Okay, but we're still headed for the dole, whatever you want to call it. The trend toward government employment is one manifestation of Socialism, isn't it? Productivity gains are directly related to improved technology. The dumbing down of the American workplace is reflected in the number of workers who hold worthless College educations. The titans of American business point to India and China, who educate more engineers. If American educated a similar number these occupational skills would become a drug on the market, and most of the degree holders would be flipping burgers. The titans of industry would be wondering where the Liberals Arts majors were, why don't we educate more of them.

The game is called class warfare, and the only difference between most of us and Steinbecks fruit pickers is that we drive newer cars. Going on the dole doesn't have to be a bad thing, but I don't like it when the politicians sign the checks. I happen to think it is your right to have a decent living whether you have one of their stupid jobs or not, jobs which in no way measure what you contribute to society, not that it is your obligation to contribute anything..

The horse is ten times more dangerous than the automobile, not to mention the problem with manure. Environmentalists will tell you that cows are the bane of the planet's exitstence, they pour methane into the atmosphere, and pollute the water supply. Of course we aren't going to eat those horses, (hah!), but as mass transportation they give all these problems new meaning. The horse belongs at the racetrack, period. (Unlike Nascar people do not go to the horse races to watch the horses crash.)

Horses do put us in touch with our humanity, that's a given, but as beast of burden forget it. Camels as horses, never happen.

The only Clinton policy to be rubberstamped by Bush was WTO status for China. WTO destroyed the value of the Petrodollar, while it increased the global demand for oil. The President(s) who signed off on that are to blame. As some private economists will point out, the demand for low priced consumer goods has done nothing to improve our economy. The proliferation of financial engineering has created the various asset bubbles.

It's not going to end well, and breaking ranks with the me too economists, who have given support to the problem, (see last Friday's Credit Bulletin Watch at Prudentbear.com) isn't such a bad idea.

Peak Oil is really Peek-a-boo Oil, however. The various oil and commodity exporting nations realize it is much more in their interests to nationalize resources. (If and when China decides to nationalize it's human labor resources, things will get very difficult). Oil is not nearly as important as food, and labor. There is no point in keeping energy if your country can't utilize that energy for greater economic growth.

But playing to Economic problems is as difficult for the party out of power, like criticizing foreign policy. Bush hasn't turned the economy into a quagmire, only because the problems have taken longer to make themselves visible. The economy as the flip side of Iraq, is slowly sinking in, however.

The economy, like Iraq, confounds the Democrats, who can't run from their earlier positions. This should be the year of a third party candidate, perhaps Al Gore?

As President, if you don't run the economic engine just as fast as possible, you won't get a second chance. All of the current candidates have bills to pay, obligations to their rich donors. (Obama has taken hundreds of millions from Goldman Sachs). I think Bush realized this while he was laying the plans for one North American national entity, they get our worthless dollars, and we get their expensive oil.

That is the only bold proposal out there with a chance of succeeding.

There's been a tendency in the last few years to bring a horse into the Derby with few lifetime races, or on a six week layoff. That Barbaro broke down didn't surprise anyone really, he did not warm up properly, he was nervous, and his coat was dry. The media experts pronounced him the picture of health, (like stock market experts they get caught up in winning). What happened to the filly this year may happen to the derby winner.

Eight Belles was asked to do too much, like Ruffian, who broke down in a match race. Trainers are usually a circumspect bunch. None of the old school ever showed much emotion, except relief when their horse appeared to make the track in one piece. The psychology which allows professionals to ignore sound procedure tends to infect society as a whole. (The stock market analogy again)

Once you move away from the media centers, and get back to the roots of horse racing you will find things are what they always were. There is a certain amount of suffering, and danger, and loss. You or I might be ambulanced off the freeway on the way home. Horse racing preceded the current wave of casino gambling. In some cases racing has prospered because of casino gambling, and when the casinos close some of these racetracks will go with them, but the game will survive, it's about the same age as baseball. Anyone who loves the game will endure the occassional tragedy, that is the story of why the game endures.