Sounds reasonable. Where do they park their ark?

LA County says OK to couple's goats, llama, emu - Yahoo! News: "LOS ANGELES – A Southern California couple will not be allowed to have 15 goats. They'll have to settle for 10 goats, two horses, a llama and an emu."

New Jersey's public pension bomb - May. 12, 2009

New Jersey's public pension bomb - May. 12, 2009: "For years, states nationwide have shortchanged the retirement programs that cover teachers, police, and other public employees; now the stock market plunge has wiped out billions of dollars from already underfunded plans. California, New York and Illinois are among the states scrambling to plug multibillion-dollar holes in their pension systems. The growing obligations raise the specter of higher taxes, diminished services, or even another round of costly federal bailouts."
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This is a slow-motion train wreck.

Reboot?

Herdt: Pathway to a revolution : Columnists : Ventura County Star: "In this environment, one revolutionary idea that is picking up traction is the movement to call a constitutional convention. The convention would be tasked with blowing up the system we’ve got and it would empower an unspecified group of people to rewrite the rules dictating how California elects its leaders, raises and spends money and organizes its governance.

It’s a grand idea with one grand problem: It’ll never work."
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Fred Pilot sent this opinion piece. California has been playing chicken with reality for a long time now, and there is no doubt about which car will survive the head-on collision. The political class--legislators, union bosses, and so forth--still assumes there must be some sort of deus ex machina that will allow them to continue milking the taxpayers. The voters retain their appetite for government services and their dislike of paying for them. The federal government shows no willingness to pick up the tab for open borders and a host of unfunded mandates. And now some people are thinking that the answer may be to reboot the system with a constitutional convention. The author of the op-ed lays out a lot of questions, but the most important one is: "Who would be the delegates?"

U.S. Expected to Own 70% of a Revamped G.M. - NYTimes.com

U.S. Expected to Own 70% of a Revamped G.M. - NYTimes.com: "Including the more than $20 billion that has already been spent to prop up G.M., the government will provide G.M. at least $50 billion to get the company through Chapter 11, people with direct knowledge of the situation said Tuesday. By some estimates in Detroit, tens of billions beyond that amount may be required.

The United Automobile Workers, meanwhile, will hold up to 20 percent through its retiree health care fund, and bondholders and other parties will get the remaining share. Shareholders would be virtually wiped out."
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It would seem that the era of big privatization is over.

Woman Upset After American Flag Taken Down At Work - cbs11tv.com

Woman Upset After American Flag Taken Down At Work - cbs11tv.com: "Is it okay to show your patriotism at the office? For one Arlington woman, the answer was 'no' after she hung an American flag in her office just before the Memorial Day weekend. Debbie McLucas is one of four hospital supervisors at Kindred Hospital in Mansfield. Last week, she hung a three-by-five foot American flag in the office she shares with the other supervisors. When McLucas came to work Friday, her boss told her another supervisor had found her flag offensive. 'I was just totally speechless. I was like, 'You're kidding me,'' McLucas said...
McLucas said the supervisor who complained has been in the United States for 14 years and is formerly from Africa. McLucas said the supervisor took down Debbie's flag herself."
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Private property = no civil liberties. Or so it seems.

Towns Rethink Self-Reliance as Finances Worsen - WSJ.com

Towns Rethink Self-Reliance as Finances Worsen - WSJ.com: "As the recession batters city budgets around the U.S., some municipalities are considering the once-unthinkable option of dissolving themselves through 'disincorporation.'

Benefits of this move vary from state to state. In some cases, dissolution allows residents to escape local taxes. In others, it saves the cost of local salaries and pensions. And residents may get services more cheaply after consolidating with a county."
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Who will go out of business first? The municipalities or the HOAs?

Home Prices Continue Downward March - WSJ.com

Home Prices Continue Downward March - WSJ.com: "For the first quarter, the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index posted a 19.1% drop from a year earlier, the biggest quarterly decline for the reading's 21-year history."
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But consumer confidence is up, which proves that anti-depressant drugs work.

Crisis spurs spike in 'suburban survivalists'

Crisis spurs spike in 'suburban survivalists': "Emergency supply retailers and military surplus stores nationwide have seen business boom in the past few months as an increasing number of Americans spooked by the economy rush to stock up on gear that was once the domain of hardcore survivalists."
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People who are heeding the warnings and preparing for the EOTWAWKI ("end of the world as we know it") are getting their BOB ("bug out bag") stocked up. They are ready to skin raccoons.

Thanks to Frontier Fred Pilot for this helpful link.

Realtors are abandoning a listing ship - Los Angeles Times

Realtors are abandoning a listing ship - Los Angeles Times: "Experiences like these are leading some to wonder whether Realtors may soon go the way of travel agents. Already weakened by the sour housing market, the profession faces increasing challenges from Internet-based services that help people save thousands on a home purchase."
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Some would say that this proves every cloud has a silver lining.

Hippie Stonehenge?

American Stonehenge: Monumental Instructions for the Post-Apocalypse: "Called the Georgia Guidestones, the monument is a mystery—nobody knows exactly who commissioned it or why. The only clues to its origin are on a nearby plaque on the ground—which gives the dimensions and explains a series of intricate notches and holes that correspond to the movements of the sun and stars—and the 'guides' themselves, directives carved into the rocks. These instructions appear in eight languages ranging from English to Swahili and reflect a peculiar New Age ideology. Some are vaguely eugenic (guide reproduction wisely—improving fitness and diversity); others prescribe standard-issue hippie mysticism (prize truth—beauty—love—seeking harmony with the infinite)."
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Judging by the words of wisdom, I think it should be called Stoned-henge.

Stimulus funds to repair Texas Governor's Mansion - Yahoo! News

Stimulus funds to repair Texas Governor's Mansion - Yahoo! News: "AUSTIN, Texas – While Gov. Rick Perry is criticizing Washington bailouts, state lawmakers are planning to use $11 million in federal stimulus money to help rebuild the badly burned Texas Governor's Mansion."
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Question for state's rights Governor Perry: How is contributing to rebuilding the governor's mansion a federal responsibility?

California budget crisis could bring lasting economic harm - Los Angeles Times

California budget crisis could bring lasting economic harm - Los Angeles Times: "The spectacle that played out in the national media this week of a state unable to get its fiscal act together is reinforcing the notion that the Golden State is a rotten place to do business, experts say."
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Hard to see how California can rehab itself, much less its image, anytime soon.

In Depth: Where U.S. Homeowners Are Most In Debt - Forbes.com

In Depth: Where U.S. Homeowners Are Most In Debt - Forbes.com
Modesto, CA: 81% of all loans from the last five years are upside down.

Lovable misunderstood pit bull attacks 2 year old

Son Of Steelers' Harrison Attacked By Family Dog - Sports News Story - WPXI Pittsburgh: "FRANKLIN PARK, Pa. -- Channel 11 News learned that a pit bull owned by Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison attacked the player's 2-year-old son, James III.

The attack happened at Harrison's Franklin Park home along Matterhorn Drive on Thursday.

