Saturday, December 13, 2008

Appropos Toons o' the Day






Hat tip: Dave W.

Radio silence


Via PJM, according to a U.S. Marine pilot:

In addition to communicating with the local Air Traffic Control facility, all aircraft in the Persian Gulf AOR are required to give the Iranian Air Defense Radar (military) a ten minute ‘heads up’ if they will be transiting Iranian airspace.

This is a common procedure for commercial aircraft and involves giving them your call sign, transponder code, type aircraft, and points of origin and destination.

I just flew with a guy who overheard this conversation on the VHF Guard (emergency) frequency 121.5 MHz while flying from Europe to Dubai. It’s too good not to pass along. The conversation went something like this…

Iranian Air Defense Radar: ‘Unknown aircraft at (location unknown), you are in Iranian airspace. Identify yourself.’

Aircraft: ‘This is a United States aircraft. I am in Iraqi airspace.’

Air Defense Radar: ‘ You are in Iranian airspace. If you do not depart our airspace we will launch interceptor aircraft!’

Aircraft: ‘This is a United States Marine Corps FA-18 fighter. Send ‘em up, I’ll wait!’

Air Defense Radar: (no response … total silence)

Friday, December 12, 2008

How did a dozen billionaires get ripped off in the biggest heist ever? They thought they were cheating average investors


Billionaires around the world are scrambling to assess the losses and ripple effects from a reported $50 billion ripoff orchestrated by Bernard Madoff, the once well-regarded Wall Street trader.

Law enforcement officials accused the 70-year old one-time chair of NASDAQ with operating a Ponzi scheme of an unthinkable magnitude. In other words, he was rewarding original investors with bogus returns generated by new money from other investors.

In fact, Madoff -- a huge Democratic donor and fundraiser -- appears to have executed the biggest heist in history:

Madoff's investment advisory business served between 11 and 25 clients and had a total of about $17.1 billion in assets under management...

...On Dec. 10, 2008, Madoff informed the Senior Employees, in substance, that his investment advisory business was a fraud. Madoff stated that he was "finished," that he had "absolutely nothing," that "it's all just one big lie," and that it was "basically, a giant Ponzi scheme. Madoff stated that the business was insolvent, and that it had been for years. Madoff also stated that he estimated the losses from this fraud to be at least approximately $50 billion.

Yep, $50 billion. In other words, that $17.1 billion is only the beginning: presumably Madoff's clients had invested much more than that, and Madoff was sending statements to them, on the one hand, while reporting different numbers to the SEC, on the other -- none of which were true... If the total losses are really $50 billion, that means that the average loss to Madoff's clients is a minimum of $2 billion, and perhaps as much as $4.5 billion. After all, in a Ponzi scheme, everybody comes out fine, except the last people out: the 11 to 25 clients still with Madoff to this day.

So why did investors put so much stock in Madoff?

Put simply, they thought he was cheating. Cheating through insider trading, that is. Henry Blodget has one view.

For years and years I've heard people say that [Bernie's] investment performance was too good to be true. The returns were too steady -- like GE earnings under Welch -- and too high given the supposed strategy.

One Madoff investor, himself a legend, told me that Madoff's performance "just doesn't make sense. The numbers can't be straight." Another sophisticated Madoff investor actually went through trade confirms in order to reverse-engineer the strategy and said, "it doesn't add up."

So why did these smart and skeptical investors keep investing? They, like many Madoff investors, assumed Madoff was somehow illegally trading on information from his market-making business for their benefit. They didn't consider the possibility that he was clean on that score but running a good old-fashioned Ponzi scheme.

So how did these billionaire investors get taken? Blodget says -- and I suspect he's right -- they knew he was cheating and that's why they invested. They just didn't realize Madoff was ripping them off; they thought he was stealing from the average investor through insider trading.

One of Whitney Tilson's friends said he was suspicious "because of the 1-2%/month returns with never a down month (much less quarter or year), combined with never showing a a down month (much less quarter or year), combined with never showing anyone his portfolio."

Madoff founded Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in 1960. A separate advisory business had approximately $17 billion in assets under management. Many high net worth individuals could have some indirect exposure to the scam through investments in the firm's direct clients.

