Polling The Stimulus

Zogby International grabs headlines with their "Ask a loaded question..." poll showing the public is opposed to the stimulus bill.

CNN recently reported that "A slight majority, 54 percent, favors the bill; 45 percent are opposed" but I can't find their actual questions.

Last week CBS found that the public favored the bill even though they believed tax cuts would be more effective than increased government spending in getting this country going again.

Gallup also found majority support but did not report polling results on tax cuts.

[END OF THREAD]

Comments

[Rick Ballard]

Jim,

Each and every attorney coming to the island, without exception, is required to enter into a representation agreement with First Federated (at $1 per annum in fee). It's part of the plan to make St Jane a wholly non-litigious environment.

[Sue]

Look, I can do earmuffs and sunglasses like a runway model. Don't worry about that, just make sure I have the cool sunglasses.

[Pal2Pal (Sara)]

Hey, Sara, I'll join you with the girl scout leader stuff (just as soon as I finish moving the 1,300 boxes of cookies out of my van...) And my husband can design us a nuclear reactor, or a bomb, or both, and we could bring our own yellowcake. (It's ok that my husband is just a theorist -- my 14-yr-old can build anything.) And we'll need my 10-yr-old to deliver the girl scout cookies. And sing the Baby Bumblebee song and Green Socks.

I am an Eager Beaver Camper
An Eager Beaver Gal am I,
I wash my clothes up every night,
I brush my teeth up nice and bright,
I am an Eager Beaver camper,
an Eager Beaver Gal am I.

My son is a baseball coach, we do need a recreational/sports director right?
And my daughter is a teacher/real estate agent.
My daughter-in-law can do 100 pull ups without breaking a sweat, so she is good as the strong man woman. And she does electrical work too, in case we need any wiring done.

[Pal2Pal (Sara)]

Plus I'm very skilled at eating Girl Scout cookies.

[glenda]

Our group is a very very very fine eclectic bunch of heroes...do they have wifi off of Belize?

[Extraneus]

Oh, gag...

Obama's Challenge: What Would Lincoln Do?

Their crises were different, but the responses of Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama bear striking parallels, historians say.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

Gotta get all those ACORN CRA folks their 40 acres and a 3BR 2BA before the '10 elections. Note to watchers: The white folks with jumbos in the CA 'burbs are going to get screwed.

I noticed that Geithner said that only $50 billion will be set aside for foreclosure mitigation, which seems like a drop in the bucket for the scale of the problem in the next 6 months (and probably unnecessary because of the failed Hope Now program). The way Geithner tacked it on almost makes it look like a bailout for ACORN specifically (they are a mortgage origination company in addition to being financial terrorists).

The other thing about this that has got me scratching my head, couldn't the states, instead of looking to patch up their budgets with civil fines, go after some of these people for loan piracy and mortgage fraud. I recall that some Bear Stearns people got roped into an investigation, but I'd like to see some states really go after ACORN.

[hit and run]

I'm getting a picture of a mix between Lost and Gilligan's Island, only each person is holed up in his or her hut, typing away on JOM in conversation with each other, rather than actually, you know, stepping outside and talking with one another.

How can we possibly step away from the computer, what if there is some breaking news we need to punditificate on?!?!??!

That wouldn't really happen though.

[RichatUF]

Also, I don't know what I can do on the island. It's been a while since I've tended bar and dislike resturant work. I can maybe give surfing lessons and make surfboards.

[Danube of Thought]

I remember reading a Newsweek article on Reagan during his presidency, and at the height of his popularity. They asked him something along the lines of how he makes tough decisions, and he said, "I just ask myself, 'What would John Wayne do?'" Of course, that one drove his critics absolutely nuts, but it only heightened my enduring love for the man.

[bad]

punditificate on?!?!??!

And politicians to defecate on....

[Pagar]

I can't bring myself to read a comparison between Obama and Lincoln. There is however, a report that Maxine Waters is not the favorite of the bankers,testifying today, who donated to the Democrats campaign.

Maxine -- never the calmest of souls -- got on an incomprehensible tear and, her voice rising and becoming a low-level screech, began accusing the CEOs assembled of piracy, lying, and gross abuse of bank customers. She lit into a litany of every Leftist Lunatic grudge against capitalism in general and banks in particular. Wild-eyed and shaking, she stopped actually asking these poor guys questions and simply yelled accusations at them, telling them to "raise your hands" if they pled guilty.

