David Goldman lays it out: Here’s year on year growth in commercial and industrial loans from weekly reporting banks in the US: A 20% decline year on year does not look like a recovery. In fact, it looks like nothing we have seen since the Great Depression. C&I loan growth lags the end of recessions, …
Cream: Pressed Rat and Warthog
I almost overlooked this musical gem alluded to in the novel The Ten Weeks. It's Cream's "Pressed Rat and Warthog" which appeared as a single along with "Anyone for Tennis" (an appropriate subject for The Ten Weeks.) "Pressed Rat and Warthog" also appeared as the first song of the second side of the first disc …
Madoff’s Auction Exceeds Expections
It's good news (hopefully) for at least some of these he cleaned out: Auctioneers did better than expected during a sale of items that once belonged to Bernard and Ruth Madoff. The Saturday auction in New York, run by Gaston & Sheehan, netted $1 million for Madoff victims. The auction is part of a series …
Obama on Fox: He’s Trying to Upstage Hannity
Sure is suspicious with the timing: It's official. Fox News' Major Garrett will interview Pres. Obama at 9:20pmET tonight. He tweets: I will interview POTUS on camera Wed am here in Beijing. 4 other networks will too. 10 mins per. Many had asked. Can say now. After the ten minutes, the Great American Panel will …
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Reply to New Lifes City’s Alan Hawkins on Ted Haggard’s “Restoration”
Pastor Alan Hawkins of New Life City Church in Albuquerque, NM, took exception to my post on Ted Haggard's church restart in Colorado Springs: Liberal used to mean tolerant. It is apparent that you are unaware of what has transpired with Ted Haggard in the last 3 years. You could probably have found out with …
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The Sad State of American Mathematics Education
As a) a civil engineering professor and b) a veteran of a school superintendent search, with all of the research that went with it, I can concur that American mathematics education leaves a lot to be desired of: The statistics on U.S. math performance are grim. American eighth-graders ranked 25th out of 30 countries in …
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Ted Haggard’s Kumbaya Moment: His New Church
This is just awful: Former New Life pastor Ted Haggard greeted warmly the more than 110 people who arrived for his Thursday evening prayer gathering at his home in north Colorado Springs. “It’s a Kumbaya moment,” Haggard said. “People here tonight believe in resurrection and me. They understand love.” Several people spoke of grace, forgiveness …
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The Cost of Forgiveness: When the IRS is Involved
My newest follower on Twitter is Black Tie Magazine, dedicated to high profile philanthropy (like this.) In a lengthy article by one Jaime Dermody on how to fix our current financial mess, he says the following: (E.) Congress accommodates (B.) above by amending the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 to waive recognition of …
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The Episcopal Church Welcomes You. Not If You’ve Quit Planned Parenthood!
In the shadow of Aggieland, former Planned Parenthood clinic director Abby Johnston hits the Anglican-Episcopal divide the hard way: Abby Johnson, the former Planned Parenthood clinic director whose about-face on abortion prompted her to resign her job, says she's gotten flack for her decision from an unexpected quarter: her own church. Her Oct. 6 decision …
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The Importance of Running A Tight Ship
Back when I was taking sea voyages like the one shown below... http://www.youtube.com/v/QZTk658lnio ...my father (like most "old salts") always emphasised the importance of running a "tight ship." (Sometimes that didn't quite come through, as you can see here.) By a tight ship, he meant one that was in good condition ("ship shape") and capable …
Positive Infinity 