Mutiny On The Bounty

From Kevin Drum of Mother Jones:

Have I mentioned my favorite part of Obama's speech yesterday? Here it is:

America’s finances were in great shape by the year 2000. We went from deficit to surplus. America was actually on track to becoming completely debt free, and we were prepared for the retirement of the Baby Boomers.

But after Democrats and Republicans committed to fiscal discipline during the 1990s, we lost our way in the decade that followed. We increased spending dramatically for two wars and an expensive prescription drug program — but we didn’t pay for any of this new spending. Instead, we made the problem worse with trillions of dollars in unpaid-for tax cuts — tax cuts that went to every millionaire and billionaire in the country; tax cuts that will force us to borrow an average of $500 billion every year over the next decade.

To give you an idea of how much damage this caused to our nation’s checkbook, consider this: In the last decade, if we had simply found a way to pay for the tax cuts and the prescription drug benefit, our deficit would currently be at low historical levels in the coming years.

But that’s not what happened. And so, by the time I took office, we once again found ourselves deeply in debt and unprepared for a Baby Boom retirement that is now starting to take place. When I took office, our projected deficit, annually, was more than $1 trillion. On top of that, we faced a terrible financial crisis and a recession that, like most recessions, led us to temporarily borrow even more.

Translation: Fuck you, Republicans.

Hey, that's my line!

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...And How YOU Doin'?

From Mother Jones:

The housing market is still a mess; foreclosures are mounting; unemployment hovers near 10 percent; and, as Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said just today, "Our economy is still going through an incredibly difficult period." All of this stems from one of the worst financial crises in US history, a meltdown of epic proportions from which the country and the world has yet to fully recover.
That is, unless you're really, really rich. Bloomberg reports today that the super wealthy's riches have all but returned to their swollen, pre-meltdown levels, according to a report by Capgemini SA and Merrill Lynch. Of the 10 million people globally with $1 million or more to invest in whatever they want, their wealth rose nearly 19 percent in 2009, to $39 trillion. In 2007, just before the train sped off the cliff, that wealth was $40.7 trillion spread among 10.1 million really rich people. (Let's not mention 2008—these 10 million people's wealth amounted to only $32.8 trillion. A down year, there.)
Here's more from Bloomberg:
The U.S. had 2.87 million millionaires, more than triple second-ranked Germany with 861,500, the report said. The number of millionaires in China soared 31 percent to 477,400, keeping the country ahead of the U.K. with 448,100.
Ultra-high net worth individuals with more than $30 million to invest saw their wealth rise by 21.5 percent in 2009, faster than other millionaires, according to the report, which attributed the gain to a "more effective re-allocation of assets."

Huzzah! Now here's a recovery you can believe in.

How's That Drilly Stuff Working Out?

H/T for the post title to Mother Jones. TV spot from Friends of the Earth. Environmental disaster courtesy of BP.

"Every Breath You Take, Every Move You Make..."

Mother Jones posted a link to a piece from the Concord Monitor today and it's a harsh reminder that when it comes to credit card companies, you really aren't paranoid; they are watching you...

Here's a word to the wise: Think twice before whipping out that credit card to pay for purchases at the Salvation Army or a discount store, have tires re-treaded or even buy a late-night round of drinks. Credit card companies see those purchases, and a slew of others, as a sign of real or impending financial trouble and they'll quickly cut the credit limit, raise the interest rate or even cancel the card with no warning. Once that happens the credit score that determines who is worthy of a loan and at what rate usually plummets...

Here are a few other activities that experts say could trigger a hard look from credit card issuers.

• Using a card to bail out that no-good brother-in-law, to get a massage or to employ the services of an escort.

• Charging items at auto parts or grocery stores. Both are seen as a sign of financial distress.

• Charging items at pawn shops, drug stores and shoe repair shops. All can be a warning of someone down at the heels.

• Paying for court costs, child support or alimony with a credit card.

• Charging medical care and child care.

• Charging beer, wine or liquor.

As the Monitor points out:

In May, President Obama signed a bill that will limit some of the worst practices of credit card companies that have been raising rates with little reason and without notice and charging obscene late fees. The bill also requires that banking regulators study the practice of using information about where a person shops to assessing credit worthiness. That means credit card companies, which are already raising rates and cutting credit limits before the new law goes into effect in January, are likely to continue keep track of where and how their customers spend money until at least 2011.

Credit card companies purchase their customer's spending record from reporting companies like Equifax, which gather it by using sophisticated computer programs to "data mine" spending by individuals. The practice allows companies to develop a disturbingly complete picture of people based on not just their buying habits but also specific purchases.

So while you might feel perfectly comfortable walking around the house naked, remember that your bare ass isn't the only thing people may want to peek at.