$700 Billion – Necessary or Not?

There has been a lot of talk lately about this bailout and I have to admit to be a bit overtaken by it as I am sure you are too.  So, I decided a method to achieve greater understanding on such a complex problem might be to create sort of a combo “FAQ/interesting points” laundry list to clear up some of the major issues surrounding this ominous bailout.  And, without out further ado…

Q. What monstrous catastrophe could possibly cost the American people $700 Billion?

A. This is the heart of understanding this bailout proposal.  Mainly, this proposal is set to invest the $700 billion to buy “distressed mortgage-related assets.”  This means that $700 billion of taxpayer money (roughly the equivalent of $2,000 for every man, woman, and child in America) will be given to banks so that these distressed loans will be owned by the Treasury Dept.  This alleviates the responsibility of the privately owned banks and puts the loans in the hands of (hypothetically) an entity that can handle the temporary lose incurred by the failing assets.  The federal government, ideally, doesn’t have to worry as much as a private bank about taking a lose on a home in the short term because it is better equipped to wait out a difficult period in the economy.

Q. Why is this costing the taxpayer?  Is there another way to achieve a buyout without having to tax Americans?

A. The answer to this is difficult.  It isn’t a clear cut yes or no as of right now.  That being said, take a look at the last sentence you just read, because in it there’s a phrase that is key – “right now.”  You see, there hasn’t been a lot of time for Congress to look at this bill.  Typically, there is a series of hearings for something of this magnitude.  Congress would then be allowed time to debate the appropriateness of the issue and whether or not there are more feasible alternatives.  As it stands, that isn’t happening and some Congressmen agree.  Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., questioned reporters, “What was the rush? Why didn’t we have hearings? Why didn’t we use regular order? We were told two weeks ago that unless we acted immediately, within hours the sky was going to fall. Well, the sky didn’t fall. Even so, we have rushed this through. $700 billion, potentially, in liabilities to the taxpayer without hearings, without the opportunity for amendments in committee… on something of this magnitude, I think, is ill-advised.”1

Q. What happens if we do nothing?

A. This is the part that has “Hoover” written all over it – that is, it sucks.  Unfortunately, the investors on Wall Street made dumb decisions about how to manage mortgage.  They stuck themselves and are asking us, the taxpayers, to fix the problem.  The thing is, if we don’t do it, we risk serious danger of having either a serious recession or a full-blown depression.  With housing markets freezing up, the economy takes a huge hit and fears rise on Wall Street.  Then, we have a snowball effect that is unlikely to subside.  Investing the $700 billion today may mean not being crunched into depression later.

Q. What happens if we do the bailout?

A. This also is uncertain as the specifics to the bill haven’t been agreed on yet (they likely will be by the end of the week).  However, we can say that the average American will take a fairly big hit in federal taxes.  In governmental ethics we have issues too.  The government is going to have an unprecedented control in Wall Street.  Previously, the government has always believed that the markets should take care of themselves.  This is the capitalist democracy we live in.  With more control by the government we move closer to socialism in America.

It is easy to agree that something needs to be done.  You would have to be a fool to question that.  However, what is a huge question at this point.  It’s interesting how things are happening though.  Fear is at the base of it.  Quick decisions are being made.  Mistakes aren’t being paid for by the people who make them and the consequences are shared by all.  Maybe it’s just me, but I think i remember all this in the movie V for Vendetta… interesting…

Relationships – What It Takes To Survive and Thrive

I’ve been doing a lot of thought on relationships lately.  I am fortunate enough to be involved in a relationship with a fantastic woman that seems to fit my needs almost seamlessly.  Hopefully, I am providing the same sort of mesh that fits her personal needs (and I believe I am).  The point is, I’ve been wondering what makes a relationship tick.  And, more specifically, what keeps it thriving.

In order to thrive in a relationship you first have to learn how to survive.  It’s the whole crawl-before-you-can-walk phenomenon.  This part is about what not to do.  Essentially, it is what you can avoid to be certain you don’t lose your relationship.  The truest knowledge I have gained about what destroys a relationship came from John Gottman, PhD.  John is a leading relationship psychologist out of the University of Washington.  He coined The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.  The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are four things that are sure to destroy a relationship and they may not be what you might think.  Drinking?  Fighting?  Lack of Love?  Actually, no.  These things were found to have no direct correlation with whether a relationship stays in tact or not.  Though drinking can lead to destructive behavior, drinking itself is not the problem.  In fact, many people have a drink or two on a daily basis and enjoy a healthy relationship.  Fighting and Lack of Love don’t crush unions either.  Fighting actually can be healthy if it is done right and, surprisingly,Gottman claims that a lack of love doesn’t affect a relationships longevity at all.  So what does ruin couples?  Gottman says the four things are Criticism, Contempt, Defensiveness, and Stonewalling.  It is possible to continue a relationship with one of these in limited degree, but Gottman claims that having any of these to a severe degree or having multiple of them can be ultimately damaging to the relationship and almost certainly lead to divorce or a break up.  Gottman says the most important of these is contempt.  Contempt, as described by Gottman, is a showing of disrespect in a way that places yourself above the other person (or the other person below you).  Stonewalling comes in second because it is a complete shutting off of communication.  By stonewalling, a person is removing him or herself from the relationship.

