GPS guides Norwegian tourists into trouble in Rio - Yahoo! News: "RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Three Norwegian tourists came under fire and one was shot after the satellite navigation system in their car guided them straight into one of Rio de Janeiro's most dangerous slums."
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Wrong turn, wrong neighborhood. And apparently the bargain bin GPS system.

Fiscal Focus - Illinois Comptroller's Office

Fiscal Focus - Illinois Comptroller's Office: "Illinois’ state pension systems continue to be seriously underfunded with the latest calculations placing the unfunded liability at over $40 billion. As of June 30, 2006, the five pension systems primarily supported by the state (the Downstate Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS), the State Universities Retirement System (SURS), the State Employees’ Retirement System (SERS), the Judges’ Retirement System (JRS), and the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS)) had accumulated $103.1 billion in actuarial liabilities for pension, disability, and death benefits. The systems held assets valued at $62.3 billion leaving $40.7 billion in unfunded obligations, or a funded level of only 60.5%."
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One state--Illinois. $40 billion underfunded. You can find a similar situation in a number of other states.

Pension Tsunami

Pension Tsunami: "That approaching wave of pension debt is bigger than it looks. The purpose of this site is to provide an overview of the multiple pension crises that are about to drown America's taxpayers."
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Here is a weblog that focuses on the impending pension fund debacle.

HOA sues homeowners over signs

HOA sues homeowners over signs: "An election-season dispute between homeowners displaying political signs in their front yards and the Grand View subdivision’s homeowners association, who removed the signs, has spilled into the courts.

Six homeowners in the 198-home subdivision, northeast of Patterson and 28 roads, were served notice this week that the Grand View Homeowners Association has filed a lawsuit against them in Mesa County District Court.

In late October, the association’s president, Tom Lowrey, removed several political signs from front yards. Lowrey said the signs were a violation of the HOA’s covenants, conditions and restrictions. Homeowners, many of whom replaced the signs in their yards after their removal, say they are protected under the Constitution and Colorado state law.

“After the election we took the signs out and thought it was over and done with, and then lo and behold, he served us these papers,” said Jim Rozman, a homeowner in the subdivision. “He (Lowrey) is on a one-man mission, it seems to me.”

The lawsuit requests a judge to award damages to the HOA in the amount of $15 per sign for every day the political signs were displayed in people’s yards."
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Imagine being a judge and having to spend your time on this. What I can't imagine is how an HOA officer could think this is worth a lawsuit.

New land-use law's message: build near transit: "Many California planning and environmental groups are heralding the passage of legislation designed to address global warming by curbing suburban sprawl as a watershed moment, perhaps the state's most important land-use law in more than 30 years."
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SB 375 is supposed to be some sort of sea change in development policy, where California stops "sprawl." Build near transportation hubs, discourage driving, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save the planet. But here is one little wrinkle: "...there is a firm industry conviction that not all of the projected growth in California can be accommodated in multifamily urban properties, nor do all consumers want to live in such homes."

You got that right. Matter of fact, I suspect that not all that many consumers want to live in "multifamily urban properties," which are better known as condominium and apartment buildings. I'll go a step further and say that among families with kids, the percentage who want to get crammed into an LA condo is pretty small.

This is the left at war with the housing market. Most Americans don't want to live like people do in Hong Kong. There's nothing wrong with high density urban life, but if people don't have the taste for it they will be unhappy living that way, and there is no point premising development policy on unpopular options.

MUNI WATCH: Land-Secured Deals Ailing In Current Economy

MUNI WATCH: Land-Secured Deals Ailing In Current Economy: "NEW YORK --A developer in Florida this year reportedly used $409 million of tax-exempt bonds to build upscale golf course residential communities in 10 counties. The firm suddenly stopped payment on all of them as the battered housing market and tightened bank lending practices in the Sunshine State caught up with it.

The incident marks just one example of how the municipal bond market is feeling the pain and agony accompanying the current downturn, especially as it impacts a sliver of the market loosely known as land-secured deals.

'Tax increment financing deals have not done well in this environment because they are speculating on continued property tax increases,' which are anything but a given in this economy, said Matt Fabian, senior municipal market analyst for Municipal Market Advisors, based in Concord, Mass. 'I think these bonds are going to feel a lot more credit pressure.'"
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This is worth reading to understand how development strategies of municipalities--TIFs, CIDs, etc.--that once were sure things have now turned into potential disasters.

FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates | Reuters
According to this list there are at least 11 ships currently being held by pirates. Pirates. In the year 2008, the world has a pirate problem.

Worker dies at Long Island Wal-Mart after being trampled in Black Friday stampede

Worker dies at Long Island Wal-Mart after being trampled in Black Friday stampede: "A Wal-Mart worker died after being trampled when hundreds of shoppers smashed through the doors of a Long Island store Friday morning, police and witnesses said.

The 34-year-old worker, employed as an overnight stock clerk, tried to hold back the unruly crowds just after the Valley Stream store opened at 5 a.m.

Witnesses said the surging throngs of shoppers knocked the man down. He fell and was stepped on. As he gasped for air, shoppers ran over and around him."
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Homo economicus at his worst?

Rugged individualism, beer linked

Rugged individualism, beer linked: "In Hollywood lore, the lone cowboy tamed the Wild West with two six-guns by day and drank warm beer with both fists in dusty saloons at night.

That stereotype of the rugged individualist who enjoys tipping back a few might not be so off the mark, according to a newly published study by marketing professors at the University of Texas at San Antonio. They found that places where individualism is valued over the collective good also tend to be places where a lot of beer is consumed."
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So what does this tell us about life in common interest housing developments? Too much beer? Too little beer?

KTNV ABC,Channel 13,Las Vegas,Nevada,News,Weather,Sports,Entertainment,KTNV.com,Action News .:. Mike Tyson Has Run In With Las Vegas Police On Thanksgiving

KTNV ABC,Channel 13,Las Vegas,Nevada,News,Weather,Sports,Entertainment,KTNV.com,Action News .:. Mike Tyson versus the Gate: "Action News Reporter Rikki Cheese was in the southern part of the Valley at Monarch Estates. Sources in the upscale gated community say that around 7:45am, Tyson drove up in a late-model black Escalade. He went to the visitor's gate, but instead of driving through the gate when it opened, he veered off and hit the closed resident's gate. Tyson reportedly backed up and ripped the gate down. Metro was called, and Tyson got a ticket. He was allowed back inside the home he was there to visit."
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They let him in? What is security for?

Inflation-adjusted U.S. house prices--graphs | Les Jones: "The graph shows the bubble taking off in 1998 and the market peaking in 2005-06. That latter date is generally considered the market peak by many sources.

Note that this graph completely contradicts the chirpy real estate agent advice that “home values always go up!” Home values tend to hold their value relative to inflation, which is no small feat. Your home also gives you a place to keep your stuff dry, which is something you can’t say about T-bills and mutual funds. However, significant appreciation relative to inflation was seen almost entirely in the housing bubble era.

We’re now in an era in which home prices are depreciating. Based on the graph above prices may have to decline an additional inflation-adjusted 15-25% to be back within historical norms."
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Take a look at these two graphs and you will see how the 1998-2005 boom and bust appear in historical context. Astounding.

Barack Obama forced to deny abandoning 'change' amid insider appointments - Times Online

Barack Obama forced to deny abandoning 'change' amid insider appointments - Times Online: "He [Obama] said he would be foolish, at such a “critical time in our history”, to pick people who “had no experience in Washington whatsoever”."
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Can't argue with that.