[JM Hanes]

You know, I think we're beginning to lose sight of the whole raison d'etre of this island retreat. Any minute now, someone will be whining "Who's going to be paying for all this, " and Boom! We'll be arguing flat tax vs progressive. What happened to do what you wanna do, be who you wanna be?

[bad]

Maxine who never saw a problem at Freddie/Fannie

What a tool

[Jane]

That is hysterical Pagar.

I loathe Susan Collins.

[JM Hanes]

Maxine Waters -- there's a Republican pushback ad waiting to be zcxreened. Do you want this woman running your banks and making your healthcare decisions?

Susan Collins has used up a generous share of passes. If there were ever a bill which violates every know Republican principle, it's the stimulus package.

[bgates]

Any minute now, someone will be whining "Who's going to be paying for all this, " and Boom!

Finally, a role for me.

I'll be the guy who throws anybody who suggests a taxation scheme of any kind back into the surf.

[bad]

Why are they bitching about CEO salaries? They are a tiny percentage of the TARP funds. The American people don't care about porky little salaries...

[bad]

Why are they bitching about private planes? Pelosi flies one everywhere...

[sbwaters]

Happy Birthday, DOT... and many more.

I suppose the position of philosopher king on the island is going to remain vacant... in the interest of good sense and all.

So I suppose I'm going to hav to fall back on intensive gardening which I decided to learn, along with hunting and fishing, because I thought it was useful to know, just in case.

Oh, and my wife says I give good back rubs.

[Amused bystander]

BAd: They want to show them how is boss in the new order. Maybe they will cause an internecine war with their business wing.

One hopes.

[Sue]

bgates,

I would look cool wearing my sunglasses that I provided with my own hard-earned money helping you pitch them off the island.

[bad]

They're all a bunch of dumbasses, Amused.

I'm so pissed ...

[Sue]

Michael Barone says in the generic ballot, democrats lead republicans...40 to 39. Think about that for just one minute. Republicans, in 3 weeks, have closed the gap and probably jumped ahead since republicans poll badly, of the generic democrat. If it wasn't for the fact this stupid bill is going to cost us dearly, it would be humorous.

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

Most of the ACORN CRA crap is under $50K. The $50 billion would take care of forgiveness for 1,000,000 $50K mortgages - about 40% of the total ARM loan count, certainly enough to keep serfs in the prog fiefs. The duds in the CA 'burb with jumbos chewed up 8-9 times as many total dollars as did the CRA duds. Add in the fact that foreclosing on duds in the 'burbs will drive some of them back into the fiefs.

The prog fiefs have been emptying out at an accelerating pace for the past 10 years. A portion of the point of this exercise is to lock people into the fiefs for as long as possible. The total flow of income to slumlords and local real estate interests is impaired when too many serfs escape from Blue Hells. The Blue Barons know that many of the CRA duds will lose those houses - even if the houses are "free" for the moment.

I don't think many people actually get the point of the prog serf/slave relationships. The serf/slaves are just a conduit for government money that winds up enriching the prog masters. Ask Penny Pritzker or Uncle Tony and his buddies.

[MayBee]

Obama said he's going to be unveiling his Mortgage Bailout Program in the coming weeks. Anything Geithner talked about was just a tip of the iceberg.

[Rick Ballard]

"I'll be the guy who throws anybody who suggests a taxation scheme of any kind back into the surf."

Then who is going run the shark feeding excursion boat? It's a very popular and lucrative tourist attraction (not to mention an excellent means of dealing with certain unpleasant exigencies). Casino revenue will cover taxation issues.

[cathyf]

Interesting Lincoln trivia... I learned very recently that Lincoln was an expert on railroads. There are some unique and interesting economic properties that railroads have -- just how do you go about acquiring a property four feet wide and 2000 miles long that can only go up/down gentle grades? -- that Lincoln knew all about because he had worked on contracts that attempted various and sundry ways to solve these problems.

Contrast this with Obama, who doesn't have the first clue about the law of supply and demand, let alone such vital issues as moral hazard or adverse selection.

[Extraneus]

If there's an opening for a sous-chef at Clarice's place, I'd like to submit my resume, although nothing on it will appear remotely relevant.

[Extraneus]

Line cook would be ok, too.

