Archive for August, 2009

Obama’s Baby Steps Into White House

Monday, August 24th, 2009
Anil Selarka asked:




Like a potential good stock that could yield profit and dividend, Americans trusted Barack Obama and elected him as President on his promise of “Change”. In stock market, the investors usually buy on rumor and sell on fact. That rule still applies to the President elect. Barack Obama is beginning to recede on his promise to change.

He is no longer a dashing flawless speaker. He is intermittent, evasive, confused and disenchanted. Instead of adopting change that he had promised, he is following the same beaten path as his predecessors, courting on old guards in Clinton Administration for his new cabinet. It looks like that Bill Clinton is having paramount influence on Barack Obama. Will he be the proxy of Bill Clinton the way George W. Bush was for his mentor father, former President George Henry Bush?

Change? What Change? Obama is beginning to ask himself while facing hard reality. Mr Obama, you had a safe journey in the space so far. Now face the hostile home for a change. Welcome back to this planet.

From whatever we hear and see from his utterances in print and media, he seems to be making startling beginning. It seems that he was during campaign guided on economic front by Rupert Rubin, former Treasury Secretary, now with Citygroup, who is the most dangerous man around in the United States.

Rubin was wholesale destructive. He destabilized and eventually destroyed the Glass Steagall Act , 1933 during Clinton Administration. The 1930 era bill separated the business of Banking, Insurance and Securities for common good. When Citigroup took over Travelers Group, he legalized it by removing the old act.

Had that act survived, you would not have seen today’s crisis in banking, investment banking and insurance world. Almost all these troubled banks are engaged in concurrent banking, insurance and securities business. No one knows who should control whom. SEC would consider banking as FED job, FED will consider derivatives as SEC job and SEC will consider banking default as FDIC job. It finally turns out to be no one’s job.

Rubin created the web of non accountability, a specialization of his parent firm – Goldman Sachs. Paulson, also from same firm, recently followed it up while seeking $700 billions from the Senate on one condition – he would not be accountable nor obliged to make any disclosure. Non-accountability has gained momentum – from a few billions to $ 700 billions and Bernanke perfected it with massive $ 2000 billions or 2 trillions. When Bloomberg asked for the details, the Fed did not bother even to reply. Now Bloomberg is filing a suit under Freedom of Information Act.

Even the husky voiced Senator Barney Frank expressed dis-satisfaction at the use (or misuse or abuse) of $ 350 billions that evaporated in just under 30 days. California fire, Barney, California wild fire!

President Bush was non-plussed. In 8 years, he knew only three things – Iraq (Saddam Hussein), 911 (Twin Towers) and Afghanistan (Osama Bin Laden). In his quest for Middle East and Afghanistan, he forgot the map of United States. While he terrorized Middle East with Patriot missiles, his financial team or gang, Paulson and Bernanke, terrorized the nation, Senators, Senate, the President and American people.

LTCM (that lost $1 trillions in derivatives, officially $ 4 billions as its own capital) was covertly promoted by Rubin with remote control. He organized its rescue when so many inevitable were to come out in open. In same fashion, he created Enron to manipulate the oil prices in the world market through paper trading. When he saw the oil bets going against him, he quietly resigned without attracting any notice. No one asked him why did he resign. Not even ardent admirer, Bill Clinton, then President, who chastised it as greatest Treasury Secretary since Alexander Hamilton.

Salomon Brothers collapsed during LTCM debacle. John Meriwether destroyed the firm in a flash. Rubin therefore hated the Russians who brought about LTCM debacle. Warren Buffet took over Salomon Brothers as great financial bargain and finally got rid of it as soon as possible when the heat became unbearable.

Citibank (now Citigroup) and JP Morgan Chase (JPMC), who financed Enron, sold everywhere its spurious bonds ,similar to sub prime bonds and CDO/CDS derivatives today and got into hot trouble losing billions. Rubin then eased himself into $100 Millions a year job at Citigroup to cover his tracts relating to Enron.

