as directed towards the native inhabitants and the descendants of Africa. I have briefly written about the psychology of racism albeit indirectly via slavery. But I have never had the chance to discuss such from the political possibility of having a person as the president of this United States of America of African lineage.

The irony for me is that the man, who wrote the book I cited prior, has the last name of the effect that will likely occur if Senator Obama is not elected - the Bradley Effect. The Bradley Effect refers occurs when “White voters lie to pollsters about whom they will support because they don't want to appear to be racially biased against Black candidates. It collected its name from former Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley following his 1982 losing bid to win the California governor's race. White voters told pollsters they were voting for Bradley however in the end they did not. In fact weeks before the election, Bradley led his opposition by 14 percentage points.

The Bradley Effect has impacted several races before and it doesn’t necessarily mean that Obama will lose. Virginia Lt. Governor L. Douglas Wilder had a substantial lead over the Republican J. Marshall Coleman, gubernatorial election but only managed to win by four-tenths of one percent. In New York, David Dinkins led Giuliani by 18 percent but only managed to win by less than 2 percent.

I say this because the pictures I have, the one at the top that I ganked from my boy Monroe Anderson and the one below that I ganked from my folk at RBG, say it all. It not only says what many are afraid to announce in public but also how some may see us no matter what our position and actions evince.

Add to this the race baiting tactics of John McCain and his partner in crime Sarah Palin (with her less than inch deep mental capacity) who show they have no class and will do or say anything to get elected, it wont surprise me none if Jones ends up loosing to John McCain. For it may be as Sidney Smith wrote regarding Jeremy Bentham The Book of Fallacies from his unpublished papers “There are a vast number of absurd and mischievous fallacies, which pass readily in the world for sense and virtue, while in truth they tend only to fortify error and encourage crime.” Because if it the race of ones skin that would make one not vote for a person over the substance of their ideas, then such is not only maladaptive and true hatred, but truly the Iceman’s Inheritance. vote

10 weeks of seperation

I wanted to write something serious but I also miss showing my adeptness at satire. But the reality is shit is about to hit the fan. I know that after November 4^th, there will be a ten week period before GWB leaves and the next Jones take office. So I would hope that GWB would care enough about his country to call the new Jones in to talk about our current economic conundrum. I am assuming it will be Barack Obama. And based on this, If I was the President or If I were barrack Obama, I would work in concert to hammer out a plan for this problem. So here goes, with me in the Role of GWB and me as barrack Obama.

GWB - BO, whad up folk, W. How ya living?

BO - Jones mane, just lounging deuce what gives, how is the fam folk?

GWB - We straight Jones. Look a heah, Congrats, but you know I was pulling for my boy on paper, but you the truth, and u make sense, buttarah you know, we got ten weeks left before you take office let's see what we can do to handle this shit.

BO - Str8, I’ll be up that camp today, you at the crib?

GWB - Yea

LATER ON AT THE WHITE HOUSE

BO – This a phatt azz crib, me and lil momma gone be lounging up in this camp

GWB – Yea, its tight aint it?

BO – So what’s up mane?

GWB - So what you been thinking, Cheney gone so we can do this.

BO - Well, I say we need to get manufacturing up and improve the value of the dollar.

GWB - Good, I feel ya, I don’t like giving all that loot to my folk, but K-street, and you know how they do?

BO – yea jones, I also think we need to put at a minimum, a 2% tax on all them derivatives and swaps they pushing, that would get us close to 200 billion back in the first year.

GWB – That’s a good look.

BO: Thanks

GWB – I know we got to do something to increase the value of the dollar, but you aint hear this from me, but we gotta cut out them tax breaks for them oil companies.

BO – yea, we on the same page folk.

GWB – and believe it or not, I got to take care of the regular man. I mean liquor going up and I cant deal with that.

BO – you back on the wagon?

GWB – naw jones, well a little taste every now and then (exchange of dap)

BO – Yea and we need to make them oil companies pay for the land they using too, and reduce as much war spending as we can.

