Reading between the lines

The average person would look at this story -- a bit on a change in succession for the DoD's "doomsday" scenario -- and yawn, then resume downloading porn.

Brad Spangler, however...

In contrast to the lazy assertions that those who consider the possibility of a hidden agenda advocate a conspiracy theory, we’re being told in this case to uncritically accept a rather unlikely coincidence theory — that it’s just a coincidence that a policy review indicates that this would somehow be a wise choice and that the current holders of those three offices just happen to be neocon loyalists.

So what’s really going on? Hell if I know — but what it looks like ought to scare the shit out of you.

It looks like the President doesn’t trust the military. In particular, it looks like the President especially doesn’t trust the military in the event of a disaster wiping out several leading policy makers at the same time. I believe it indicates the President has potentially gone beyond being merely a little unbalanced and has slipped into the paranoia that Stalin and other dictators have suffered from. I hope I’m wrong. (bold emphasis mine)

Another odd thing about this: considering the common media portrayal of the US as being in perpetual grave danger, you'd think these kind of things would get more attention than this. Even if you take into account the implication that the libertarian equivalent of "Spidey Sense" triggers here, most of the public isn't going to put the pieces together, so it can be used for sensationalist purposes anyway. Why is it still buried despite that? Why is Yahoo -- and through another blog at that -- the first place I heard about this? Wouldn't it make more sense from the Statist Media viewpoint to hype this as somehow necessary to the security of the country rather than make it a sleeper?

New Year predictions

-When it is politically convenient, a claim will be made that a terrorist plot has been foiled. This will be used as grounds for keeping the Patriot Act, despite evidence coming up that the discovery had nothing to do with any new rules established since then. Anyone questioning this will be called "anti-american". Media coverage will be so sensationalized that it amounts to free campaign advertizing.

-Somewhere, a Libertarian will make a significant (as in "damn, he/she coulda won...") showing in an important race in the 2006 elections. This will be ignored.

-Another stereotypically photogenic white woman will go missing due to her own stupidity. This will not be ignored.

-I will laugh at people that made a New Years Resolution.

Buy donuts (or the terrorists win)

Should've seen this coming a mile away:

Many of the loans intended to boost economic recovery following the 9/11 terrorist attacks actually went to small businesses that did not qualify, according to an internal Small Business Administration report.

The report, released by the SBA's inspector general on Wednesday, found that only nine of 59 loan recipients that were sampled showed the attacks "adversely affected" them, which was a requirement to receive a loan under the Supplemental Terrorist Activity Relief (STAR) program. Roughly 85% of the loan recipients in the report did not justify that the attacks hurt them, and many recipients did not even know that the loans were part of a program aimed at providing 9/11 relief, the report said.

Congress authorized the STAR program in the aftermath of 9/11, setting aside up to $4.5 billion in loans to be given by private lenders to small businesses. To become eligible for the loans, small businesses had to show that they were that were "adversely affected," and the lenders would have to document exactly how they were impacted. Congress put the program under the purview of the SBA, which would guarantee up to 85% of each STAR loan.

More than 7,000 small businesses received STAR loans. Some of those loan recipients included a South Dakota radio station, a Virgin Islands perfume shop and more than 100 Dunkin' Donuts and Subway shops, according to the Associated Press.

Billions of dollars. Congress. 9/11. Complicated buereacracy.

Shit, your neighborhood drug dealer probably got a loan....

Numbers

Specifically, numbers you likely haven't heard about if you get your news from TV.

Referring to the record of outgoing Federal Reserve chair Alan Greenspan:

When Congressman Ron Paul reminded Greenspan of (his own past statements on) "Gold and Economic Freedom," Greenspan said he now realizes he had been wrong, and that as Fed Chairman he was able to pursue policies that mimic the gold standard.

That however is a preposterous claim. As Mark Skousen showed in his book The Economics of a Pure Gold Standard, the global supply of gold has historically tended to grow 1-2% per year. Since gold supply would be the basis of money supply under a pure gold standard (or at least the monetary base under the weaker version with fractional reserve banking), then it follows that under a "mimic gold standard" the money supply would grow at the same low rate. Yet between August 1987, when Greenspan became Fed Chairman, and November 2005, the monetary base rose from $233.5 billion to $782.5 billion, a 235% total increase or 6.8% at an annual rate. The M3 measure of money supply rose during the same period from $3.62 trillion to over $10 trillion, a 179% increase or 5.8% at an annual rate. Money supply growth has thus been far in excess of gold standard conditions. (emphasis mine)

It's a pity that the current political climate doesn't allow us to fill his office with cement instead of another body when he leaves....

Nonsense, plain and simple

Colin Powell must've got knocked in the head recently...

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday that it would not have been "that hard" for President Bush to have obtained warrants for eavesdropping on domestic telephone and Internet activity, but that he saw "nothing wrong" with the decision not to do so.

"My own judgment is that it didn't seem to me, anyway, that it would have been that hard to go get the warrants," Powell said. "And even in the case of an emergency, you go and do it. The law provides for that."

He's right about it not being hard to get the warrants:

-The spy court has approved thousands of them in its history & has only rejected five.
-Warrants can be made retroactive, allowing a wiretap to begin without one.
-In the case that the spy court rejects a warrant request -- which it rarely ever does -- there are two levels of appeals available, one of which is calling an immediate private session of the Supreme Court.

With all that in place, I could get a warrant approved for spying on my neighbor if I felt like it. So....why not just get the warrant??? There's no reason at all for such surveillance to just go on without the warrant, getting one is as easy as falling.

Of course, we all know why no attempt was made. This was a dragnet, an indiscriminate grab of anything & everything to be sifted through later. Even the spineless state-worshippers currently on the Supreme Court would've rejected that one, that's been illegal since....ever.

Uncle Sam in my stocking

One of the gifts I recieved this Saturnalia was a preloaded debit card (since you can't send cash in the mail & expect it to actually get there). Before I could use it, I had to call the company's customer service line & get a PIN number. Called, followed the instructions, put in a PIN, no big deal. Then I heard the following message:

"Due to the Patriot Act, your card will not be fully activated unless you stay on the line & speak with one of our representatives, who wil request extra information from you. If you do not do this, your card is subject to cancellation within 48 hours"

Next thing that happened was a message saying they would put me on hold, then the line went dead.

Question for Bush loyalists: how exactly is meddling with my present preventing terrorism?

I had a good Saturnalia, did you?

One of my presents? THIS.

Yes, that address is what you think it is. www.psychopolitik.com

I now have a fully-hosted blog, setup in Nucleus. The technical details are still being worked out, but I WILL be moving there, & this will become a backup site. Once the conversion is complete, emails will be sent out to anyone who has me linked to update.