here's to a New Year?

I keep saying 2009 has got to be better. My friends and family only inform me that life, the economy and everything else will get worse. What optimistic people they are.

On that happy note, I'll leave y'all with some crazy OTHER ways to celebrate New Year's Eve, ... other than the Times Sq. Ball and other than thinking about the recession. Yeah economy!

Check out this story,... it might just make you laugh...


*Allen Sullivan/The giant peach for Atlanta’s New Year’s Eve celebration is hoisted at the Underground.

Tough times

I never thought I'd work on Christmas Eve, actually I never really put much thought to it.

I don't think it's a reflect upon tough times, I think it's the nature of the beast. Often I feel people blame things on some external force that actually has no impact on them, the news is happening at all times, that's why we work on the holidays. The news is life, it's what happens and life happens on holidays.

That all being said, of course the news industry has been affected by the economy. It was already suffering. The industry got kicked while it was already down.


That doesn't mean that people don't want the news. People strive more than ever before to know everything without doing anything... and that is what journalists provide. We give summaries, pictures and videos of what happened without you having to do more than click a button. Now why would people not want to support that type of industry?

Because people are doing it for free...

*Picture from HERE

Shoes and monarchy?

So by now everyone has seen the Bush/shoe incident. What amazes me is how fast President Bush is. I mean really, I guess all those years of baseball finally helped his presidency. So maybe he can't successfully lead a country into war, but he can successfully dodge a shoe. See Bush duck HERE.



Caroline Kennedy is hoping to land Sen. Clinton's Senate seat. Between the Bush's, the Kennedy's and the Clinton's - we might as well have royal families?

The Kennedy's fascinate me. In spite of all the terrible things that have happened from JFK to Bobby to all the issues the family was forced to face in the eyes of the public, it amazes me that they still pursue politics.

*APTN/AP photo

Running is in the job details

Very few jobs require you to actually run. Yesterday it struck me how different journalism is from other jobs. While I was trekking out to Bayonne via PATH and Light Rail the photographer got held up in court fighting a parking ticket. I'm running late, he's running late,... great.

He calls me and says "I'm literally running." (Running to his car).

I sat on the Light Rail and laughed because I'm sure he actually was running. It's so important to be "there" when something is happening, especially when you are a photojournalist.

Then I found myself in a similar predicament. After exiting the lightrail and walking in the wrong direction I finally managed to point myself in the right direction. Then, I started to run. Wearing my pink puffy Northface coat on top of a furry Northface fleece and snow boats, I started to sweat. So then as I was running I started delayering, stripping off my coat and fleece.

Long story short, I made it, I felt disgusting, but I made it. In fact, we both made it.

So I guess there's even more motivation to go to the gym. My training is starting to pay off...

so it's been a while

So after the election I've been pretty bad about posting.

Let me start out by saying that Election Day was the craziest day of my career and it was wonderful. So many people combining efforts to tell one story,... very cool.

So what's new in the world? The economy still sucks, there are even more layoffs and it's colder outside. Things are pretty bleak. Today's New York Times quote of the day is

"In the last year, I’ve put in for more than 100 jobs. I stopped counting after 110. It’s just so defeating."
PAT WEBER, a construction administrator in Fennville, Mich., who was laid off.

In the news:

Clinton as Secretary of State....

I'm actually happy about that role. For a while I critisized Obama for not picking Hilary as VP because I thought it would have made him unbeatable. But now he's given her a role that actually maters - a role where she can make a difference.

Check out this slideshow from the Los Angeles Times on the wildfire devastation. It's hard to believe this actually happened.



The Huffington Post has a pretty amusing feature up, the 100 greatest April Fool's Jokes of all time... their number one?

"In 1992 National Public Radio's Talk of the Nation program announced that Richard Nixon, in a surprise move, was running for President again. His new campaign slogan was, "I didn't do anything wrong, and I won't do it again." Accompanying this announcement were audio clips of Nixon delivering his candidacy speech. Listeners responded viscerally to the announcement, flooding the show with calls expressing shock and outrage. Only during the second half of the show did the host John Hockenberry reveal that the announcement was a practical joke. Nixon's voice was impersonated by comedian Rich Little."

I don't really understand why it's posted in November, but whatever. I guess not all news can be serious. When I worked at a broadcast network the anchor once said, "Remember the summer of the sharks?" (Everyone thought that reporting on all the shark attacks was really silly and repetitive.) Then he followed up with, "that was the summer before 9/11, so be thankful for the funny stories." It always stuck with me.

With a lack of good news I can, and do, appreciate the features.

*fire photo taken by Brian Vander Brug/LA Times pulled from here

ELECTION BLOGGING

Today I blogged for other blogs... here are my stories...

interview with jersey city mayor: http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2008/11/healy_casts_his_ballot.html

Interview with United States Senator: http://www.nj.com/hobokennow/index.ssf/2008/11/menendez_and_hoboken_democrati.html#more

my other posts throughout the day.....

http://www.nj.com/hobokennow/index.ssf/2008/11/free_coffee.html
http://www.nj.com/hobokennow/index.ssf/2008/11/after_voting_its_time_to_canva.html
http://www.nj.com/hobokennow/index.ssf/2008/11/grassroot_efforts.html
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2008/11/journal_square_and_the_polls.html

Check out Rockefeller Center tonight as NBC lights up states according to their political orientation.

Mock vote

T minus two days. America is excited, ...even the underage.

Mock the Vote- See who young Americans are voting for HERE.

Looks like the blonde got it right in this scenario.

*Reed and Lily Zimmermann

Proud to be an American

Every 4th of July in St. Louis they play "I'm proud to be an American" while my cousins and I watch the fireworks underneath the "Gateway to the West" (aka the St. Louis arch) alongside the Mississippi River.


Really how much more American can you get than that scene? It's right out of a novel, except it's better because it's real.

I've seen propaganda videos using this song to support the war in Iraq and though it makes sense to use this song- it makes me sort of sad. I don't look at this song for political reasons, it's a corny patriotic song that my cousins and I belt loudly out once a year.