GWB – (shaking his how) don’t know how we gonna be able to do that jones?

BO – we can, and last but not least, we gotta repeal the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000, now hear me out W, I know Phill Gramm your folk, but he a dumb fuck.

GWB – (Shaking his head in agreement)…well lets put it on paper, you alright folk, in the end we all Americans, and its all about us. And our America aint black or white or GOP or Democrat, its green.

BO – Yea man (exchange dap).

GWB – so what’s the deal folk, you gotta go now, if not lets go watch some football.

BO – I’m down mane.

I would hope that GWB would extend his hand out to the next President since shit is real in the field, and I hope he may actually be Barack Obama, even in his ineptness in knowledge related to Economics and foreign policy. This is how would do it, what says you jones? vote

ice ice baby

There was no football on tonight, and I did not look at the debates either for I felt I would one, be disappointed in Obama and two, McCain would confirm that he has a semblance of post traumatic stress disorder. Instead I did a few stochastic models of how much this pork, I mean bail out would cost us. I wanted to post it but couldn’t put the equations on my blog and better yet thought folks would not pay attention so im gonna write about something else.

Im tired of talking about the economy and the banking system on their own, but I got a few more things I would like to shit out of my brain. I have mentioned the Commodity Futures Modernization Act a few week ago in a post and attributed a lot of this current mess to it being slid in a omnibus appropriations act by the Senator Phil Gramm of Texas and signed into law in 2000 (Got damn Bill Clinton).

The Commodity futures modernization act seemed to have been designed to help two types of folk - banks and oil companies. Before it was signed into law, back in the old days, commodities were regulated. This regulation namely occurred under NYMEX, the New York Mercantile Exchange. NYMEX was the only and largest and principal spot for the commodity futures exchange in the World. But once the Commodity Futures Modernization Act was signed, it allowed for private entities such as oil companies and banks to trade futures without regulation. Again thanks to Phil Gramm who added a loop hole to the bill. Specifically a loop hole that allowed for the electronic trade of buying energy (like oil) in unregulated markets outside of the United States and the jurisdiction of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission. They call this the "Enron loophole" which I stated prior "was codified” via the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000.

Im not just Blaming Senator Gramm and Bill Clinton, for then Fed Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan wanted this as well. Gramm did this for one of his large donors, specifically Enron (remember them) and the Act was designed to keep regulators from controlling space-age financial tools called credit "swaps." Just like sub-prime mortgages, swaps are bundled up and sold as securities. The Act also made it impossible for state and federal oversight boards like NYMEX or the Commodities Futures Trading Commission to examine investment banks or hedge funds to make certain they had the assets necessary to cover losses they were supposedly guaranteeing.

With Enron, we saw how the company shifted the trade of electricity online and as well what happened. Likewise, Oil companies and investment banks followed suit. Crude Oil was not introduced into the futures trading market until 1983. This is when we started to see how such speculation impacted the price of oil and ironically, we did not see the prices go up as before until 2000, when theses companies started to manipulate world oil prices and again ironically the same year the CFMA was signed into law.

Unregulated exchanges got us into this mess. The prefect example was when the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), which has its headquarters here in Atlanta, came into existence. A tight knit bevy of Banks and oil companies including the likes of BP, Shell, Total, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs started the ICE. As of today, the ICE is probably the leading online marketplace for “global commodity trading, primarily of electricity, natural gas, crude oil, refined petroleum products, precious metals, and weather and emission credits.”

The real problem occurred when these said banks wanted to get in on the game too and started purchasing oil fields, pipelines and refineries which meant these banks, were now also considered commercial traders and that they could make such trades unregulated. This means that they could produce, distribute control and trade without scrutiny, what they themselves owned, meaning they could control prices as well – talk about a monopoly.

This is one of the reason why I cant understand the logic of folks who say drilling is the answer to our domestic and national security, I mean how stupid are Palin and McCain, who talk about drilling, when we wont see no final product for another ten years ago and when these banks and big oil companies can sell or trade oil anywhere around the globe.