For example, two well known hedge funds involved with Madoff were Fairfield Sentry Ltd. ($7.3 billion in assets) and Kingate Global Fund Ltd. ($2.8 billion).

And how did investors react? The same way anyone does to a troubled institution, whether dealing with a $1,000 in a savings account or a $2 billion trust.

About a dozen angry investors gathered on Friday in the lobby of the Lipstick Building in midtown Manhattan, where the market-making firm and advisory fund are both headquartered, demanding to know the fate of their money... One woman who declined to give her name said that when she called the firm's offices on Thursday she was told it was "business as usual." Another investor groused, "Business as usual? Of course it's business as usual. We're getting screwed left and right." ...Police later evicted the small group from the building.

Prior to Madoff's arrest, investors had wondered how he was able to generate annual returns in the low double digits in a variety of market environments. ..."Many of us questioned how that strategy could generate those kinds of returns so consistently," said Jon Najarian, an options trader who knows Madoff and is a co-founder of optionmonster.com.

The indictment makes it clear: Madoff's operation was smoke and mirrors. With more smoke than mirror.

Related:
SEC Had Been Getting Madoff Warnings Since 1999
Latest Madoff Victim: Hedge Fund Critic Sandra Manzke
Bernie Madoff's Miraculous Returns: Month By Month

Two "Quote o' the Day"s in one day. So sue me.


Drew over at Ace's place:

Last night's [auto bailout] efforts failed when the UAW refused to agree to wage parity between US automakers and non-union foreign manufactures with plants here in the US.

I wonder how the lower paid but profitable non-union workers at Honda and Toyota plants here in the US feel about their taxes going to prop up their overpaid and bankrupt competitors.

Joseph Stiglitz, writing in the Financial Times ("Chapter 11 is the right road for US carmakers"):

Financial markets are supposed to allocate capital and monitor that it is used to good effect. They are supposed to be rewarded when they do that job well, but bear the consequences when they fail. The markets failed. Wall Street’s focus on quarterly returns encouraged the short-sighted behaviour that contributed to their own demise and that of America’s manufacturing, including the automotive industry. Today, they are asking to escape accountability. We should not allow it.

What needs to be done is to help the automakers get a fresh start and allow them to focus on producing good cars rather than trying to juggle their books to meet past obligations.

Related: Ten cars that killed Detroit.

Chicago TV: Almost certain that FBI has tape of Rahm Emanuel and Blago discussing Senate seat!


Ruh roh! Local Chicago news stations are reporting that Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is believed to be one of the parties taped by the FBI in their investigation of Governor Blagojevich.

"...Rahm Emanuel did, in fact, have multiple conversations with Governor Rod Blagojevich -- and his chief of staff John Harris -- about the Senate seat... The conversations took place after the FBI wire taps were put in place and after Emanuel was promoted to Chief of Staff by Barack Obama...

"...The timing of the conversations make it likely the source says that the phone conversations were recorded and are in the hands of the FBI."

For you liberals progressives playing at home, that's taped by the FBI. In the course of a major federal investigation.

That thumping sound you're about to hear will be Emanual slamming the pavement repeatedly after getting tossed under the bus.

No wonder folks are playing Where's Rahmbo?

Update: The AP is reporting that advisers to Jesse Jackson, Jr. were soliciting $1 million in cash to pay for the open Senate seat. The million would go to "Blagojevich to help persuade him to appoint Jackson."

The original reporting, from The Chicago Tribune, includes some bare naked admissions:

"Raghu said he needed to raise a million for Rod to make sure Jesse got the seat," the second businessman said. "He said, 'I can raise half of it, $500,000.' The idea was that the other two would help raise the rest."

Ten Cars that killed Detroit


With word this morning that the UAW killed the bailout for Detroit automakers, this US News & World Report list comes at an appropriate time. It spotlights the horrifying litany of crappy cars produced by Detroit in its fat-dumb-happy heyday.


One of our "winners"

I modified the list a bit, since it included Japanese cars that helped put a stake in the heart of Detroit (e.g., the Prius).

10. Ford Pinto: Hey, only a couple of hundred fuel tanks exploded. What's the big deal?

9. Chevrolet Cavalier: Here's a plan: let's go a decade without upgrading any technology plus try to pawn off a high-end model (the Cadillac Cimarron) on an unsuspecting public. AKA the rubes. AKA us.