Officials said the attack allegedly happened after the boy's mother let the dog out of its pen. She, and the family's massage therapist, were also injured by the dog as they tried to protect the boy."
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A two-year old and a pit bull. What could possibly go wrong?

Harrison is the jerk who refused to go to the White House with his team. It wasn't political. He just "didn't want to go." Why? Because President Obama didn't really want to see the Steelers--he would have invited whoever won the Super Bowl.

What the fork?

Unusual utensil upsets neighborhood | Latest News | KENS5.com: "STONE OAK – Damien Watel sees nothing wrong with the 18 foot silver fork outside his business off Stone Oak Parkway, but then again he paid more than $20,000 to have it built.

Watel calls the oddly shaped sculpture “art”, while the Stone Oak Homeowners Association calls it an “eyesore” and is demanding he either take it down or cover it up."
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Seems Mr. Watel didn't get the HOAs permission before forking up the neighborhood. But a compromise is in the works: build a knife and spoon to go with the fork. Not really.

Washington declines to help California, at least for now - Los Angeles Times

Washington declines to help California, at least for now - Los Angeles Times: "California needs to solve its financial crisis by itself and should not expect an emergency bailout from the White House, an array of Obama administration officials said Thursday, making clear they had no appetite to step in and provide financial assistance or loan guarantees.

'Look, we're going to examine what we can do. What we need to do, however, is to treat states fairly and that means uniformly,' David Axelrod, senior advisor to the president, said in an interview. 'Whatever we do for one state, there will be other states who also will want to do that. And there's a limit to what the government can do.'"
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I agree with Axelrod. If they bail out California, how can they say "no" to Illinois, New Jersey, New York, and a number of other states? What would be the principle underlying a decision to help one state but not the others? And if the national government goes down that road, what about federalism? States are supposed to have, and pay for, their own policy agenda, and a state government elected by the residents of that state. They make their own decisions and they have to pay for them. If the national government is going to underwrite all the states' economic risks, federalism is gone and we are a unitary nation like France or Japan.

What is going on with the auto industry is bad enough. Let's not compound it.

Obama cuts out press, produces own "news" coverage of...himself!

Do You Want Your OTV? - Political Punch
So now Obama is producing his own "news." I tell Obama lovers about how aggressively he and Axelrod control his press coverage and they all swear it can't be true. The press conferences are stage-managed, with reporters being told in advance who will be called on. The pressers are so scripted that Obama has been using a teleprompter. The cover of Newsweek has essentially been dedicated to Obama, Inc., MSNBC's legs are quivering, and you have to go to YouTube to find any of Obama or Biden's gaffes.

Reagan's people were very good at managing his press coverage for at least his first term, but the Obama team has them beaten easily. Axelrod and the others are very, very good at their jobs. There is a lot of spin, schmoozing, manipulation, and intimidation going on behind the scenes. And now they have decided to cut out the middle men--the actual news organizations--and produce their own "coverage."

Green Building Red-Lighted by Homeowners’ Associations

Green Building Red-Lighted by Homeowners’ Associations: "With environmentalism en vogue, many homeowners are finding economic solutions within the green building movement. However, restrictive covenants established by homeowners’ associations (HOA) have made it extremely difficult for many Americans to make their homes more energy efficient."
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Thanks to Mark Pike, recent grad of William and Mary School of Law, for this post and his law review note.

Trickle-down austerity

California Cities Irked by Borrowing Plan - WSJ.com: "California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, in his efforts to find funds to balance the state budget, has proposed borrowing $2 billion from municipal governments over the next fiscal year, a tactic that is rankling local officials up and down the state.

Mr. Schwarzenegger is invoking a 2004 law that lets the state demand loans of 8% of property-tax revenue from cities, counties and special districts. Under the law, the state must repay the municipalities with interest within three years."
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And then what? The cities cut services and ask more from the few remaining real estate developers?

Will the Urban Renaissance Outlast the Bubble? - Megan McArdle

Will the Urban Renaissance Outlast the Bubble? - Megan McArdle: "There's a lot of angst out there over whether products like Starbucks that seem somehow emblematic of an era of wasteful spending will outlast the current downturn. The other day it occurred to me to wonder if the same isn't true of US cities."
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Good question. Chicago's urban renaissance relied on TIFs, CIDs, federal HOPE VI money, the real estate bubble mentality, and a few other features of the 1990-2008 bygone era.

Recession Turns Malls Into Ghost Towns - WSJ.com

Recession Turns Malls Into Ghost Towns - WSJ.com: "Some analysts estimate that the number of so-called 'dead malls' -- centers debilitated by anemic sales and high vacancy rates -- will swell to more than 100 by the end of this year."
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Macy's, J.C. Penney, Sears...all suffering, according to the article. If the anchor tenants are in trouble, so is the landlord.

Pa. middle school expels teen with eyebrow shaver

Pa. middle school expels teen with eyebrow shaver: "PENN HILLS, Pa. (AP) - A Pittsburgh-area teenager has been suspended from middle school when a random search turned up an eyebrow shaver in her handbag. Officials at Linton Middle School in Penn Hills recommended at a Wednesday disciplinary hearing that 15-year-old be expelled for the rest of this year and 45 days next year."
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Six more years and all three of my kids will have graduated from high school and will be forever out of the clutches of the idiots who run them.

Nick Gillespie to fellow Libertarians: "You fools!"

Hit & Run > Obama on Taxes and Traffic: Ever Get the Feeling You've Been Cheated? Or, can we start talking about Obama's vision deficit? - Reason Magazine: "Question to the folks, including some of the libertarian persuasion (you fools!), who were bullish on Obama back when the alternative was John McCain, the Terri Schiavo of presidential candidates: When are you going to admit that Barry O stinks on ice?"
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I always find libertarians interesting folks to talk politics with because they have a core set of values and they try to stick to them, but they end up taking some strange positions. For example, the idea of a libertarian voting for Obama seems absurd because anybody could see he was a big-government liberal if not a crypto-socialist. Apparently, some libertarians voted for him, presumably because McCain was so bad and Obama is liberal on social issues. But now Nick Gillespie takes Obama voters to task--all from a libertarian perspective.

The worst example of libertarianism leading people to strange beliefs is their support for HOAs, where they actually end up defending tyranny in the name of freedom.

Trinidad: Gated communities not so safe?

Trinidad News, Trinidad Newspaper, Trinidad Sports, Trinidad politics, Trinidad and Tobago, Tobago News, Trinidad classifieds, Trinidad TV, Sports, Business: "THE PERCEPTION that gated communities are safer than living out in the open was shattered on Tuesday afternoon by three young gunmen, who walked to the front gate of a house, called out to their target and then shot her several times, killing her on the spot."

Legislature Debates HOA Bill - Las Vegas Now |

Legislature Debates HOA Bill - Las Vegas Now |: "The FBI continues its investigation into HOA political corruption, trying to tie posh developers to boards scattered throughout the valley. SB 182 would make influence peddling and kickbacks a crime.

The bill has faced little opposition to this point and the end of session deadline is looming. The bill's supporters and those in the HOA community say now is the time to strike.

