Random stuff from history

On January29, 1900 the American Baseball League was formed in Philadelphia.
On January 29, 1936 the first five inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame were named: Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Christy Mathewson, Walter Johnson and Honus Wagner.
William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States, was born on January 29, 1843. He was assassinated in 1901. If you ever get to see a $500 bill, you will see a picture of him. He was a Civil War Veteran, and a very popular president. Upon his death Theodore Roosevelt took office, and remains the youngest person to hold the position.

Stimulate What?

I am sorry to say that Washington is back to politics as usual. President Obama is pushing through his"stimulus" package with the same zeal and rhetoric as Bush.

Mr. President, your sense of urgency is unfounded. TARP did not work. The tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 did not work. The Senators and Representatives in Congress need to read the 650 page document and digest its proposals. Rushing this through with the cry of "the sky is falling" is what we got from Bush. And now you.

Borrowing money, creating more debt, is the wrong way to go.

I am reminded of the Who, singing "Won't Get Fooled Again." "Here comes the new boss, same as the old boss."

A Huge Ponzi Scheme

I would advise everyone to read Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution. You will be surprised. You can find the Treasury information on their website.

I suggest we all write to our Senators and Representatives recommending that they actually read the proposed "stimulus" package and that they read the Treasury report.

Common sense tells me you cannot keep borrowing money today to pay back money that you borrowed yesterday. Eventually you will not be able to pay back anything. Just reference Bernard Madoff. I think what we have is a government foisting a huge Ponzi scheme on the American people.

Happy Year of the Ox

Say good-bye to the Year of the Pig and hello to the Year of the Ox.

Happy Chinese New Year to one out of every five humans living on our planet.

Something warm and something cold

On this day in 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in America to receive a medical degree. She received her degree from Geneva Medical College after being turned down by more than two dozen medical schools. She had been accepted by the school due to the faculty and students, all male of course, thinking her application was someone playing a practical joke. She graduated with top honors.

Today, half the medical school graduates are women.

On January 23, 1971, a temperature of -80 F was recorded in Prospect Creek, Alaska. That's the lowest temperature ever recorded in the United States.

A Sad Commentary

The United States spent almost 800 billion dollars on defense in 2008. It spent 67 billion dollars on education. I suppose the intent is to keep the population uneducated enough that they don't even question this out of balance spending.

In fairness, individual states also contribute to education. But still...

President Obama

Most of us over the age of..., well let's say most of us, never thought we'd see this day.

But I am somewhat put off by political commentators who claim this to be a great day for African-Americans. Surely, it is a great day for them. And a proud moment for all Americans. But more than that I believe it shows that Americans are just tired of the Washington status quo.

Here is hoping that Mr. Obama is not just another political hack making empty promises.