This enters where my mind has been lately.  The thriving stage.  In my personal observation there are a few things that help to make a relationship thrive.  The most important is commitment.  I’ve found that having a personal crusade to be with your significant other for the rest of your life is pinnacle.  Now, I’m not saying that you should be creepy or stalker-like if the relationship goes sour, but I am saying that when the tough gets going… well, you know.  I can’t help but feel that there is something to be said for being with someone for a long time.  There is a pride in it – a sense of accomplishment that helps you feel good about what you are involved in.

Secondly, learn your loved ones personal Love Language and make sure you provide for it!  Gary Chapman wrote a brilliant book on the five love languages.  These are the things that let people know they are loved and not everyone gets that the same way.  Some people need physical touch while others may need words of affirmation.

Lastly, grow with each other.  I love the fact that my girlfriend is learning about politics right now.  She’s taking a poli-sci class and I love talking to her about it.  She learns from class and I get to learn from her.  When you grow together it is about doing new things with each other and finding out more about yourselves and the world around you together.  The bonding that takes place is invaluable.  However, the beauty in growing together isn’t just in experiencing new things.  You also learn an appreciation for not being perfect.  It can help show you where you both have faults and shortcomings that can be complimented by the other person.  This is wonderful for making you aware that someone is there for you and that you can be there for them.

Opening Day of NFL 08

Ahh… that football nirvana is finally here.  It is the opening day for the 2008 regular season of NFL football.  Tonight at 7pm EST the New York football Giants will take on the Washington Redskins.  There are a few big stories here. 

To start with we have the Jason Taylor injury.  Will Jason Taylor play?  He has been labeled as a game-time decision, but you have to assume that this is a big deal if he doesn’t play.  Now, sure one game does not a season make, but this is a divisional game in the division that many consider the toughest division in the NFL.  With the defending SuperBowl champs, the NFC favorite Cowboys, and the Eagles being led by Brian Westbrook and a healthy Donovan McNabb, the Skins need every oportunity they can get to gain a divisional advantage.  Jason Taylor is a big part of that equation for Washington’s defense.  Washington has had a couple of key injuries to the defensive end position this preseason.  Enter Jason Taylor.  Washington traded for Taylor after their starting right end Phillip Daniels went down for the season.  With Jason Taylor coming at him all day, Giants quarterback Eli Manning had a big test to overcome if he wanted to win this game.  Now, he might have an easier time of it.

The next big headline in this game is Eli Manning.  Eli Manning gave us one of the most memorable SuperBowl victories in recent memory.  His football heroics will be the thing of highlight reels for years to come.  But, can he keep it up?  Manning has been one of the most inconsistent quarterbacks of the past few years.  He finished the season on as “Good Eli.”  The question is who shows up tonight “Good Eli” or “Bad Eli?”

 

My pick: New York Giant win 24-17.

Search Engine Excitement and Blogging Firsts

Okay blogging virginity, here we go!  I want to kick this thing off right, so lets be sure to start off on the right pace.  Seeing as this is the first in an internet-based article log, what better to start with than the an article on the web?  I’ve been becoming increasingly aware of the advances happening in search engines.  

As of July 28, 2008, a new search engine was created in Cuil (pronounced “cool”).  Created by former Google employees, Cuil hopes to topple the search engine giant.  And I have to admit, a certain revolutionary excitement bubbles inside me whenever an underdog attempts to overcome the dynasty of a monolith company and Cuil is no exception.  Cuil boasts a few very interesting features.  To start with, there is the pictorial layout.  It is arranged in a magazine-style series of cascading windows with a description beneath each entry.  Simply click on the image (or text) and you’ve found your site.  Ideally, this design plan would allow users to view the site without actually having to go to it (similarly to the preview pane in Outlook).  Cuil also claimed to have a far larger database of websites than Google.  Using original technology, Cuil hoped to improve on the search engine platform that Google has used for the past decade or so.  

Unfortuantely, Cuil sucks.  It’s not that there isn’t a great deal of potential there, but Cuil hasn’t delivered up to this point.  On the launch date, Cuil wound up with so much traffic that the servers couldn’t keep up.   It served largely unrelated sites when querries came in.  It was documented to have an issue with porn sites popping up and all in all Cuil was quoted as spending the next few days “putting out fires” – not a great start to overthrowing an empire.  

Google also doesn’t seem too worried about the competition.  Google hasn’t done much to alter its own search engine and instead has opted to work on and release new products like Chrome (a new web browser that was released on September 2, 2008.

However, Cuil VP of communications, Vince Sollitto, promised better results once bugs were worked out.  Here’s hoping Cuil comes to all it was promised to be.  VIVA LA REVOLUTION!