In short, to me this song unites people, brings us (my family) together with the hundreds of others standing along the Mississippi to watch the Fair St. Louis- I just never thought it'd be used to divide.

Looking at the lyrics it was clearly chosen for a reason.

*Fireworks by: Eric Zimmermann
*Arch pulled from here

Looking ahead

Looking at my own pole, I don't think I realized how soon around the corner the election actually is happening. I mean, I feel like it's been election season since last summer. Just 12 days until Americans will get to "make a difference" by casting their ballots.

Tell me what you think of the American voting system? Do you agree with the electoral college? First past the post?

If any state screws up counting votes this year, which state do you think it will be?

Which state do you think will be the closest?

What state do you live in and which way do you think it will swing...red or blue?

What they think

"I'm voting for John McCain for several reasons. First I know who he is and what he stands for. He answers questions directly. Secondly, there's no better commander in chief than a former POW who currently has two sons stationed in Iraq. Thirdly, he isn't going to raise corporate taxes that will send American jobs overseas. And lastly, he wrote a nice letter to my son --- what a way to get a mom's vote!" - NANCY, DALLAS, TX

And just for fun, here's what my 7 year old brother and 4 year old sister have to say...

"I am for Obama and my Pink Bear is for McCain." - LILY

"I support John McCain because he is a Republican and a brave soldier. Also, I do not like that Obama tells parents to turn off TV and video games." - REED

Endorsement, baseball and skit...

Colin Powell, perhaps one of the most esteemed men to work for our government in the last two decades, endorsed Obama. Donations soar.

Sox lost to Tampa Bay, leaving Tampa to play the Phillies in the World Series. Below is a photo of the Mike Timlin with his son packing up his locker.



Palin made her own appearence on SNL. See Fox News coverage HERE. Watch Sarah rock out to Amy Poehler rapping about Alaska.












*Powell picture from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Amy McConnell Schaarsmith
*Red Sox photo from the Boston Globe, Suzanne Keiter
*Palin picture grabbed from NBC Dallas affiliate

Always Amazed

How about that game?

Seriously, talk about waiting until the last minute. Boston Red Sox come back.

"The seven-run deficit was the largest overcome in a postseason game since Game 4 of 1929 World Series, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. In that one, the Philadelphia Athletics trailed by eight before a 10-run seventh inning powered them past the Chicago Cubs 10-8." - AP

Debate

From taxes to terrorists, last night's debate was by far the best.


My favorite part would probably have to be the overkill of "Joe the Plumber," mainly because though the catch phrase sounds like just that, another catch phrase, Joe is a real man who Obama spoke with on Sunday.

Maybe Palin really is the bulldog. If she's not going to correct people from calling Obama a terrorist during rallies, but McCain will. Well, to me that just looks like she's doing the dirty work.

Attack ads- they both got angry with each other over the issue. Personally, I think attacking someone's policy is different than attacking his person. So calling a man "a liar" or "a terrorist" is different than saying, hey, this policy won't work.

I watched the debate with a friend last night who said she thinks she's going to vote for Obama. Her logic was as follows. "If Obama dies, Biden knows stuff. If McCain dies, Palin's an idiot."

More commentary on the debate later today...

*Debate picture: Dharapak/Getty pulled from the New York Daily News
*Obama/Joe picture: Hong/AP pulled from the New York Daily News

Debate Tonight

Don't miss the third presidential debate on tonight at 9 p.m. It will most likely be more of the same repeated over again. McCain will try to re spark some of the former energy that has recently faded.

A New York Times poll suggests that McCain's attacks might be hurting him more than helping him. Ignoring the fact that the majority of people who voted on the New York Times poll were probably liberal in the first place- it's hard to see how his attack ads wouldn't be looked down upon.

It reminds me of the 2006 race for Governor in Massachusetts when Kerry Healey (former Lieutenant Governor under Mitt Romney) kept launching attack ads against Deval Patrick. At the time everyone I spoke with couldn't stand her ads, and several of my friends decided to vote for Patrick simply because of this.

And, as we all know now, Patrick won the election.



Advertising is key if, and only if, it's done correctly. Otherwise you're spending millions to shoot yourself in the foot...

Don't miss tonight's THIRD PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE.

*AP photo, pulled from foxnews.com

Morning Update

Did you see Biden on Hardball last night? See what everyone is talking about here.

Wildfires in LA... see front cover of New York Times. Approximately 1,200 people from the Los Angeles County have been evacuated.



This morning Bush announced that the U.S. will pour $250 billion into its banks.

And finally, with the election just around the corner do you find yourself still at a loss? Find out if you are a politically loyal Democrat or Republican by taking this political humor quiz.






*NYTimes cover from their website.

Lending, Newspapers= bad news and TIME

While we wait to see what type of interbank lending European banks and governments agree upon... some worry about the idea. The New York Times today says:

While the government initiatives agreed to over the weekend are aimed at reassuring the financial markets, some economists fear that the patchwork nature of some of the measures could fuel further instability by tempting investors to move capital around to take advantage of those countries perceived as the safest havens.

“If you build a nice, comfortable ark for the banks, the question is, ‘Who doesn’t get a seat?’ ” said Simon Johnson, a former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund. “The answer is the emerging markets.”

Newspapers deal with more trouble. Online ad sales "have slowed to a crawl."

TIME

My impulse buy at the supermarket last week was not the traditional candy or gum, but instead a copy of TIME magazine. Largely I bought the magazine for the picture on the front.




It features a black and white photo from the 1930's with people in trench coats and newsie hats lined up at a soup kitchen. The headline reads: "The New Hard Times." However, the best photos can be found in the inside on page 37 (if you have a copy). On the top part of the page is a black and white photo from October 24, 1929 featuring "panicked investors outside the New York Stock Exchange as share prices plunge." The color photo on the bottom of the page was taken on September 30 of this year showing "reporters and others outside the exchange a day after the Dow fell a record of 778 points." The pictures look remarkably similar. The article, "The End of Prosperity?", actually does a good job of outlining the current crisis and comparing it to the crisis of the 1930's. Niall Ferguson, who wrote the article, writes how we can use, and have used, the 1930's as a lesson and how history doesn't have to repeat itself.