ABC News: Cities Cut While Hoping for Government Aid

ABC News: Cities Cut While Hoping for Government Aid: "Think fewer libraries, fewer public works projects, fewer after-school programs, fewer police officers and fewer public employees overall.

Thanks to the whimpering economy, some city officials say such reductions will match their significantly smaller budgets. But they're also hoping the federal government will be able to ease at least some of the pain."
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I notice that there are no responses yet to the municipal requests for federal aid. Many cities are asking for bailout funds--Atlanta, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Detroit, and others--but so far the only actual commitments I have seen are to major corporations. What about the counties? What about the states? Illinois, California, New Jersey, and a few others are deep in the hole.

How can there possibly be a federal solution to all the different problems that created these governmental budget deficits?

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: State of New Jersey Is Insolvent

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: State of New Jersey Is Insolvent: "The state of New Jersey is insolvent. Bankrupt might be a better word. New Jersey is $60 billion in the hole on pension funding and the Governor is planning on skipping payments in a 'pension payment holiday' until 2012 so as to not increase property taxes."
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California, Illinois, New Jersey...how many more states are insolvent? I found this link on Instapundit.

Timeshare owners unknowingly aided PAC: "Timeshare owners in Florida and elsewhere were misled into donating to the political fund-raising arm of the U.S. vacation ownership industry while paying their regular property fees, according to a new federal audit report.

Tens of thousands of small contributions - most $3 to $5 - were collected by property management firms around the country and funneled to a political action committee set up by the American Resort Development Association....Auditors found the American Resort Development Association-Resort Owners Coalition PAC also violated other federal election laws.

Their report, focusing on the 2003-04 election cycle, says the PAC secretly raised and spent more than $1.8 million during that time. The PAC also accepted thousands of dollars of prohibited contributions from corporations and foreign nationals, it said."
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Cute. Doesn't say who they contributed to, but there are ways of finding that out. In the meantime, here is what they raised and shelled out in the 2008 election. They had receipts of $5.2 million and spent $4.1 through October 15.

COMMITTEE NAME RECEIPTS DISB CASH DEBT THROUGH


ARDA (PAC, ROC) $5,203,682 $4,178,867 $2,460,366 $0 10/15/2008

MyFox Lake Charles | Turkey Farmer in Sarah Palin Video Speaks Out: Brian Tomes told 'Inside Edition' he didn't realize he was in her shot.

'I thought they had panned in on her face…I did try and block the process,' he said.

Tomes has worked at the Triple D Turkey Farm in Palin's hometown of Wasilla for nine years. He offered support for the former vice-presidential candidate.

'The only thing I can say is, 'Don't mess with my governor!''"
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Right. Especially not while he has that knife in his hand. I have been waiting for that frozen turkey carcass to go up on Ebay but so far I guess it hasn't surfaced. Imagine what it would be worth. Maybe as much as that corn flake shaped like the state of Illinois.

Program Targets Consumer Spending, Mortgage Rates

Program Targets Consumer Spending, Mortgage Rates: "The Federal Reserve and Treasury moved today to boost consumer spending and lower home mortgage rates, committing up to $800 billion to make it easier for households to borrow money for cars, tuition bills and new homes as part of a broad effort to rekindle economic growth.

The new program puts the balance sheet of the country's central bank behind two critical but troubled parts of the economy -- consumer spending and housing. It is largely separate from the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, administered by the Treasury Department and focused on shoring up the country's financial system."
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It's about time. Good news at last. This money won't be used for mergers and acquisitions--except maybe acquisition of a plasma television or a home.

Ho, ho, nope! FGCU to limit holiday decor | news-press.com | The News-Press

Florida Gulf Coast University bans holiday decor | news-press.com | The News-Press: "FGCU administration has banned all holiday decorations from common spaces on campus and canceled a popular greeting card design contest, which is being replaced by an ugly sweater competition. In Griffin Hall, the university's giving tree for needy preschoolers has been transformed into a 'giving garden.'

The moves boil down to political correctness."
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The president wants to "observe the season in ways that honor and respect all traditions." How does that translate into banning all holiday decorations from all traditions?

Rainy forecast means mudslide threat in burn areas - Los Angeles Times

Rainy forecast means mudslide threat in burn areas - Los Angeles Times: "Rain is expected to reach Southern California tonight, raising fears among fire authorities over mudslides further damaging hillside communities already ravaged by this month's wildfires."
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If there are mudslides in occupied areas there could be a big wave of insurance claims and construction defect lawsuits to follow, many of them from CIDs.

ESPN - Sources: Pacman Jones threatened with life ban by NFL commish Roger Goodell: "Adam 'Pacman' Jones may finally be down to his last chance."
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Deja vu all over again.

Fla. builders: Bank practices driving them to ruin: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

Fla. builders: Bank practices driving them to ruin: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance: "TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Home builders are being driven to ruin by 'extreme' banking practices adopted in response to the nation's financial meltdown, including calling in good loans, Florida builders said Monday.

Lenders are also hoarding federal bailout money while dissolving lines of credit and many times are simply eliminating construction financing, the builders say."
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This may all be true, but is it not also true that we are suffering from an oversupply of housing relative to the demand? If banks give construction financing to builders, new homes will go on the market and compete with the large supply of foreclosed homes that are being unloaded by those very banks. At least, that's the way it looks to me.

Should we resurrect the Neanderthals? - By William Saletan - Slate Magazine: "The full genome of the Neanderthal, an ancient human species probably driven to extinction by the first modern humans that entered Europe some 45,000 years ago, is expected to be recovered shortly. If the mammoth can be resurrected, the same would be technically possible for Neanderthals."
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Sure. Let's get with it. As one New York Times fellow says, this would let us answer all sorts of interesting questions, such as whether Neanderthals could speak.

What could possibly go wrong?

New Florida condo law is about to take effect | HeraldTribune.com | Southwest Florida's Information Leader

New Florida condo law is about to take effect | HeraldTribune.com | Southwest Florida's Information Leader: "In a situation that might qualify as a 'be careful what you wish for' tale, several new Florida laws related to condominium insurance policies are slated to go into effect Jan. 1. The problem is they are essentially unworkable as currently written -- leaving many condo owners, community associations and insurance agents in a state of confusion about how to proceed.

At issue is a bill passed during the last legislative session, one which was pushed in large part by condominium associations looking to deal with a particular problem: how to deal with condo units that became damaged or destroyed inside, but whose owners lacked homeowner's insurance policies to fix them."
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What you wish for? Did the people of Florida wish for laws that are "essentially unworkable as currently written"? I kind of doubt that.

The problem being spoken of here is that under the new law, every condo owner has to buy insurance on his/her own unit. How enforced? Well, the association has to verify that they did so, and if the owner doesn't buy it the association pays for it and assesses the owner.

Sounds good. Unfortunately, though, the insurance industry doesn't sell insurance that way. The condo association can't buy these policies on the individual units. So the law is "unworkable" in the sense that the legislature has required associations to do something they are unable to do.

George Soros warns 'hedge funds will be decimated' - Times Online: "Hedge funds will be decimated by the global financial meltdown and the crisis will wipe out as much as three quarters of the money they manage, George Soros, the billionaire investor, predicted in Washington yesterday."
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Soros has been about six months ahead of the curve so far, and I won't be surprised if he turns out to be right about the hedge funds.