'They have all the powers of a government, okay. And there is no one watching all this money,' said State Senator Mike Schneider."
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The bill has to be voted out of committee by next Wednesday or it will die there. Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.

Budget crisis could push O.C., other localities into bankruptcy - Total Buzz - OCRegister.com

Budget crisis could push O.C., other localities into bankruptcy - Total Buzz - OCRegister.com: "Could Orange County go bankrupt again?

That’s the talk at the county Hall of Administration a day after voters resoundingly rejected a series of ballot proposals. As officials grapple with filling a $100 million hole in their general fund budget for the fiscal year 2009-2010, they are deeply worried that Gov. Schwarzenegger’s threat to borrow property taxes from local governments could tip them over the edge.

County CEO Tom Mauk said that if the governor goes through with his pledge, that could mean an additional $43 million taken away from the county government. And that produces a $143 million hole in the general fund, which is tough to fill without cutting local government’s main cost: public safety."
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Fred Pilot sent this, noting that it could lead to even more government privatization and/or reducing services to minimal levels--even policing?

"California is hosed!" - Megan McArdle

Is California Too Big to Fail? - Megan McArdle: "You can blame Republicans who won't pass a budget, or Democrats who spend every single cent of tax money that comes in during the booms, borrow some more, and then act all surprised when revenues, in a totally unprecedented, inexplicable, and unforeseable chain of events, fall during a recession. You can blame the initiative process, and the uneducated voters who try to vote themselves rich by picking their own pockets. Whoever is to blame, the state was bound to go broke one day, and hey, today's that day!"
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And that is the way it looks. So what is to be done? Federal bailout? Bankruptcy and receivership?

California voters kill budget measures - Los Angeles Times

California voters kill budget measures - Los Angeles Times: "Schwarzenegger has called for cuts that would hit every corner of the state. He announced plans to lay off 5,000 of the state's 235,000 workers and has proposed slashing education by up to $5 billion, selling state properties, borrowing $2 billion from local governments and potentially reducing eligibility for healthcare programs.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa predicted that the city's budget could take a hit -- but he vowed a fight: 'I'm going to do everything I can to protect the city coffers.'"
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I guess the voters of California aren't quite as fond of paying taxes as they are of government services. There is a close relationship between the two, but you'd never know it if you look at election returns.

A gated community with excitment

Detectives shot 25 times at Harvell | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register: "Three West Des Moines police detectives fired 25 shots at a serial rapist last week after he pointed a blank-firing gun and threatened to kill them, according to a search warrant unsealed this morning.

Adam Harvell, 36, was shot and killed after the detectives took a different search warrant to his townhouse in the Village at Glen Oaks, a gated community southeast of Jordan Creek Town Center."

The Columbus Dispatch : No hat, no hood, no shades? Come on in

The Columbus Dispatch : No hat, no hood, no shades? Come on in: "Westerville police have asked the city's 21 banks and credit unions to post window signs that direct customers to put away cell phones and remove sunglasses, hoods and hats.

The idea is to weed out those who want to conceal their identities from security cameras to rob the bank or credit union."
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Thanks to Mystery Reader for this interesting link. It is strange how private property ownership leads to the ability to make strange rules and exclude everybody who won't go along.

Of course, public schools are notorious for this sort of thing. My son's high school principal is rabid about hats. He has "No Hat Zone" posted on all the doors and the staff are instructed to holler at anybody who sets one toe inside the building while wearing a hat. Why? Who knows. The school has no gangs.

Condo board backs down

The BIG One - WTAM 1100: "(Perry Township) - An Ohio condo board that told a military mother to take a Blue Star Flag emblem out of her window will now allow it to stay.

The head of the condominium management company says the board won't penalize Marlene Gano of Perry Township, though it earlier said that her display violated condo rules.

Rem Commercial Association Management President Gary Duvall says the dispute with Gano and her 76-year-old husband, Richard, brought his company dozens of calls and e-mails, including some death threats."
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Too bad it takes death threats to make a condo board see the light of reason.

Aldermen: City 'gypped' in privatization of parking meters :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: City Hall

Aldermen: City 'gypped' in privatization of parking meters :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: City Hall: "Five months after privatizing Chicago parking meters with only five dissenting votes, the City Council took the contractor to the woodshed today amid accusations that it botched the transition, concealed problems and 'stole' money from motorists who parked at improperly calibrated downtown meters.

The outrage was so great about a 75-year deal tied to a steep schedule of rate hikes that several aldermen believe there may be grounds to cancel the $1.15 billion lease with Chicago Parking Meters LLC."
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When they approved this, the word from the aldermen was that they didn't need to read it. Now I guess they want a Mulligan.

Homeowners Associations:The Enemy of Solar? - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com

Homeowners Associations:The Enemy of Solar? - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com: "Lawmakers in Texas are considering a bill that would prevent homeowner associations from banning solar panels, and similar laws are already in place in a dozen or more states, according to the Database of State Initiatives for Renewable Energy — including Arizona, Colorado, Florida and California, among others."

Coyote Gulch lawsuit dismissed > About Town > Stories > Lakewood > YourHub.com

Coyote Gulch lawsuit dismissed > About Town > Stories > Lakewood > YourHub.com: "A lawsuit filed by a homeowner's association against the city of Lakewood and Jefferson County over the Coyote Gulch baseball field has been dismissed.

The Coyote Gulch Homeowner's Association filed the lawsuit in February on the grounds that the baseball field, now under construction, is contrary to the Coyote Gulch conceptual master plan approved in 1995."

Blog: Condo association throws taste out window - The News-Herald News : Breaking news coverage for Northern Ohio

Blog: Condo association throws taste out window - The News-Herald News : Breaking news coverage for Northern Ohio: "In a move that seems to defy all logic, common sense and good taste, a condo association in the Canton area has ordered a couple living in one of its homes to take down from their window a Blue Star Flag honoring their son’s more than 30 years of service to the U.S. Army.

Having a flag of any kind hanging from a window apparently violates a rule set up by the condo association to ensure uniformity within the development, and if the couple don’t remove the Blue Star Flag, they face being charged a fine of $50 per day, according to the Canton Repository."

Urban Hunting Gaining Ground

Urban Hunting Gaining Ground: "Government agencies searching for a solution to control booming deer numbers are turning to hunters in greater numbers. Suburban and urban hunting opportunities continue to grow in Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, Pennsylvania and other states, and a state Supreme Court recently upheld a lower-court ruling in a case that pitted a homeowner's association against bowhunters. The Archery Trade Association took legal action against the Reston, Virginia, Homeowner's Association after it tried to stop two men from hunting on their own land."
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Former Anaheim city manager hits jackpot with pension - OC Watchdog - OCRegister.com

Former Anaheim city manager hits jackpot with pension - OC Watchdog - OCRegister.com: "Few have profited from California’s government retirement system as former Anaheim city manager Jim Ruth — who is one of the highest-paid retirees at $219,045 a year.

Ruth, 73, continues working, earning another $225,000 annually from another local agency.

Even he says government retirements need to be reformed."
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Nice gig. Orange County is supposed to be the land of conservative Republicans, tax revolts, and private government. But it seems that Mr. Ruth has found a way to triumph over all those forces. Should we applaud or throw up?

