Political Potshots From the Great Unwashed

The elites over the years have often referred to the common man or public as the “great unwashed public”.   Well, we may not have the sophistication of our betters but we can tell the difference between the real deal and poppycock more often than not.  We get fooled sometimes for a bit but usually sooner or later we see the little man behind the curtain that is pulling all the strings and notice the King has no clothes.  So as we embark on a new round of political intrigue and proposals for our own good, we throw up a few thoughts that might hit a bullseye even if only by random chance.

Our new Treasury chief will be Geithner is appears.   I wonder how well his application would have been received if he had been seeking a mid -level job with the IRS as some regional director or whatever and the fact that he had not paid taxes due came out.  Do you think he would have been hired?   I mean he is an expert in financial matters and economics according to all his defenders and he will not only be the one in charge of the Treasury and its TARP money but he will be the head of the IRS for gosh sakes.  If you had a dispute with the IRS he would be the ultimate authority that could rule on your appeal.   Maybe his appointment is a reflection of lots of guilty consciences by those who have fudged on their own tax returns and they want a kindred spirit in charge.   You do note that even after he was audited he still didn’t pay the taxes for ’01 and ’02 until after his appointment by the new fellow.    He was one of the architects of the TARP program.  How do you think that is working out so far?   Well,  God bless his crooked little soul, I guess we need to hope he will do something right even if it is by accident.   The hypocrisy of it all is staggering.

I watched a very recent interview with Gettlefinger, the UAW chief, about the bailout for the Big Three.  He promised in Dec. when they needed the money that the union would do its part and work to reduce costs very quickly.  In the interview last week he said there was no hurry that they were waiting to renegotiate with the new administration and that the Feb. deadline was not realistic.  When he was asked about the difference in compensation between his union members and those of foreign auto workers he said it was too difficult to calculate.  That you couldn’t come up with a number of what it costs per hour or car.   I bet if they would let you and I have a look at the books of the Big Three we could come up with an estimate in less than one day that would be within 1% accuracy.  This is basic math, not sending a man to the moon.   They clearly are planning of giving nothing up.  They are cashing in some of their political chips with the new bunch.  If those unions keep doing the same thing then we will have the same result all over again just like deja vu as Yogi would say.  We, the taxpayers, will subsidize their good life for years on end and get very expensive cars that most people don’t even want.  He lies but he doesn’t deceive, he is very open about where he is going and not going with his union.  The common good?   That alleged goal of the unions will be attained at the risk and cost to others.  It is pure greed.  That is one of the seven sins and will get its just reward in the end.

I note that C. Kennedy has decided she doesn’t want to be Senator anymore after all that hoopla and campaigning the last month.  Now it comes out that it is due to tax issues and nanny issues.  That makes more sense rather than the announced “personal reasons”.  That family never cedes any power unless it is pried out of their hand.   Now she can go back to that heavy work load on  charitable boards.  Don’t you just wish that you had enough stashed away that that sort of activity was your “work”?   I always worry about someone being in charge who didn’t grow up carrying out the trash, doing the yard and their own laundry.

The battle of Agincourt in 1415 was a tremendous victory for the English over the French.  I have written a more detailed account of that battle earlier.  Today it is important to remember that the battle was part of the Hundred Years War and that the French were stunned by the defeat.  It was Pearl Harbor magnified many times over.  Their best and brightest were slaughtered and leadership was decimated.  There were even some calls for accomodating the English.  There was little strategy propsed by the French after the defeat.  They were on the floor.   But some time passed.  The English mismanaged their own affairs and the French eventually found resolve again.   It did take a long time.  But with a little inspiration from Jean D’Arc and future heroics the French were the ultimate victors in the Hundred Years War.  The English were not able to establish hegemony over great swathes of western France and ended up with only the 5 channel ports.   Maybe the Republicans should read this history lesson with care and hope.  The Democrats ignore its lessons at their own political peril.

Of all the judges depicted in fiction or who ruled in real life who would you rate the most famous of all?  Learned Hand, Judge Roy Bean, John Marshall, Lord Black, Solomon and others come to mind.  Clearly I think the most well known judge on record would have to be Pontius Pilate.  Many of your may never have heard of the famous jurist listed above but I bet every one of you knows who Pontius Pilate was and the trial he conducted.   He was an appellate judge actually if you remember the story correctly.  Christ had already been tried by the Sandhedrin and found guilty.  Pontius could revoke or enforce that death sentence.  Read that story of the passion again it is one of the most insightful tales into the hearts of man written.