[sbwaters]

If Lincoln was such an expert on railroads, why did he settle on the narrower gauge as the national standard. True, acquisition costs are lower, but the ROI is ultimately less.

[Extraneus]

But I'm going to want my own place at some point.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

So this dog-and-pony show is really about keeping people tied to slums in Dem districts. At this point it probably would have been a better use of TARP to have bought up all the mortgages and given the houses to the occupants.

It is surprising to me that the GOP has been unable to articulate anything regarding the financial crisis, housing, and the CRA.

[Mary]

Any openings on that island for seamstress or bottlewasher?

[Topsecretk9]

Oh boy...

Maxine Waters brings the crazy

11 Feb 2009 01:20 pm
Her questions to the bankers are so bizarre that they don't know what to do. Ken Lewis looks like a deer in the headlights as Waters asks her about offshore loss mitigation efforts. He can't even figure out what she's talking about, and neither can I. She also asks the bankers, few of whom are in the credit card business, how many of them have cut credit limits to people on the basis of where they shop. It's like watching your crazy aunt challenge your boyfriend to prove that fairies aren't real.
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...Megan McArdle

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

Their crises were different, but the responses of Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama bear striking parallels, historians say.

Does that mean habeas corpus is being suspended somewhere deep in the bowls of porkulus?

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

**bowels**

[Topsecretk9]

Barone weighs in on the generic ballot:

Republicans Closing In On Generic Ballot [Mark Hemingway] Michael Barone concludes anti-stimulus push is working:

Astonishing news on the generic ballot question. Pollster Scott Rasmussen reports that Democrats are currently ahead of Republicans by only 40 percent to 39 percent. Given that this generic ballot question over the years has tended to understate Republicans' performances in actual elections, one gathers that if the 2010 election for House seats were held today, Republicans would win or come close to winning a majority of seats—which is to say, they would gain about 40 seats. By way of comparison, they gained 52 seats when they won their majority in 1994. This result may just be a momentary blip, which will pass away as quickly as it appeared, and we are a long, long, long way from the November 2010 elections. But if I were a Democratic member of Congress in even a marginally marginal district, I would be just a little bit worried.

[Sue]

Bowls of porkulus works too.

[bad]

Ignatz, the first idea was very apt to hogs at the trough and all that...

[glasater]

Casino revenue will cover taxation issues.

Hey! I could run the the St Jane Island Casino. I'm a good Black Jack dealer and will make taking your money absolutely painless:-)

[Topsecretk9]

Gateway pundit has video

Democrat Maxine Waters just had a psychotic break during the House grilling of top bank CEOs regarding what happened to the $ 350B they got but somehow never made it to customers.

Maxine -- never the calmest of souls -- got on an incomprehensible tear and, her voice rising and becoming a low-level screech, began accusing the CEOs assembled of piracy, lying, and gross abuse of bank customers. She lit into a litany of every Leftist Lunatic grudge against capitalism in general and banks in particular. Wild-eyed and shaking, she stopped actually asking these poor guys questions and simply yelled accusations at them, telling them to "raise your hands" if they pled guilty. No one could get a word in edgewise. Finally, as Maxine reached the level of Howard Dean screaming at his audience, the chair interrupted and tried to get her to stop self-destructing on TV. Maxine ignored him and kept her screechfest going. Finally, the chair simply stopped her, telling her that she needed to submit her "questions" to the CEOs after the hearing ended. Moment of stunned silence. Then the grilling continued by another, saner Dem.

[bgates]

Contrast this with Obama

Lincoln was the guy who was pilloried in the press of his time for starting an unnecessary, expensive war that strained relations with Europe and led to unprecedented restrictions on civil liberties, right? The one his enemies compared to a baboon? "The cheek of every American must tingle with shame as he reads the silly, flat and dishwatery utterances of the man who has to be pointed out to intelligent foreigners as the President of the United States." - that guy? The one who was routinely called a dictator and traitor by government officials of the opposition party and the papers?

The resemblance is uncanny.

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

It depends upon the district's make-up. Conyers and Kilpatrick in Detroit need to keep the serfs from fleeing. A similar situation pertains in some Chicago districts and in Milwaukee. LA County is at war with Riverside and San Bernadino counties as is Alameda with Contra Costa, San Joaquin and Stanislaus over land use policies which have allowed a high escape rate of taxpayers (they want those taxpayers back to cover serf costs). OTOH - San Francisco is driving poor minorities out in droves because they cost too damn much and Pelosi/Newsome have no need for them with a general population as well indoctrinated as is San Franciso's.