Recession over?

Housing Starts, Permits Both Unexpectedly Lower - Economy * US * News * Story - CNBC.com: "The Commerce Department said housing starts fell 12.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 458,000 units, the lowest on records dating back to January 1959, from March's upwardly revised 525,000 units."
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The folks who look at the stock market seem to be more optimistic than those of us who think more in terms of housing as the engine that drives the economy. I think there will be no turnaround in unemployment and consumer spending until the housing industry recovers.

Jon Talton | What if Starbucks is an artifact of an economy that's not coming back? | Seattle Times Newspaper

Jon Talton | What if Starbucks is an artifact of an economy that's not coming back? | Seattle Times Newspaper: "What if Starbucks is an artifact of an economy that's not coming back? A time of rising, if fleeting, American affluence as we moved from dot-coms and telecoms, to day trading and house flipping, all based on the biggest run-up of debt in the history of the world. For this venti, triple-shot America, it might have been the quintessential bubble drink."
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And the symbol of that era would be a self-employed real estate salesperson sitting in Starbucks all day with a laptop and a cell phone. But Starbucks changed some things, and I hope they make a comeback. Americans won't settle for bad coffee anymore, and lots of people want a place to sit that has some atmosphere and you don't get rushed to hit the street. Plus, where else are all the people with English degrees supposed to work?

Biden Reveals Location of Secret VP Bunker - Presidential Politics | Political News - FOXNews.com

Biden Reveals Location of Secret VP Bunker - Presidential Politics | Political News - FOXNews.com
Imagine him as President. And guess who's behind Biden in the succession line? Nancy Pelosi--at least, as long as she is Speaker of the House. That could change, given her bizarre antics regarding the "torture" crisis.

Distressed property sales hit upscale condos - Los Angeles Times

Distressed property sales hit upscale condos - Los Angeles Times: "Across Southern California, projects conceived during the housing boom, but completed after the bust, are sitting largely vacant. Developers are desperate to unload these units, but they face some particular challenges. Banks often won't provide mortgages to buyers in buildings that are less than 50% occupied, reducing the pool of eligible purchasers. Converting the projects to rentals means even steeper losses because the cash flow often won't cover a developer's construction costs.

Condo developers are now hosting their own auctions to attract a critical mass of buyers fast. It's a practice that Irvine real estate consultant John Burns projects will become more widespread this year."
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This one comes from Fred Pilot. There is so much bad news in real estate these days that it is hard to reconcile with the claims that the recession either is, or soon will be, in the past.

Flu--free, or three free!

FT.com / Americas / Society - Deserted Mexican hotels offer flu-free guarantees to lure visitors: "Visitors to one hotel, The Royal, are being offered a “flu-free guarantee”: anyone who contracts the flu virus within 14 days of checking out gets three free annual holidays."
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Sounds like a deal.

UPDATED: NY Times' Maureen Dowd Plagiarizes TPM's Josh Marshall | thejoshuablog's Blog

UPDATED: NY Times' Maureen Dowd Plagiarizes TPM's Josh Marshall | thejoshuablog's Blog
This is interesting because it shows that major media journalists not only read the lefty blogs, but they let themselves be spun by them.

Dispute over mortgage payoff leads to trouble

BBCW: Dawn Welsh of Hillsboro, MO Arrested for Trespassing in Her Own Home After Supposed Mortgage Scam
This is all over the web and YouTube, and I don't know the truth of it. One of my students alerted me about it. Seems like a strange story--but she is becoming a cause celebre in some circles.

Condo associations dying as fees dry up - St. Petersburg Times

Condo associations dying as fees dry up - St. Petersburg Times: "Homeowner associations, the de facto local government in much of Florida, are getting desperate.

Assessment payments are as low as 50 percent in some communities, causing some board members to consider measures that might include publicly shaming those who are delinquent.

'When I tell you it is an unadulterated nightmare out there, I mean it,' said Harry Burnard, who owns Qualified Property Management in New Port Richey, plus a side business that fronts the dues and collects the debts."
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Public shaming? Now there's an idea. How about the stocks? Pillory?

Acclaimed Economist Says Recession Is Over at SmartMoney.com

Acclaimed Economist Says Recession Is Over at SmartMoney.com: "The source is Robert J. Gordon, an acclaimed macroeconomist and professor at Northwestern University. It’s surprising to learn he thinks the recession is over, because he is one of seven members of the elite Business Cycle Dating Committee of the National Bureau of Economic Analysis . These are the people who decide officially, for the record books, when recessions begin and end—usually many months after the fact, when the decision is really obvious. I’m unaware of any previous case in which a member of this Committee has ever stepped forward and declared the end of a recession in real time.

Gordon bases his gutsy call on an indicator that he says the Committee never even looks at: claims for unemployment benefits."
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Sure hope he's right.

Minorities Hit Hardest by Foreclosures in New York - NYTimes.com

Minorities Hit Hardest by Foreclosures in New York - NYTimes.com: "Defaults occur three times as often in mostly minority census tracts as in mostly white ones. Eighty-five percent of the worst-hit neighborhoods — where the default rate is at least double the regional average — have a majority of black and Latino homeowners.

And the hardest blows rain down on the backbone of minority neighborhoods: the black middle class."
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The Bill Clinton/Henry Cisneros strategy was to force banks to lend money to exactly the folks who are now being "hit hardest by foreclosure." Fifteen years into this experiment it seems there have been mixed results.

Foot gets even with podiatrist

Car Slams into Building in Fox Point | Newsradio 620 - Milwaukee, Wisconsin News, Talk, Sports, Weather | Local Headlines: "Witnesses tell TODAY'S TMJ4 HD reporter Heather Shannon that an elderly woman smashed her car into North Shore Podiatry Friday afternoon after getting her foot stuck between the brake and the gas."
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How ironic. I can't wait for the movie: "The Beast With Five Toes."

"It's not safe right now..."

Troy's celebrated solar house left in dark | detnews.com | The Detroit News: "It was supposed to be a shining example of the green movement -- a completely independent solar-powered house with no gas or electrical hookups.

Seven months ago, officials gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the $900,000 house owned by the city of Troy that was to be used as an educational tool and meeting spot.

But it never opened to the public. And it remains closed.

Frozen pipes during the winter caused $16,000 in damage to floors, and city officials aren't sure when the house at the Troy Community Center will open."
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It would be wonderful to heat our homes with solar energy, but it seems that they don't have the kinks worked out quite yet.

This is impossible to summarize. Just read it.

Cuffed karate master kicked into jail | SummitDaily.com
Somebody get to work on the script for this, because I want to see the movie.

Control!

Treasury asks for control of derivatives market: "In a two-page letter sent Wednesday to congressional leaders, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said he wants to create a central electronic-based system that would track the buying and selling of derivatives. He also wants to ensure that financial firms selling the instruments have enough capital on hand in case they default and subject them to stringent standards of conduct and new reporting requirements."
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Is there any aspect of the economy that the federal government does NOT want to control?