8. Chevrolet Astro: Hey, we need a minivan! Let's slap some sheet-metal on a truck -- no one'll know the difference!

7. Ford Taurus: Introduced in '86 to great acclaim, Ford went on to ignore the sedan for two decades, until it ended up an Avis staple.

6. Jaguar X-Type: Speaking of the Taurus, may I introduce the Jag X-Type? Or, as some like to call it, The Brand-Killer.

5. Hummer H-2: Can you imagine the planning process? "First, we're betting gas prices will never increase. Second, let's show everyone what we think of the environment. Third, the guiding principle is to crush other drivers."

4. Chrysler Sebring: It's called the Sebring because the Vapid was taken.

3. Ford Explorer: it's not a 401K rollover, but it's almost as well known for its catastrophic tendency to crush passengers. And it helped spawn Detroit's addiction to SUVs that ultimately doomed the company.

2. Chevy Cobalt: What's it take to win the "Least Reliable Small Car" award from Consumer Reports? Or a two-star review from TAC? Or blogosphere reviews like "...the worst vehicle I have ever driven..."? Simple. It takes a Cobalt.

1. Chevy Vega: Some of the quotes from Car Talk's worst car list say it all.

"As near as I could tell, the car was built from compressed rust."

"My Chevy Vega actually broke in half going over railroad tracks. The whole rear end came around slightly to the front, sort of like a dog wagging its tail."

"Burned so much oil, it was single-handedly responsible for the formation of OPEC."

* * *

What killed Detroit? There's a compelling argument that overregulation and Congressional idiocy played a central role. But these egregious examples of automotive mediocrity didn't help.

Any I missed?

Linked by: Gateway Pundit. Thanks!

Line o' the Day: Get the Antenna Up!


It’s just nice to know that my President-elect went through that entire system – all of these guys – Ayers, Blagojevich, Rezko, the Reverend Wright – and he didn’t notice any of them. At his worst, he is oblivious. At his absolute worst, he is disingenuous. He had to know something about some of these guys. ... We’re told that he’s the smartest guy on the planet on one hand. In the other hand, he never noticed any of this stuff. Come on, get the antenna up there, Barack. You got to wake up.

-- Dennis Miller

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Consensus: 650 Scientists agree Al Gore is a Buffoon


You wouldn't know it from reading the funny papers, but over 650 (yes, six hundred and fifty) respected scientists -- representing climatology, environmental sciences, geophysical sciences and related disciplines -- think global warming is hokum. Bunk. Garbage. Bogus. Fake. Ridiculous. A scam.

A 231-page report (PDF), published by the U.S. Senate, offers an astounding panorama of dissenting opinions that thoroughly debunk the so-called "consensus" on anthropogenic (human-caused) global warming. Some of the highlights:

“I am a skeptic… Global warming has become a new religion.” - Nobel Prize Winner for Physics, Ivar Giaever.

“Since I am no longer affiliated with any organization nor receiving any funding, I can speak quite frankly….As a scientist I remain skeptical. “The main basis of the claim that man’s release of greenhouse gases is the cause of the warming is based almost entirely upon climate models. We all know the frailty of models concerning the air-surface system.” - Atmospheric Scientist Dr. Joanne Simpson, the first woman in the world to receive a PhD in meteorology, and formerly of NASA, who has authored more than 190 studies and has been called “among the most preeminent scientists of the last 100 years.”

Warming fears are the “worst scientific scandal in the history... When people come to know what the truth is, they will feel deceived by science and scientists.” - UN IPCC Japanese Scientist Dr. Kiminori Itoh, an award-winning PhD environmental physical chemist.

“The IPCC has actually become a closed circuit; it doesn’t listen to others. It doesn’t have open minds… I am really amazed that the Nobel Peace Prize has been given on scientifically incorrect conclusions by people who are not geologists,” - Indian geologist Dr. Arun D. Ahluwalia at Punjab University and a board member of the UN-supported International Year of the Planet.

“So far, real measurements give no ground for concern about a catastrophic future warming.” - Scientist Dr. Jarl R. Ahlbeck, a chemical engineer at Abo Akademi University in Finland, author of 200 scientific publications and former Greenpeace member.