[Topsecretk9]

Here's the Maxine Waters moronic crazy -- make sure to jump to the 5:40 mark if you don't want to dumb yourself down watching the whole thing...it's the part that McArdle describes Ken Lewis deer in the headlights ...she's going on about 30 million in fees, 30 million in fees and she asks why they do that and cuts to Lewis whose eyebrows go up, eyes go wide and he says "I don't know what you are talking about"

Here's the priceless screen capture

[clarice]

Extraneus, it's a deal.

[Pal2Pal (Sara)]

Oh, if we're going to have a Casino, I'm a skilled card dealer and a pretty good Texas Hold 'Em player.

And if someone can teach surfing, then I bid as a certified lifeguard and swimming instructor.

[bgates]

TS9 - "Crazy black women of the Obama years".
Part of a series (look at the guy on the left.)

[Extraneus]

Wow, that *is* priceless.

[bgates]

Headline on Yahoo news: "Wall Street Rebounds As Lawmakers Agree On Stimulus Plan".

One inch below, Yahoo notes the Dow is up 0.6%.

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

Ignatz, the first idea was very apt to hogs at the trough and all that...

Well bad, in light of the old saw about no one wanting to see sausage or laws being made and since porkulus ostensibly is supposed to resemble a law, I figured pork bowels and some of the foulest sausage ever made in our country's history were a natural fit.

Sue, a bowl of porkulus sounds about as appetizing as a nice juicy piece of salt pork after a long ride on a small boat in heavy seas.

[clarice]

Jim, I always loved that "putting on a show" shtick.

Maybe we can have a St Jane Little Theater Group. (And definitely no performances of "No Exit".)

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

Rick:

I will, of course, take the pledge.

Sara:

I was certified once, too, but, alas, am unable to perform anymore.

[Sue]

Sue, a bowl of porkulus sounds about as appetizing as a nice juicy piece of salt pork after a long ride on a small boat in heavy seas.

Which describes perfectly what we are being forced to swallow.

[Sue]

I was certified once, too, but, alas, am unable to perform anymore.

If I was bad, and I do mean our bad, I would have to say something here...

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

Here is bgates' link of Michelle and and her retinue from another planet again.
I need some help. For some time now I have been trying to place who Michelle looks like. It's some dude but I can't place him. I'm thinking Floyd Patterson with a wig, but that doesn't seem quite right.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

Yeah Sue. That was meant to have a double meaning -- fair warning to those "Eager Beavers" in Sara's song;>0. I am sure our bad would understand.

[Pofarmer]

Ok, but more specifically and much more importantly, what about about hops and barley?

Barley is easy, but, I don't think hops like tropical environments. More high and cool and dry. Can distilled spirits be made to suffice?

[Sue]

Aww, hell, learn to love rum...

[matt]

Ignatz;

It's actually now called habeas porkulus....from the latin" may I have the pork, please".....

[hit and run]

Pofarmer:
Can distilled spirits be made to suffice?

Oh, well, I guess so..

Sue:
Aww, hell, learn to love rum...

Oooooh, in a glass with a tiny umbrella? Can I have a tiny umbrella?

Yay rum!

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

With rum I may be able to perform my lifesaving duties.

[Bill in AZ]

Iowahawk - Numbers in the News:

"The number itself is incomprehensible by human minds, and can only be theoretically understood in a fractional parallel universe which we refer to as the DC dimension," said Brossard. "The best way to understand a stimulus is to imagine a dollar sign followed by a packed string of hexidecimal nanodigits, wound into a triple helix, woven into a dodecahedron, and stacked on top of one another. Now imagine you were a black hole on the far edge of the universe, trying to escape the stimulus at 30 times the speed of light. The stimulus would still catch up to you and ram your black hole with such furious, repeated force that it would cause your entire reality itself to collapse."

[clarice]

ROFL!! I heart Iowahawk!!

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

Collins and Specter appeared with Harry Reid in a news conference earlier this evening, adding insult to injury. They even made a smarmy pitch that the package is "bipartisan". Hooey, but it gives Reid some cover with the muddle. They really didn't have to go that far.

Unfortunately, Specter reflects his constituency statewide in PA, as do Snowe and Collins in ME. I thought differently last year, especially about western PA, but November sadly proved me wrong.