In less than 5 years of Rubin’s non Executive Chairmanship, Citigroup lost $ 70 billions in cash ($50 billions before + $17 billions in the from of taking over liabilities of its subsidiaries in the form Structured Investment Vehicles). He also forced the Fed to guarantee its lousy and worthless portfolio of $ 360 billions. In short, he spent in cash and kind of about $ 430 billions of known figures. How much of $ 2 trillions was given away by bearded Bernanke is not counted.

And what did the Citigroup do with $430 Billions? It fired 75,000 employees. In short, the Fed and Treasury gave $5.74 million to Citigroup to fire each employee.

Rubin followed the strong dollar policy to manipulate the world market, and in fact was instrumental for causing Asian Crisis when Euro was about to be borne. He did not want Asian nations to shift the reserve to Euro, so he destroyed Asian currencies with the help of two renowned Hedge Fund managers – George Soros and Julian Robertson (now dead). What you see today of strong dollar in spite of all troubles are the “ditto” measures adopted by him during Clinton Administration. This time, his other colleague from Goldman Sachs, Hank Paulson is doing that dirty job.

Rubin was clever enough to remain always in the background, allowing pawn players to do the dirty jobs on the foreground. In the event of troubles breaking out, he was always there on crime scene like a forensic expert searching for clues with intent to search and destroying whatever remaining hints floating around that might point fingers at him.

Obama was looking at the same old Rubin during campaign for economic guidance which was the first disastrous mistake he was making in the dressing room before going to play his first game at the White House on January 20, 2009.

Obama appointed his formidable opponent Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. She is a hawk whereas Obama is a dow. There is no matching chemistry. She will wage war with anybody – a female replica of George Bush – totally opposite character of her spouse Bill Clinton.

The internationally acclaimed and a rational person could have been former Secretary of State – Gen Colin Powell who is highly respected by almost all leaders, friends and foes, around the world. Obama missed him in his great baseball shot. He sacrificed Gen Powell in an act of balancing colors to avoid pointed fingers. His first grave mistake on international front even before he took over the office.

Just as President Bush inherited the caucus team of Chenny (Vice President), Don Rumsfeld (former Defense Secretary), Greenspan and other dumb heads from his father Sr. George H Bush, President elect Obama is following the same pattern by inheriting the legacy of Bill Clinton. Change? What Change? There is no change. Same dud and dirty politics.

And here comes another firm. Goldman Sachs. Entire Fed and Treasury buildings are infested with the mammals from Goldman Sachs. Rupert Rubin belonged to that clan. Hank Paulson also belongs to same clan. The newly appointed Treasury Secretary, Timothy ….…., too had a stint at Goldman Sachs. It is Goldman who is calling the shots for over 12 years of America’s mismanagement of economy. Many of the Anchors of business channels like CNBC have GS stamp on their *****. The entire policy is conceptualized in Goldman HQ, policyzied at the Treasury, monetized at Fed, and finally sold like Sub Prime assets through massive publicity in perfect harmony and orchestration via business channels manned by trusted friends who were once upon a time were with Goldman Sachs. Were they deliberately planted? Ask your self. What do you think? I also think the same way.

Obama is now trying to pump another $ 1 trillion into infrastructure spending, after massive $ 2 trillions infusion into the system by the gang of Bernanke and Paulson. He is also hell bent on reducing taxes on individuals. Never did he answer nor did anyone ask, how was he going to bring in income while spending on all fronts and destroying America at the speed of Katrina. The whole nation has become a typified New Orlean where stupefied corpses are found every where in immediate aftermath.

Obama has given first glimpses of his carefully nurtured personality. When the “red blood” is oozing through the main street and wall street, he is talking nonsense about “green air” and exhorting 3 Auto manufacturers to invent green cars. It will be years before those Auto makers would turn their cars green, provided they exist. The immediate priority is to take them out of deep trouble and do everytthing to rejuvenate demand for their products by any means. His currently reflected priorities are not of the becoming of a great leader about to sit on the coveted throne at White House. He has demonstrated so far that he is neither a leader seeking “Change” nor a “Santa Clause” on the eve of Christmas.