“Anyone who claims that the debate is over and the conclusions are firm has a fundamentally unscientific approach to one of the most momentous issues of our time.” - Solar physicist Dr. Pal Brekke, senior advisor to the Norwegian Space Centre in Oslo. Brekke has published more than 40 peer-reviewed scientific articles on the sun and solar interaction with the Earth.

“The models and forecasts of the UN IPCC "are incorrect because they only are based on mathematical models and presented results at scenarios that do not include, for example, solar activity.” - Victor Manuel Velasco Herrera, a researcher at the Institute of Geophysics of the National Autonomous University of Mexico

It is a blatant lie put forth in the media that makes it seem there is only a fringe of scientists who don’t buy into anthropogenic global warming.” - U.S Government Atmospheric Scientist Stanley B. Goldenberg of the Hurricane Research Division of NOAA.

Even doubling or tripling the amount of carbon dioxide will virtually have little impact, as water vapour and water condensed on particles as clouds dominate the worldwide scene and always will.” – . Geoffrey G. Duffy, a professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering of the University of Auckland, NZ.

“After reading [UN IPCC chairman] Pachauri's asinine comment [comparing skeptics to] Flat Earthers, it's hard to remain quiet.” - Climate statistician Dr. William M. Briggs, who specializes in the statistics of forecast evaluation, serves on the American Meteorological Society's Probability and Statistics Committee and is an Associate Editor of Monthly Weather Review.

“The Kyoto theorists have put the cart before the horse. It is global warming that triggers higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, not the other way round... A large number of critical documents submitted at the 1995 U.N. conference in Madrid vanished without a trace. As a result, the discussion was one-sided and heavily biased, and the U.N. declared global warming to be a scientific fact,” Andrei Kapitsa, a Russian geographer and Antarctic ice core researcher.

Nature's regulatory instrument is water vapor: more carbon dioxide leads to less moisture in the air, keeping the overall GHG content in accord with the necessary balance conditions.” – Prominent Hungarian Physicist and environmental researcher Dr. Miklós Zágoni reversed his view of man-made warming and is now a skeptic. Zágoni was once Hungary’s most outspoken supporter of the Kyoto Protocol.

For how many years must the planet cool before we begin to understand that the planet is not warming? For how many years must cooling go on?" - Geologist Dr. David Gee the chairman of the science committee of the 2008 International Geological Congress who has authored 130 plus peer reviewed papers, and is currently at Uppsala University in Sweden.

“Gore prompted me to start delving into the science again and I quickly found myself solidly in the skeptic camp... Climate models can at best be useful for explaining climate changes after the fact.” - Meteorologist Hajo Smit of Holland, who reversed his belief in man-made warming to become a skeptic, is a former member of the Dutch UN IPCC committee.

“The quantity of CO2 we produce is insignificant in terms of the natural circulation between air, water and soil... I am doing a detailed assessment of the UN IPCC reports and the Summaries for Policy Makers, identifying the way in which the Summaries have distorted the science.” - South Afican Nuclear Physicist and Chemical Engineer Dr. Philip Lloyd, a UN IPCC co-coordinating lead author who has authored over 150 refereed publications.

Many [scientists] are now searching for a way to back out quietly (from promoting warming fears), without having their professional careers ruined.” - Atmospheric physicist James A. Peden, formerly of the Space Research and Coordination Center in Pittsburgh.

“All those urging action to curb global warming need to take off the blinkers and give some thought to what we should do if we are facing global cooling instead” - Geophysicist Dr. Phil Chapman, an astronautical engineer and former NASA astronaut, served as staff physicist at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Creating an ideology pegged to carbon dioxide is a dangerous nonsense... The present alarm on climate change is an instrument of social control, a pretext for major businesses and political battle. It became an ideology, which is concerning.” - Environmental Scientist Professor Delgado Domingos of Portugal, the founder of the Numerical Weather Forecast group, has more than 150 published articles.

“CO2 emissions make absolutely no difference one way or another….Every scientist knows this, but it doesn’t pay to say so…Global warming, as a political vehicle, keeps Europeans in the driver’s seat and developing nations walking barefoot.” - Dr. Takeda Kunihiko, vice-chancellor of the Institute of Science and Technology Research at Chubu University in Japan.