This is why I believe Banks on Wall street don’t need to be bailed out or “rescued” and why Big azz Oil companies shouldn’t be getting am tax breaks when they really need to be taxed up the azz. They supposed to pay us royalties when ever they drill on our (public US lad) and they don’t. In fact many operate lease free. I cant do that as a small business owner, I have to pay for what ever space I uses as my retail outlet. Every time I re-read the CFMA I get sick to my stomach and think of Vanilla ICE, who sang that song Ice Ice Baby. They say he from Texas, I wonder if he was trying to drop us a few hits back in the day of things to come. vote

Rearranging the furniture

Want to start out by saying, told you it wouldn’t work. The bail out that it is. Jobs still being loss, home values are still falling, and stocks too. Check the Hang Seng, the Nikkei, and the UK FTSE if you still more concerned about Jennifer Hudson New Album or Beverly Hill Chihuahua. France's economy, the second largest of the 15 countries sharing the euro, reported they were in an economic recession for the first time in 15 years. Germany's Hypo Real Estate may be the next major world bank to fail. The Munich-based bank is a conglomerate which contains DEPFA Bank, Hypo Pfandbrief Bank International and Hypo Public Finance Bank. Reports from Germany suggest that the bank needs 20 billion euros by the end of next week just to stay solvent. Even emerging markets, where it used to be safe are taking a hit. The two bills we just past are merely topical and shows how short sited our political leadership is in general. They seem to only see wall street, and not the world, let alone the street or the back road in this issue.

What the fuck does bicycle paths, tax breaks for race-track owners, for rum imported from Puerto Rico, or Hollywood film and television production companies have to do with the economy or bailing out Wall Street? The 451-page Senate bailout bill, called H.R. 1424 has dozens of tax breaks for companies. Some of the specific pork dollar values include: a $100 million tax break to benefit auto racetrack owners; $2 million tax benefit for makers of wooden arrows for children; and $192 million in rebates on excise taxes for the Puerto Rican and Virgin Islands rum industry.

I know its just me, but I never saw what these political bills, let alone 700 billion dollars (which will likely be 900 billion - a trillion) can do for the national or the global economy. Throwing money away has never been the solution for anything. They are still throwing them at bad assets. Banks all around the world are failing. These folk so myopic and ill-informed that they aint even see the chance that asset markets would possibly close one day, especially given that lenders were the one who distressed the value of the paper they held. Its cool if u got loot, or capital, but most folk now days have less than 5% capital, or liquidity on hand compared to back in the day when folks had at least one dollar for every dollar loaned.

Federal policies created this, no matter what folks say, for with out them, folk who could not afford to buy a house with zero down would have never got them – and the truth is the banks and financial institutions lobbied for these changes.

But yawl don’t hear me though. Lets look at the world around us. The Turkish government issued new Turkish lira banknotes and this past Friday. This recapitalized of its banking system included tighter regulation under a $10 billion IMF-backed lending. And we finna have a new currency standard in a few for I wont be surprised if the dollar will be 60 cents to the Euro by the endo of the year.

All I am saying is that stability of the dollar is paramount in any economic solution to this current mess; I see a secular decline in credit just as what happened in Japan. My consternation is that neither McCain nor Obama is addressing this.

We really have not had a loss in capital across this great nation, that is not the issue, but we have not had any gain in capital - that is the problem. To solve this conundrum means we have to gain more capital. Tell me how we do this Jones, fuck the dumb shit, we are thinking and breathing Americans and I say we at least deserve that. You cant take money from the private sector (as the government is doing when they take over and bail out banks) and give it back to the same said private sector. To me that is just like rearanging the furniture in your house. The 700 billion wont do jack, businesses on wall street or in the stock market dont make money unless people spend money or have money. Shold have gave it to the common person. Add to that we only have fiat money, no money of real value, in the 1930s we had real money which was on the Gold standard, and after the early 70s, no longer is our money based on the gold standard. We just print money and throw money at the problem as if it is the answer. All our politicians are doing is stopping the bleeding so the patient don’t die, or worse, just re-arranging the furniture in the house. vote

It’s not easy being green

As I type, Im up at the shop, good day, gat between my legs on the floor, my CFO (my son say I don’t need to walk around with it behind my back). But he mad cause I wont let him bring his gat to the shop – children. Oh, and let’s not forget lil Momma, taking all of the ear wipes and collars off the racks and hiding them in her toy box.