Read the article HERE, and see the 10 step process of how we got here.

*Soup Kitchen picture: Chicago, 1931, Corbis photo pulled from Time.com

More: what they think...

From the RED side... Here's a view from Seattle...

"I haven't been paying much attention to the news or the election lately; rather, I've been avoiding the news and the election lately. It's all very depressing, and I find the more I engross myself in work and other endeavors instead of watching the world crumble around me, the happier I am. That being said, I caught myself in a bar last week (or whenever the VP debate was), and the VP debate was being projected and literally everyone in the bar was watching it, instead of talking to each other, making merry, etc. I watched Biden flash his big, white, denture-perfect smile over and over, and cringed every time Palin went off-script. She's clearly not as slick as he is, but he is so disgustingly disingenuous I wanted to throw my hands in the air and flee the place screaming. I'm very frightened that Obama will win this election, through no virtue of his own. GW is astoundingly unpopular for a variety of real and manufactured reasons, and his complete disregard for the GOP in the past few months has set McCain up for a hard loss. It seems this election is already decided, at least where I live, but I'll still be casting my Red vote, whether it counts or not in this aggravatingly blue state. Here's to socialism."
-Kevin, Capitol Hill, Seattle, WA.

Big Two?

Talks of a possible merger between Chrysler and GM are in the mix.... It's what the New York Times calls " a deal that could drastically remake the landscape of the auto industry by reducing the Big Three of Detroit automakers to the Big Two."

BOSOX are at it again beating the Rays last night in Game 1 of the ALCS!





Can we stop with the Bill Ayers talk? I mean seriously, TWO DECADES later Obama and the Ayers sat on two non profit boards together.


See McCain's new negative ad that highlights the Ayers controversey by clicking here.

In the ad titled "Ambition" a woman says:

“Obama's blind ambition. When convenient, he worked with terrorist Bill Ayers. When discovered, he lied. Obama. Blind ambition. Bad judgment. Congressional liberals fought for risky sub-prime loans. Congressional liberals fought against more regulation. Then, the housing market collapsed costing you billions. In crisis, we need leadership, not bad judgment.”

*Jonathon Papelbon picture from Associated Press pulled from nypost.com
*"Bill Ayers after being arrested in 1968, and in 2001, as a professor at University of Illinois-Chicago"- Taken from the New York Daily News

Down Down Down - Dow

And so they fall, and keep falling....

Best headline of the day is from the London Times: "London bloodbath after selling sweeps in Asia."

Several notable parts of the article I've quoted below.

"This is a bloodbath. It is discomforting that global markets are not reacting to the measures regulators have taken," Hiten Agrawal, head of research with Angel Broking in Bombay, said.

Oh Hyun-Soek, at Samsung Securities, said: “It’s beyond panic. Concerns about the global economy are deepening further and there is no sign of easing in the global credit crunch.”

Questions over whether or not GM will make it are being asked. The Daily News featured an article, "Wheels falling off for GM," with and old fashioned 1950's convertible picture. The caption says, "Iconic '55 Chevy Bel Air is echo of era when U.S. autos, it seemed, ruled the world."


The Wall Street Journal looks a bit deeper into the story.

*Graph taken from wsj.com
*Car photo is from the AP, pulled from nydailynews.com

More: what they think...

How about some opinions from St. Louis, LA and Massachusetts?

"McCain= Bush = war under false preface= bad fiscal policies (when is the last time the saying a "fiscal conservative" not an oxymoron?) = outing FBI agents= poor speaker (and they tell you need to spake correctly to get ahead?" = deteriorated American standing both politically and economically. . I'm sorry, was that a Palin answer?" ERIC, LOS ANGELES, CA

"Not crazy about either (Obama or McCain). They both promise anything just to get elected and end up doing what all the others before have done--zilch."
CAROL, ST. LOUIS, MO

"I plan to vote for Obama-- I don't think he's perfect, but I was never really a big Hillary fan either, but I do tend to lean left. He's an awesome public speaker, confident and seems pretty sure of himself which in turn makes me sure of him. However, if an awesome Republican who was pretty moderate came out and ran, I could be swayed that way as well. I don't know much about Biden, to be honest, but he seems legit enough from what I can tell. I need to read more. That being said, Palin drives me crazy, with her socially conservative Walmart-mom standpoints-- obviously not really what I'm about personally-- and who gives a shit about Alaska anyway, the population she governed is like 10 people. And McCain is like a lesser form of Bush all over again, despite his claims that he hasn't agreed with Bush on everything, but I guess that may be an exaggeration slash he might regret it. Obama may be more ideas than action at this point, but I think he has the potential to do great things. Whereas McCain reminds me of a creepy hobbit who has already passed his peak of potential for doing good, besides the fact that I disagree with his conservative lean. He's always talking about his record & Obama's short record, but I don't necessarily care about records that strongly-- it actually kind of bugs me that whole "flip flopper" Kerry-style argument... like people can't change from 1980-now?? The world has changed, your votes will change, and it's not like a new guy can't do right too. duh. ---I like watching the debates, but they get a little redundant over time. You start to feel like they're saying the same things over and over, and it's all just shifts in rhetoric anyway. Which is understandable because they aren't really in the position to change or prove anything yet. And it's tough because it's not like I'm a good enough citizen with enough free time to actually read/pay attention to Obama's foreign policy & economic plans-- I just hear what they are and what they suck at from newscasters, speeches & opponent criticism. Sometimes I wish we were all just given (2) 500 page books called "McCain's Background & Policies" and "Obama's Background & Policies" and you just read through that synopsis, hear a speech, and that's that. Because when you watch debates, etc., everything gets twisted and shifted and who knows what they'll actually do after inauguration."
RENEE, BOSTON, MA

Reactions to last night and what the FED did

The FED helped lead a coordinated interest rate cut for the world's central banks. Read this to learn more.



Not suprisingly the Drudge Report says McCain won last night and the Huffington Post says Obama won.

The Wall Street Journal Poll puts Obama on the top.

CNN's poll says 54 % of people thought Obama performed better and only 30 % said McCain did better.