Community Associations Institute (CAI): Press Room: Press Releases

Community Associations Institute (CAI): Press Room: Press Releases
Monica Sadler and Fred Pilot both sent me links to this CAI press release:

ALEXANDRIA, VA, NOVEMBER 24, 2008 – Community Associations Institute (CAI) announced today that the 29,000-member organization has joined the Fix Housing First coalition, a national effort to address the current housing crisis and broader economic downturn.

The Fix Housing First coalition brings together a variety of stakeholders—including homeowners associations, builders, manufacturers, suppliers and others—united by the concern that home prices and property values continue to decline dramatically across the country, affecting hard-working Americans everywhere.

The Fix Housing First coalition supports a stimulus package that effectively addresses the root of the current economic crisis—housing—by offering incentives to encourage Americans to buy homes again. Specifically, the coalition is urging Congress to adopt a meaningful, non-refundable tax credit and a mortgage rate reduction for all home buyers.
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There's a lot more, including some specific recommendations. I gather this coalition is mainly for lobbying purposes, to keep Congress and the president focused on housing. It will be interesting to see how deeply Congress digs into why the housing market boomed, collapsed, and started the chain reaction.

Police: Oregon panhandlers raking in the green | KOMO News - Seattle, Washington | Local & Regional: "COOS BAY, Ore. - A police survey says panhandlers outside Wal-Mart in Coos Bay can make $300 a day. Inside, it takes a clerk a week to make that much."
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That's quite a daily take, especially when you consider that there is no withholding. But the benefits aren't so good. All things considered I'll stick with what I'm doing, but I have to admit this is tempting.

Diving: New York City Water Nightmare is an Underwater Gadget Lover's Dream

Diving: New York City Water Nightmare is an Underwater Gadget Lover's Dream: "A giant aquifer, completed in 1944, is leaking up to 36 million gallons of water a day. For New Yorkers, who on average use 150 gallons per day, that's unacceptable. Trouble is, fixing the leak involves some extreme diving, 14 tractor trailer trucks worth of gear, and a 24-foot room that divers will live in for a month, breathing helium.

The five-year, $22 million diving project is underway today, and that means six lucky divers are presently 700 feet beneath the NYC surface, trying to find where one of the bigger leaks is hiding. They're living in a 24-foot pressurized tube that includes 'showers, a television and a Nerf basketball hoop,' and they're breathing air that is 97.5% helium and 2.5% oxygen."
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This is a flippant story about a pretty amazing repair project.

Oberlin Council President Dave Sonner charged after shooting skunk that lived under his porch - Cleveland.com

Oberlin Council President Dave Sonner charged after shooting skunk that lived under his porch - Cleveland.com: "Oberlin - City Council President Dave Sonner grew tired of the pungent stench created by a skunk living under his porch. When the critter reared its head Nov. 7, Sonner shot it dead.

The shooting attracted the attention of police and prosecutors who have now charged Sonner with a misdemeanor crime."
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He should have used a bow and arrow.

WBBM 780 - Chicago's #1 source for local news, traffic and weather - Few Will Cook Turkey This Thanksgiving

Few Will Cook Turkey This Thanksgiving: "While 82 percent of Americans plan to eat turkey this Thanksgiving, most will leave the cooking to someone else.

Only 30 percent of households will actually prepare a turkey on Thanksgiving Day, according to the NPD Group, a market research company.

NPD finds that typically two households are the guest of another on Thanksgiving Day, which amounts to an average of nine people at each Thanksgiving table, according to a release from NPD."
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70% of the nation's households go somewhere else. No wonder there is so much traffic.

Obama skips church, heads to gym - Jonathan Martin and Carol E. Lee - Politico.com

Obama skips church, heads to gym - Jonathan Martin and Carol E. Lee - Politico.com: "President-elect Barack Obama has yet to attend church services since winning the White House earlier this month, a departure from the example of his two immediate predecessors.

On the three Sundays since his election, Obama has instead used his free time to get in workouts at a Chicago gym.

Asked about the president-elect's decision to not attend church, a transition aide noted that the Obamas valued their faith experience in Chicago but were concerned about the impact their large retinue may have on other parishioners. "Because they have a great deal of respect for places of worship, they do not want to draw unwelcome or inappropriate attention to a church not used to the attention their attendance would draw," said the aide."
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So he goes to the gym instead of church to show his deep respect for churches, unlike Bush and Clinton, who showed their contempt for churches by going to church.

The speed trap set by your neighbour: Police recruit amateur army in crackdown on motorists | Mail Online

The speed trap set by your neighbour: Police recruit amateur army in crackdown on motorists | Mail Online: "Motorists will face amateur speed traps run by local volunteer groups in towns and villages across the country, it was revealed yesterday.

Under rules to be sent to police forces in the new year, bands of volunteers will be supplied with speed detection equipment and asked to use it to identify drivers exceeding limits in their area."
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Another example of municipalities acting like homeowners' associations?

Bloomberg.com: Exclusive

BFed Pledges Top $7.4 Trillion to Ease Frozen Credit : "Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government is prepared to lend more than $7.4 trillion on behalf of American taxpayers, or half the value of everything produced in the nation last year, to rescue the financial system since the credit markets seized up 15 months ago."
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At some point won't we have to say that capitalism is just a pretense for an economy that is run by the government?

Needed: Network bailout? - Entertainment News, TV News, Media - Variety: "It's D-Day for the broadcast networks.

They've been living on borrowed time for the better part of two decades, thanks to advertisers willing to toss in more cash each year even as ratings slowly trended ever lower.

But with the economy in a tailspin -- and the Big Three auto manufacturers, some of TV's best advertisers, near ruin -- the biz may finally have to pull the emergency cord."
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In our house nobody watches the major networks. I haven't seen an episode of a prime-time television show since the X-Files went off the air. Major sporting events are about it for me. I couldn't stomach a network news program to save my life. The kids watch the specialty children's channels for cartoons and Hannah Montana.

Sometimes I wonder who is watching all this programming. Apparently their numbers are dwindling. Soon it will be just that guy with the banjo from Deliverance.

White House says unaware of any Citigroup rescue talks | Reuters: "ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said on Sunday she knew of no talks going on between banking giant Citigroup and the federal government for financial aid."
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And yet we see stories to the effect that the plan is "near approval."

Maybe the headline writer should have said "Dana Perino says SHE is unaware of any Citigroup rescue talks."

Or maybe the headline is right, and President Bush is deemed inessential to multi-billion dollar bailout decisions.

City bankruptcies may signal trouble for California - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

City bankruptcies may signal trouble for California - Sacramento Bee: "Rio Vista and Isleton face budget shortfalls and massive debt. Their leaders are looking at the same bankruptcy option that Vallejo chose in May.

If other cities follow suit, it may mean trouble across the state.

'The more that start talking about it, the more that start filing, investors will stop investing in municipal securities,' unless governments are willing to pay more in interest, said Matthew Fong, former state treasurer who oversaw California's finances in the wake of Orange County filing for bankruptcy protection in late 1994."
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Slippery slope?

Senate Democrat sees stimulus up to $700 bln | Politics | Reuters: "WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An influential U.S. Senate Democrat said on Sunday a large economic stimulus package of up to $700 billion was needed to lift the American economy out of its current downturn."
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Senator Schumer is speaking of an additional $700 billion, on top of the $700 billion already committed to restoring the health of the financial system.