The only thing that changed during last 30 days of post election process – His name. He has decided to use his middle name while taking oath at the White House. He is now Barack Hussein Obama about to stride into White House. What is he trying to do by changing his well known name by including “Hussein” in the middle? Pacify Arabs and Islamic nations? If he had used “Hussein” as his middle name during campaign, he would have certainly lost the election in most disastrous fashion. He does not have the mandate from the people to use his “Hussein” brand . Thank God,. he is not changing his first name from “Obama” to “Osama”!

If name change were to usher in the dramatic change in economy, George Bush would be left wondering why did not he think of it while facing disaster after disaster at home and overseas during 8 years of his ignominious presidency.

Obama is therefore showing the sure sign of just another “mediocre” at the White House.

The crisis is so acute that there were reports that “US military was preparing for domestic disturbance” Click here for Newsmaxx Report. With guns being freely licensed through out United States, the nation is sitting on a huge volcano about to be burst. After years of practice of firing billions of bullets in other countries during last 60 years, US Military Commanders will have uphill battle back home for the first time firing for a change at their own people.

Will Barack Hussein Obama be the last ruling President of the nation once upon a time called “United States of America”? Don’t be surprised. It happened to USSR in recent past. It could happen again, this time in America for a change. Is this the CHANGE he was talking about?

Let us prepare ourselves for the “Great Royal Circus” in Washington. The curtain will be drawn on 20th January, 2009. It will be a battle royal in the far flung Afghanistan and Iraq – Obama vs.Osama. And the distraught investor, Warren Buffet, after investing $ 8 billions in Goldman Sachs and General Electric at the instance of Hank Paulson, who will no longer be there after 20th January, 2009, will be awaiting the final verdict from his city – Omaha. Obama, Osama and Omaha – what a rhyme in the American politics!

Poor Lady Liberty must have been tired holding the torch for so long in the middle of the sea. It is time to find new home, she must be murmuring. Where, she does not know.

Kalidas, Hong Kong

Ref: 0812-020 of 2008/12/26

http://www.anilselarka.com

 

Copyrights © 2008 by Anil Selarka (Kalidas)

General permission is granted to any person or publisher for their research needs

or for mass publications provided this Author’s source is duly acknowledged.



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Obama Commemorative Shirts, Stickers and Pins

Sunday, August 23rd, 2009
BJ Norman asked:


 

November 4th 2008 marked the beginning of a new and exciting age for online marketers. The elections of President Obama and the First Black Presidential family has given many online businesses a shot at adding a new line of Obama commemorative products to there online stores.

On November 5th, 2008 we witness the beginning of a new era of people cashing in on the Obama opportunity to earn an extra income by investing in large purchases of local newspapers which carried front line news of President Obama’s victory. One investor in the state of Virginia purchased 10,000 daily newspapers, which he plans to keep as Obama commemoratives, expecting the value to increase over the years. Another online store has already began selling Obama Commemoratives in conjunction with a work at home opportunity.

In the coming months, as the Obama inauguration draws near, and folks prepare for this great event in history, they will also be watching for opportunities to tap into and implement creative ideas based on this great inspirational moment. We can definitely expecting to see many other Obama online opportunities appearing in the coming new year.

Currently, there are many new stores that cater to Obama designs, products such as: Obama T-shirts, Obama hats and mugs, Obama Stickers and Pins, and the list of Obama products go on. The time to grasp a new opportunity has never been as visible as now, and the number of people cashing in on this idea is quite overwhelming. Many people have decided to look for opportunities to earn extra money, while bathing in the excitement of this historical moment. Some of the current opportunities for entrepreneurial are:



Obama Newspaper Owners Investors: some owners have been currently selling newspapers on this historic event on ebay and other storefronts.

Obama T-shirts, pins, stickers are currently being sold, as commemorative items.

Obama websites providing updated information on the upcoming inauguration, monetized by google.

These are only a few of the opportunities that we have seen on the internet in the past few days as the election has come too a close. We expect to find many more Obama opportunities after the historical Obama inauguration. There are also many sites sharing Free Obama Stuff.

 



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President Barack Obama Commemorative Edition Watch

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009
Robert Walsh asked:


Keeping pace with Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States is easier than you think.