Ave Maria: A Town Without A Vote

Ave Maria: A Town Without A Vote
Blockbuster three-part story on Ave Maria, by Liam Dillon.

APNewsBreak: Habitat for Humanity gets $100M gift - Santa Cruz Sentinel

APNewsBreak: Habitat for Humanity gets $100M gift - Santa Cruz Sentinel: "ATLANTA—The housing market may be sputtering, but Habitat for Humanity International is getting a $100 million jolt.

The nonprofit group tells The Associated Press the gift from J. Ronald Terwilliger will help it build 60,000 homes worldwide. It's the largest individual contribution in Habitat's history.

Terwilliger, an Atlanta-based developer, says he hopes it will offer the world's neediest more access to decent, affordable homes."
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These days, "affordable" is practically synonymous with "common interest housing."

Selling off public assets in California

Schwarzenegger to propose selling San Quentin - Santa Cruz Sentinel: "The proposal to sell off state assets is part of the governor's revised budget plan being released today. Besides the Coliseum and San Quentin, the properties he's eyeing for sale are the Cow Palace in Daly City, the Orange County Fairgrounds, Cal Expo in Sacramento, Del Mar Fairground, and the Ventura County Fair."
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Total take: between $600 million and $1 billion...in two to five years. So, what about this year?

White House bossing CA leg around

George F. Will - The Obama Administration's Economic Lawlessness: "In February, California's Democratic-controlled Legislature, faced with a $42 billion budget deficit, trimmed $74 million (1.4 percent) from one of the state's fastest-growing programs, which provides care for low-income and incapacitated elderly people and which cost the state $5.42 billion last year. The Los Angeles Times reports that 'loose oversight and bureaucratic inertia have allowed fraud to fester.'

But the Service Employees International Union collects nearly $5 million a month from 223,000 caregivers who are members. And the Obama administration has told California that unless the $74 million in cuts are rescinded, it will deny the state $6.8 billion in stimulus money."
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Unbelievable.

Unexpected?

Retail sales drop unexpectedly in April: "Retail sales fell for a second straight month in April, a disappointing performance that raised doubts about whether consumers were regaining their desire to shop."
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Oh, we have the desire to shop. We just don't have any money. And you smart economists should have expected that.

Too much money spent on health care for elderly?

Townhall.com Blog : Greg Hengler : Health Policy Professor Discusses The 'Cost-Benefit' Of Elderly Receiving Federal Healthcare: "What are the costs and benefits to giving federal money to an elderly person who needs an expensive procedure and has a shorter life span than someone who needs the same procedure in their 20s?"
-----------
Conservatives are pointing out that when (not if) the Democrats create national health care, it will involve rationing, with the federal government deciding who gets what and when. And what better to cut back on than expensive procedures performed on the elderly? Such expenditures are not cost-effective when you think about how little time they have left anyway, some say. And this link goes to a C-SPAN tape of a Senate Finance Committee meeting where that very issue is discussed.

We are entering some interesting times, aren't we?

Global Warming Alert: Snow in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Gazette - ICE IS NICE IN BAHA: "In one of the rare occasions, Saudis enjoy the snowfall in Al-Baha city south-west of Riyadh, Tuesday."
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Snowing in Saudi in May? Must mean that Al Gore is giving a talk in Riyadh.

The future of social security and medicare

Trustees Report Summary: "The financial condition of the Social Security and Medicare programs remains challenging. Projected long run program costs are not sustainable under current program parameters. Social Security's annual surpluses of tax income over expenditures are expected to fall sharply this year and to stay about constant in 2010 because of the economic recession, and to rise only briefly before declining and turning to cash flow deficits beginning in 2016 that grow as the baby boom generation retires. The deficits will be made up by redeeming trust fund assets until reserves are exhausted in 2037, at which point tax income would be sufficient to pay about three fourths of scheduled benefits through 2083. Medicare's financial status is much worse. As was true in 2008, Medicare's Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund is expected to pay out more in hospital benefits and other expenditures this year than it receives in taxes and other dedicated revenues. The difference will be made up by redeeming trust fund assets. Growing annual deficits are projected to exhaust HI reserves in 2017, after which the percentage of scheduled benefits payable from tax income would decline from 81 percent in 2017 to about 50 percent in 2035 and 30 percent in 2080. In addition, the Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance (SMI) Trust Fund that pays for physician services and the prescription drug benefit will continue to require general revenue financing and charges on beneficiaries that grow substantially faster than the economy and beneficiary incomes over time. "
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This is from that radical right wing organization, the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees.

I can't wait to see how we pay for extending government health care to the entire nation.

Home Prices in U.S. Drop Most on Record in Quarter (Update3) - Bloomberg.com

Home Prices in U.S. Drop Most on Record in Quarter (Update3) - Bloomberg.com: "The median price fell 14 percent to $169,000, the National Association of Realtors said today. Prices dropped in 134 of 152 metropolitan areas, with the deepest declines in Cape Coral and Ft. Myers, Florida, followed by San Francisco and San Jose."
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I'm biding my time until Hearst Castle drops into my price range..

How to end piracy: privatize the oceans

Could Profit Motive Put an End to Piracy? by John Stossel and Andrew Kirell « The Public Choice Capitalist
The libertarian solution to piracy: privatize the Gulf of Aden and create a profit motive for somebody to patrol it.

Native Names — Interactive — National Geographic Magazine

Native Names — Interactive — National Geographic Magazine
Chicago is "at the skunk place."

OHHHHHHHH!

JP MORGAN CHASE FORECLOSES ON VICTORIA GOTTI'S HOUSE - New York Post: "The bank has been given the go-ahead to foreclose on Victoria Gotti's palatial estate on Long Island -- the same used in the TV reality show 'Growing Up Gotti' -- saying she owes a whopping $650,000 in mortgage payments, according to court paper made public today."
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Do you want dat we gotta get tough wit youse?

UIC graduation: Gov. Pat Quinn urges graduates to commit to social causes, people -- chicagotribune.com

UIC graduation: Gov. Pat Quinn urges graduates to commit to social causes, people -- chicagotribune.com: "Quinn spoke to the 1,275 graduates of UIC's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in a packed arena. In deference to the swine flu, students received their diploma with 'a verbal congratulations or alternatively a hand bump or two' rather than a traditional handshake, Dean Dwight McBride said."
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Yes, that's what the Dean said. But the Governor shook hands with every single graduate.

The Symbionese Liberation Army comes to the Land of Lincoln

Last SLA inmate released, heads to Illinois - Chicago Breaking News: "SACRAMENTO -- The last captured member of the Symbionese Liberation Army, the radical 1970s-era group notorious for bank robberies, killings and the kidnapping of Patricia Hearst, was released from a California prison Sunday morning.

James William Kilgore was paroled from High Desert State Prison in northeastern California after serving a six-year sentence for the murder of suburban Sacramento housewife Myrna Opsahl during an April 1975 bank robbery.

State Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesman Oscar Hidalgo said Kilgore was met by his wife after parole agents picked him up at the Susanville prison and processed him there.