You know, with $700 billion here, $700 billion there...pretty soon this will add up to a lot of money.

Fire pits latest to go on the city's chopping block | The San Diego Union-Tribune: "This is not the kind of city budget cut that brings out the big “D” words – devastating or draconian.

But San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders' proposal to snuff out the fire pits at city beaches to save $173,000 in maintenance costs has some residents wondering: Has it really come to this?"
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Good grief. People have been hanging out around those fire pits for generations. It is part of being young in California.

Worst of financial crisis yet to come: IMF chief economist

Worst of financial crisis yet to come: IMF chief economist: "The IMF's chief economist has warned that the global financial crisis is set to worsen and that the situation will not improve until 2010, a report said Saturday.

Olivier Blanchard also warned that the institution does not have the funds to solve every economic problem."
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He said that the investments being withdrawn from developing nations could be hundreds of billions of dollars, and "We do not have this money. We never had it." They spend one-fifth of its $250 billion fund over the last two weeks, according to Blanchard. I assume this means life could become much harsher in emerging countries over the next two years. We here in the West will have some hardship, but imagine how bad things will get elsewhere.

The Obamas Walk Away from Public Schools (Cato @ Liberty)

The Obamas Walk Away from Public Schools (Cato @ Liberty): "When they move from Chicago to D.C., Malia and Sasha Obama will be moving from the prestigious private Lab School to the prestigious private Sidwell Friends school — Chelsea Clinton’s old stomping ground.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. In fact, it’s wonderful that the Obamas had such a broad range of public and private school choices available to them. What’s puzzling is that the president-elect opposes programs that would bring that same easy choice of schools within reach of families who lack his personal wealth"
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Not puzzling at all, and there is something wrong with it: hypocrisy. Democrats like Obama get massive campaign donations from the public school teachers' unions, in exchange for demanding more money from taxpayers to pay the teachers. They even criticize people who moved out of cities to find decent public schools for their kids. But send their own kids to public schools? Not a chance. Their support for public schools is only deep enough to get those millions of dollars in bundled checks from public school teachers.

Biden's kids went to private schools, of course, but Sarah Palin's kids attended public schools in Wasilla, according to this.

The Uncertain Future of Common Interest Developments
Attorney Tyler Berding strikes again, with a carefully reasoned essay that a whole lot of public officials and developers should read. Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.
Update: Tyler Berding sent me an email explaining that there is a more complete version of "Uncertain Future" in book form, available as a .pdf file, here.

Antelope Valley homeowners left hanging by developer - ContraCostaTimes.com

Antelope Valley homeowners left hanging by developer - ContraCostaTimes.com: "LANCASTER - The families who moved into Westview Estates were expecting to live in a lovely gated neighborhood of new homes, built on former farmland in this desert city.

But shortly after the first families - some paying up to $400,000 for a new home - moved in around spring 2007, they started noticing problems with the water systems.

Water stopped flowing in midshower, washing machines halted midcycle, or no water came out at all. Residents could not shower and water lawns at the same time, and fire alarms went off in the middle of the night.

Residents say problems with the water - not just the economy - have turned what was planned as a 425-home development into a ghost town where homes sit vacant amid graded dirt lots choked with weeds. Only 23 homes were sold before the developer walked away, according to residents.

Angry and feeling betrayed, the few residents left feel imprisoned in their problem-plagued homes that they cannot sell."
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I used to ride my dirt bike out in the desert that is Lancaster, and now it is all subdivisions. Living in a desert with no water supply is about as bad a deal as you can get.

Remains of devoured planet discovered - 22 November 2008 - New Scientist: "A DUST cloud around a dead star may be all that's left of a planet that was eaten like a peach."
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Life imitates art.

Galactus!

Notable & Quotable - WSJ.com

Notable & Quotable - WSJ.com: "One of the things we clearly want to do with these prisoners is to have an ability to interrogate them and find out what their future plans might be, where other cells are located; under the Geneva Convention that you are really limited in the amount of information that you can elicit from people.

It seems to me that given the way in which they have conducted themselves, however, that they are not, in fact, people entitled to the protection of the Geneva Convention. They are not prisoners of war. If, for instance, Mohamed Atta had survived the attack on the World Trade Center, would we now be calling him a prisoner of war? I think not. Should Zacarias Moussaoui be called a prisoner of war? Again, I think not."
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Q. Who said that in 2002?

1. Dick Cheney
2. George Bush
3. Darth Vader
4. Attila the Hun
5. Eric Holder, Barack Obama's soon-to-be Attorney General

Halperin at Politico/USC conf.: 'extreme pro-Obama' press bias - Alexander Burns - Politico.com: "Media bias was more intense in the 2008 election than in any other national campaign in recent history, Time magazine's Mark Halperin said Friday at the Politico/USC conference on the 2008 election.

'It's the most disgusting failure of people in our business since the Iraq war,' Halperin said at a panel of media analysts. 'It was extreme bias, extreme pro-Obama coverage.'"
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Yes, it was all of that and more. I think Halperin was comparing coverage of Obama to the coverage of the first Gulf War, which was also incredibly superficial and one-sided. The press did a whole lot of self-examination after that and took steps to avoid being manipulated by the government again. But here they did something different. It wasn't that they allowed themselves to be manipulated by a powerful government that had control of all the information. Here they did it all by themselves. It was a blatant double standard--refusing to examine Obama and Biden the way they have always examined other candidates. They were scrutinizing Biden himself until he became Obama's VP candidate, at which time the Media Cone of Silence descended over him as well.

This is a questionable approach on several grounds, including their own self-interest. If you look at the way newspaper readership has plummeted, you see an industry that was in free-fall even before the housing market tanked. People have more choices now, so I would think the national media would try to broaden their appeal instead of alienating almost half the population.

Huffington Posters shocked to discover where meat comes from: "SLAUGHTERED in the background!! Seemingly oblivious to the gruesomeness going on over her shoulder, she carries on talking for over three minutes. Watch the video below to see for yourself. Be warned, it's kind of gruesome."
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Palin went to a turkey farm to do the annual "Governor-pardons-a-turkey" schtick. Then she did an interview with local TV. In the background a guy kills a turkey and bleeds it out. Palin had her back to that but it was on camera. Now the New York Times and a bunch of other folks are aghast.

Maybe we have two kinds of people in this country: one that knows where meat comes from, and one that thinks it grows packaged on meat trees.

update: I had several conversations with people who were horrified by this episode. None of them is vegetarian. All of them will have turkey for Thanksgiving. One of them put it like this: "I don't want to see it." I respect vegetarians who think meat is murder and don't eat it. But if you eat meat but can't stand to see what is involved in making animals into meat, you have a little ethical problem that you should work out, instead of trying to arrange the world so nobody reminds you of it.

My Way News - Skull with built-in sauna turns heads in Austria: "VIENNA, Austria (AP) - An oversize skull with a built-in sauna is turning heads in the Austrian capital. The white walk-in structure - situated near a busy Vienna intersection - is known as the 'Wellness Skull' and also boasts a bathtub and shower. On either side of the neck, that is.

The eye-catching installation, which stands about 15 feet tall and is made of wood and synthetic material, is the brainchild of Dutch artist Joep van Lieshout."
----------------
Looks comfy.

