What's with the TV ads in the Seattle area for companies loaning money on structured settlement income? There's Peachtree Financial and JG Wentworth...they both have opera singing in their dueling ads. How odd! I suppose the JG Wentworth company was first with the opera motif onaccounta the name, Jordan Wentworth, kinda seems to be the connection...and Peachtree copied it. It's downright silly. Couldn't one of them come up with their own ideas?
Monday, December 21, 2020
Friday, March 13, 2020
Corona Virus, National Emergency
Okay...I wasn't all that worried about the long term effects of the Corona virus. While I am old, I am in relatively good health and would most likely survive if I were beset with the virus. Also, I don't get out much.
However, today I heard on the radio that Trump had declared a national emergency. That's the part that concerns me.
When Trump first took the throne, there was an underlying suspicion that some sort of orchestrated war or false threat might be in the works to undermine this country's freedoms...and the Corona virus seems to fit right into the plans of our despicable despots-in-charge. I can just picture all those old cronies, wringing their hands and gurgling for joy at such a serendipitous turn of events...like old witches cackling over a cauldron of boiling blood, rats eyes and snake venom.
I've heard some ideas put forward...cut payroll taxes, cut social security and medicare taxes, make those reductions or eliminations permanent, etc. The people who benefit from those tax reductions are only those with jobs...and those who benefit the most are the high earners. As usual, it's the wealthy who reap the rewards. Of course, vaguely hidden in those proposals, with the elimination of any influx of funds into social security and medicare, the republicans will have the sledge hammer they crave so much to demand cuts to the beneficiaries of those programs.
Of course, this entire situation is horrible. People are dying and development of any vaccines may take years (if ever). The long term effects are beyond my comprehension.
Indeed, Trump is an idiot...but it's not just him or his pitiful family. It's the right-wing, racist, republican establishment to be feared, especially at this time of "national emergency"...because...the next step they would fall all over themselves to take is...Martial Law...and that would truly be a disaster...maybe, suspend elections indefinitely, eh? Maybe ban all, selective, public gatherings? Maybe squash selective dissent? This is scary. And now I AM worried. I'm not a religious man...but if I were...I'd say God Help Us.
Added a few weeks later...With the near-worldwide shutdown and businesses of all kinds in the US closing their doors...with so many millions of people put out of work (and income), a financial calamity looms ahead. It would be just peachy if everyone would just stand still in one place for a few weeks...this would all pass. Those infected would not pass the virus along and the lifecycle of the virus would run its course. The attempt at "social distancing" will help, I suppose, but it probably won't be enough. The virus will spread and may over-tax our healthcare facilities. The long term, financial effects may be devastating. The government proposals to ameliorate the economic implosion seem to be bandaids...treating one small laceration while a thousand others erupt and fester. I propose an immediate halt to all debt repayment...no rent, no mortgage payments, no insurance payments, no tax payments...Oh, but what of the banks and institutions who also have debts to pay? I said Halt All Debt Repayment. It's a "financial timeout" for everyone until the pandemic fades away...maybe months...maybe years...whatever it takes. Maybe a vaccine is on the horizon in a year or so...maybe not. Regardless, the horse is already out of the barn. Best to let it graze until a fenced-in field is devoid of nutrients. Then...when the firestorm has ended...when we all can go back to work...Then, we can pick up where we left off and restart paying our bills.
Now it's April. The virus is still spreading and many states have entered a lockdown phase. The Democratic Convention has been postponed along with so many other public events. The trend seems to be heading toward my greatest, initial fear...Police State...no elections...no ousting of the traitorous scum in control of the US government. This is a truly frightening time.
However, today I heard on the radio that Trump had declared a national emergency. That's the part that concerns me.
When Trump first took the throne, there was an underlying suspicion that some sort of orchestrated war or false threat might be in the works to undermine this country's freedoms...and the Corona virus seems to fit right into the plans of our despicable despots-in-charge. I can just picture all those old cronies, wringing their hands and gurgling for joy at such a serendipitous turn of events...like old witches cackling over a cauldron of boiling blood, rats eyes and snake venom.