That allowed the couple to travel directly to their home in Illinois, rather than have Kilgore wait to check in Monday with a parole agent in Sacramento before leaving the state. He now has two weeks to report to Illinois parole officials.

Kilgore's wife moved to Illinois after he was arrested in 2002 in Cape Town, South Africa, after nearly three decades on the run."
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Six years for murder? Not a bad deal. And now he is in Illinois. How nice.
They robbed a bank and killed a customer named Myrna Upsahl. That's her husband holding her photo. Five SLA members were convicted and the longest sentence was 8 years.

The Odds: Obama 1st Nominee For Associate Justice?

Obama 1st Nominee For Associate Justice? Betting from Paddy Power
Sonia Sotomayor is the favorite at 13/8. Hillary Clinton is 100/1.

Ah, those were the days...

Exclusive: Confessions of a Mortgage Scammer - ABC News: "Dawson admitted he ran a Ponzi scheme: He convinced his clients to take equity out of their homes and invest it in his hedge fund. But that 'hedge fund' didn't actually exist, he said, and he pocketed the money. When he had to, he paid off old investors with new investors' money.

During the housing boom, Dawson took advantage of desperate homeowners, eager-to-lend banks and lax regulations to steal millions."
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But these days, what is a con artist to do? Nobody is buying anything, the banks don't want to lend, and suddenly Fannie Mae is getting picky.

Look at what this guy did. It was a calculated ripoff and he, along with untold others, got away with it for a long time.

Just speaking hypothetically, I wonder what would happen if, instead of a five year sentence, we handled this Chinese style: the government would take about a dozen of these crooks and have them summarily executed. That would be a provocative little example for others, wouldn't it? I realize we don't do things that way. It's just a thought experiment.

FORECLOSING ON POL - New York Post

FORECLOSING ON POL - New York Post: "State Sen. Kevin Parker -- a vocal supporter of foreclosure relief for troubled homeowners -- has good reason to take that position.

His own two-story Flatbush house is in danger of being repossessed.

According to court papers, Parker, a four-term Democrat representing Brooklyn's 21st Senatorial District, hasn't paid a dime in more than a year toward the $488,000 mortgage he took out in 2006."
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And now he's in trouble for allegedly attacking the photographer who took the pictures.

Dark Roasted Blend: Underground Cities and Bunkers: Living Down Below

Dark Roasted Blend: Underground Cities and Bunkers: Living Down Below: "Ever since Tolkien's Mines of Moria, and perhaps the haunting, grandiose structures of Gormenghast, the vast underground spaces has intrigued and thrilled readers, movie-goers and urban explorers (see our article Abandoned Tunnels and Vast Underground Spaces)

This time we'll highlight a few subterranean (or built into a mountain) cities and huge bunkers - but we have a feeling that our feeble spotlight of information is not going to sweep away the murky mysteries surrounding these sites."
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Absolutely astounding.

Rivera found guilty in third trial for 1992 rape, murder :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago Crime

Rivera found guilty in third trial for 1992 rape, murder :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago Crime: "Juan Rivera’s third trial for the notorious 1992 rape and murder of Holly Staker ended Friday the same way as his first two — with a guilty verdict.

A Lake County jury deliberated for nearly 35 hours over four days before convicting Rivera of raping, stabbing and strangling the 11-year-old Waukegan girl."
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Well, that makes three times a 12 person jury has unanimously found this psycho guilty. So, 36 people have been convinced beyond a reasonable doubt. But twice an appellate court has decided it wasn't done right. I hope this time the conviction sticks.

Chicago home sales drop 37 percent in first quarter :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Business

Chicago home sales drop 37 percent in first quarter :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Business: "Home sales in Chicago plunged 37 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, and prices fell 26.8 percent, the Illinois Association of Realtors said Friday.

There were 2,909 existing single-family homes and condominiums sold in the first quarter of this year, down from 4,617, and the median price was $216,000, down from $295,000, the group said.

In the Chicago metropolitan area, sales sales dropped 26.4 percent to 10,306 from 14,012, and the median price fell 22.8 percent to $187,500 from $243,000.

Statewide, sales were down 23.5 percent to 16,748 from 21,902, and the median price sank 21.1 percent to $146,000 from $185,000."
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I don't much care how many houses change hands, but these price drops are downright painful to behold.

UIC Bans Handshakes At Graduation - cbs2chicago.com

Are We Over-Reacting To The H1N1 Flu Outbreak? UIC Bans Handshakes At Graduation - cbs2chicago.com:

"It's a graduation tradition: a congratulatory handshake along with your diploma. But Wednesday night, the H1N1 flu virus has the University of Illinois at Chicago banning the handshakes."
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I will be there, of course. What will they do if I shake hands with one of my students?

Anthony DiMaggio: Obama and the Housing Crisis

Anthony DiMaggio: Obama and the Housing Crisis: "It appears that the housing crisis will play a major role in defining the Obama administration; unfortunately, it is not entirely clear that the President is up to the challenge."
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Here is a piece by Tony DiMaggio, a UIC Ph.D. candidate in Political Science and prolific author as well as exceptional teacher. How do I know? Because he was once one of my teaching assistants. This is a very detailed and intelligent analysis of Obama's housing policies and it is well worth reading in its entirety.

Wall Street Journal blog--HOA dues as mine canary

Another Sign of Foreclosure Trouble in California - Developments - WSJ: "Here’s another sign that California’s foreclosures could jump in 2009: Delinquencies on dues owed to homeowner associations have risen sharply.

The homeowner association delinquency rate can serve as a leading indicator of sorts because homeowners usually stop paying dues before they stop paying their mortgage. The 90-day delinquency rate on dues for the 260 homeowner associations in California managed by Merit Property Management jumped to 5.3% in March from 2.8% last June. Delinquencies first spiked to 2.6% in December 2007 from 0.8% in March 2007."
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Shu Bartholomew sent this along. I think the basic observation is sound. People can say what they want about the stock market and the banks. To me, the recession is mainly about housing and unemployment, and those are the two sets of indicators I pay attention to. Neither looks good at the moment.

Homeowners receive citations after making complaints public - The Times-Herald

Homeowners receive citations after making complaints public - The Times-Herald: "Wednesday's citations followed the airing of an Atlanta TV news story about their grievances with the builder and HOA management company. The homeowners didn't expect retaliation in the form of covenant citations. Additional citations will mean fines."
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They called the builder, then the management company, and then the media. And now they are getting hit with citations for all sorts of violations.

Fred Pilot sent this along.

Tadpole Acres?

Homeowners feel they were misled about amenities - The Times-Herald: "Homeowners at a new subdivision in Newnan feel they've been misled and duped after learning two weeks ago that amenities touted by one of Atlanta's top builders won't be offered this year.

The 15 homeowners at Bullsboro Crossing, a 'swim community' off Bullsboro Drive, learned the subdivision will not be opening its pool, clubhouse or pavilion this summer, citing economic reasons, according to the company that manages the homeowners association for the builder.

Homeowners were looking forward to enjoying a pool that was open last summer."
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The pool isn't being maintained, so now it is a nature preserve full of tadpoles. What happens when they lose their little tails and become frogs?
Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. Ribbit.