Celebs Sue Each Other Over Gated Road in Star-Studded Calif. Community | ABA Journal - Law News Now: "Both the plaintiffs and the defendants are a star-studded list in a lawsuit filed over a gated road between upscale two communities near Beverly Hills.

Among the plaintiffs are Samuel Jackson and Earvin 'Magic' Johnson, reports the Los Angeles Times. The defendants include Barry Bonds, Reba McEntire, Eddie Murphy, Sylvester Stallone and Denzel Washington.

At issue is whether the North Beverly Park Homeowners Association had a right to restrict road access to nonresidents of South Beverly Park, after decades of not doing so.

While residents have not been directly inconvenienced, their contractors, nannies and gardeners, among others, have had no choice but to take lengthy detours, according to the newspaper article."
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I wouldn't want to be on the other side of a lawsuit from Samuel L. Jackson. "I'm sorry, did I break your concentration? I didn't mean to do that. Please, continue, you were saying something about best intentions. What's the matter? Oh, you were finished. Well then, allow me to retort. What does my gardener look like?"

More California cities hurtling into fiscal void? - Sacramento Politics - California Politics | Sacramento Bee

More California cities hurtling into fiscal void? - Sacramento Politics - California Politics | Sacramento Bee: "When the city of Vallejo filed for bankruptcy protection in May, the logical question was: Is this a sign of things to come?

Now two more California cities – Rio Vista and Isleton – are considering bankruptcy protection as an option as they face large budget shortfalls and staggering debt.

While experts caution against ringing the alarm bells just yet, they do say tough economic times could push municipalities already on the brink over the edge."
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Yes, this is a sign of things to come. Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link.

Fiction review: 'The Development' by John Barth

Fiction review: 'The Development' by John Barth: "'The Development' contains nine related stories set within a gated community in Chesapeake Bay country. Its residents, mostly upper-middle-class retirees 'in the dawn of the new millennium and the evening of their lives,' hold toga parties, have affairs, fret about their distant children and deal with suicides, hurricanes and Peeping Toms."
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Can't wait for the movie. Especially the geriatric toga party.

Vallejo's neighbors try to stay afloat

Vallejo's neighbors try to stay afloat: "The same budgetary nightmare that has shrouded Vallejo - a plunge in tax revenues coupled with rising employee costs - is playing out in the nearby cities of Fairfield and Rio Vista as well as other municipalities hard-hit by the foreclosure crisis.

Rio Vista is talking to bankruptcy attorneys while a 750-home development sits virtually abandoned. Fairfield just sliced 9 percent from its budget and is poised to slash 7 percent more. Earlier this year, Vallejo filed for Chapter 9 protection when faced with a $16 million deficit."
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Fred Pilot sent along this word of more doom and gloom from the former Golden State, now looking somewhere between tarnished and rusted shut.

Bloomberg.com: Opinion

Begging for Bailout Cash, U.S Cities Told to Go Fish: Joe Mysak: "You can't blame U.S. cities for eyeing the federal government's open vault and asking for a bailout, too. Atlanta, Detroit, Philadelphia and Phoenix have all asked in recent days for some of the Troubled Asset Relief Program billions. You can expect more to ask."
------------------
And I don't think they will be getting it. But we shall see.

Newsblog | Bankruptcy talks begin in San Diego

Newsblog | Bankruptcy talks begin in San Diego: "Bankruptcy talks began, kind of, in San Diego Monday when City Council President Scott Peters invited public comment for a Tuesday closed-door hearing on whether it should be considered here."
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I don't think San Diego will go bankrupt, but they have some very serious budget problems.

Larger Inmate Population Is Boon to Private Prisons - WSJ.com

Larger Inmate Population Is Boon to Private Prisons - WSJ.com: "'We have serious concerns about for-profit prison companies because they are notorious for cutting essential costs that need to be provided to maintain a safe and constitutional environment for prisoners,' says Jody Kent, a public-policy coordinator for the ACLU's National Prison Project."
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Fred Pilot raises a good question: if prisoners in private prisons have constitutional rights, what about the inmates of the rest of the nation's private communities?

Former Obama opponent now suing to prove President-elect's citizenship | Breaking News, Weather, Sports and Entertainment for Georgia and South Carolina | Presidential Race Headlines

Former Obama opponent now suing to prove President-elect's citizenship | Breaking News, Weather, Sports and Entertainment for Georgia and South Carolina | Presidential Race Headlines: "According to a press release from the American Independent Party, former presidential candidate Alan Keyes and other members of the party have filed suit in California Superior Court in Sacramento to stop the state from giving its electoral votes to President-elect Barack Obama until documentary evidence is provided to prove Obama is indeed a natural born citizen of the United States."
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Time for some comic relief. Alan Keyes ran the worst Senate campaign in American history against Obama, which is why The One was able to cakewalk into the Senate a few years ago. Now Keyes is heading up this doomed attempt to prevent the California electors from voting for Obama on December 15.

I wonder how many Americans know that Obama hasn't been elected yet? Today that is a formality, but when the Constitution was written the idea was that we chose electors, and the electors chose whoever they thought would make the best President. Could be Pee Wee Herman under that system.

Bailout For Builders—Are They Next In Line? - Realty Check with Diana Olick - CNBC.com

Bailout For Builders—Are They Next In Line? - Realty Check with Diana Olick - CNBC.com
The National Association of Home Builders says the nation's developers are feeling poorly.

www.dcexaminer.com >> Local News

www.dcexaminer.com >> Local News
I guess the District of Columbia could hop into that bailout line.

Pirates anchor hijacked supertanker Sirius Star off Somalia coast | World news | guardian.co.uk: "The Saudi Arabia-owned supertanker hijacked by Somali pirates in a raid several hundred miles out to sea is understood to have anchored off the coast of Somalia."
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Fascinating example of private navies wreaking havoc. What to do? How about privatizing the response? It's right in the constitution: letters of marque and reprisal: Article I, Section 8: Congress has the power "To...grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;"

That means commissioning privateers to go get the scalawags and keep a portion of what they recover as their booty. I think you would get plenty of well-armed and well-trained volunteers, especially in this economy. Maybe a team of ex-SAS and Special Forces lads in a fast boat with a few Zodiacs and the proper hardware?

WildFires Force Snoop Dogg & Family To Evacuate Mansion :: Hip-Hop News

WildFires Force Snoop Dogg & Family To Evacuate Mansion :: Hip-Hop News: "Snoop owns a multimillion-dollar home in The Country Estates, an exclusive, gated hillside community in Diamond Bar, Calif."
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But he is still a man of the street, y'all. Private streets, though.

Vice president, former AG, state senator indicted | AP Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

Vice president, former AG, state senator indicted | AP Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "McALLEN, Texas — A South Texas grand jury has indicted Vice President Dick Cheney and former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on charges related to the alleged abuse of prisoners in Willacy County's federal detention centers.

The indictment criticizes Cheney's investment in the Vanguard Group, which holds interests in the private prison companies running the federal detention centers. It accuses Cheney of a conflict of interest and 'at least misdemeanor assaults' on detainees by working through the prison companies."
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So privatization of federal detention centers leads to indictment of the VP?

City threatens blind woman over unpaid 1-cent bill - Yahoo! News

City threatens blind woman over unpaid 1-cent bill - Yahoo! News: "ATTLEBORO, Mass. – A 74-year-old blind woman was shocked when her daughter found a letter from the city saying a lien would be placed on her home unless she paid an overdue water bill.

