The stock market lost 512 points on Thursday — the most points in one day since 2008.

Why?

Because of information that the EU is in the process of collapse, and it’s bordering on being irreparable. It’s on Life Support; Germany is doing chest compressions as best it can with some occasional breaths. But it can’t jumpstart the entire EU. Just remember the acronym PIIGS — those are the countries in dire straits: Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain. Who bailed out Portugal’s energy grid recently? Yes, that’s correct: the Chinese.

This week, it’s called a “market correction.” Nice phrase.

The real portent will occur at the end of today. As logical thinkers know, one day does not a trend make.

Europe is on fire. Thursday’s stock market sell-off was a key indicator that things are bad and confidence is low, but — things are not yet, for us, beyond being irreparable. If not staved off, however, there could be a US double-dip recession. Recession = bad. Depression = the worst.

But DC still doesn’t get it and philosophically can’t get it — meaning Mr Obama and the Dems (and some Old Guard GOP Ninnies as well). Mr Obama wants to “raise taxes on the rich” and create another “stimulus package.” TARP and stimulus packages have been crazily — wildly — ineffective. Is this actually Cloward-Piven enacted in real time by an adherent?

So, beyond that, what’s Mr Obama’s solution? Road trip!

And of course, he’s backtracking just a bit. Shocking, yes?

After Obama quipped earlier this summer that shovel-ready jobs weren’t as shovel-ready as “we expected,” it seemed that a central tenet of the 2012 campaign was probably going to be something along the lines of, we just haven’t had enough time. At his Chicago fundraiser last night, that’s exactly the stance he took, even going back to blaming George W. Bush:

It’s been a long, tough journey. But we have made some incredible strides together. Yes, we have. But the thing that we all ought to remember is that as much as good as we have done, precisely because the challenges were so daunting, precisely because we we were inheriting so many challenges, that we’re not even halfway there yet. When I said ‘change we can believe in,’ I didn‘t say ’change we can believe in tomorrow.’ Not change we can believe in next week. We knew this was going to take time because we’ve got this big, messy, tough democracy,” President Obama said at a campaign fundraiser in Chicago on Wednesday night.”

Right.

In conclusion, I leave you with this quote from Jean-Francois Revel:

Clearly, a civilization that feels guilty for everything it is and does will lack the energy and conviction to defend itself.

BZ

P.S.
When we go down, who is going to cushion our fall as we historically cushioned the falls of innumerable countries in our short history? Whilst keeping the entire world safe?

That’s right: no one.

To all my friends who have been frying the past three months:

What, Me Worry?

In Fornicalia, our temperatures have been radically less than normal. We, in Sacramento, perhaps received three days over 100-degrees the past two months.

In the Sierra Nevada Mountains where I live, so far this summer, I’ve mostly had to throw a blanket over my bed at night with the windows open.

The highest temps have been in the 80s.

Yeah. You all hate Fornicalia.

I had huge snows this past winter, which killed my fences. The rains continued. Water still pours down the South Yuba in a cascading fashion. Up until last week, some ski parks were still open.

To those who acquire Schadenfreude for my state: screw ya. Yes, we’ve a dysfunctional government, multitudes of Mexicans, but my weather still kicks yours to the curb.

You want to cool off and stop the floods and drought? Try my state.

BZ

P.S.
I write this at 7pm on August 5th. The wind is making the pine branches shiver. I opened up the house in order to drop the temperatures. It’s 63-degrees. I’ve used my air conditioner twice so far this year. For a few minutes, perchance.

Seen on the 101 in SoCal. There isn’t anything even remotely funny about this, or even barely amusing.

That’s right, move along; nothing to see or do here. This is not the Hope or Change you were looking for.

BZ

P.S.
Thanks, Chris!

First, Joe Biden called us all “terrorists” (thanks, TF). But I lend Biden as much credence, veracity and intelligence as I would the average goldfish. He is, however, at least a bit entertaining — within certain logical limits.

Now, unknown MSNBC host Martin Bashir indicates that TEA Partiers are addicts and delusional:

MSNBC host Martin Bashir interviewed Stanton Peele, a psychologist and an “expert on addiction,” this afternoon. Bashir urged Peele to psychologically evaluate supporters of the Tea Party. “It reminds us of addiction because addicts are seeking something that they can’t have,” Peele said. “They want a state of happiness or nirvana that can’t be achieved except through an artificial substance and reminds us of the Norway situation, when people are thwarted at obtaining something they can’t, have they often strike out and Norway is one kind of example to one kind of reaction to that kind of a frustration.”

Bashir later asked: “So you’re saying that they are delusional about the past and adamant about the future?”

“They are adamant about achieving something that’s unachievable, which reminds us of a couple of things. It reminds us of delusion and psychosis,” Peele responded.

I see.

Believing in the US Constitution, the Bill of Rights, common sense, budgetary limits, restrained government, restrained taxes, logical regulations, most cash and political decisions pushed down to a local level, common sense energy acquisitions and future planning, realistic military strength and supreme American sovereignty and exceptionalism — equates to terrorism, addiction and delusion. As opposed to defense-spending being absolutely gutted by The One and DC. In just one aspect.

Perhaps it’s time for some revealing graphs and charts:

Additionally:

Further, some factoids:

• 70% of Americans believe we’re in a recession;
• 22% approve of the new debt ceiling bill;
• 14% think the country is heading in the right direction;

Again, those are called “clues,” ladies and gentlemen.

BZ

P.S.
Back in 2009, A Jacksonian wrote about the TEA Party and created his own TEA Party White Paper. A lengthy post but filled with logic, facts and attributions.

From YahooNews.com:

(Which means that US debt tops, literally, 100% of the Treasury.)

US debt shot up $238 billion to reach 100 percent of gross domestic project after the government’s debt ceiling was lifted, Treasury figures showed Wednesday.

Treasury borrowing jumped Tuesday, the data showed, immediately after President Barack Obama signed into law an increase in the debt ceiling as the country’s spending commitments reached a breaking point and it threatened to default on its debt.

The new borrowing took total public debt to $14.58 trillion, over end-2010 GDP of $14.53 trillion, and putting it in a league with highly indebted countries like Italy and Belgium.

Ho-hum.

Nothing to see here. Move along. These are not the droids you’re looking for.

BZ