Conclusive proof that western civilization has ended

Paris Hilton, American Treasure - May 6, 2009
Decline. Fall.

Just as I suspected...

Spiders Getting Bigger -- Global Warming to Blame?: "A group of Danish scientists wondered whether global warming would make the hairy, meat-eating wolf spiders of northeastern Greenland bigger, since longer summers mean more hunting time."
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I've been expecting this for decades. Haven't you?

White House Memo - With Gay Issues in View, Obama Is Pressed to Engage - NYTimes.com

White House Memo - With Gay Issues in View, Obama Is Pressed to Engage - NYTimes.com: "Mr. Obama — who has said he opposes same-sex marriage as a Christian but describes himself as a “fierce advocate of equality” for gay men and lesbians — is under pressure to engage on a variety of gay issues that are coming to the fore amid a dizzying pace of social, political, legal and legislative change."
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This is not a problem. All he has to do is appoint a lesbian to the Supreme Court. As the article says, he has two under consideration. Even if he doesn't do that, President Obama is in no danger of losing the gay/lesbian constituency to the Republicans anyway. The GOP is firmly in the hands of the social issues folks who claim they don't care about the electoral consequences of alienating gays, Hispanics, Asians, African-Americans, single women, people who want to smoke weed so they can endure chemotherapy, and any other group that crosses one of the moral lines in the sand. So, I think this NYT piece is interesting, but Obama still has a free hand to curry favor with Hispanics or whoever he chooses.

HOA sends foreclosure notices to dozens in neighborhood | WOAI.COM: San Antonio News

HOA sends foreclosure notices to dozens in neighborhood | WOAI.COM: San Antonio News: "SAN ANTONIO -- Dozens of homeowners living in a South Side neighborhood are facing foreclosure. The residents received foreclosure notices not because they couldn't pay their mortgage, but because they didn't pay a $130.00 homeowners association fee.

A total of 84 people in the Mission Creek subdivision received the foreclosure notices in the mail."
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Thanks to Anonymous--check this out. These heavy-handed techniques seem to be increasingly common as the housing part of this recession continues to worsen. Say what you want about the Dow and NASDAQ. The nation's CIDs are in trouble and it hasn't bottomed out.yet.

Defenders Subjected To Profanity-Laced Tirade - San Antonio News Story - KSAT San Antonio

Defenders Subjected To Profanity-Laced Tirade - San Antonio News Story - KSAT San Antonio
An anonymous commenter sent in this link--the video and comments are pretty heavy.

Chicago, IL - Beloved Orthodox Rabbi Fired, Shul Shuttered -- VosIzNeias

Chicago, IL - Beloved Orthodox Rabbi Fired, Shul Shuttered -- VosIzNeias: "Chicago, IL - The eviction notice was addressed to 'unknown occupant,' but that could not have been further from the truth in the small slice of Uptown where Rabbi Philip Lefkowitz ministered.

Because of a dispute with Congregation Agudas Achim, where he had been rabbi for 13 years, Lefkowitz must leave the condominium the synagogue owns by mid-May.

'I'll be sitting on a couch on the street,' said Lefkowitz, 64. 'I have no place to go.'"
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Seems that the dispute was settled, and the congregation was supposed to pay the condo assessments, but they didn't, so the condo association filed a forcible detainer action to evict him. Illinois is the only state where condo associations can evict unit occupants, including unit owners.

Study Names McLean, Virginia Wealthiest Community in America|NewsChannel 8

Study Names McLean, Virginia Wealthiest Community in America|NewsChannel 8: "McLEAN, Va. - A new study says the richest community in America is located in Fairfax County. Researchers say McLean, Va. Is the wealthiest, with Potomac, Md. not far behind.

Gated mansions, manicured lawns and incomes more than triple the national average earn McLean, Va. the first place on BizJournal's list of wealthiest communities."
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HOAs put homes with late dues up on auction block | Latest News | WFAA.com

HOAs put homes with late dues up on auction block | Latest News | WFAA.com: "The foreclosure listing service says foreclosures are up 25 percent in North Texas, and nearly 1,000 homes this year have been foreclosed on by homeowners associations.

Often, homeowners don't even realize their house is on the auction block."
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Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. People keep on expressing surprise that they can lose their home over $1000 in delinquent assessments.

Sweetin Sued for Home Owners Dues, Rep Blames Unemployed Ex | RadarOnline.com

Sweetin Sued for Home Owners Dues, Rep Blames Unemployed Ex | RadarOnline.com: "Must be a very Full House--actress and mom Jodie Sweetin has allegedly neglected to pony up fees to her Home Owner's Association."
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Her flack says he hasn't lived there for six months and it the fault of her ex.

Where is the bottom?

More than one in five homeowners underwater: Zillow - Yahoo! Finance: "NEW YORK (Reuters) - Home values in the United States extended their fall in the first quarter, with more than one in five homeowners now owing more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, real estate website Zillow.com said on Wednesday."
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Karma

Specter Will Be Junior Democrat on Committees - Roll Call: "Despite promises from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) that Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.) would retain his seniority after switching parties, Specter will be put at the end of the seniority line on all his committees but one under a resolution approved on the floor late Tuesday."

Fred "Sky" Pilot takes to the fiber optic waves

State seeks $1 billion in stimulus funds to bring broadband link to every household - Sacramento Politics - California Politics | Sacramento Bee: "In El Dorado County, freelance journalist Fred Pilot launched a cooperative last week to provide Internet service through a fiber-optic network to Net-neglected residents around Camino.

'We're going to try and qualify for the stimulus funding,' Pilot said, 'because we are the kind of area this is targeted for.'

If it could land a chunk of the funding, he said, the co-op would hire a local phone company to build the system, then run it on a majority-rules basis.

'I really do believe that this has to be done on a bottom-up basis,' he said, 'because the top-down model hasn't worked.'"
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Somehow I suspect that Fred will do a far better job than all those "PUC-spawned agencies."

You go, guy!

He fired himself!

Trump Baja project is turning into a legal battle of Trump proportions - Los Angeles Times: "Instead of a 525-unit luxury vacation home complex with pools and tennis courts, this project is shaping up to be a legal battle of Trump proportions.

Dozens of angry buyers have sued Trump for failing to complete the project. He, in turn, sued the Los Angeles-based builders, saying he had only lent his name to the project, and it was the developers who allowed the project to fail.

To the buyers, the heart of the dispute is this: If Trump is identified as a project's builder, is he liable if the actual builder fails?"
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But the real question is: is that small animal on his head an endangered species?

Lawmakers mulling association proposals -- chicagotribune.com

Lawmakers mulling association proposals -- chicagotribune.com: "Illinois lawmakers are considering an array of legislative proposals that relate to community associations. Here are some of the big ones, along with comments from the association world:"
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Pamela McKuen's summary of the legislative scene in IL appeared in the Chicago Tribune on Sunday. All the "comments from the association world" are from professionals. Every single one.

Third party, anybody?