The amount? 1 cent."
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Fred Pilot sent this link to proof that the nation's municipalities are gradually morphing into HOAs.

Florida pension fund loses a quarter its value - Yahoo! Finance

Florida pension fund loses a quarter its value - Yahoo! Finance: "TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida's public employee pension plan has lost more than a quarter of its peak value, but Gov. Charlie Crist and other officials Monday said the fund is built for the long haul and there's no need to panic."
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They only lost $38 billion, so what's the problem?

From McMansions to modest - The Denver Post

From McMansions to modest - The Denver Post: "According to Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, a market-research and analysis firm for residential real-estate development and new-home construction, the median square footage and median sales price for homes dropped from 2,000 square feet for $314,900 in the first quarter of 2008 to 1,876 square feet for $306,950 in the third quarter."
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Homes got 124 square feet smaller so far this year. Another couple of years and we'll all be living in phone booths.

Borg warns of looming recession in Sweden - The Local
The bright side: recession is better than being assimilated.

Neighborhood Being Forced To Pay For Lawn Care - News Story - WFTV Orlando

Neighborhood Being Forced To Pay For Lawn Care - News Story - WFTV Orlando: "ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- An entire Orange County neighborhood is now being forced to pay for lawn care. The homeowners association in the Independence neighborhood in Winter Garden has decided to hire a lawn service for every homeowner.

It made the move because so many yards had grown out of control at foreclosed homes. The cost to each resident is $55 a month added to their $170 HOA fee."
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This is a new one. The developer still controls the association, and he is using his power this way. Fred Pilot sent the link.

Jindal: Something Is Wrong With The GOP, Face The Nation: Republicans Discuss The Future Of Their Party Following Election Losses - CBS News

Jindal: Something Is Wrong With The GOP, Face The Nation: Republicans Discuss The Future Of Their Party Following Election Losses - CBS News:"'As Republicans, we need to do three things to get back on track,' he said on CBS' Face The Nation. 'Number one, we have got to stop defending the kind of spending and out-of-control spending that we would never tolerate in the other side. You know, when voters tell us that they trust Democrats more to cut their taxes [and] control spending, that tells you something is wrong with the Republican Party. We've got to match our actions with our rhetoric.

'Number two, we've got to stop defending the kinds of corruption we would rightfully criticize in the other party. The week before the election, our most senior senator is convicted on federal charges - and that's only the latest example.

'Number three, we have got to be the party that offers real solutions to the problems that American voters, American families are worried about. We don't need to abandon our conservative principles; we can't just be the 'party of no.' We need to offer real solutions on making health care more affordable, on the economic challenges facing families, on the international threats.'"
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Government spending, corruption, and problem-solving. Fine. That will respond to the 40% of the electorate that votes on policy. But the other 60% of the electorate just leaves one party in power until things are going badly in the country, and then they vote for the other party.

So I think no matter what the Republicans do they are going to be waiting in the wings until the public loses patience with the Democrats. That means that policy areas such as housing will simply be run by Democrats, according to their priorities, for the forseeable future. That means high density housing in the cities and inner ring suburbs, and that means more CIDs.

Clean up foreclosed home, or city will - Las Vegas Sun

Clean up foreclosed home, or city will - Las Vegas Sun: "As a growing number of cities across the country are aggressively forcing owners of foreclosed and abandoned properties to clean them up, Las Vegas is going after them with the help of a three-year-old ordinance that, until recently, wasn’t much needed.

Under the law, Las Vegas’ Neighborhood Services Department oversees cleanups of decaying or ignored homes that generate neighborhood complaints. The city may water lawns or clean pools and go after the owners for the cost. If they don’t pay, they are slapped with $500-a-day fines."
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That's a hefty fine that should get the attention of these banks who own property and won't take care of it. Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link.

Facing Deficits, States Get Out Sharper Knives - The New York Times

Facing Deficits, States Get Out Sharper Knives - The New York Times
You need a login id to read this.

Tulsa World: Inhofe: Cancel the 'blank check'

Tulsa World: Inhofe: Cancel the 'blank check': "WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe said Saturday that Congress was not told the truth about the bailout of the nation's financial system and should take back what is left of the $700 billion 'blank check'' it gave the Bush administration.

'It is just outrageous that the American people don't know that Congress doesn't know how much money he (Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson) has given away to anyone,'' the Oklahoma Republican told the Tulsa World.

'It could be to his friends. It could be to anybody else. We don't know. There is no way of knowing.''"
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Hey, what are friends for?

Liberty Lakes Condominium Association: Food Drive A Success!

Liberty Lakes Condominium Association: Food Drive A Success!: "Thank you to everyone who donated to the 2nd Annual Liberty Lakes Condo Association Food Drive. Through a number of generous neighbors we will be delivering over 25 bags of groceries to the Wauconda/Island Lake Food Pantry which is a huge sucess. Even through these difficult economic times this year many people opened their hearts and their pocket books to give to the less fortunate in our community. Thanks again to all who participated.

Have a safe and happy holiday season!

Sincerely,
The Liberty Lakes Condo Association Social Committee"
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And thanks to you! Good work.

Are you an idiot to keep paying your mortgage?

Are you an idiot to keep paying your mortgage?
A columnist asks the ultimate question.

Europe’s Strangest Theme Park | Environmental Graffiti

Europe’s Strangest Theme Park | Environmental Graffiti: "When confronted with the issue of what to do with an ex-Soviet bunker in the countryside, an enterprising Lithuanian decided that some things should be left the way they are…

Welcome to 1984: Išgyvenimo Drama, otherwise known as Survival Drama in a Soviet Bunker."
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Mystery Reader sent this charming story. Sound like fun. Maybe they serve shoe leather soup for lunch.

In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole? | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole? | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
What do you think?

CEO Summit on Saving an Industry in Crisis - American Press Institute: "The daily newspaper industry stands at a precipice. Rocked by declining print circulation and advertising, disruptive Internet technologies and competition from a variety of new players and industries, the traditional bedrock of American journalism faces a classic change-or-die scenario. Whole swaths of the American populace have abandoned newspapers or are growing up without the habit of reading them. And while the Web sites of news organizations are attracting more readers than ever, the online advertising business is nowhere close to making up for the steep slide in print.

None of this is news, yet the industry's response to date continues to be fitful, ranging from simple cost-cutting in some companies to paralysis and denial in others, to commitment to change and innovation in still others.

To help newspaper companies find strategies and ideas for re-invention, 50 top executives gathered at the American Press Institute for a day-long summit guided by two corporate turnaround experts."
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This is interesting reading. More interesting than newspapers, now that I think about it.

The Hartford: The Hartford : Investor Relations : The Hartford Announces Agreement To Acquire Federal Trust Bank And Application To U.S. Treasury Capital Purchase Program

The Hartford: The Hartford : Investor Relations : The Hartford Announces Agreement To Acquire Federal Trust Bank And Application To U.S. Treasury Capital Purchase Program: "HARTFORD, Conn., Nov 14, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: HIG) today announced that it has applied to the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) to become a savings and loan holding company and has applied to participate in the U.S. Treasury Department's Capital Purchase Program (CPP).

In conjunction with these applications, The Hartford has signed a merger agreement to acquire the parent company of Federal Trust Bank for approximately $10 million and will also provide an additional amount to recapitalize the bank. Federal Trust Bank, a federally chartered, FDIC-insured savings bank is owned by Federal Trust Corporation, a unitary thrift holding company headquartered in Sanford, Fla. The completion of this acquisition will satisfy a key eligibility requirement for participation in CPP."
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Hartford, a $26 billion company, is buying a little bank for $10 million so it can call itself a "savings and loan holding company" and get its snout in the bailout trough.