“The [global warming] scaremongering has its justification in the fact that it is something that generates funds.” - Award-winning Paleontologist Dr. Eduardo Tonni, of the Committee for Scientific Research in Buenos Aires and head of the Paleontology Department at the University of La Plata.

“Whatever the weather, it's not being caused by global warming. If anything, the climate may be starting into a cooling period.” Atmospheric scientist Dr. Art V. Douglas, former Chair of the Atmospheric Sciences Department at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, and is the author of numerous papers for peer-reviewed publications.

“But there is no falsifiable scientific basis whatever to assert this warming is caused by human-produced greenhouse gasses because current physical theory is too grossly inadequate to establish any cause at all.” - Chemist Dr. Patrick Frank, who has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed articles.

The ‘global warming scare’ is being used as a political tool to increase government control over American lives, incomes and decision making. It has no place in the Society's activities.” - Award-Winning NASA Astronaut/Geologist and Moonwalker Jack Schmitt who flew on the Apollo 17 mission and formerly of the Norwegian Geological Survey and for the U.S. Geological Survey.

Earth has cooled since 1998 in defiance of the predictions by the UN-IPCC.. .The global temperature for 2007 was the coldest in a decade and the coldest of the millennium... which is why ‘global warming’ is now called ‘climate change.’” - Climatologist Dr. Richard Keen of the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of Colorado.

I have yet to see credible proof of carbon dioxide driving climate change, yet alone man-made CO2 driving it. The atmospheric hot-spot is missing and the ice core data refute this. When will we collectively awake from this deceptive delusion?” - Dr. G LeBlanc Smith, a retired Principal Research Scientist with Australia’s CSIRO. (The full quotes of the scientists are later in this report)

Don't send these quotes to your liberal progressive friends. Their poor, abused noggins might explode, sending wooden splinters in unpredictable directions like shrapnel.

And -- whatever you do -- don't tell the Climatards that it snowed in New Orleans today.

Update: GoreWar.

Hat tip: Marc.

Exclusive Photo: Laid-off New York Times employees prepare to work on building roads and infrastructure


Looks like President Obama's vaunted road-rebuilding programs will keep Bill Keller's former employees off the street.

Maureen Dowd is second from right.

The Times' financial problems aren't really Pinchy's fault. Nor Bill Keller's. After all, according to Keller, "Good Journalism Isn't Cheap."

What that has to do with the Times, I have no idea. I wasn't aware they employed any journalists. I just thought its main business function was to serve as a wire service for the Democratic National Committee.

The article's title is "Where Will You Get Your News in 2012?" Not a tough question to answer. The same place we do now: the Internet. And given the Times' catastrophic drop in value, everyone else feels the same way.

Doghouse


Well, this ad certainly went viral.

And with good reason. Excellent content always wins out.

RED ALERT: Chicago Tribune article referenced Obama-Blago discussions on Senate Seat!


David Axelrod, KHQA and now the venerable Chicago Tribune all independently reported that Governor Blagojevich and Barack Obama held discussions regarding his Senate replacement. For those keeping score at home, this makes four different sources (KHQA had two articles on the topic) referencing one or more meetings, which Barack Obama said never took place. Who would you believe: me or your lying eyes?

Commenter Howdy pointed us to a Tribune article that references additional discussions between Obama and Governor Blagojevich regarding his Senate seat.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Thursday cited the potential for bad “karma” and avoided discussing potential Senate successors to Barack Obama should the Democratic nominee win the White House, but acknowledged he has a process in mind for making the most important appointment of his career.


“I just don’t want to jinx him and I don’t like the karma of me thinking that far ahead,” Blagojevich said of Obama’s prospects in Tuesday’s election. The governor added, “We have had some discussions about a process which we’ll share … if all goes well.”

Sources close to Blagojevich, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak for him, said one issue would be to consider who could most help the governor politically.

What helps me in my quest for the future, whether it’s re-election or legacy?” one Blagojevich confidant said of the selection process being eyed by the Democratic governor, who has seen his job approval rating fall to staggering levels. “It’s a big milestone.”

It's a big millstone, alright. Oh. Did you say milestone? Sorry.