Pew Research Center: GOP Party Identification Slips Nationwide and in Pennsylvania: "In total, the GOP has lost roughly a quarter of its base over the past five years. But these Republican losses have not translated into substantial Democratic gains."
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The story line in the major media is that Obama is Kennedy/FDR and we are watching the creation of a new Camelot. Here is yet another piece of evidence showing how far off that story line really is. This Pew poll suggests that (1) Bush destroyed the Republican Party; (2) Obama won because of retrospective voting, meaning many non-ideological voters were just desperate for a change; and (3) Obama is rapidly alienating all those non-ideological folks because...surprise! He is too far to the left for their taste. However, (4) the Republicans are clueless, leaderless, and largely driven by their litmus test conservatives, so (5) the ground is fertile for a third party movement to capture the disaffected. Ross Perot, where are you? I hope the answer is, "In Antarctica, looking for the people who plotted to disrupt my daughter's wedding, and I'll stay here until I find them!"

I am not a big fan of third parties--I'm just saying that if you look at the conditions this is a propitious time for one. The likeliest source is moderate Republicans, who seem to have no home in the party any longer, and the disaffected non-ideological voters whose numbers are increasing. Of course, if the Democrats stay unified and the Republicans lose voters to a new party, it would probably mean the Democrats remain in control.

May the 4th be with you!

TheStar.com | entertainment | Today's your day, Star Wars fans: "Today is Star Wars Day. 'May the 4th be with you,' as Star Wars fans say. Here are some links to find out more."

Woman: Arlington officer secretly offered her possessions on Craigslist | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Latest News

Woman: Arlington officer secretly offered her possessions on Craigslist | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Latest News: "MANSFIELD – Sherry Johnson Huwitt was standing at her kitchen window in her bathrobe shortly before dawn a couple of weeks ago when two strangers pulled up and started loading the portable basketball goal from the side of her house into a truck.

When the Mansfield woman ran outside to confront them, they said they weren't stealing because the item was offered for the taking on Craigslist."
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Now, that is a dirty trick. Mystery Reader sent this tale of cybernetic woe.

U.S. Home Prices May Be Lost for a Generation: John F. Wasik - Bloomberg.com

U.S. Home Prices May Be Lost for a Generation: John F. Wasik - Bloomberg.com: "Although we may not be headed for a 1930s-style Depression, there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that boomers are dumping their four- and five-bedroom suburban homes for two- and three- bedroom condominiums."
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This is a commentary piece that points to several reasons why home prices won't bounce back anytime soon. This "for a generation" stuff goes a bit far, I'd say. That may be true of the markets that had the greatest housing price inflation, but much of the country could see a gradual resurgence in demand.

Feliz Cinco de Cuatro from El Presidente

'El no habla': Obama jumbles Cinco de Mayo salute: "WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama's joke wasn't lost in translation—even though he referred to a Cinco de Mayo celebration as 'Cinco de Cuatro.'

Obama jumbled his words as he welcomed guests to the White House to observe the Mexican holiday, sending the crowd into laughter before he referred to the day correctly.

'Welcome to Cinco de Cuatro—Cinco de Mayo at the White House,' said Obama, in what appeared to be an attempt to note they were celebrating on the fourth of May instead of the fifth."
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Mr. Multi-Culti flubs his joke. There goes the re-election bid.

Stop us before we spend again!

AFP: China has 'canceled US credit card': lawmaker: "Representative Mark Kirk, a member of the House Appropriations Committee and co-chair of a group of lawmakers promoting relations with Beijing, said China had 'very legitimate' concerns about its investments.

'It would appear, quietly and with deference and politeness, that China has canceled America's credit card,' Kirk told the Committee of 100, a Chinese-American group.

'I'm not sure too many people on Capitol Hill realize that this is now happening,' he said."
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Kirk is toying with the idea of running for Senate here in Illinois. He is considered a strong contender for the Republican nomination. Obama's former seat, now being held by super-shaky incumbent Roland Burris, comes up for election in November 2010. Burris is finding it impossible to raise money, so I don't see him being the Democratic nominee, but who knows. Kirk hasn't made up his mind yet, so they say. He would make a strong general election candidate because of his moderate Republicanism and general attractiveness as a candidate. But in the Illinois Republican primary race, it seems that one has to be an absolutist on abortion, gay rights, and a few other litmus test issues, so perhaps the Republicans will shoot themselves in the foot again and nominate another pathetic loser like Allen Keys.

On the substance of the issue he flags for us, all I can say is that I am astounded this is getting so little attention in the press.

Don't say "global warming," say enviro PR flacks

Seeking to Save the Planet, With a Thesaurus - NYTimes.com: "EcoAmerica has been conducting research for the last several years to find new ways to frame environmental issues and so build public support for climate change legislation and other initiatives. A summary of the group’s latest findings and recommendations was accidentally sent by e-mail to a number of news organizations by someone who sat in this week on a briefing intended for government officials and environmental leaders."
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I think the left has been doing a wonderful job of packaging their old, familiar policy prescriptions in a new rhetoric that resonates with many people. Now that the public is laughing at global warming (here in Illinois, winter just lasted from November until April), it is time to give the Oprah treatment to the environmental agenda: "Instead of grim warnings about global warming, the firm advises, talk about “our deteriorating atmosphere.” Drop discussions of carbon dioxide and bring up “moving away from the dirty fuels of the past.” Don’t confuse people with cap and trade; use terms like “cap and cash back” or “pollution reduction refund.”

I seem to remember that there was a great explanation for Soylent Green as well.

Jon Stewart--proven idiot

Pajamas TV - Afterburner - Jon Stewart, War Criminals & The True Story of the Atomic Bombs - Video
Leftist icon Jon Stewart called Harry Truman a war criminal. Bill Whittle presents a detailed account of the nuclear attacks on Japan that shows why Truman was right, and Stewart is an idiot.

Law.com - In a First, Bankruptcy Judge Rules Calif. City Can Void Union Contracts

Law.com - In a First, Bankruptcy Judge Rules Calif. City Can Void Union Contracts: "U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael McManus held March 13 that when Congress enacted 11 U.S.C. sec. 1113 to limit companies from outright rejection of union contracts it limited it to Chapter 11 bankruptcies. By failing to extend the limits to Chapter 9, which covers municipal bankruptcy, McManus said cities have broader latitude to break existing union pacts, In re City of Vallejo, 08-26813-A-9 (E. Dist. Calif.)"
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This is of interest to all the state and local governments that have been underfunding their public employee pension systems, or have otherwise made commitments to public employees that they now find themselves unwilling to live up to. Last resort: go bankrupt and break the contract.

A bitter battle for power - The Daily Breeze

A bitter battle for power - The Daily Breeze: "At one time, Scottsdale Estates was a nice place to live. But the gated condo complex in Carson deteriorated long ago into a haven for drugs and gang crime.

Now it is most known as the site of a fire that killed five children in 2005. Neighbors tried to rescue them, but they couldn't pry off the burglar bars.

City officials have made several attempts to clean up Scottsdale over the years, but most efforts have been thwarted by a governing system that is as broken down as the community itself."
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According to the article, one person has taken control of the association and there is an opposition group, and it led at one point to a standoff between the HOA's private security people and sheriff's deputies.