I've heard some ideas put forward...cut payroll taxes, cut social security and medicare taxes, make those reductions or eliminations permanent, etc. The people who benefit from those tax reductions are only those with jobs...and those who benefit the most are the high earners. As usual, it's the wealthy who reap the rewards. Of course, vaguely hidden in those proposals, with the elimination of any influx of funds into social security and medicare, the republicans will have the sledge hammer they crave so much to demand cuts to the beneficiaries of those programs.
Of course, this entire situation is horrible. People are dying and development of any vaccines may take years (if ever). The long term effects are beyond my comprehension.
Indeed, Trump is an idiot...but it's not just him or his pitiful family. It's the right-wing, racist, republican establishment to be feared, especially at this time of "national emergency"...because...the next step they would fall all over themselves to take is...Martial Law...and that would truly be a disaster...maybe, suspend elections indefinitely, eh? Maybe ban all, selective, public gatherings? Maybe squash selective dissent? This is scary. And now I AM worried. I'm not a religious man...but if I were...I'd say God Help Us.
Added a few weeks later...With the near-worldwide shutdown and businesses of all kinds in the US closing their doors...with so many millions of people put out of work (and income), a financial calamity looms ahead. It would be just peachy if everyone would just stand still in one place for a few weeks...this would all pass. Those infected would not pass the virus along and the lifecycle of the virus would run its course. The attempt at "social distancing" will help, I suppose, but it probably won't be enough. The virus will spread and may over-tax our healthcare facilities. The long term, financial effects may be devastating. The government proposals to ameliorate the economic implosion seem to be bandaids...treating one small laceration while a thousand others erupt and fester. I propose an immediate halt to all debt repayment...no rent, no mortgage payments, no insurance payments, no tax payments...Oh, but what of the banks and institutions who also have debts to pay? I said Halt All Debt Repayment. It's a "financial timeout" for everyone until the pandemic fades away...maybe months...maybe years...whatever it takes. Maybe a vaccine is on the horizon in a year or so...maybe not. Regardless, the horse is already out of the barn. Best to let it graze until a fenced-in field is devoid of nutrients. Then...when the firestorm has ended...when we all can go back to work...Then, we can pick up where we left off and restart paying our bills.
Now it's April. The virus is still spreading and many states have entered a lockdown phase. The Democratic Convention has been postponed along with so many other public events. The trend seems to be heading toward my greatest, initial fear...Police State...no elections...no ousting of the traitorous scum in control of the US government. This is a truly frightening time.
Ludicrous TV Ad Spokesmen etc.
Absolutely laughable washed-out old spokesmen for...whatever products on TV...How could anyone anywhere be enticed to spend their money because these characters mumble their way through a taping session?
Lou Pinella...selling retirement apartments?
Joe Namath...who cares what he says?
Mike Ditka...barely speaking with marbles in his mouth
Lou Pinella...selling retirement apartments?
Joe Namath...who cares what he says?
Mike Ditka...barely speaking with marbles in his mouth
Chris Berman...whoever the hell that is...with his loud, semi-lisping voice
Who else? I'll add more as I notice them. Any suggestions?
Who else? I'll add more as I notice them. Any suggestions?
How bout the woman in the commercial who can't pronounce 'funeral'?
The ad where the guy says A-hundred instead of eight-hundred
or the guy who says 'hunnerd' instead of 'hundred'
Tuesday, March 3, 2020
King County wasting money on trail
I was wondering just how much money the county parks department must be spending on the trail at the end of my street and the question was raised, "Why not spend that money to help the homeless?"
This street in Fall City is a dead end. (It's the old Fall City Dump Road.) There are three houses along one side of the street with two more set back on long driveways. So...there are five residences. The other side of the street is all water. At the end of the road there's a gate...and then a county-maintained, mostly gravel access road/trail that leads up the hill through private property to the main Snoqualmie trail that once was a railroad built mainly to transport lumber.
