They [the press] have been observing the laws of the "free market" you prize so much by reporting and commenting as their corporate owners and advertisers want them to.

We have not had a Laissez-faire economy in this country for at least 150 years. You see corporatism and call it Laissez-faire.

Unless you hate private ownership altogether, even Benjamin Franklin's private printing ventures. Do you?

There's a reason that you libertarians and market fundamentalists, who are more attuned to this trend than most, are so heavily invested in gold.

[also]

http://www.lehman.com/press/pdf/073004_Damocles.pdf

Thanks for the analysis and the link.

I grew up in a poor labor Democratic home and then that busted in divorce. No excuses, but the day you see me with a hoard of gold you can look to the sky and see the killer meteor about to hit the planet. :-)

I do follow the markets and read economic blogs, my favorite is http://bigpicture.typepad.com/, and I find most of them non-political as far as D v. R, but generally antagonistic or condescending to whatever party is in office at the time.

Yeah,huh,yea,yea,yeah,yeah,right. me toes!

I believe we can anticipate General Peterus to delver his report.

Pastries will likely deliver to Gorge and the American people a gross amount of sweet corn with worms from the corn patch.

144 ears of corn

144 ears with awesome worms? Yeah. Yeah. It is awesome to be face to face with worms in corn. O, invite Pollack and O'Hanlon to come hoping down the bunny trail with bucky1 and Osaka Republican Obama? Cheese, Steve Shush, as you well know, Arnie eats succotash right out of the bowl while he does a 360 in a hummer bug motorcycle. Yeah,yeah,yeah,yeah,huh. I forgot that.

Cupidity hop-hop.

See ya' in damn jail?

Me toes need to pick nose and search for gold.

I hope to see you face to face many times before I go to jail with no corn with worms. O, Hugh, what Hewitt wrong with Mike Allen, and O'Hanlon-Pollock's patch of tatter? 'um were rotten, you see because potatoes have eyes, as you know full well, and when the mighty warriors arrived back from Iraq from talking to General Portrayals, the onions made George Bush cry.

Yeah. awesome.

Great president.

Right Buck Fush?

Pelosi stated yesterday that the concept of having no (or greatly reduced) judicial check for 6 months, and having the Attorney General audit the program were "unacceptable".

One can only hope she meant what she said, they do not rubber stamp the republican bill, and the thing winds up in conference.

In the senate last night, it is of interest that a number of senators voted for both bills. Meaning that their primary interest was to get one bill out, regardless. In other words, it was more important to produce even a horrible bill than it was to take a precious week off their recess.

This simply cannot all be laid at the President's feet. The Senate--both parties--clearly announced last night that the constitution and civil liberties are secondary priorities, if they can be called priorities at all. Feinstein last night announced from the floor that she had not even read, nor did she understand, one of the bills. This is how fast this thing got pushed through. Yet, if I remember correctly, she voted aye on the republican bill, handing even more power to Gonzales. That is how decisions are being made in the Senate.

But aren't there actually guidelines in place designed to prevent the Army from engaging in Psy-Ops against the American people? Because the last time I checked there was a word for waging war against the American people though its not commonly used when describing the activities of the Military. (Certain hatemongers of course throw the word around like penny candy when describing their fellow countrymen who happen to dislike violence.)

I speak of course of Treason.

Of course you are correct. I remember when the debate to end the draft was going on; many people warned that an all voluntary military was just another phrase for a professional military and we were going to regret it.

Two different members of my family were military intelligence; one was a field officer. In saying what was legal to say, I got the impression that 'national security' has been used to justify all manner of vile and evil things that the general public would never believe. I mean they would not believe if there was video tape.

We need to elect people who reject empire and interventions. We must return to being a people who leads by example and not by military force.

By the way, when was the last time you heard a friend of yours say 'live and let live' in real life? I used to hear that all the time here in the deep south, but not in years. A small thing perhaps, but that little factoid may say a lot about our woes.

I repent too.

Buck Fush and the go cart these dee-cee critters rode into town in, huh?

I repent agin!

I say do a 360.

Go home toads!

I repent 360 x's.

I go dig tatters.

I hope no ripp pants some more.

I no pass wind on the onion hill.

Clucky...Unless you hate private ownership altogether, even Benjamin Franklin's private printing ventures. Do you?

-- bucky1

What about the Franklin stove and the lightning rod and all the other useful and lifesaving inventions Franklin refused to patent? Huh, smart guy? Huh? Do you?

The Senate--both parties--clearly announced last night that the constitution and civil liberties are secondary priorities, if they can be called priorities at all. Feinstein last night announced from the floor that she had not even read, nor did she understand, one of the bills. This is how fast this thing got pushed through. Yet, if I remember correctly, she voted aye on the republican bill, handing even more power to Gonzales. That is how decisions are being made in the Senate.

-- casual_observer

The Senate doesn't even have a simple Democratic majority and Feinstein is Joe Lieberman lite. But I applaud you for at least mentioning priorites. What are yours?