Arkady's Thoughts

Breaking news, Congressional Democrats are out of touch with America.  More breaking news, America is broke and doubling down on failed strategies.  OK, not breaking after all, but with November elections proving to be cataclysmic it really boggles to mind to see Harry Reid and Pelosi barely skip a beat!   This lame duck session is just further proof that Washington DC and America are miles apart and the quality of our representation has plummeted.  No wonder Congress's approval stands at a whopping 13 percent !  How lucky for Congress that they automatically vote themselves pay raises despite approval ratings that would make George W. wince. So despite the referendum on November where a record number of State legislatures flipped and we have potentially the biggest Constitutionalist minority in the House since lord-knows-when, two bills are up for consumption. The first is the aforementioned tax deal struck between President Obama and the GOP.  Not muc...

uess what is the hottest topic on the blogosphere now?  Our dismal GDP growth?  Nope!   Our president making a mockery of the office?  Nope!  Chevrolet releasing a car that will take 20 years of driving to equal the purchase of a civic?  Nope!  New York Congressman Anthony Weiner flipping out on the House floor rivaling antics seen on the WWF.  The video:   Weiner is upset because a bill designed to aid individuals suffering from the 9/11 attacks failed on partisan lines.  One can easily be sympathetic to all the passion and vitriol stemming from this compassionate soul, but one can just as easily ask what is the real motivation here.  After all, why would anyone block aid to 9/11 victims?   We as Americans, even the most financially prudent ones will gladly have our tax money used to help anyone affected by that tragedy.  The answer is buried in the machinations of the House proceedings.  Yo...

Glancing around the blogosphere it seems that conservatives and libertarians are once again in a collective rage over the inevitable passing of ObamaCare.   Yes, there is plenty to be angry about and the depth to which our politicians are stooping is surprising even the most seasoned pundits.  However this surprise is only shared by those individuals who believe our Congress is acting at the behest of a populace upset with our current health care system.  This is simply incorrect, ObamaCare has very little to do with health care.  Latest polling data suggests that a higher percentage of people oppose ObamaCare than the percentage Obama received in November of 2008.  54% of Americans oppose this piece of legislation, with 45% strongly opposing it.  Now, this was the point I repeatedly brought up during the special election in Massachusetts, when Republican superstar Scott Brown pledged to stop ObamaCare.  In fact this issue was a cornerstone of...

Our esteemed lawmakers are busy at work inventing new ways to screw not only this generation but all offspring and the offspring's offspring.  According to inman news , Reid has proposed an amendment to HR 3548 to extend the $8,000 first time home buyer credit, along with modifying limits and caps thus enabling more and more people to participate.   See, someone got the bright idea that our entire crisis is predicated on the bursting of the housing bubble and while the bubble pop ushered in troubling fiscal meltdowns the housing bubble was merely a catalyst.  America's history over the past 30 years has been largely governed by Greenspan's new economy, an idea built on the fact that an infusion of readily accessible money can stimulate a lagging economy.  It worked in 1987, early 90s and early 2000s so the assumption is that it will work again.  It has indeed provided many years of prosperity to people and allowed many to become filthy rich, however the so...