Earlier:
Even cached articles on Obama-Blago Senate meetings go AWOL
"[Obama] can get Blagojevich's wife on paid corporate boards in exchange for naming [a] pick to the Senate"
Obama, Rezko, Blagojevich: Illinois Governor Arrested

Update: Ed Morrissey has more. Lots more.

Linked by: LGF, Flopping Aces, Say Anything, Tammy Bruce and Beltway Blips. Thanks!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

NASA discovers Pollutant on Extrasolar Planet, Humans Blamed


A remarkable find by the Hubble Space Telescope: pollution in the form of Carbon Dioxide on a planet in another solar system.

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting another star. This breakthrough is an important step toward finding chemical biotracers of extraterrestrial life.

The Jupiter-sized planet, called HD 189733b, is too hot for life. But the Hubble observations are a proof-of-concept demonstration that the basic chemistry for life can be measured on planets orbiting other stars...

...Organic compounds also can be a by-product of life processes and their detection on an Earthlike planet someday may provide the first evidence of life beyond our planet.

In related news Al Gore demanded that the United Nations launch a probe immediately "to determine whether SUVs, Hummers or muscle cars are to blame for this outrageous pollutant."

China and India were heard chortling in the back of the room.

Even cached articles on Obama-Blago Senate meetings go AWOL


Although President-elect Obama denied meeting with Governor "Fresh Fish" Blagojevich over his Senate successor, various news sources reported otherwise in November.

Earlier today the Google Cache's copy of a November Connect Tri States article looked like this:

Now that Barack Obama will be moving to the White House, his seat in the U.S. Senate representing Illinois will have to be filled.

Obama met with Governor Rod Blagojevich earlier this week to discuss it. Illinois law states that the governor chooses that replacement. There's already been speculation about his selection...from Congressman Jesse Jackson, Junior to Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth.

But the original article is AWOL:

Content for Src="217582" of Type="application/html; src=cms-id" is unavailable.

And now even the cached copy has mysteriously disappeared down the memory hole.

There's a word that comes to mind and it starts with "cover" and ends with "up".

Update: Like David Axelrod, television station KHQA just retracted both of its stories that mentioned the Obama-Blago meeting (one written before and one written after).

KHQA TV wishes to offer clarification regarding a story that appeared last month on our website ConnectTristates.com. The story, which discussed the appointment of a replacement for President Elect Obama in the U.S. Senate, became the subject of much discussion on talk radio and on blog sites Wednesday. The story housed in our website archive was on the morning of November 5, 2008. It suggested that a meeting was scheduled later that day between President Elect Obama and Illinois Governor Blagojevich. KHQA has no knowledge that any meeting ever took place. Governor Blagojevich did appear at a news conference in Chicago on that date

That doesn't explain the second story which reported -- post facto -- that the meeting had taken place.

The second article was written by a different author than the first, which would imply that independent confirmation of the meeting may have taken place.

Update II: American Digest has more screen-shots.

Update III: Sweetness & Light: "SEIU Was Obama’s Go Between With Blago"

Update IV: Tom Blumer writes "Let's also not forget that Obama spoke at the National Governors Association conference last week, and that Blago was there."

Update V: I found another reference to an Obama-Blagojevich meeting in mid-November: This week Governor Blagojevich met with President-Elect Barack Obama and 47 other Governors to push for assistance.... Anything else discussed?

"[Obama] can get Blagojevich's wife on paid corporate boards in exchange for naming [a] pick to the Senate"


Isn't it fascinating how this particular quote has been buried by the mainstream media?

"The president-elect can get Blagojevich's wife on paid corporate boards in exchange for naming the president-elect's pick to the Senate."

The key words are "paid" and "exchange". Doesn't that warrant a tad bit of investigation by our beloved mainstream media pro-journalist-types?

Of course, there's always the tiny, trivial discrepency in stories between David Axelrod and President-Elect Obama. Namely, that Obama and Governor "Toast" Blagojevich discussed the Senate seat.

Here's David Axelrod on 11/23:

While insisting that the President-elect had not expressed a favorite to replace him, and his inclination was to avoid being a "kingmaker," Axelrod said, "I know he's talked to the governor and there are a whole range of names many of which have surfaced, and I think he has a fondness for a lot of them."