[bad]

I was certified once, too, but, alas, am unable to perform anymore.

That's okay, cuddling is nice too.

[bgates]

Ignatz -
Here you go.

And here's some filler text to let typepad know I'm a legitimate commenter.

[JM Hanes]

Pofarmer:

The upper meadows on the north side of our mountains might work for hops & barley if the ambient light is sufficient, no?

Rick:

Do we have any out islands for the casino? I have an aversion to traffic, which is tough on the poesy ~ although I suppose I could make do somewhere in the upper reaches on the north side of a mountain, if necess.

[glenda]

Ignatz--Michelle looks like Jermaine Jackson, Michael"s brother and of course, Tito..they have about 60 teeth in their mouth :(

[Pofarmer]

The upper meadows on the north side of our mountains might work for hops & barley if the ambient light is sufficient, no?\

Actually, I was thinking about that. The lower latitudes would be so nice.

[Rick Ballard]

JMH,

The St Jane Casino, Teaching Hospital and Clinic will all be located on the windward side of the island (along with the guest villas and golf courses), inaccessible except by boat or helo from the private, gated community on the leeward side. I appreciate the desire of others to "earn their way" but no citizen of St Jane is permitted to actually work and no tourists or clinic visitors are allowed on the leeward side whatsoever. Good heavens, the natives must be allowed to earn their keep. Otherwise they might become a burden upon the citizenry. Citizenship is garnered by virtue of demonstrated ability within the comment section here (or by special arrangement with the management of First Federated Bank of St Jane - fee schedule available upon payment of a modest sum), so none need fear being left behind due to circumstance.

The atmosphere should be very conducive to poesy.

[Pal2Pal (Sara)]

Forget Belize!

It would be hard to blog from Belize

[DrJ]

The upper meadows on the north side of our mountains might work for hops & barley if the ambient light is sufficient, no?

There may well be other interesting things that could be grown. We might even be able to attract Phelps!

[bad]

LOL DRJ

[PD]

My daughter-in-law can do 100 pull ups without breaking a sweat

Wow. I wasn't able to do *one* until I was in 5th grade. And only then by taking advantage of momentum from jumping up to grab the bar.

[PD]

For some time now I have been trying to place who Michelle looks like. It's some dude but I can't place him. I'm thinking Floyd Patterson with a wig, but that doesn't seem quite right.

I'm thinking James Brown.

[bad]

Shame on you, PD. hahaha

[Pal2Pal (Sara)]

Wow. I wasn't able to do *one* until I was in 5th grade. And only then by taking advantage of momentum from jumping up to grab the bar.

The Marines had a booth at the Fair for recruiting and they had a challenge going to win a Marine Corps tee shirt and hat to the person who could do the most pull ups on the portable bar they had set up. The booth was on the side of the seating area for the stage show, so while we were waiting for the show, we were looking at the various booths.

It started as a joke when my son asked what the high # was so far. It was 26. They challenged him to do better. He showed them that his wrist was in a cast, so he would pass, but he'd have his fiance do it for him. Everyone laughed and thought it was a big yuck yuck joke. Then Penny got on the bar and when she passed 26 they started counting her and the crowd picked up on it and pretty soon everyone was watching and counting, attracting even more onlookers. In the meantime Penny just kept going. Finally when she reached 100 and the Marines stood there with mouths agape, she asked if she could have a tee shirt and cap for breaking a 100 or did she need to keep going? They told her she had won when she passed 30. When we were walking away, my son quipped to the Sgt., "told ya'!" The Sgt. stopped Penny and asked her if she had ever consider enlisting. Anyway, for the rest of the day wherever we walked, people would start clapping. It took Penny days to get over being mad at the fact they had laughed at her. All 4 of those Marines are lucky she didn't meet up with them in the dark until she was over her mad.

[PD]

Shame on you, PD.

Well, just consider this: Has anyone ever seen Michelle Obama and James Brown together?

[Ann]

Sara, You will appreciate this story:

I started a tradition with my daughter when she was three to take her to the Ohio State Fair. I could write a book about our fun experiences together. Anyways, since she earned her black belt, I always detour her way to the Marines Corps site and remind her of her heritage. From the time we saw the Marine Corps test for pull ups, I have encouraged her to try. We experienced the same rants and laughter, but walk away proud that she tried and beat most of the guys in line. YES :)