Wonkette
- President Obama must be scaring the shit out of the health-care industry because key players wrote him a letter promising to, let’s see, not trim health care costs, but trim the rise in health care costs. Victory!(?) [Washington Post]
- That American gal in Iran, Roxana Saberi, will not have to go to jail for eight years or indeed any years at all. Following an appeal she received a suspended two year sentence and will be released today. [BBC News]
- More than 350,000 Pakistanis have fled the Swat Valley since violence between the Taliban and the government started brewing a week ago. [BBC News]
- Those terrible robodialers who call you constantly about your “expiring car warranty” may finally be put to death by Chuck Schumer, who does not appreciate being called in the middle of Senate committee meetings. [New York Times]
- Even if the economy bounces back quickly from its sudden and deep recession, things will still suck in the long term. This is called “the Zarnowitz Rule,” and is also the title of a novel by John Irving. Bloomberg]
- Three banks that fared well during the government-administered stress tests are planning to repay their TARP money, so that they can get back to paying their executives billions of dollars a year to manage them poorly. [Reuters]
Zamowitz:
I managed to “find” the article. It appears the Bloomie link is fucked up at their end.
Actually, the economize is probably looking more like a TV show about Hollywood Lesbians. The L word, as in Lost Decade, and there is nothing sexy about that unlike the other L word.
Healthcare
I’m guessing Barry’s deliberate Chapter 11 of Chrysler and piss off his rich eelight donors showed that he wasn’t all Hopium and Portuguese Water Doggies. Barry can play hardball, too.
The biggest problem with US America “health” care is the fact that 25% of what you pay mostly goes to “overhead” aka CEO pay and shareholder profit. “Overhead” in Canada City healthcare is a mere 7%. Who’s inefficient NOW?
¼% relief from annual health care inflation? Be still my heart!
ManchuCandidate: YES BUT U HAVE TO STAND IN LINZ 4 A BANDAID SOSHILLIZMELEVENTYONE101010101
ManchuCandidate: I agree with everything you wrote but I am firmly against water dogging, especially the Portuguese technique.
I’m patiently waiting for some tasty jail photos of our Persian Prison Princess, Ms. Saberi. Me-fuckin’-ow!
I actually answered one of those robocalls and asked them nicely to remove me from their list and I still get the calls. I don’t like being nice to telemarketers. Go Chuck Schemer.
Pigs love slop
Film at 11:00
Things that make you go “fuck you”
“Former Vice President Dick Cheney said Republicans are better served by conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh than by former Secretary of State Colin Powell.”
Damn, even in Iran the beautiful people get special treatment. Roxana Saberi (even sounds hot) ‘accidentally’ exposes a little ankle in court and voila, release papers issued, sentence reduced to 2 years of hawtness.
Chucky = smirky megadouche with a heart? Only when he loses the lisp.
From Eric Van Lustbader, the Guy Who Turns Robert Ludlum’s Grocery Lists into Books, comes the mildly harrowing tale of an economic thrillride: The Zarnowitz Rule.
Rush: He put aside his racism? But isn’t that progress?
ManchuCandidate: Zarnowitz Rules? Those are like Hama Rules but with less aerial bombardment and poison gas and more equations.
Monsieur Grumpe: I’ve never gotten a robocall, I always get an actual person calling about my car warranties- one who tries to brow-beat this A.S.E. trained driveability technician (and now an mechanical engineer in the auto industry) into buying a warranty with threats of failing transmissions, air conditioners and other such things. It’s bullshit- but after a year or so of calling every couple months they go away, and I never seem to have any trouble with my cars (two Fords and two old Jaguars.)
But those auto warranty people are the only folks who talk to me anymore.
Monsieur Grumpe: I was able to remove my number from the expiring car warranty list by confirming my identity with a valid credit card number. You wouldn’t believe how helpful they were!
I would like a robocall please. I’m cold and there are wolves after me.
“How to lie with Statistics”
This book is pure brilliance. It singlehandledly lets you pull the wool over the eyes of 97% of the population.
P Drizzle: Just a smirky megadouche. There’s no heart there, unless daily reciting populist bullshit in front of television cameras for the lone purpose of being re-elected is what passes for ‘heart’ nowadays.
Why was David Gregory so mean to Karzai on MTP. Does he not like the relatives of Afghani restaurant owners? helmand.com
Servo: Yes, even the small 1/2″ photo on the NYT this morning got my attention. Sad, but true.
meanwhile: I have an idea for a new series of books aimed at Pakistani youth to present American values in an incredibly favourable light…wait for it… Swat Valley High. Maybe the Pakistani equiavalent of Roxana could be on the cover, clutching her textbooks and leaning against her locker
hobospacejunkie:
Iranian judge: “I’ll take what’s behind burqa number 1.”
Bruno: Nah, that only works on the 50% of Americans below the Median Stupidity Level.
the lady MS.Sheila Dixon: fukkin’ link. http://www.helmand.com I understand the owner is Karzia’s brother.
Norbert: that was fun–nee. but what about the twin angle?
Norbert: interesting. but you need a twin for authenticity. Roxana has a sister, does she not?
magic titty: Wait, you mean he’s…a politican? The horror! Someone hold me, please. To fill my emptiness.
the lady MS.Sheila Dixon: A sister! Obi-Wan was wise to hide her from me… wait, what? Yeah, so, twins. Hot idea! Let’s do this!
Monsieur Grumpe: Among my many dead end sh*t jobs, before I moved to China, I was TWICE a telemarketer! The best thing to do is hang up at once. If you talk, you go to the “sucker” list! And get MANY more calls!
Zhu Bajie
Norbert:
Who needs the Dutch to piss off the Muslin world? Good ol’ US of A can up the ante by featuring a Persian princess free-buttin’ in a cheerleaders outfit.
P Drizzle: No, not really what I meant. But good zinger, bro. Eh…
magic titty: Me: bringing the lame on the reg.
Monsieur Grumpe: If you have ‘documentation’ of this -asking to be taken off and they still call-they can be fined $500 for each call.
Cash in on this, srsly.
Michele Bachmann hasn’t said anything noteworthy in several weeks. I find that ominous. Wonkette didn’t even report the fact that the first confirmed case of the swine flu was in MBs district. I don’t blame Michele of course, but I find the coincidence interesting.
I believe John Irvings’ ‘Setting Free the Bears’ was a more hauntingly propehetic novel for these depressed economic times.
sati demise: I would be more impressed if the fine was rewarded to the victim of the call, but I suppose that’s too scam-worthy.
Go Chuck Schumer. And don’t fall for the internet site caller complaints.com it’s a fake-out link to the credit card debt relief scam.
sati demise: So push record button when you pick up but as it’s sub contracted out it will take some doing to put through the fine.
BTW,062 is an empty foreign area code so don’t pick up at all.
Obama and Steele continue to play “Smart cop, dump cop”:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/10/michael-steele-responds-t_n_201374.html
zhubajie: The best thing to do is hang up at once. If you talk, you go to the “sucker” list! And get MANY more calls!
I wonder if they have a special list for people who say, “Yeah, that sounds like a pretty good deal, sign me up for the full coverage,” and give a bad credit card number, then another bad credit card number, then another…
I’ve always wanted to try that for the amusement value, but it sounds time consuming.