Spam Turns Serious and Hormel Turns Out More - NYTimes.com: "AUSTIN, Minn. — The economy is in tatters and, for millions of people, the future is uncertain. But for some employees at the Hormel Foods Corporation plant here, times have never been better. They are working at a furious pace and piling up all the overtime they want.

The workers make Spam, perhaps the emblematic hard-times food in the American pantry."
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Spam, spam, and more spam, plus an occasional zoo animal. Recession vittles.

Um, it's a rooster, not a chicken :: Porter County :: Post-Tribune

Um, it's a rooster, not a chicken, or "When election boards go bad": "Several readers wondered whether there was a political bias implicit on their ballots in Porter County.

On the ballot, toward the top, were small designs associated with the political party labels. Republicans had an elephant. Libertarians had the Statue of Liberty. But next to Democrats? A chicken?"
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They defend this by saying it was a "rooster." A rooster is still a chicken.

Print Version

Washington state landowner draws Secret Service attention for bonehead political sign: "The U.S. Secret Service is being asked to review a sign a Bonner County landowner put up which suggests a 'free public hanging' of President-elect Barack Obama and several other political figures.

The handmade cardboard sign also features a noose fashioned from a length of nylon rope.

'That's a political statement. They can call it whatever they want, a threat or whatever,' said Ken Germana, who installed the sign on his property off Golden Gate Road in southwestern Bonner County.

Obama's name is the most prominent on the sign, although it also bears the names of former Democrat presidential nominee John Kerry, current U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and civil rights activist and former presidential candidate Al Sharpton."
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It is a political statement, but it is also evidence of a room temperature IQ.

A Depression-Style California State Budget - California Progress Report: "A recent story on the Depression in the Washington Post discussed how the Depression first entered American households, such as the day people switched from electric lighting to cheaper kerosene lamps, the day beans replaced beef on the dinner table, and the day extended family members moved in. The most grisly story in the article was in 1932 in Detroit, when the city shut down its zoo and slaughtered its animals to provide food for a starving population."
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Let's hope it doesn't come to that.

Record Loss Forces Freddie Mac to Tap $100 Billion Fund - Financials * US * News * Story - CNBC.com

Record Loss Forces Freddie Mac to Tap $100 Billion Fund - Financials * US * News * Story - CNBC.com: "Freddie Mac reported a $25.3 billion quarterly loss on Friday as the housing slump worsened, forcing the second-largest provider of U.S. home loan funding to draw on a $100 billion Treasury Department lifeline.

The company attributed much of the record loss to a write down of tax-related assets, essentially conceding it will not return to profitability soon. Writing down the assets left the company with a negative net worth, in which liabilities exceed its assets, requiring it to tap the Treasury backstop.

Freddie Mac said after tentative signs that the housing market was stabilizing in the second quarter, conditions worsened 'dramatically' during July through September.

'The percentage decline in home prices was particularly large in California, Florida, Arizona and Nevada, where Freddie Mac has significant concentrations of mortgage loans,' the company said in a securities filing. Freddie Mac said the rising unemployment rate was the main culprit for the worsening housing market."
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Let's see...California, Florida, Arizona, and Nevada. What do those four states have in common?

Oh, yes. Almost all their new housing is in CIDs. Does this mean that the prices have fallen more for CID housing than for new conventional neighborhoods?

Pledge of Allegiance divides Vermont town

Pledge of Allegiance divides Vermont town: "The brouhaha in the Vermont school began in September, when parent Ted Tedesco began circulating petitions calling for the return of pledge recitation as a daily practice in the 19th-century schoolhouse, which has 55 children in kindergarten through sixth grade.

School officials agreed to resume it as a daily exercise, but not in the classroom.

'We don't want to isolate children every day in their own classroom or make them feel they're different,' said Principal Michaela Martin.

Instead, starting last week, a sixth grade student was assigned to go around to the four classrooms before classes started, gathering anyone who wanted to say it and then walking them up creaky wooden steps to a second-floor gymnasium, where he led them in the pledge.

About half the students chose to participate, Martin said."
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Maybe the citizens of Woodbury, Vermont, would be more comfortable pledging allegiance to the United Nations flag.

Malaysia Property News - Real Estate, Property, Residential, Office, Condominium: Be resilient to face slowdown, builders told

Malaysia Property News - Real Estate, Property, Residential, Office, Condominium: Be resilient to face slowdown, builders told: "PETALING JAYA: Developers must be optimistic and resilient in facing the current slowdown in the property market, says Country Heights Holdings Bhd founder and vice-chairman Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew.

“The sector is facing a slowdown as the result of the current economic conditions. Though we do feel cautious, we must not be pessimists,” he said during the CEO roundtable session at the summit."

Town of Batman suing Batman over use of Batman (Wizbang Pop!): "The mayor of Batman, Turkey, is suing Warner Bros. and The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan for using the Cape Crusader's name without the city's permission."
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Maybe Hooker, California, should file some lawsuits too.

ILLINOIZE: State and city budgets falling fast

ILLINOIZE: State and city budgets falling fast
The map that accompanies this post shows 41 states facing budget shortfalls.

9NEWS.com | Colorado's Online News Leader | Golden decides lights on trees are OK: "GOLDEN - The Golden City Council voted unanimously on Thursday night to only allow secular items on city property for the holidays this year. The city made the decision because the lights on Washington Street stirred up controversy. A local rabbi asked that a Hanukkah menorah be added to the decorations on the main street, but the city resisted, saying it didn't want religious symbols. Current decorations in the city include lights on trees, garland, snowflakes and snowballs. The rabbi countered that Christmas lights are religious in nature. The city disagreed and Thursday night's resolution allows the lights to stay up. There is one exception. A Santa Claus that is traditionally on the arch over Washington Street will stay because of its historical nature. The figure has been there as a tradition for many years."
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Christmas lights: OK
Santa: OK
Garland, snowflakes, and snowballs: OK
Menorah: NOT OK

I think I get the distinction they are trying to make here, but the end result is a secularized celebration of the Christian holiday called Christmas, but no public celebration of Hanukkah. In my ideal world there would be all sorts of religious symbols along with the secular ones. Given that the stores will all be going broke this Christmas and corporations will be doing mass end-of-year layoffs, we could all do with a little prayer anyway. It's free, after all. So I'll put one up here.

Mayor to town folk: You're too stupid to work with - Yahoo! News: "ST. ANTHONY, Idaho – You can't call Bill Beck the mayor of 'stupid' town anymore. The former St. Anthony mayor resigned from his post at a city council meeting Wednesday night, but not before telling off the townspeople and his fellow city council members.

Councilman Bryan Fullmer told the Standard Journal that Beck walked into the start of the meeting and announced his surprise resignation to the audience. Fullmer said Beck then told the audience that he was tired of people who were too stupid to understand, and turned and told council members that they were too stupid to work with, too.

Fullmer said Beck continued by telling the town to go to hell."
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I give him 10 out of 10 for sincerity, but I think there was a certain lack of tact. Fred Pilot found this saga.