Robert Walsh Kids Clothing is proud to announce the addition of President Barack Obama’s watch at http://www.robertwalshkidsclothing.com/21.html. Made available for the first time, this unique 6500 Series Commemorative Edition Watch with a special engraving on the back “The 44th President of the United States Barack H. Obama January 20, 2009, has its own serial number.

This is the same watch President Obama received for his 46th birthday in August 2007. Unlike any other watch, this 6500 Chronograph Watch has travelled on Barack Obama’s left wrist throughout his presidential campaign.

This Commemorative Edition Watch was worn by Barack Obama when he visited the Berlin Wall, and is seen in the photograph when delivering his speech in Berlin.  It was part of the Obama speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver as the Obama photo reveals. In November 2008, on Election night, this watch was ever present in the Obama pictures during the Obama speech in Grant Park, Chicago. Yes, you can wear this very unique Commemorative 6500 Series Watch with an individualized serial number.

You might not have been able to be in Washington DC for the Obama Inauguration, but this watch was there.  You may not have been able to attend one of the Inaugural Balls in Washington DC, but this watch was there.

Now this very watch can be your prize possession that has you keeping pace with President Barack Obama by visiting http://www.robertwalshkidsclothing.com/21.html. At the White House this watch was clearly on his left wrist as he signed his first presidential proclamation.

Don’t miss this very special opportunity to have your very own one of a kind serial numbered and engraved 6500 Chronograph Watch that celebrates “President Barack H. Obama the 44th President of the United States January 20th  2009” on the back of the watch…..the very watch the President himself wears.

 

 

 



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OBAMA LIES – About every thing he tells you-Check IT OUT!

Sunday, August 9th, 2009
Obama Lies asked:


      Stop the Cap & Trade vote – NOW in the U.S. Senate. CALL YOUR SENATOR NOW.



                                  Cap and Trade Sold under False Pretenses


Obama’s health care is just misdirection — the administration doesn’t want you to focus on what’s really happening. While everyone is focused on the propaganda charges with ABC — they won’t notice that Cap & Trade has been jammed down our throats. Now, with Governor Sanford’s debacle, you can bet the White House is cheering on yet another distraction taking eyes away from Cap & Trade.

The 1,500-page cap-and-trade climate legislation, also known as Waxman-Markey, passed by a narrow margin late in the day on June 26. Members of Congress added 300 of those pages early in the morning on the day of the vote. It is safe to assume that hardly any of the 435 Members of Congress read the bill in its entirety, meaning one of the costliest bills in American history was rushed through so politicians could enjoy their 4th of July recess.

Cap and trade is nothing more than a massive energy tax, which is why its chief alternative is a carbon tax, and it has been sold under the following false pretenses:

* It will not cost anything;

* It will increase jobs;

* It will increase green investment; and

* It will save the environment.

A Lot More Than a Stamp a Day

A commonly quoted cost estimate of Waxman-Markey comes from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which claims that cap and trade will cost the equivalent of a postage stamp per day–$175 per household in 2020.[1]

But CBO admittedly ignores economic costs such as the decrease in gross domestic product (GDP) as a result of the bill[2] and the fact that consumers and business will change their behavior as a result of higher energy prices. This is a serious oversight that has significant economic consequences.

In The Heritage Foundation’s economic analysis of the Waxman-Markey climate change legislation, the GDP loss in 2020 was $161 billion (in 2009 dollars).[3] For a family of four, that translates into $1,870–more than 10 times the size of the $175 CBO claim.Furthermore, the Heritage analysis found that for all years, the average GDP loss was $393 billion, or more than double the 2020 loss. In 2035 (the last year analyzed by Heritage), the inflation-adjusted GDP loss works out to $6,790 per family of four.

Energy-intensive industries will also suffer significant losses. For instance, farming is very energy-intensive, with fuel, chemical, electricity, and fertilizer costs; since cap and trade drives up the cost of energy prices, farmers’ losses will undoubtedly outweigh any money they collect from offsets (the money businesses would pay farmers to reduce carbon emissions by either not farming or using more efficient technologies). The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis found that farm income (or the amount left over after paying all expenses) is expected to drop $8 billion in 2012, $25 billion in 2024, and over $50 billion in 2035. These are decreases of 28 percent, 60 percent, and 94 percent, respectively. The average net income lost over the 2010-2035 timeline is $23 billion–a 57 percent decrease from the baseline.