"A majority said Obama seemed to be the stronger leader during the debate, 54 percent to 43 percent, and by a more than two to one margin -- 65 percent to 28 percent -- viewers thought Obama was more likable during the debate." - CNN article

Roger Simon of POLITICO wrote an article titled "McCain loses by not winning," which sums up about what most pundits were saying last night. His campaign so far has consisted of constantly re-energizing- after the last two weeks McCain needed that, but most agree he did not get it last night. He might have done well, did he do well enough?


Simon writes:

"McCain unveiled, without any details, a new plan for the government to buy up mortgages that people can no longer afford to pay. But mostly they went over old ground, dragging each other up and down the canvas, like two pugilists who knew each other’s fighting style. No heads snapped back, however, no eyes puffed up, and no mouths got all that bloodied."

I couldn't say it any better myself...

What are your thoughts?

*Financial Crisis picture by Emmanuel Dunand/ Agence France-Presse-Getty images, from NYTimes site
*McCain/Obama picture by AP from Politico site

Debates and Campaign Promies

A little more than a year ago I sat in a lecture hall listening to a British professor give a lecture while I was jetlaged and most of my classmates were asleep. Though I was close to dosing, I'll never forget part of his lecture where he basically said: "We (meaning the Brits) were at the top, and then you (the Americans) surged to the top after World War II and became the super power, and some day you'll be in the same situation...China is coming up fast."

Both Obama and McCain mention China and I can't help the chill that goes through my bones thinking: the transition is already underway.

Energy, Health Insurance, Taxes, ...

McCain, answer the question. Points for Obama there.


However, McCain did better than he has been doing. The mortgage idea was new. Though idealistically bailing every American's mortgage and revaluing them so that person can stay in their house sounds great, I have no faith in the plan, and in actuality I have little to no faith in either candidate.

Regardless of their promises our system of government just isn't built that way. Our forfathers built the system based on a seperation of powers. Last April I wrote a 30 page thesis on this. Anyway, here are two notable quotes from Jeff Fisher, author of "Presidents and Promises," that I'd like to share.

“If candidates claim they can actually achieve what they promise, discount their claims by whatever you know about the following: Congress; interest group power in Washington, “Cabinet government” and White House staff behavior; the executive branch and federal judiciary; state and local government; the Democratic or Republican party; a mixed but still market-based economy; the international economic and political system; unforeseen future events and crises; the candidates’ demonstrated ability in forging governing, not electoral, coalitions; and the next presidential election.”

In Fisher's book he also notes that one of President Carter's most senior advisors said:

"Presidents should never promise anything to anybody. I would like to see promises banned from presidential campaigns. Stu Eizenstat and I worked on him for weeks back in 1976, trying to persuade him not to be specific about promising to create a Department of Education. He wouldn’t listen. So we got broadsided by Reagan for the “bureaucraticness in Washington” because we created Cabinet-level departments like the Department of Education that mattered only to a few people at the NEA [National Education Association.] The same is true for most of our other promises. All we got was a lot of grief from the press for being naïve in making them, or interest groups who should have been our supporters but spent most of the time demagoguing us for not doing enough, the NEA, incidentally, is an exception. They were usually good and loyal friends. My general point is still right. Campaign promises are poison. "

So cynicism might have won the best of me, but I sure hope it loses in the bigger battle. I'd love to be proven wrong.

*Picture by Steven Crowley New York Times

See front cover

The front cover of the Star Ledger features faces from around the world with their reactions to yesterday's world wide market trouble. I think it adds the human element to the story rather than just showing numbers and a graph. Check it out.

What they think

I emailed friends and family of mine throughout the country to ask their thoughts on the election and the debates. Here are a few of their comments and more will shortly follow...

"Although I have been a Republican for many years, I am planning on voting for Obama. George Bush and the Republicans remind me of the Biblical parable of the man with ten talents who didn't use them. Bush had both houses and the executive branch for so many years, and he could have used his political capital to do so much good. Instead he got us into a costly war, unbelievable debt and made enemies of the rest of the world. It's time for a change."

-Nell Anne, Irving, TX

"I worry that the economic mess will be laid upon McCain's
doorstep and cost him the election. The economic policies
which led to the recent collapse are the product of both
parties. The is blame enough to go around."

-Mark, Dallas, TX

“I’m going to vote for Obama, not enthusiastically because I was a Hillary supporter, but he’s the lesser of two evils. There was a point in time when I actually considered McCain, but he’s just a slime idiot, there is no way I'll vote for him.”

-Cindy Redwood City, CA

Have your say, what do you think?

*Texas map taken from politico
*California map taken from edjoin.org

Who won the debate?

Personally, I think Palin did better than expected, but I don't think that made her win.

Let's see what others are saying.

The Nightline's Daily Pick Blog had George Stephanopoulos grade them. How'd they fare?

On Strategy:
Biden: A
Palin: A-
Style:
Biden A-
Palin A
Accuracy:
Biden: B
Palin: B

This article by NDTV is worth a read, it sums up what various media sites and bloggers thought of the debate.

Kansas City Star reporter George Harris says: "Random and non-random polls for the vice presidential debate declare Biden the winner over Palin in the vice-presidential debate."

See the rest of his article here.



MSNBC and CBS put Biden on top, but noted Palin's improvement. Though it's hard to judge how well Palin actually did because she managed to dodge several of the moderators questions and instead recited talking points like it was her job. Talking points were so obvious that while watching the debate you could see her smile after she finished one out of pure relief.

What's your take?

*AP photos taken from Welt Online

Senate Approves Bailout, Debates Tonight

The Senate approved the ammended bailout yesterday throwing it back to the house.

The Post thinks it's pork barrel.

The Times tries to be impartial, but fails on comments like this:

"The political tension was clear as Senator Barack Obama walked to the Republican side of the aisle to greet Senator John McCain, who offered a chilly look and a brief return handshake."

Editorialize much? (Emphasis added)

Don't miss the VP debates tonight. Joe Biden v. Sarah Palin. With his "mess ups" and her stutters/ lack of knowledge- it should be more entertaining than your typical Thursday night sitcom.

