8/29    Applying for a home loan now. The loan officer keeps asking why
        I wrote large amounts of check, and what they're for, and fax
        her proof to support what I said. She said loan regulations have
        tightened a lot to prevent money laundry. What is the max amount
        of money I can transfer these days without triggering annoying
        audits? I am not a terrorist.
	...

11/21   I'm trying to figure out how much I save. Does money I contribute
        to debt (student loans and car loan) considered money I "save"?
        \_ "I'm trying to figure out how healthy I am. I normally
           smoke 2 packs a day but now I've cut it down to just
           1 pack a day. Does the reduction count towards health
           that I hope to 'gain'?"
	...

3/26    Can someone explain the 14% gain described here. I don't understand
        the basic math being used. What if the portfolio returns 20%/yr?
http://theweek.com/article/index/94743/The_crisis__and_Geithner_plan__explained
        \_ I don't think you can explain it without knowing what the split
           in profits between the government and private holders is. It's
           obviously not 50/50. It looks like maybe 85/15 to get the
	...

2/19    http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/18/let-the-human-capital-exodus-begin
        \_ Suppose you are a damn good executive.  Someone gives you the
           chance to come in to a ailing firm that has a long history and
           some serious pluses going for it.  If you manage to turn things
           around in a 5-10 year time frame you will be heralded as a
           brilliant mind and even the elite will treat you like royalty.
	...

1/28    Pork bill passes the House, no R's vote for it.
        \_ which pork bill?
        \_ Yay, fair and balanced NPR:
           http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99919378
           Also, GOP apparently unclear on definition of pork.
           \_ Even Chris Matthews called it one big earmark.
	...

12/20   "Canada offers $3.29 billion in loans Detroit Three - Yahoo! Finance"
        http://www.csua.org/u/n5h
	...

12/9    Oops, rescuing borrowers didn't help much
    http://ridingtheelephant.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2008/12/08/news/economy/mortgage_summit
        \_ What is the default rate of those who do not have modified loans?
	...

11/22   Pension gap divides public and private workers:
        http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-02-20-pensions-cover_x.htm
        At what point do we Just Say No? Making more money *after*
        retiring seems like an issue. I say this as someone with family
        who retired from the military who makes more now than when active.
        Ridiculous.
	...

2/10    I like Woz, and I like iWoz, but let me tell ya, no one worships
        him because he has the charisma of an highly functioning
        Autistic person. Meanwhile, everyone worships Jobs because
        he's better looking and does an amazing job promoting himself
        as God. I guess this is not the first time in history. Case in
        point, Caesar, Napolean, GWB, etc. Why is it that people
	...

11/2    California Uber Alles is such a great song
        \_ Yes, and it was written about Jerry Brown. I was thinking this
           as I cast my vote for Meg Whitman. I am independent, but I
           typically vote Democrat (e.g., I voted for Boxer). However, I
           can't believe we elected this retread.
           \_ You voted for the billionaire that ran HP into the ground
	...

2/20    Ok serious question, NOT political.  This is straight up procedural.
        Has it been declared that we didn't find WMD in iraq? (think so).
        So why did we go into iraq (what was the gain), and if nobody really
        knows, why is nobody looking for the reason?
        \_ Political stability, military strategy (Iran), and to prevent
           Saddam from financing terrorism.
	...

8/5     Regarding NKorea relesing the journalists, here's what I think the
        actual deal between Kim and Obama is:
        - Both agree that Kim needs to save, or gain, face to pave the way for
          his son's succession and for NK's stability.
        - Both agree that Obama doesn't like losing face by publicly
          apologizing.
	...

4/27    "Obama the first Asian-American president?"
        http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090427/pl_afp/uspoliticsobama100daysasia
        Just like the way Clinton was the first African-American president.
        \_ Two wars, a banking, housing, and general economic crisis, a truly
           massive deficit, and now, Swine Flu.  Has any president except for
           Lincoln and Roosevelt faced worse?
	...

4/16    The Obama couple had an AGI of $2.6M in 2008 and $4.2M in 2007!
        http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/92476/?fp=1
        How much did the Dubyas and the Clintons make?
        \_ Obama wrote two bestselling books right around that time.
           \_ But Obama wasn't that famous before the presidental election
              campaign in 2008.
	...

3/13    So Bill Clinton doesn't know what an embryo is?
        \_ obCigarJoke
	...

2/27    CA unemployment increases from 9.3% to 10.1% for Jan
        \_ Good thing the legislature passed the biggest tax increase in
           history!  That should solve it.
           \_ because cutting taxes has done such a great job so far!
                \_ it has.. giving mortgages to poor folks did us in
                   \_ 100% horseshit.
	...

2/3     Well said: "What gets people upset are executives being rewarded for
        failure. Especially when those rewards are subsidized by US taxpayers."
        \_ Turns out, he gets it.
           \_ Talk is cheap.
              \_ Freedom is strength.
        \_ Isn't this something like FDR might have said?
	...

2/1     Pres. Obama keeps rendition
        http://www.latimes.com/news/la-na-rendition1-2009feb01,0,7548176,full.story
        \_ This does not mean what you (or the LA Times) think it means.
        \_ More on how this article does not mean what you (or the idiotic
           LA times) think it means:
           http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/02/02/renditions
	...