Here's President-elect Obama on 12/9:

“I had no contact with the governor or his office and so I was not aware of what was happening, ” Obama told reporters today in Chicago. “It’s a sad day for Illinois. Beyond that, I don’t think it’s appropriate to comment.”

And here's David Axelrod, later in the date on 12/9, presumably after being informed that his boo-boo was about to bring down a presidency before it even began.

"I was mistaken when I told an interviewer last month that the President-elect has spoken directly to Governor Blagojevich about the Senate vacancy. They did not then or at any time discuss the subject."

Eh, right.

For guys who operated in each other's orbits on a frequent basis, the Obama-Blago relationship has been discussed in the press at length.

• Obama Advised Blagojevich On His Victorious Gubernatorial Run. "That year, [Obama] gained his first high-level experience in a statewide campaign when he advised the victorious gubernatorial candidate Rod Blagojevich, another politician with a funny name and a message of reform." (Ryan Lizza, "Making It," The New Yorker, 7/21/08)

• Obama: "If the governor asks me to work on his behalf, I'll be happy to do it." (John Patterson, "Senator Says He's Still Willing To Help Blagojevich Despite Hiring Concerns," Chicago Daily Herald, 7/27/06)

• Obama Endorsed Blagojevich For A Second Term. "Obama, who endorsed Blagojevich for a second term nearly 18 months ago, said he's ready to help Illinois democrats in the upcoming elections." (John Patterson, "Senator Says He's Still Willing To Help Blagojevich Despite Hiring Concerns," Chicago Daily Herald, 7/27/06)

• Obama: "We've got a governor in Rod Blagojevich who has delivered consistently on behalf of the people of Illinois." (Deanna Bellandi, "Illinois Democrats Talk Unity But Don't Show It," The Associated Press, 8/16/06)

One of the central figures in the relationship was, of course, convicted felon Tony Rezko.

...[Rezko's] strongest ties have always been with Blagojevich. Rezko's and Blagojevich's families often socialized. Rezko and the governor's wife, Patti, a real estate agent, even worked on several property deals together since 1997, earning Patti Blagojevich at least $38,000 in fees.

...Rezko recommended numerous candidates for Cabinet positions and state boards and commissions. And in a sign of how closely he meshed his pizza business deals with his forays into politics, a close circle of Rezko business investors and their relatives received jobs and appointments to influential state posts under Blagojevich... Blagojevich appointed three Rezko pizza business investors to a controversial board that oversees hospital projects. (That board was replaced amid an ongoing federal kickback investigation that led to the indictment of the board's vice chairman.)

The state's business development agency, run by a former Rezko real estate firm executive, employed the daughters of two other pizza business partners, including a man who is a fugitive on federal tax charges... And another Rezko partner got a loan for pizza franchises through a California businessman whose firm won an $83 million contract for redeveloping the restaurants at Illinois Tollway oases. The loan came after an introduction from Rezko. Blagojevich has said those who secured jobs and appointments were qualified...

I'll repeat the key phrase.

"The president-elect can get Blagojevich's wife on paid corporate boards in exchange for naming the president-elect's pick to the Senate."

Perhaps the New York Times can redirect its Trig Palin and Joe the Plumber investigation teams for a few days to pursue this incriminating statement.

That is, before it goes out of business.

If this is the kind of corruption we can expect in the next four years out of the Obama administration, I say we pre-impeach him. It's the only way to be sure.

The timing couldn't be better


Did you know that you can start your own hedge fund for less than $500?

Of course, some folks may not have the extra $500 to spare.

In that case, you may want to consider a lay-away plan.

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

Childish. I know you are, but what am I?



Sorry. Couldn't resist.

What the hell was this putz thinking?

Video: Best Crazy Eddie commercial ever. Linked by: Fausta. Thanks!

The 2008 "Reddies": The Official Redneck Awards


Third place: Redneck Harley.


Second Place: Redneck Bass Boat.


First place...


Hat tip: Papa B.

Coming in January: The Bailout Turbo RX-GXS-RT 16






Hat tip: Chrissie.