The Hartford Courant says this of tonight's debate:

"Thus, the ghoulish fascination — like waiting for a crash at a NASCAR race — with tonight's debate. National expectations for both Biden and Palin to commit a blooper are high. Both will be rewarded simply for not making a mistake."

And I'm sure we can all look forward to whatever Tina Fey does after tonight...

Notable News

Mayor Bloomberg will seek a third term. With term limits in place the billionaire, ex Wall Street trader, mayor will seek to run for a third time in order to preserve stability in the midst of the financial crisis.

Congress will meet again to vote on a bailout plan, but on a plan with different/varied terms. See who voted "NO" last time by looking at the New York Times breakdown.


An earthquake shook the Los Angeles area. No major injuries have been reported.

The Huffington Post posted this quiz from Vault. See if you can pass.

*Bloomberg picture: Mendez for News, taken from the New York Daily News
*Trading picture: Justin Lane/European Pressphoto Agency, taken from the nytimes.com

The day after the fall

And so as you can see from just the front page of the New York Times- yesterday was devastating. The front page of the New York Daily News features one large red arrow facing down with the number 777 largely displayed followed by two bullet points that read:

*Fools on the Hill vote down bailout
*Dow takes biggest point plunge ever

In the Times business section Andrew Ross Sorkin writes in the "Dealbook" that he attended a class of directors of the nation's Fortune 500 in 2002 where Stanford University professor Joseph A. Grundfest (who is a former commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission) said:

"If there are ways people in this room go to jail, it's probably through crimes of upholstery - the cover-up will kill you."

Read Sorkin's full article here.


Also, a sad day for the media as wall. The New York Sun will publish it's last edition today. Posted on their website are remarks from editor Seth Lipsky. At one point he says:

"We have spoken with every individual who seemed to be a prospective partner, and everywhere we were received with courtesy and respect. I tend to be an optimist and held out hope for a favorable outcome as late as mid-afternoon today. But among other problems that we faced was the fact that this month, not to mention this week, has been one of the worst in a century in which to be trying to raise capital, and in the end we were out not only of money but time."

See all of his remarks here.

*New York Times picture from their website
*New York Sun picture from the New York Daily News

"I'll have to get back to you on that one"

And Tina Fey is at it again. I've actually heard people say they want McCain to win just so that Tina can keep doing her impression for four more years... Not sure if that is the best way to go about deciding on who to vote for, but she sure is entertaining.

Taking real lines from Palin's interview with Katie Couric- see this SNL skit.

*Photo taken from eFluxMedia

Wall Street and Washington Woes

Today was bad. Today was really bad.

People flocked to Wall Street and to Times Square to see what the heck was going on.

The result of today:

"In a moment of historic drama in the Capitol and on Wall Street, the House of Representatives voted on Monday to reject a $700 billion rescue of the financial industry."*

And what did this do to the stock market? Dow closed down 777.68 points lower than Monday. It's the biggest drop since 1987.



With members of Congress from both parties wanting the rescue passed- some blamed its failure on partisan ties, while others said constituents actually had an influence by calling their representative and still others say it's politics. Tonight on the Nightly News they discusses that a majority of NO votes were from congressman and women who are worried about the up and coming election. They're worried what passing a $700 billion dollar plan will say to their constituents. Understandable I suppose.

However, it's not understandable to leave the nation in crisis and take off for a holiday. Yes, it's a holiday, but people work through holidays all the time and to just leave in the middle of an unresolved crisis is not the best plan of action.

Today Charles Hurt wrote in the New York Post that the reason why American's are revolting the Wall Street rescue plan is because "they're all puking over the notion that it's the same bums in Washington who caused the mess by allowing it to fester who are now demanding their money to fix it. It's like the criminal who breaks into your house, hurts himself, then sues you for damages. The reason Americans endure their federal government is that it is so inept and useless that it has little bearing on their everyday lives. But in an economic meltdown like this, people dont have a choice but to feel the fallout of their government's incompetence..."

So people are calling and saying vote "no," but then congress did vote "no," now what?

Nobody is winning. Nobody seemed truly happy with the deal, but what other choices are available? What's happening to retirement funds? What's happening to the economy?

Maybe there's a reason newsy (or flat cap) hats of the 1930s are coming back into style, the clothes match the economy... and the economy keeps falling...





*Quote taken from a New York Times News Alert
*Stock Exchange Picture: Richard Drew/Associated Press
*Flat Cap Picture from Flickr

Debate

Americans watched the debate, featured to the right, just like I did. Note the pictures taken from my computer. Here's my notes throughout...

Financial Crisis:

McCain: I want to emphasize one point...this is the end of the beginning.... We've got a lot of work to do.

Obama: I do think there is contstructive work going on out there... the question we have to ask ourselves is how did we get into this situation in the first place?

Obama: we need more responsibilty... but not just when there's a crisis

So far it's like they are giving mini speeches.

As the moderator said: I'm just trying to get you two to talk to each other.

McCain: we've got to fix this system... We have a long way to go, and obviously stricter interpretation and consolidation of regulatory agencies that weren't doing there job. But i have a fundamental belief in the american worker... I still believe under the right leadership our best days are ahead of us.

FUNDAMENTAL differences

McCain: get spending under control. We spend $3 million to study bears....I'm going to veto every single spending bill that comes across my desk- WOW sounds familiar.

Obama: Let's be clear ear marks account for 18 billion dollars, but mccain has propposed a tax cut of 300 billion....We've got to grow the economy from the bottom up.

McCain: Sen. Obama suspended those pork barrels after he started running...I was called the sheriff by one of the members in the appropriations committee. I want to cut taxes and keep spending low.

Obama: I dont know where John is getting his figures.... health care... stop jobs going over... back to the original point. And when I'm president... eliminating earmarks alone is not going to get the middle class back on track.

McCain: A lot of people might be interestied in Sen obama's def of rich

mccain: this is an example of walking the walk and talking the talk. You've got to look at our records.... Who has been the person who has tried to keep spending under control.




