I can't fathom why this author decided to make herself a target for the wrath (and hatred) of a bunch of smarty-pants assholes.

Anyone who'd buy or sell a house these days without the expert guidance of a professional real estate agent, IMO, is an idiot.

The reams of paperwork involved in a real estate transaction can be a landmine. One tiny mistake or omission could land you in court or cost you thousands. There goes your imaginary savings on cutting out the "unnecessary" real estate agent, know-it-all!

And who's going to come to your aid when you f**k up on your disclosures? You know those disclosures that are mandated by federal, state, and even dictated by local custom.

Oh, I could list a dozen or more solid reasons to hire a professional, but all the finger pointers have all the answers...

Go sell your own house, and let us know how it goes. Jerks!

"...but with no actual ACTION to go with the words, the words are somewhat meaningless, no?

Words, with little action to back them up, got Obama the highest office in the land.

So, what else is new?

You make some curious assumptions. John McCain has never been "my guy." I would never dream of supporting him, or voting for him. Why is it that people like you believe that just because a person is not an Obama fan, s/he is "for" a Republican?

I'll believe it when I see it. Obama has a track record of supposedly taking a strong stand, then failing to use any political capital to follow through on trying to implement the policy. His "tax scam" crackdown will probably prove to be just the latest example....

The legalized scam mentioned in this article from The Nation is a shocking example of how the corporations game the system. It's your money!

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090420/hayes

On March 24 International Paper (IP) announced it had received its first check from the IRS for a one-month period this past fall. The total? A whopping $71.6 million. "It's probably close to a billion a year of cash," McClay said. "If you look at the economics of this business, to make that kind of money today you'd have to be on another planet." IP's stock rose 12 per-cent on the news.

The origins of the credit are innocent enough. In 2005 Congress passed, and George W. Bush signed, the $244 billion transportation bill. It included a variety of tax credits for alternative fuels such as ethanol and biomass. But it also included a fifty-cent-a-gallon credit for the use of fuel mixtures that combined "alternative fuel" with a "taxable fuel" such as diesel or gasoline.

{snip}

Whether or not Congress gets around to turning off the spigot, the episode is a useful reminder of the persistently ingenious ways the private sector can exploit even well-intentioned legislation. Considering that the success of the Treasury's recently announced plan to rescue the financial sector depends, in part, on the private sector not gaming the rules, the black liquor story seems particularly germane.

rules, the black liquor story seems particularly germane.

Yes, it is a scam. I even noted that it was a "legalized" scam. The tax avoidance effort, in this case, is a deliberate perversion of the original intention of legislation. It's a deceptive act. Period.

What part of that is so hard for you to understand?

I hope the American people realize that they are being fleeced.

More likely though they won’t get it that Obama’s promise of “healthcare reform” is like Nixon’s promise of getting out of Vietnam — false promises for positive public relations, to delay and delay and delay.

The medical-political-industrial complex is afraid of the surge in interest in a single-payer system, so this newfound voluntary cooperation is supposed to make us happy for a while -- and make us shut the fuck up.

Obama keeps telling the willing sheeple what they want to hear, and they continue to follow him to the slaughter.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/227/story/66622.html#Comments_Container

McClatchy Newspapers published a report by Jonathan S. Landay titled: "Abusive tactics used to seek Iraq-al Qaida link"

The story begins:

WASHINGTON — The Bush administration applied relentless pressure on interrogators to use harsh methods on detainees in part to find evidence of cooperation between al Qaida and the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's regime, according to a former senior U.S. intelligence official and a former Army psychiatrist.

Such information would've provided a foundation for one of former President George W. Bush's main arguments for invading Iraq in 2003. In fact, no evidence has ever been found of operational ties between Osama bin Laden's terrorist network and Saddam's regime.

political capital for a true public option, you're a sucker.

Community organizer? Obama's stint as a "community organizer" was not a rousing success. In fact, he didn't accomplish much of anything -- certainly not anything that had staying power.

Obama moved to Chicago to become a community organizer. He lived in a small apartment in Hyde Park, but the community he attempted to organize was Altgeld Gardens, a few miles away. He wasn't really "involved" in the 'hood.

“The Gardens” is still burdened with asbestos, crumbling buildings, smashed windows, potholes, and broken dreams — but, the people there love him anyway.

Altgeld Gardens is home to a dense concentration of potentially hazardous pollution sources. Landfills that surround “The Gardens” still lack sufficient regulation to this day, and some of them are still in use. Residents are concerend about the number of cancer deaths in their community, and wonder if those deaths are, in part, attributable to their local environment.

By Obama’s own admission, there were few big victories in his career as a community organizer.

Yes, there's a pattern. Similar to selling snake oil.

...Adams, how did you get it?

Glenn, I do want to kick in some dough for a worthy cause.

I'm the one from Bellingham who emailed you, Glenn.