It Is a Jobs-Destroying Bill

President Obama and Democratic House leaders claimed that Waxman-Markey is a jobs bill. With the lavish subsidies for green investment placed in the bill, surely companies will hire workers to build solar panels and windmills; however, the number of “green” jobs will pale in comparison to the number of jobs lost due to higher energy prices and slower economic growth.

The goal of cap and trade is to drive up the costs of energy in order for people to use less of it. Because just about every business uses energy to produce goods and must pay their own electricity bills, the cost of production for businesses increases, and consumer demand falls for two reasons:

1. Price hikes on goods reduce demand, and

2. People have less disposable income due to higher energy prices.

Overall, production cuts and reduced consumer spending destroy jobs and slow economic growth, which further increases unemployment.

The Heritage analysis found that over the 2012-2035 timeline, job losses average over 1.1 million. By 2035, a projected 2.5 million jobs are lost below the baseline–without a cap-and-trade bill.[4] Some jobs will be lost completely, while others will move to different countries where the cost of production is cheaper. Again, these losses are on top of “green jobs” created as a result of the bill.

Less Renewable Energy



The final House bill contained many renewable energy investments in an effort to attract votes. The Waxman-Markey proposal even requires that more electricity come from so-called renewable sources, chiefly wind energy but also others like biomass and solar. Ironically, according to an analysis of the bill by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Waxman-Markey would actually result in less renewable energy produced than without the bill because of the overall decline in electricity use.[5]

Green projects do not pay for themselves; it is the taxpayers who fund the research and development of renewable energy and the cost of the subsidies that are required to make renewables competitive. Yet renewable energy still only provides a small fraction of America’s energy needs, and it is more expensive per kilowatt hour than traditional, reliable sources of energy. Consumers lose doubly, paying more as taxpayers and as ratepayers.

It Will Not Save the Planet

The alleged benefit from cap and trade is that the regulations will reduce carbon dioxide emissions enough to slow warming and reduce global temperatures.

According to climatologist Chip Knappenberger, Waxman-Markey would moderate temperatures by only hundredths of a degree in 2050 and no more than two-tenths of a degree at the end of the century.[6] Even EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson concurred, recently saying, “I believe the central parts of the [EPA] chart are that U.S. action alone will not impact world CO2 levels.”[7]

A multilateral approach would not fare much better. In the case of international cooperation, India, China, and the rest of the developing world would have to revert to their 2000 levels of CO2 emissions by 2050. On a per-capita basis, China would backtrack to about one-tenth of what the U.S. emitted in 2000. India and most of the developing world would have to drop to even lower levels. This scenario, in addition to being highly unlikely, would de-develop the developing world.

Moving Forward

Now that the bill has passed the U.S. House of Representatives, it will likely move to the U.S. Senate this fall. It is important to remember that everything policymakers have promised this bill will do will in fact do the opposite. Cap and trade will drive up energy costs for years to come, resulting in economic pain and higher unemployment. All of these points will be equally important, if not more so, in the Senate debate.

Stop the Cap & Trade vote- NOW in the U.S. Senate CALL 1-212-224-3121 or http://www.usa.gov/ Email, Fax , Call State Local Phone Number SEE Gov. Website For Info.

                                STOP THE SENATE VOTE NOW!



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Clinton or Obama? Who Has a More Viable Path to Nomination?

Monday, August 3rd, 2009
Gurumurthy Kalyanaram asked:


We (consumers) make choices based on their reference points/anchor points. Or put it differently, we evaluate our choices as prospects given our own reference frame based on past experience and other information. Given a particular situation (prospect) with two potential but very different choices/options, two individuals may adopt the two different choices and both would be considered rational and reasonable by the individuals because their choices are consistent with their reference framework and experiences. Colloquially, sometimes we call this as “optics.”