Breitbart.tv » Illinois 8th Grader’s T-Shirt Experiment Documents Anti-McCain Bias
After living in Oak Park for 8 years, I am not surprised at all by this. It is the most intolerant place I've ever seen. The kids are brainwashed from birth ("Democrat good. Republican bad. Liberal good. Conservative bad. Unitarian Church good. Born again Christian bad. Oak Parkers good and tolerant. All other white suburbanites bad and intolerant.") and the groupthink in the public schools is astounding. This girl has tremendous courage to have retained her capacity for independent thought, let alone taking a risk like this.
Here is the John Kass column that broke the story.
Here is Kass' follow-up story.

That $300 Billion Hope For Homeowners Isn’t Working - Realty Check with Diana Olick - CNBC.com

That $300 Billion Hope For Homeowners Isn’t Working - Realty Check with Diana Olick - CNBC.com: "Here’s the reality: In the last two weeks, FHA received exactly 69 applications to the H4H program. Since the start of the program, a little over a month ago, it has received 111. Now I’m no mathematician, but that doesn’t exactly extrapolate out to 400,000 over three years or even 19,000 over one year or even over a few months."
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OK--so can we have the money put back in the Treasury?

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - Poll: Obama facing high expectations « - Blogs from CNN.com
And who set those high expectations, pray tell?

Post office $2.8 billion in the red: "WASHINGTON (AP) - The Postal Service ended its fiscal year $2.8 billion in the red, battered by a faltering economy that cut the amount of mail being sent."
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What the heck, bail them out too.

Cities panic as consumers stop spending and home values fall - San Jose Mercury News

Cities panic as consumers stop spending and home values fall - San Jose Mercury News: "Sales tax revenues are plunging as frightened consumers stop spending and car dealerships go out of business. Property tax revenues are drooping as home prices fall. The fees local governments get from builders are disappearing as housing construction grinds to a halt.

The collapse of financial foundations has many Northern California cities scared to death — and for good reason. They're facing a future of unrepaired potholes, reduced library hours, less-manicured parks and a drop in the number of cops and firefighters."
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Public and private local governments are in trouble, at the same time. Not good news for anybody. Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link.

City Council: Detroit needs $10-billion bailout | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press

City Council: Detroit needs $10-billion bailout | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press: "The Detroit City Council passed a resolution today calling for a $10-billion bailout for the city of Detroit."
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They just got $47 million from HUD to deal with the foreclosure crisis. Back for a lot more.

Michael Jackson gives Neverland to corporation - Yahoo! News

Michael Jackson gives Neverland to corporation - Yahoo! News: "LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson has given up title to his Neverland ranch, transferring the deed to a company he partly controls.

The singer filed a grant deed on the ranch Monday that makes the new owner an entity called the Sycamore Valley Ranch Co. LLC, Tom Pearson of the Santa Barbara County clerk-recorder's office said Wednesday.

Sycamore Valley Ranch Co. is a joint venture between Jackson and an affiliate of Colony Capital LLC, according to a person with knowledge of the transaction who was not authorized to speak on the record and requested anonymity.

The person could not say what would become of the 2,500-acre property in the bucolic, oak-studded hills of Santa Barbara County's wine country, 120 miles northwest of Los Angeles."
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If they sell it build a subdivision, it could turn out like in the movie Poltergeist. Who knows what is buried down there?

Neighbors keep up appearances in struggling Tampa suburbs - St. Petersburg Times

Neighbors keep up appearances in struggling Tampa suburbs - St. Petersburg Times: "As the stock of foreclosed and abandoned homes rises, Glass and many of his neighbors in deed-restricted suburbs from Hillsborough to Pasco are taking matters into their own hands, organizing Saturday mowing excursions. Their homeowners groups are adopting and amending policies that allow them to cut down waist-high grass and bill the owners for the expense."
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From Fred Pilot comes yet another example of how HOAs are getting hit by the foreclosure epidemic. I heard somebody on the radio yesterday--a California economist--saying that the bottom for real estate is a year away in some parts of the country, especially where the prices were the highest before the bottom fell out.

Man's house blows up, companies responsible won't help - Boing Boing

Man's house blows up, companies responsible won't help - Boing Boing: "Ian Silvestein's house was destroyed three years when the Buncefield Depot in England blew up. The companies that operated the depot -- Total and Chevron -- won't help him."
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Mystery Reader sent this link, and it includes truly pathetic photos of this poor fellow sitting in the ruins of his house. Corporate responsibility...an oxymoron?

We Blew It

P.J. O'Rourke: We Blew It: "What will destroy our country and us is not the financial crisis but the fact that liberals think the free market is some kind of sect or cult, which conservatives have asked Americans to take on faith. That's not what the free market is. The free market is just a measurement, a device to tell us what people are willing to pay for any given thing at any given moment. The free market is a bathroom scale. You may hate what you see when you step on the scale. 'Jeeze, 230 pounds!' But you can't pass a law making yourself weigh 185. Liberals think you can. And voters--all the voters, right up to the tippy-top corner office of Goldman Sachs--think so too.

We, the conservatives, who do understand the free market, had the responsibility to--as it were--foreclose upon this mess. The market is a measurement, but that measuring does not work to the advantage of a nation or its citizens unless the assessments of volume, circumference, and weight are conducted with transparency and under the rule of law. We've had the rule of law largely in our hands since 1980. Where is the transparency? It's one more job we botched.

Although I must say we're doing good work on our final task--attaching the garden hose to our car's exhaust pipe and running it in through a vent window. Barack and Michelle will be by in a moment with some subsidized ethanol to top up our gas tank. And then we can turn the key."
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This is a bitterly funny and eloquent screed.

William Bell to join Jefferson County Commission today - Breaking News from The Birmingham News - al.com

William Bell to join Jefferson County Commission today - Breaking News from The Birmingham News - al.com: "Bell joins a group of politicians bitterly divided over the financial fate of the county. His vote could determine whether Jefferson County files for the largest municipal bankruptcy in the nation's history or works to pay in full Wall Street creditors who are owed more than $4.7 billion."
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Southwest News-Herald Suburban: Cook County Clerk Blasts TIF Expansion: "Cook County Clerk David Orr recently produced a report in which he blamed the proliferation of tax-increment financing districts in the county for siphoning too much revenue away from taxing bodies such as schools and libraries. Tax increment financing districts, usually set up for 23 years, are an economic development tool designed to attract business development to blighted areas. They do not raise taxes but for the life of the TIF, any property taxes generated within them above a certain level are returned to the district for redevelopment. According to the report. TIFs are the fastest growing part of property tax bills, although the revenue they take in is not listed on bills. Orr pointed out in the report that nearly $900 million in property tax money was diverted into TIFs in Cook County in 2007."
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David Orr is one of the good guys in Cook County politics. This TIF situation is becoming a major problem for school districts and libraries and all the other special taxing districts. They are not getting their share of the revenue from growth, but they end up with a share of the costs. The schools get the kids from the new subdivision, but they don't get the increased property tax revenue from their parents.

Now imagine that the new subdivision is an HOA. The municipality doesn't even supply them with a full set of services but takes a full share of property tax. The parents end up paying all their property tax, all their HOA assessments (for the services not covered by property tax), and then they have to pony up a tax increase to fund the schools because the schools have all these new students to serve, but the TIF is getting the additional property tax revenues their development generated. No wonder the housing market crashed--it is amazing more people haven't walked away from their homes. When you add the tax situation to the mortgage situation many of them must feel like cows being milked.