RESCUE PLAN:

Obama: We have to have energy independence so that in 10 years time we have become independent from independent oil....We have to fix our health care system which is putting an enormous burden on families. We have to do that now because it will actually make our businesses and families better off. We have to make sure that we are competing ... that our children our keeping pace. And we have to make sure that college is affordable. And improve our infrastructure. There are some things that we've got to do structurally to compete globally.

McCain: No matter what we've got to cut spending. Sen. Obama has the highest spending record. I think that we have to return, particuarly in defence spending,... we now have defence speding that is completely out of control. Need fixed costs contracts. We need to understand that defense spending is vital. I saved the tax payers 6.8 billion dollars ... "We fixed it and we killed it and people went to federal prison...

McCain: spending freeze

Obama: problem is you're using a hatchet when you need a scalpel.

McCain: The fact is that we can create 700,00 new jobs by creating nuclear power plants.

Obama: the only point i want to make is this is that if im going to have to make those tought decisions we need to know what our values are...i want to make sure we aren't shortchanging our long term values.

McCain: i want to make sure we arent handing health care over to the federal government.

Obama; John, it's been your president who you said you agreed with 90 percent of the time who increased spending...

WAR




McCain: it's well known that I have not been elected Ms. Congeniality...


McCain: we will win in Iraq and we will come home with victory... we are winning in Iraq.

Obama:The first questions is whether we should have gone into this war to begin with. Six years ago I opposed this war..... We hadn't finished the job in Afghanistan... I wish i had been wrong for the sake of the country and they (bush and McCain) had been right.. We took our eye off the ball. Not to mention we are still spending 10 billion a month when they have 79 billion surplus....John you like to pretend like the war started in 2007.... you said we knew where the weapons of mass destruction were, you were wrong...

McCain: I'm afraid sen Obama doesn't understand the difference between a tactic and a strategy. Sen. Obama did the incredible thing of cutting off the funding for the troops

Obama: Sen. McCain opposed funding for troops that had a timetable...We had a difference on the time table not over funding the troops...The war on terror started in Afghanistan and it needs to end there... We need to bolster our efforts to capture and kill Bin Laden.

McCain: Petraeus and Bin laden have one thing in common, that Iraq was central....if we snatch defeat from the jaws of victory it will lead to a larger war.

Obama: Yes we need more troops.... we had the highest fatalities in US troops since 2002... I would send 2 to 3 extra brigades... Here's what we have to do comprehensively press the Afghan government and make sure they are dealing with their people...

McCain: First of all I don't want to repeat my mistake... ignoring Afghanistan - we have to wash our hands of history...I'm not prepared to cut of aid to Pakistan, so I'm not prepared to threaten it. Sen. Obama said he's prepared to launch strikes. You don't do that, you don't say that out loud.

Obama: Nobody talked about attacking Pakistan....If Pakistan is unwilling to act we should take them out. Presidents have to be prudent in what they say, coming from you someone who has threatened extension of North Korea...

McCain: Mother asked him to wear bracelet of her son who died ... mother said... I want you to do everything in vain that my son's death was not in vain. I know what it's like to be in defeat. I know how hard it is for an army and a military to recover from that. And it did.

Obama: I have a bracelet too... No US soldier ever dies in vain... because they are following the orders of our commander in chief

McCain: we cannot allow a 2nd holocaust...

McCain: wants to create a league

Obama: thinks Republican guard in Iraq are terrorists....


MORE TO COME FROM THE DEBATE... AND COMMENTARY TO COME....

Debates over Kissinger's point of view and Putin

Notable quote.... McCain:

"I looked into Putin's eyes and I saw a K a B and a G"

Headline News

Today's New York Times ran two Beatles-esqu pictures of the presidential nominees crossing the street. Both snapshots taken of the possible president to- bes feature each with the same stride and same arm position. The art looks good on the front page. (And you've got to love the umbrella behind Obama if you're on the east coast right now.)



Beneath that there is a story headlined "In Largest Bank Failure, U.S. Seizes, Then Sells."

The lede paints the whole ordeal in a rather dramatic and depressing light.

"Washington Mutual, the giant lender that came to symbolize the excesses of the mortgage boom, was seized by federal regulators on Thursday night, in what is by far the largest bank failure in American history."

Wow, harsh.

In the New York Post on page 3 there's a story about Marilyn Monroe. She's really making a comeback this month, with the cover of Vanity Fair and all.

Anyway, check out this opening paragraph:

"She died 46 years ago, but men are still fighting over Marilyn Monroe."

This seems disturbingly accurate.

And what about the debate tonight? Will MC show up or not?

The NY Daily News has a pretty entertaining article on the subject.

It begins with:

"Blame on both sides of the aisle after 'political theater' puts rescue, Prez debate at risk.
JOHN MCCAIN'S SELF-APPOINTED mission to rescue the Wall Street bailout plan teetered on the edge of fiasco last night.
Bipartisan negotiations at the White House that included Republican McCain and Democratic rival Barack Obama devolved into finger-pointing. With the economic deal in disarray, tonight's presidential debate has further been cast into doubt."

If he doesn't show up? The TV networks get screwed as do the American people one might argue...

*NYTimes cover page from their website

Letterman rips McCain

Not showing up to an interview with a comedian... not a good idea.

Watch THIS clip from Wednesday's Letterman- it's pretty entertaining.










Sarah Palin and the media aren't doing so well either. See the stutter that Brian Williams says will be played over and over again before tomorrow night.

See Palin discuss Russia and foreign policy by clicking here.

*Letterman photo: JP Filo/CBS via AP photo
*Palin photo: CBS photo

Yesterday's Daily News No No

Yesterday the New York Daily News ran this story on their front cover. It's a story about Palin coming to town, sort of. The Daily News created a fake Palin by having a 29 year-old actress/look-a-like pose as the VP nominee. Why? To get New Yorkers response.

But again, why?

With the turmoil on Wall Street and the election- involving real politicians- was there not enough news for the Daily News to report?

I'm a big fan of investigative reporting. Without reporters like Nellie Bly posing as insane, the New York mental institutions (or "mad houses") wouldn't have been reformed so quickly.

