December 18, 2008
"...I took all that I desired, even crooks
have to pay the rent.
We swam like rats on fire right, right
down to the reservoir
We took all that we could carry but we
tried to carry more.
And you know you know you know it all
went wrong.
And you know you know you know it all
went wrong.
We choked on street tap water
Well, I'm gonna have to try the real
thing
I took your laugh by the collar and it
knew not to swing
Anytime I tried an honest job well the
till had hole and ha-ha
We laughed about payin' rent 'cause
the county jails they're free.
And you know you know you know it
all went wrong.
And you know you know you know it all
went wrong.
Deep Water, Deep Water
Senseless Denial
I went down like a rag doll as you would,
child
Deep Water, Deep Water
Senseless Denial
I went down like a rag doll as you would,
child..."
- Partial lyrics from the song "King Rat", by the
group Modest Mouse.
To All,
Well, it seems that there is no honor
among thieves....
King Rat:
Celeste Katz is
reporting at the New York Daily News that Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Daley Mob)
has been passing information about Governor Rod Blagojevich and other local
politicians to Federal investigators for a number of years now.
Katz cites a statement by Jackson "spokeshole"
Kenneth Edmonds, where it seems Jackson Jr.'s self-professed cooperation with
the Feds was due to Blagojevich's past refusal to make Mrs. Jesse Jackson Jr.
director of the Illinois State Lotto without the receipt of a $ 25,000 campaign
fund lagniappe.
It's going to be difficult, on the other
hand, to square Jackson Junior's claims to have refused the payment for his
wife's appointment to a state position with Jackson's reported fundraising
cooperation as Senate Candidate # 5 on the Federal wiretaps noted Patrick
Fitzgerald's complaint.
But it should be clear by now that Jackson's
actions, along with the reports that Congressman Rahm Emmanuel's continued
negotiations (again as recorded on Federal wiretaps) in trying to secure the
Illinois Senate seat for Obama crony Valerie Jarrett, may be but preliminary
indications of racketing activities that may end up being under the purview of
RICO legislation.
What is more, it may just be that The Boys From
Chicago may not be too "thrilled" with the idea that Jackson Jr. has been
cooperating with any kind of Federal investigation into Chicago machine
politics.
But given the scrutiny here, it seems that the
age old motto of "Every Man For Himself" may just be taking precedence. Governor
Blagojevich seems inclined to stand tough against all claims and charges, even
to the point of keeping Illinois government tied up in knots for the foreseeable
future. And Jackson Jr. may just be more concerned with staying "viable" (read
un-convicted in a court of law) than with remaining in the good graces of a
political organization that seems to largely resemble Tammany Hall, circa 1870.
As such, President-Elect Obama seems tripped up
by the very machine that put him on the political map, and in the Oval Office.
While his own tendencies appear to be to deal with the Chapter 7 Press with the
kind of disdain reserved for streetwalkers by their employers, it's clear that
the Fourth Estate is going to want to be respected in the Post Inauguration dawn
light. And that can only be had by digging deep enough into Obama's claims to
"street cred" that an outing of the Chicago Machine of classic (Read Upton
Sinclair-like) proportions is probable.
Critics of Obama do have one thing to worry
about, though. An Obama wounded and cornered will most likely appeal to a
Way-Left Base so as to hold on to approval numbers that will let him stay
relevant in the first 4 years of a potential 8 year term of service. The damage
to conservative causes by a sudden catering to the California Left Coast cannot
be understated to the rest of the country. Given how Liberals are running
California and New York into the ground, the country should be very afraid about
the portents of Rule By All Liberals, All of the Time. Stay tuned.
Links at:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2008/12/16/2008-12-16_jesse_jackson_jr_ratted_on_blagojevich.html
http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/blagojevich/1334979,CST-NWS-rahm17.article
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels Update:
Andrew Ross
reports at Sfgate.com about the additional "fall out" of the Bernard Madoff
swindle.
It seems that a number of liberal foundations
and groups have been harmed, or even weakened financially to the point of
closure. Included in these is the Justice, Equality, Human Dignity, and
Tolerance Foundation (JEHT) and the Death Penalty Clinic at UC "Berserkley's"
Boalt Hall School of Law. Likewise grant's applicants from the University of San
Francisco seem SOL when it comes to JEHT monies.
Programs apparently effected by this loss of
foundation largesse include those who would seemingly halt the death penalty, on
one hand, and others who would seemingly support "death with dignity"
(euthanasia) on the other (Don't you wish that they could make up their minds,
somehow?).
The financial fallout from the Madoff Swindle
may take as much as 6 months to figure out, simply because the forensic
accountant types hired by the SEC are going to need that long to figure out
Madoff's books (Apparently said records are in serious disarray). But it seems
clear that yesterday's machers may just be today's paupers, until such
time they are compensated by Security Industry insurance policies or until the
courts redistribute the remainder of the ill-gotten gains as has been done in
the past by the courts when dealing with swindles such as these. Suffice it to
say that lawsuits will continue for the foreseeable future , or at least through
the next three or four political fundraising cycles. As such, the impact on the
body politic portends to be a huge one.
Link at:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/17/BUK514P25N.DTL
http://www.jehtfoundation.org/criminaljustice/
Stroke of a Pen, Law of the Land, BUMMER:
It seems that the California Legislature
is back to it's old tricks of trying to bypass the will of the people, in it's
latest attempts to raise taxes and revenues outside of a constitutionally
mandated process.
Mathew Yi reports at Sfgate.com that
Speaker Karen Bass (D-Baldwin Vista) and cronies are going to propose a budget
that will, among other things, remove the current excise tax/sales tax combo
from fuel sales ( $.18 per gallon plus 7.25% on top of the actual fuel cost and
Federal excise tax) but replace it with a whopping 39% state gas "fee" that
could be increased at any time by a simple majority ( Current gasoline taxes can
only be raised by agreement of 2/3rds of the Legislature, plus with the
agreement of the Governor, courtesy of the handiwork of St. Howard of Jarvis).
It does not matter that the new fee combination
will be, in reality, a sidestep way of increasing taxes (Fees, taxes, what's the
real difference? It still comes from the wallets of taxpayers.). But it is
indicative of the disdain that the Legislature holds those who are largely
responsible for paying for Sacramento's profligacy. If they are not careful, a
tax revolt of proportions not since since the Whisky Rebellion may be in the
offing. And such a situation may not be good for job tenure for the Denizens of
the Dome. Stay tuned.
Link at:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/17/BAVK14PUNK.DTL
Respectfully,
Anthony
Canales
SFVMC-NRA
Copyright 2008 Anthony Canales,
except as
noted.
All
rights reserved.