Two behavior psychologists (Kahneman and Tverskey, 1979) discussed this at length and proposed a general theory to explain choices made by human beings. Kalyanaram and Little (1994) demonstrated the application of this theory to marketing, particularly, to pricing.

The prospect theory is applicable to the current Democratic party presidential contest too. Both Senators Obama and Clinton earnestly believe that they have a reasonable path to party’s nomination. Using the formal expected utility theory, Clinton should not be so hopeful but she is because she is seeing the nomination road through a different frame than Obama is seeing. That’s why this is such a dogged race. Only when one of them — Clinton or Obama — perceives his/her prospect dimly will the race for the nomination end.

The report filed by Marc Ambinder of The Atlantic (based on the conference call with the reporters by the two campaigns on May 1, 2008) clearly illustrates the different optics/frame employed by the two candidates.

“THE OBAMA UNIVERSE is governed by the reality that every night, when the Clinton campaign turns out the lights in Arlington, Clinton is not really any close to winning the nomination that when the first intern trudged in at the ***** of dawn. The math hasn’t changed. Obama is 283 delegates away from declaring victory. Obama is winning two superdelegates for every one she wins; every additional superdelegate he receives equals at least 1.X more superdelegates that Clinton must pick up. Not a single pledged delegate has switched to Clinton — indeed, when was the last time a pledged delegate ever switched sides; not a single superdelegate has switched to Clinton; a few superdelegates who’ve counseled patience (like freshman Bruce Braley of Iowa) say they now support Obama. The progressive media establishment — the Olbermanns and Chris Matthews of the world — are regularly inveighing against Clinton’s decision to stay in the race. Obama has way more money to spend, the support of the party’s most reliable constituencies, the ability to expand the map. His divorce with Rev. Wright takes a general election hot pot off the table. He is much more likeable and seen as much more honest than Clinton; Republicans and independents still have warmer feelings for him than they do with Clinton. Clinton’s embrace of a gas tax pause shows that her campaign isn’t serious about policy and voters perceive that. Oh, and voters in Indiana and North Carolina aren’t watching cable news and aren’t really paying attention to Rev. Wright. And besides, they’re tired of all of this: tired of the noise, tired of the distractions, tired of old politics, and ready for change. This long race is hurting the party; superdelegates know this, and the tipping point has been reached.

IN THE CLINTON UNIVERSE, Clinton has all the green cards. Victory, (enough) money, momentum in the national polls, the public acknowledgment of Republicans that she’d be the tougher candidate, the fact of undecided superdelegates, and the testicular fortitude that impresses white working class voters… A month of scrutiny has noticeably eroded reduced Obama’s standing with critical constituencies, and in many critical states, Clinton’s brand is a winner: according to three new telephone surveys by Quinnipiac, in Florida, Clinton leads McCain by eight points; Obama and McCain are tied. In Ohio, Clinton leads by ten points; Obama and McCain are tied. Both Clinton and Obama lead McCain in Pennsylvania; Clinton’s margin is twice that of Obama’s. Most of the remaining superdelegates represent white working class districts (about 75% of them, in the estimation of one Clinton strategist.) They haven’t come out for Obama when was winning; they surely won’t support him when he’s losing. They’ll wait for information to see who’ll beat John McCain, and right now, that evidence points to Clinton. After Indiana (and depending on the margin in North Carolina), it will point even more to Clinton. Obama has proven himself out of touch and unable to dent Clinton’s standing with a critical swing constituency; even if African American turnout exceeds 100 percent, Obama would not be able to win Ohio with a double-digit deficit among white, working class voters. Clinton’s victory in Pennsylvania precipitated a change in the fundamental dynamic of the race. Obama no longer appeals to independents; Clinton and Obama now have roughly the same appeal to independents. In a (near) recession, with expensive gas and good prices, with foreclosed homes and rising health care premiums, Clinton has the knowledge and leadership to turn this economy around, and that explains why she’s done so well. Finally, she’s an underdog, and Democrats root for the underdog. This long race is helping the party; Democrats are excited; Superdelegates perceive this, and the tipping point is coming soon.”



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