Without Neil Sheehan hiding out in a hotel room with thousands of pages stolen by Daniel Ellsworth the history and truth behind the Vietnam War (published in "The Pentagon Papers") would never be known.

But why investigate what New Yorkers think of a faux Palin when the News could just see what New Yorkers think of the real Palin?

And what did the fake Palin help the News discover? They found what we all already knew, New Yorkers tend to be liberal. Shocker.

*photo credit: Sabo/News

Prospects Grim

Today's headlines:

The New York Times says: With Bailout Plans Unclear, Markets Tumble.

The Wall Street Journal says: Doubts on Rescue Plan Spur Fall
In Dollar, Leap for Oil



So what does it all mean?

This part of the Wall Street Journal article I noted above basically sums it up:

"The fear is that the bailout plan might not fix banks' woes effectively -- while also adding to the country's already sizable deficits. That pessimistic outlook is bad for the dollar, which weakens when investors see cause for worry in the U.S. economy and thus shy away from U.S.-based investments. Late Monday in New York, the euro had strengthened to $1.4839 from $1.4474 Friday. The dollar also lost ground against the Japanese yen, the British pound, the Swiss franc and the Canadian dollar. The dollar's retreat marks a possible turn in a powerful dollar rally that had been in place since early August.

Monday's turmoil reflects the fact that, after the initial market euphoria over the government bailout proposal, the reality is setting in that it isn't a quick fix for broader problems in the economy -- in particular, the declining home prices that are at the heart of the financial crisis. Goldman Sachs economists are sticking to a forecast for economic growth to grind to a halt by year end, followed by a meager recovery next year.

Even if the government's plan works as advertised, it could take years to have an effect."

AIG

For the last few weeks I've been watching this commercial.

The kids talk on the school bus and they act all worried about their parents insurance until the one kid says "my parents have AIG." Then, as you all know, the other kids act like that kid has it made.

Guess not anymore.

Wall Street's having a tough week...

Wall Street Crisis & future

On Sunday I heard my computer "bling"(the noise it makes when I receive an email) with NYTimes News Alert after NYTimes News Alert. I didn't really realize the gravity of the situation until I heard a "bling" while I was in bed. NYTimes News Alert, why so late at night? This is what it said:

"Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Monday, September 15, 2008 -- 12:56 AM ET
-----

Lehman Brothers Announces It Will File Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Lehman Brothers, the storied Wall Street securities firm,
announced on its Web site early Monday that it will file for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection."

The next morning when I heard about Wall Street falling to pieces- I wasn't surprised. Any "bling" that late at night more than likely is not good.

New York Gov. Patterson said as many as 30,000 jobs on Wall Street could be lost as a result of this financial crisis.

If it's hard to hold down a job in business, where's the hope for the rest of us?

The November election is just around the corner and as much as I'd like to think things will get better, I've grown pessimistic. Honestly, our problems will probably get worse before they get better because no charasmatic speech will fix the economy, nor will a hockey mom with lipstick. Rumors say McCain can't even check his email by himself, and Biden told press that Clinton might have been a better pick than himself. (Seriously Biden, it's very respectful to talk about Clinton's credentials, but you're shooting yourself in the foot.)

And enough with Palin, as my friend said the other day: they might as well just say, "Palin for President."

McCain one smart man

McCain's surprise VP pick: Sarah Palin.

Choosing a woman: gets him Clinton moderates who feel Obama alienated them.

Choosing a social conservative: gets the religious right.

Choosing someone who has a son in the military: gets him the military families, the patriots and more. Not that he didn't already have those...

She's young, beautiful, smart and conservative.

Obama should have sucked it up and gone with Clinton for VP. He had a chance to create the dream team.

Instead he keeps talking about dreaming.

This is devastating for the Dems...

Controversy- proof?

Too tired to write- but basically the London Times came out with articles saying that a NY hacker proved He Kexin- the Chinese gymnast- is indeed 14.

MSNBC also has the story.

The IOC should have investigated this pre award ceremonies. There's no way this can end well,... either way everyone loses.

More later...

Obama- Kane VP to be?

Word on the street is that Obama is choosing Tim Kane.

Not a smart choice in my opinion.

He's already getting criticized for being young and inexperienced. If Kane is his choice, Obama is not really helping himself.

We'll find out what he choose soon enough.

The NYTimes, NBC, China, Gymnastics and more

Let me start out in a lighthearted tone. I'm going to kill the New York Times. (This is partially my own fault). Wanting to be an educated human being I receive news alerts- during the Olympics this has spoiled some of the fun. So when I saw that Shawn Johnson won gold on balance beam before I watched it I was frustrated. All that being said, when I was watching it I found myself less stressed knowing that she secured herself a gold in the Beijing Games.

NBC

I understand when they are playing programs late because we are
watching them live. But if it's not live- there is really no excuse.
Come on guys, anything after 8 is prime time... so move the
programming up from 11 pm to 8 or 9 p.m.- Especially on the west
Coast. What's really crazy about NBC's programming on the west coast is that they are playing everything on the same schedule as the East Coast. So when the Olympics went on until 1:30 in the morning last week on the East Coast (understandable since it was live)- was it really necessary to make California fans stay up until 1:30 to watch a tape?

See San Francisco Chronicle editorial.


Next topic: China

Anyone else getting really sick of hearing their national anthem? I
understand the home games are going to bring in more golds for the
home team. Not because of biased judging, but simply because teams
always do better at home. More cheers, more energy, home games are
always more fun. That all being said, let's discuss the Chinese and
gymnastics.

First, vault. Are you kidding me? Alicia Sacromone might not have done her best during the team competition, but she definitely deserved the bronze on her individual vault. Instead Cheng Fei won it, even after falling on her knees on her second vault. Fei is a talented gymnast- no doubt- AND she is one of the few Chinese gymnasts that looks of age, but that score was too high.
The same is true for the beam final. With more than three noticeable
balance checks she won bronze, beating out a better and less shaky Russian gymnast who had a near flawless routine. Start values differed, but still Fei scored too high in my opinion.

