Ok, let's make it clear. I think marijuana should be legal for personal use. I do not smoke now (and haven't for over 10 years) due to to my current job, but let's just say I can speak from experience. Let the government sell it or tax it or whatever they think they need to do. It is a lot less dangerous than alcohol by far, and is not the "gateway" drug the establishment would like you to believe. Spending money (in today's economy) on marijuana smokers is just stupid. Jail space is at a premium and rapists are getting out early while guy with a bag of weed sits in jail.
Marijuana could also save a few marriages a long the way. When working couples get home from work, instead of tearing into each other from the stress of the day, a couple bong hits and a moment of silence could prevent a lot of arguments. Alcohol just makes people angry or violent, where marijuana mellows a person out without the side effects of alcohol. It can cause lethargy, but can also bring out the artistic creative side of someone.
They have tests that can tell whether one is under the influence of alcohol at any given moment, but the test for pot shows what someone may have done in their spare time like 2 weeks ago. I can see if an employer does not want someone stoned at work, but the testing process is just unfair.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Blame your grandparents...
Yes the whole financial meltdown was caused by you grandma and grandpa. After the tragedy of September 11, 2001, the financial markets suffered a shake-up that showed the fragile nature of the system. Many people like your grandparents (and me) pulled a lot if not all of their monies out of risky investments and put it in some type of secure fund. Many of the guaranteed funds offered a 4 or 5% return. This was small potatoes at that time, but the safety assurance was a load off their minds.
To get the highest return, the banks would offer you a higher percentage return if you would invest in a certificate of deposit, especially a long term CD like a 36 to 48 month maturity. This was the case up until around the beginning of 2006. At that time you could get a 5.75% (Annual Percentage Yield) CD with a maturity of 36-48 months. Many people took the banks up on this safe form of investment.
The bad news is, as the mortgages failed and the market tanked, the banks were still required to pay this "guaranteed" rate. So the money they got from your grandma and grandpa was invested by the banks in mortgages and investments that had generally earned a positive return was now losing money ... bad. So in other words, banks were headed for the red. Other factors actually contributed to unfortunate outcomes, but your grandma and grandpa were partly to blame.
The good news is, the banks were VERY quick to realize this and the guaranteed interest rates have dropped to around 2%. and all the long term CD's are now maturing and the banks can get back on track to black.
So thanks a lot grandma and grandpa for the near collapse of the nation. We have the last unfortunate laugh though because people on fixed incomes that use to rely on the revenue from interest on their CD's are royally screwed.
So I guess we are even...
To get the highest return, the banks would offer you a higher percentage return if you would invest in a certificate of deposit, especially a long term CD like a 36 to 48 month maturity. This was the case up until around the beginning of 2006. At that time you could get a 5.75% (Annual Percentage Yield) CD with a maturity of 36-48 months. Many people took the banks up on this safe form of investment.
The bad news is, as the mortgages failed and the market tanked, the banks were still required to pay this "guaranteed" rate. So the money they got from your grandma and grandpa was invested by the banks in mortgages and investments that had generally earned a positive return was now losing money ... bad. So in other words, banks were headed for the red. Other factors actually contributed to unfortunate outcomes, but your grandma and grandpa were partly to blame.
The good news is, the banks were VERY quick to realize this and the guaranteed interest rates have dropped to around 2%. and all the long term CD's are now maturing and the banks can get back on track to black.
So thanks a lot grandma and grandpa for the near collapse of the nation. We have the last unfortunate laugh though because people on fixed incomes that use to rely on the revenue from interest on their CD's are royally screwed.
So I guess we are even...
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Why A. I. G. Will Fail..
This is just a short post on what I see as obvious. A. I. G. is getting all kinds of negative publicity. Yet this is a company that relies on public confidence. Financial advisers, stock brokers and even you and I have a choice where we put our money. When more people decline to put their funds in the hands of A.I.G. executives, the company will naturally lose money.
So while we continually bail out A.I.G., threatening them with lawsuits and dragging the company through the mud only leads to their immanent decline. So Obama is not doing the country a favor by sending them hundreds of millions of dollars, then telling us what a terrible irresponsible company it is.
Obvious isn't it?
So while we continually bail out A.I.G., threatening them with lawsuits and dragging the company through the mud only leads to their immanent decline. So Obama is not doing the country a favor by sending them hundreds of millions of dollars, then telling us what a terrible irresponsible company it is.
Obvious isn't it?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
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