i can't believe the guy who specializes in growing (and teaching how to grow) dope is lecturing people on jobs. is there any purchase more defined by the term "disposable income" as cannabis? and don't you realize, chadimus, that your very existence is predicated on a GOVERNMENT PROGRAM that encourages you to do what is illegal in most other states? maybe the irony was too big to see. you know, forest for the trees, as it were.

as someone who has a) grown dope, b) lost a job, c) looked for a job, d) found a job, and e) is under the weight of student loans, i feel as though i must be the most appropriate commenter on this thread.

most of chadmus and poor richard's comments are well summarized by the old libertarian motto: "i got mine, go f*ck yourself". chadimus in particular likes to complain that without the wal-marts and giganto corporations of the world, we might still have good-ole small town USA like on leave it to beaver, and yet he is blind to the fact that it's the very, very anti-middle class policies enacted by corporations-first administrations of the last 30 years -- the ones most commenters here point to as a SOURCE (not the main cause) of their economic woe -- that have put us in this hole and need fixing.

it'd be great if everyone could just "git er done" and "fix things" or "baby sit" or "farm" -- of course, fixing things of value -- cars, buildings, computers -- requires education (doh! more student debt!) baby sitting requires families to have enough money to either actually have children or be able to afford baby sitters, and well, we all know about chadimus' conception of farming.

chadimus IS right about one thing: lotsa jobs ain't coming back. of course, we already saw a jobless recovery during the bush years because there was no incentive to make money in any other area than moving imaginary piles of money from point A to point B. oh and in "indoor hydroponic gardening".

but of course, pointing the economy in the right direction is the result of millions of americans getting out there and "fixing things", not, you know, our government actually putting its money where its mouth is and giving more than mere lip service to renewable energy manufacturing.

how do we break it to chadimus that pretty soon, even dope-smokers will go broke?

i fear that your friends may be in for a shock when they touch down in china.

i am living in beijing, completing a UN contract that (oh sh*t) expires in a month.

my girlfriend works for a british firm, but she gets paid local wages (which is becoming the norm). she has a masters degree and is qualified. she also works in the (supposedly) surging and profitable clean energy industry.

her salary is about $22,000. with student loans to pay back, she almost can't afford to move back to the states.

by all means, go east, but make sure you're getting well paid to do so, 'cause just like in the states, a "living wage" is not a sure thing.

you mean someone unseated an unpopular governor with ties to Wall St during a recession largely exacerbated by his former firm who had to resort to name-calling his opponent "fat"?

no way.

the cannibalistic food fight is going to be a joy to watch.

now come on Maine! don't disappoint us!

i was in college in maine and worked to legalize medical marijuana there in 1999, the first state to do so east of the mississippi.

this vote to repeal civil rights is more depressing and disappointing than all the republican victories in NJ, VA or anywhere, combined.

you mean, in NJ, with a horribly unpopular governor who was inextricably tied to Wall St at a time when Nazis have better approval ratings than stock brokers (who also felt the need to stoop to name calling his opponent fat)....you mean it's a HUGE upset that a republican running far, FAR away from the teabagging wing for the GOP beat such a worthless Dem gov?

really?

because this literally knocked me off my feet:

"I don't believe them when they say that people who have major health issues in this country cannot get coverage," she said. "You can walk into a hospital -- they cannot refuse you. They're not allowed to."

WOW. i mean, just WOW. so the teabaggers answer to the health care crisis -- basically proven by the bill they just introduced that isn't even worth the paper it's printed on -- is to go to the ER when you get sick. how can you be so uninformed about something yet so willing to dedicate your time -- you AND your spouse -- to go and protest it.

the shallowness of thought here is overwhelming. she can't even think beyond her answer and see that this is exactly one of the problems that is bringing health care costs to astronomical levels: the masses of uninsured who get sick, and then thrust the cost of the rest of us.

Old Joe, will you defend this type of thinking? if you can call it that? can you defend the GOP bill which leaves 50 million plus uninsured, saves LESS money that the Dem's bill, AND decreases coverage?

[crickets]

is from alaska, 'cause i have heard "ride the pine" away too many times for that to be an alaskan creation.

a glowing review about the palin book is about as awful and useless as a review that dumps on it.

enough.

this american stuffed himself on the usual trimmings: beans, sweet potatoes, even cranberries. but the centerpiece of the meal? two succulent peking roast ducks. with turkey being too expensive here (at least that i could find) roast duck was the obvious go-to option.

now i will attempting to convince my family when i am home next year to give the duck thanksgiving a try.

excellent article.