Last but not least bars. Can we please discuss…

One no way He Kexin is 16. That just irks me. All that aside, she had a great routine- so did Nastia. They tied. OK I'm going have to agree with Bella Kerolyi on this one, "give them both the gold." If swimmers can tie, why can't gymnasts? It's absurd. Instead they took away one of the protections that keeps the sport fair. The tiebreaker involved taking the lowest score and factoring it in, which is normally knocked out because the highest and lowest score are always knocked out in order to eliminate bias. Now your throwing
it back in? It just seems asinine.

In the end, I'm very proud of all the US gymnasts. Last night
with beam and high bar- in my opinion the two scariest events- our men and women walked away with 3 out of the 6 medals given (1 gold: Johnson (beam), 2 Silver: Liukin (beam) and Horton (high bar).

Also I’m very happy that Fabian Hamuechen of Germany won the bronze on high bar. He’s had a disappointing Olympics, but it’s good to see him walk away with a medal- especially when he’s so talented!

Lastly, I'm disappointed in some of the Jamaican runners who bragged before they even crossed the finish line... it's really disrespectful.

USA Men's Gymnastics

I ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED THIS ON FACEBOOK ON AUG. 12, 2008.

At 10:32 p.m. last night two people texted me and said, "did you see that?"

An amazing high bar routine by Justin Sprig. Huge release skills and a stuck landing. The second stick in a row. Almost anyone who knows me well knows— I did see it. As a huge Olympic fan, and even bigger gymnastics fan, I dedicate myself to the TV for two weeks once every four years.

The men pulled off a medal last night with all smiles. The tradition men's gymnastics has never been as well followed as women's, but they work just as hard. From a tradition on Blaine Wilson in the last 3 Olympic games, (Atlanta, Sydney and Athens) and the Hamm twins competing in both Sydney and Athens - USA men's gymnastics sought after their former selves of the 1984 games where they won gold. Clinching silver in 2004 finally giving Wilson an Olympic medal. That was an amazing story in and of itself. Except that- the 2004 team had Olympic veterans and star power.

The Hamm twins gained world attention in Sydney for their ability to remain calm under pressure, but it was not until Athens that their true talent really shined. Paul exercising huge release followed by huge release followed by huge release on the high bars and Morgan shined on floor. With Paul winning the all around gold medal, team USA never felt so good. That is until the controversy over scoring tainted Paul's win and ruined the perfect 10.0 for gymnastics.

With now a more complicated scoring system and both Hamm twins getting injured right before the game forcing two alternates to compete- the US 2008 men managed to pull off a medal against all odds. Stepping out of bounds on the floor and sitting on the pommel horse the only two major flaws. (If you call stepping out of bounds major, which it can often be at a competition at this level.) They held off the Germans. Japan never thought they would have to battle so hard for their silver and America never thought they would lose their two most accomplished gymnasts, but this is the world of gymnastics.

Every step counts and whether your tumbling to compete or tumbling to warm up- injuries happen. In a sport where balance and strength are key- injuries are often a deal breaker. The team held out though, perhaps none better than Jonathon Horton- who never faltered, cheered his teammates on (even when they didn't perform their best), and smiled at his bronze as if it were a gold.

Women's tonight- I'm never going to sleep.

The Olympics, Swimming, Gymnastics, President bush, etc...

I ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED THIS ON FACEBOOK AUG. 10, 2008

So what if our president is at the olympics?

Many people will say, "I'm glad he doesn't have more important things to do.."

I am and was tempted to say the exact same thing. I don't particularly like him either. But I'm glad he's there. These athletes have worked their entire lives for this/ these moments. And though they may only be 16, that's 16 years of not having a life other than their sport-- all for this moment. And I think it's important for the head of state to respect that.

Anyway, after watching gymnastics and their dreams come true/ get crushed in single events - it just reminds me how important it is to them.

Also in swimming having watched this relay-absolutely amazing. Caught myself cheering on the sofa all by myself...

Very exciting, and it only happens every 4 years.

Honestly, I was a little disappointed when radio stations chose to broadcast baseball games in the Sates instead of the olympics.

Fat Cat

Meant to post this yesterday...

The day after news breaks about the Republican Alaskan Senator being
indicted, the New York Post runs a fat cat on the front cover. Most
news junkies would be really appalled. But it's a different story for
me. I do have some problems with it, but I'm not as upset as most hard
core journalist.

Reasons being:

1. Obvious. Put a cute fat animal on the cover = sell more papers. Now
most people would say, that's not what the business is all about. I
agree, however, at a time when the economy is in the pits, especially
the news business, putting paper sales ahead might be looked down
upon, but it also might be necessary and smart.

2. People are sick of bad news. That's what papers like the post and
the Daily News are for. They are for entertainment and news. Honestly
a fat cat is pretty entertaining and it makes for a good cover vs. a
man who most people wouldnt recognize.

3. It's a regional paper, not a national. The New York Times sometimes
forgets that it covers New York, but that's OK because they are now
accepted as a National paper. (That and the Times now has specific
blogs and sections and New York emails to keep up with the scene.) All
that being said, papers like the Post rely on the nationals to cover
such serious and complicated matters and not to cover the humorous
silly real life stories that happen in New York.

4. My only beef would be that the Post ran the story as a small blurb,
placed at the bottom corner of page 17. Ironcially right next to an
add for CNN. Also the blurb is from the AP. They didn't even have a
stringer attempt to write it. All that being said, the Post did devote
a large spread on page 8 to Gov. Paterson's announcement to call an
"emergency session of the state Legislaturse" because the state is
approaching an "economic calamity."

Again, regional newspaper, regional news. People will probably
disagree with me, and I already know a former student of mine who was
appalled that the Times number one story the other week was about
chocolate chip cookes, but people need something that's news without
the bite. Call me weak, call me whatever, but it's true. Look deep
down and even those crazy news junkies will glance at a fun photo in a
feature story- even if they don't read it.

People need a break, and that's why my favorite story and quote of the
day come from "Fat Cat, No weigh! Proky kitty is 44 lbs."

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07302008/news/regionalnews/fat_cat_122221.htm

By the way, even the Times ran this story... WITH A HUGE PIC.