But like I said, a good day, inclusive of sales, but as of late I have been kind of worried. Not about my business, because I will do my best and if I fail, I fail, but will never quit if I use my brain and try, I will always succeed for I will take such as a lesson. But what concerns me more is the fear that I am surrounded by a large coterie of serfs and plebeians, and not to be negative, but folks who seem not to think and seem not to even challenge themselves to think; as if they take what ever information is given to and accept with out question – or even worse don’t care or think that it is tedious and too complex to allocate the time to find out stuff for ones self.

Jones here don’t want to sound vain, but on the real, I feel like the last scholar warrior on this earth. I know they are left, but they are hard to find, like the ubiquitous four leafed clover. As if those who read Gionanni Pico della Mirandola or Anthony Trollope or Frege or Elechi Amadi or Countee Cullen are no more; or worse have been usurped by Terry McMillan, or E. Lynn Jerome Dickey Tyree. That to read a news paper or several each day is blasphemy. That carrying a copy of the constitution is retro chic let alone know what is actually said in this document. That information must be given through a cathode ray tube from CNN or MSNBC as opposed to reading the information on your own and forming ones own opinion.

That to take pride in helping your children with homework and cooking each day has been replaced with the thought of Jiffy mix actually being cornbread or that macaroni and cheese can come from a box. It really worries me that we will complain and fuss and get mad at senate or house bills and would not have even taken the time to read said bills. Add to that, that in our disdain, knowing the serious problems facing our world, and communities in this global age, one would think that now, even if one has not down such prior, would be added and extra motivation to do so.
Maybe Im just thinking and worried for nothing, but maybe I’m not. Seems that the selfish person would not care, but I do, and It would be nice to know that if the stuff hit the fan, that I could seek comfort in know that those in battle with me would be able to handle thangs if I dropped off. If anything, we should be able to learn from history. When Martin King and Malcolm X were killed, or Denmark Vesey, or Cudjoe (now I am reminded why I dislike Stephen King – Cujo was not a dog, but his death was do to Europeans putting in a pit with wild dogs), seems like folk were running around with their heads cut off, since their beloved leader was no more. I say be your own leader so If you or me or anyone else is erased from this camp, someone can move in to the front seamlessly. That’s all I desire. That’s all I want. Now I know what Kermit the frog meant when he sang, It’s not easy being green. Guess folk still thank we free. Not me. vote

Silk Worms’s aint only in China

I was gonna have a though amnesty today but I was thinking so I figured yawl can think a little bit with me on this Friday. Now what prompted this was that I was gonna write about Sarah Palin or Barack Obama. The first was because I did not want Saturday Night Live have all of the fun with a woman who makes moose stew and moose knuckle jam and Obama because I wanted to explain why he would likely loose in November. But I made a strategic decision not to look at the Vice Presidential Debate and instead favored college football on ESPN – that South Florida Pitt game was a good one if you missed it.

As of late the banter regarding foreign policy with respect to Iran has me uneasy. First there is all of this talk of what will be required to keep Iran in check as if they can reach the USA with their weapons. Such to the extent that folks are suggesting the likelihood of a pre-emptive attack on the nation even as early as before the end of this year. Then there is the nonsense regarding whether or not we should have direct talks with current president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as interjected in the current campaign dialogue and suggested by several former Secretaries of State.

Looking back on these past years at war with the Middle Eastern nations of Asia seems that all we have done was help Iran come up. Through I war with via our war with Iraq especially. I mean most of the folks who Shiite in Iraq got folk In Iran. And we know that talking to the President is really neither here nor their since the nation is really run by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader. This is where the power is and any decision made regarding what Iran will or will not do will be made by him and his council.

