American Madness

Intelligent Criticism in the Service of a Better Nation




You said it, sista

Posted by Josh Friedlander on | May 27, 2010 | Click to Comment

Re: Obama Is From Mars, Wall Street Is From Venus

Heilrmann writes a great political piece here, but he betrays the general ignorance on the cause of the financial crisis that infects the media. Wall Street did not cause this problem. It may have exacerbated it, but this mess started in Washington and got accelerated on Main Street. Wall Street behaved like any business: it gave the people what they wanted. You want a cheap loan to speculate on housing? Done! You want to give poor people who can’t afford to own a way to get homes so Democrats and Republicans can claim credit for high homeownership? Done! Want us to find a way to help state pension funds make money while the Fed kept rates so low that there was no way they were going to meet their actuarial requirements? Hey, done on that too! Sure, the Street did stupid things. Lehman buying commercial real estate at the top of the market was dumb. AIG not setting aside capital for CDS was stupid. But the Street is getting vilified for giving everybody what they asked for. And the fact that the President and the Congress are focusing all their efforts on the private sector while Fannie and Freddie are not being touched shows us that the Administration is not “standing between the bankers and the pitchforks”. Obama has betrayed himself to be a narrow, left wing ideologue whose worldview cannot accept government’s complicity in the leverage binge we just went through. And in reality, by spending at a pace that makes Bush look responsible, he is setting us up for the ultimate disaster, the downgrade of US Treasuries. And I am sure Obama & Co. will try to blame the Street for that too.

Food Labels for Morons

Posted by Jason Ihle on | May 24, 2010 | 7 Comments

Cross posted at Mostly Movies.

File this one under “More Unnecessary Government Regulation”:

According to a New York Times article, the American Academy of Pediatrics is urging the FDA to require labels on foods that are choking hazards for small children.

I realize that I’m going to come across looking like I’m not interested in protecting kids because what harm could there possibly be in alerting people to potential dangers? If it saves only a handful or even just one child’s life, isn’t it worth it?

Perhaps not. With the growing list of required food labels we’re slowly approaching the point where companies won’t have any space on their packaging for their brand. Ingredients listings and nutritional content have been there my whole life and I see the necessity of those two things. But then you throw in the allergy warnings that have to be plastered onto any food that might have been handled by a person who eats nuts because our society has become so ridiculously paranoid about food allergies and you begin to see the absurdity. Read more

Telling you so…

Posted by Josh Friedlander on | May 9, 2010 | Click to Comment

We’re within a few months of the U.S. economy reeling back into recession/depression because all the current great feeling has been driven by a government debt-fueled reflation. Prepare for the worst.

W Magazine does up Lisa Falcone

Posted by Josh Friedlander on | May 7, 2010 | 2 Comments

On a snowy day in February, Lisa Maria, whose olive green cargo pants and cardigan are neatly color coordinated with a hefty heart-shaped emerald ring, is nuzzling her pet pig, Wilbur, while a cat purrs in the corner and a veritable flock of tiny dogs yaps away behind a baby gate.

A must read.

An Allegory

Posted by Jason Ihle on | April 30, 2010 | 2 Comments

Cross posted at http://movielistmania.blogspot.com/

Imagine there exists a company that runs athletic centers all around the world. It’s a massive company with influence on fitness throughout the United States and Europe as well as many other countries. Each center runs special fitness programs for children. It’s inexpensive, even free in most places, surviving largely on donations. It’s a great way for children to feel a part of something, give them something to do after school and on the weekends that is good for their bodies and their emotional development. It gives them the chance to interact in a positive way with other children from different neighborhoods.

A news story breaks that at your local chapter of this athletic company the man running the children’s program has been accused by several people of sexually abuse. As the news spreads around the country, other victims start to come forward stating that they too were abused in the children’s program at their local chapter. Middle-aged adults begin coming forward stating that it happened to them many years in the past. You see where I’m going with this, right? Read more

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