Hikers, bicyclists and horse riders use this access to the trail above. This particular, gravel trail is subject to frequent slides and erosion...just nature doing its thing. Lately, with this winter's usual weather damage, there has been a steady stream of heavy equipment, including tens of truckloads of gravel going up there to make repairs. This sort of thing has been going on for years. The King county roads department does the work along this street to the gate. From there, the King county parks department takes over. Some years ago, the roads department spent millions of dollars to replace a twenty foot bridge along the road. (A reminder...there are only five residences here!) They claimed the old bridge was at risk but it seemed fine to me.
So...back to my wondering and the question about the homeless. There are actually homeless people living right here in Fall City and countless others throughout the county. Instead of using public funds to maintain a road and a trail just for the precious few who travel from the big city to get back to nature...why not help the thousands of less fortunate? Just imagine having these millions of dollars available for those who really need it...rather than cater to a tiny minority of trail enthusiasts. In fact, there are other access points to the county trail system. If the hikers, bikers and horses don't want to cross over a few ruts or gashes on the uphill trail...they can use one of the other entry points. By the way...the trail up above...the one that used to be a railroad bed...it's just a slightly graded, cleared, dirt and gravel road now, whereas it used to be mostly overgrown with a narrow pathway snaking through the wilds.The land on each side is all privately owned, so those who use the trail are required to stay on the trail. There's no legal access to the forest. When a person goes up there, it's just a back and forth trip...no exploring...no cutting through the trees...no blazing new trails...just stay on the straight-and-narrow...might as well be on a mouse/gerbil, exercise wheel.
It's time for King county to take a close look at what in the world they're throwing away our tax money on. Maybe, consider a more humane use of our assets, eh? This money pit in Fall City is not going away. There will be no end to erosion on this little trail and the county will have to continue throwing money at it for years to come...as it has for years gone by. Stop. Let it be.
This street in Fall City is a dead end. (It's the old Fall City Dump Road.) There are three houses along one side of the street with two more set back on long driveways. So...there are five residences. The other side of the street is all water. At the end of the road there's a gate...and then a county-maintained, mostly gravel access road/trail that leads up the hill through private property to the main Snoqualmie trail that once was a railroad built mainly to transport lumber.
Hikers, bicyclists and horse riders use this access to the trail above. This particular, gravel trail is subject to frequent slides and erosion...just nature doing its thing. Lately, with this winter's usual weather damage, there has been a steady stream of heavy equipment, including tens of truckloads of gravel going up there to make repairs. This sort of thing has been going on for years. The King county roads department does the work along this street to the gate. From there, the King county parks department takes over. Some years ago, the roads department spent millions of dollars to replace a twenty foot bridge along the road. (A reminder...there are only five residences here!) They claimed the old bridge was at risk but it seemed fine to me.
So...back to my wondering and the question about the homeless. There are actually homeless people living right here in Fall City and countless others throughout the county. Instead of using public funds to maintain a road and a trail just for the precious few who travel from the big city to get back to nature...why not help the thousands of less fortunate? Just imagine having these millions of dollars available for those who really need it...rather than cater to a tiny minority of trail enthusiasts. In fact, there are other access points to the county trail system. If the hikers, bikers and horses don't want to cross over a few ruts or gashes on the uphill trail...they can use one of the other entry points. By the way...the trail up above...the one that used to be a railroad bed...it's just a slightly graded, cleared, dirt and gravel road now, whereas it used to be mostly overgrown with a narrow pathway snaking through the wilds.The land on each side is all privately owned, so those who use the trail are required to stay on the trail. There's no legal access to the forest. When a person goes up there, it's just a back and forth trip...no exploring...no cutting through the trees...no blazing new trails...just stay on the straight-and-narrow...might as well be on a mouse/gerbil, exercise wheel.
It's time for King county to take a close look at what in the world they're throwing away our tax money on. Maybe, consider a more humane use of our assets, eh? This money pit in Fall City is not going away. There will be no end to erosion on this little trail and the county will have to continue throwing money at it for years to come...as it has for years gone by. Stop. Let it be.
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