For some reason up in this camp, a many of weak azz biches, as my home boys Three six mafia sang, in America, think they can just bum rush Iran and tell them folk what to do, especially with respect to their nuclear capability, as if they are a REAL threat when the only two real threats in the region if you asked me are the folks with Nuclear weapons – Israel and Pakistan.

You can’t be mad at Iran; I mean they just want the US out of the entire Middle East. I mean what’s the trip, it aint no different than the US historically wanting all of the Native Americans gone from North America.

If we attack Iran, it wont be no walk in the park. They may not be able to reach our shores with their weapons but they shole (im country) can buss up Israel and they will likely pop a few of them Silkworm Missiles on the oil tankers in the gulf as well as all the gulf oil production sites – especially the ones in Saudi, and lead us to a real depression up in this camp. Because historically Saudi aint never had no love for the Shiite or Iran so they would likely take a loss too, especially given the Saudi’s inroads in the US government.

But yawl think im tripping. The Emirates don’t, they just announced a few weeks ago that the plan on building a canal to get they oil out so they can bypass Iran if shit hits the fan. So we need to be easy about all this talk about invading Iran. Because the Saudis, and the Emirates and all them other folk who live over their know the deal, even better than we do and because Iran has even said if they are attacked by either the US or Israel that they will effectively Tear the Club Up. So Mr. and Mrs. Politician and/or pundit, don’t let APAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) talk yawl in to a war with Iran. We already let them talk us into the current Iraq quagmire. As I said initially, truth be told, The Ayatollah Ali Khamenei runs Iran And not their well spoken and astute PhD President. So don’t get it twisted, Iran doesn’t desire no conflict with us, but they aint as weak as many would proclaim, since most is ill-informed and poorly read bureaucrats.

And nope, this aint about Israel albeit I say fuck Israel, them folks aint got my interest at the top of they agenda so I aint got theirs at the top of mine, and that’s what’s really real, because in the days of old, the silk worm was just a worm and only found in China – not any more. vote

take it on the chin

I am a firm believer that Ignorance and freedom is incompatible. Likewise I accept that my folk, including the members of the House and Senate are just as ignorant as well. Last night in a unique move the Senate grandstanded and passed their version of a financial market stabilization act – this time, 450 pages of feces. Fuck bailing out banks, although I do feel that Paulson messed up when he did not attempt to save Lehman, the truth is that market fundamentalism – the idea that the market can do no wrong, will exist no more jones.

I don’t want to scare nobody nor second guess (to steal a phrase from Sarah Palin - can’t name a single Supreme Court case she disagrees with other than Roe v. Wade LMBAO) nobody on this, but I would like to provide a terse commentary on saying that something is better than nothing, when no one has really thought about this from a pragmatic perspective and just seems to me giving Paulson what ever he needs with out review and thorough examination, is some of the dumbest shit I done ever heard. I figure 200 billion invested in schools, bridges, and even securing our ports will go a lot father than dumping loot in the hands of folks who have a history of looting that has placed us in the mess in the first place. By doing the aforementioned, albeit common sense, I think it would proffer job creation at the grass root level for we know politicians will never be or desire to do any real labor like us common folk. Not to mention it would not take 700 billion if one spent the money on helping folks who own homes like me to keep them, and the steady stream of mortgage payments going to said banks.

Too much credit got us into this problem but now we trying to make folks get more credit. It is nothing more than the banks controlling the government. I mean the standard is obvious is that its cool for folk to make millions while those that don’t, it is cool for them to suffer.