Obama, Rezko, Blagojevich: Illinois Governor Arrested


Moments ago The Wall Street Journal reported that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was just arrested for (allegedly) offering to sell the Senate seat vacated by President-Elect Obama (download the complaint (PDF)). Blagojevich and his chief of staff were each charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery. And there's quite a history:

Corruption in the Blagojevich administration has been the focus of a federal investigation involving an alleged $7 million scheme aimed at squeezing kickbacks out of companies seeking business from the state. Federal prosecutors have acknowledged they're also investigating "serious allegations of endemic hiring fraud" under Mr. Blagojevich.

Political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko who raised money for the campaigns of both Messrs. Blagojevich and Obama is awaiting sentencing after being convicted of fraud and other charges. Mr. Blagojevich's chief fundraiser, Christopher G. Kelly, is due to stand trial early next year on charges of obstructing the Internal Revenue Service.

Methinks the investigations aren't done yet. In November MarketWatch reported that (via The Washington Times) FBI investigators were asking questions about the Rezko-Obama land deal.

A former Illinois real estate specialist says FBI agents have questioned him about a Chicago property that had been bought by convicted felon Tony Rezko's wife and later sold to the couple's next-door neighbor, Sen. Barack Obama.

The real estate specialist, Kenneth J. Conner, said bank officials replaced an appraisal review he prepared on the property and FBI agents were investigating in late 2007 whether the Rezko-Obama deal was proper.

“Agents and I talked about payoff, bribe, kickback for a long time, though it took them only a short number of minutes of talking with me while looking at the appraisal to acknowledge what they already seemed to know: The Rezko lot was grossly overvalued,” Mr. Conner told The Washington Times Monday.

Rezko paid the asking price on the same day Obama paid $300,000 less than the asking price to the same seller for his adjacent mansion,” he said. “This begs the question of payoff, bribe, kickback.

...Chicago real estate developer Tony Rezko was convicted June 16 on felony counts of fraud, money laundering, and aiding and abetting a bribery scheme involving kickbacks from companies wanting to do business with the state... Conner said his appraisal of the Rezko property, held in Rita Malki Rezko's name, was replaced with a higher one and he was fired when he questioned the document.

...According to his complaint, Mr. Conner reviewed the appraisal of the Rezko property by another firm, Adams Appraisal, which had set the value at $625,000. The complaint said he told his bosses the property had been overvalued by at least $125,000 and that a “reasonable and fair evaluation” should have been no greater than $500,000.

Mr. Conner said the removal of his appraisal “seemed understood as a crime with respect to the subpoena” of the Rezko property and the FDIC audit.

Aerial photos of the buildings developed by Rezko, Valerie Jarrett and other friends of Obama will give you a new perspective on the meaning of "change".

Aren't the drones glad they voted for a member of the squeaky clean Chicago political establishment to orchestrate trillions in bailouts?

I mean, what could possibly go wrong with that?

After they're done with us, we'll all be hoping for a change.

Update: Gateway Pundit: "Blagojevich Arrest Shakes Obama Presidency to Its Core."

Update II: Jammie Wearing Fool: Obama throws Axelrod under the bus in record time.

CNN somehow forgot to mention the Governor's a Democrat.

The non-believers


At the conclusion of The Hajj -- the annual pilgrimage to Mecca by those of the Muslim faith -- three million pilgrims are reported to have made their way from Mina at Arafat.

During his sermon, Grand Mufti Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh admonished non-believers:

After stressing the importance of following the true faith, Al-Asheikh also emphasized the need for believing other messengers of God. “Whoever does not believe in the messages of the Prophets Jesus and Moses, peace be upon them, is considered an infidel,” Al-Asheikh said...

...He also emphasized the need for intellectual security and protection from extremist, deviant, terrorist and extremist ideologies.

Fars News also reported that a few bad apples spoiled the affair.

The pilgrims chanted anti-US and anti-Zionist slogans during the ceremony also attended by the Supreme Leader's representative for Hajj affairs, Hojatoleslam Mohammad Mohammadi Reyshahri... "God is Great", "There is no Deity but Allah", "Death to Israel", and "Death to America" were among the slogans chanted by the masses in unison as they gathered in the Desert of Arafat...

Perhaps the reporters misunderstood the cries; maybe the pilgrims were chanting Debt to America.

In any event, I patiently searched Google News for sermons that decried the atrocities at Mumbai to no avail. It would seem a curious omission. But perhaps I just missed it.

Hat tip: Gateway Pundit.