Maybe I am wrong, but I say let them mutha fucas fail, let them take it on the chin. I mean, if I mess up, for bad business judgment, are they gone help me? Where my bail out papers? I don’t even know where the 700 billion dollars went in the first place, I aint get none of that loot did you? When I do my books I do the regular old school accounting, you know traditional accounting methods that match cost and revenues. But Paulson, and HIS bill want me to bail out, excuse me rescue folks that employ the Enron” economically satisfying” approach of accounting for valuing assets and liabilities. Robert G. Haldeman, Jr. wrote: “Fair value derives from “a hypothetical transaction at the measurement date … A fair value measurement assumes that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability occurs in the principal market for the asset or liability or, in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market for the asset or liability. The principal market is the market in which the reporting entity would sell the asset or transfer the liability with the greatest volume and level of activity for the asset or liability.”

I wouldn’t be surprised if Paulson folks from the house he used to run Goldman Sachs laced his pockets to get this shit passed. All I am saying is that I want some to. Bail me out jones, I mean this shit, I aint even no crook.

And yawl talk about Obama, tonight was his first vote since June (i think) in the Senate, and McCain’s, first vote since April. They say this is needed, and all we can do at the moment, but it may or may not be a quick fix and what we need is a well thought out and permanent solution. I just think that this talk of something is better than nothing is feculent, and makes me think they are saying if I had the choice to think something well out versus panicking, I would do the latter. That’s all these two pieces of legislation show me, that these folks would rather panic than think on solving the problem. Shoot, I think DeFazio’s plan is better thought-out than Paulson’s and really like is suggestion regarding banning short selling of stocks - selling'' stock at a lower price before actually taking ownership.

But this is just me, and as I said it ticks me off when the average citizen complains or approves of something, like these bills when they don’t take the time to read them. Ignorance and freedom is incompatible folks; and I will never side with panic over thinking something out thoroughly, why should you? I say let them folk on Wall street take it on the chin, cause it don't impact Main street as they say - newspeak is all it is. vote

buss first or buss back

Over the recent days with the current economic crisis, I have revisited in my head conversations and discussions I have had with a number of my folk over the years. Many on the future of America especially since it is real in the field again. I first left Memphis at age 17 heading off to Morehouse. Getting there, I learned ATL was a whole lot different than Memphis. Morehouse was the shit and what I learned there was like something from Mr. Rodgers. You know, make believe. It was like folks could leave where they were from, go to a new place and have a whole new persona – like make believe. You know they get to college and could play rich, they could play tough or like they were from the streets, or gangster and stuff like that. All I noticed that an A was 90 to 100 unlike the 96 to 100 I had been used to in the Memphis public school system, so was up for taking advantage of that caused the grading system meant I could make believe I was smart.

Being from flip town, also know as the Bluff city, it was simply amazing, I mean I met black folks from Portland for example, who could hoop – amazing as well as some basically smart cats that were some generally trill folk. I mean folk who had read Hegel, Diop and Frantz Fanon before they got to college as I had which made me feel at home. Cats who know the books as well as the streets. But there were only a hand full though and out of all them folk, two folk I remember in particular outside my homeboys and some others [ yawl know who yawl are] were my folk Mike Green and V-Hall. They were from South Carolina, Charleston South Carolina, and off the bat folk recognized folk. V-Hall and Mike were different folk being from where they were. They had keloid knobs on their wrist where they had cut them and stopped the bleeding to show their allegiance to they folk. Being from Memphis, all we acknowledged were gold safety pins in our left ears and all my folk who attended the house with me [Cadillac, Storming Norman and those who were AMB] had the same experiences and beliefs.

A many nights we would sit, as if Hegel and Hume, we talked about our local home fronts as well as our local commandments of existence. Many were the same but some were different. One that I recall vividly was the philosophical discussion of “buss first or buss back.”

They were of the belief that if one pulled a pistol, they should be the ones to bust first. Unlike me and mine who acknowledged accountability and believed in Bussing’ back after being fired upon. For us it would be a case of self defense and plausible deniability. Their argument was strong, but ours was too. I just wonder with the way things are today: folks stealing beer and can goods from grocery stores and fighting in gas lines, and loosing jobs at a rate of about 100k a month, and everything going up in price and the dollar shrinking in value, will I change my position from bussing back to bussing first?