The Best Damn Flag in the World
Happy Independence Day!
I am spending this particular 4th in the best way possible: hanging out with the family, doing a whole lot of nothing. Right now in AOI land, Led Zeppelin is playing on iTunes, TIVO’d Ben 10 episodes roll on in the living room, and we’re packing sandwiches and drinks for an evening of spectacular D.C. fireworks. The grill will get a workout today as well, even if the weather goes south on us as it is wont to do this summer.
That’s my little slice of America, and I am happy to bask in it this fine day. Americans celebrate the 4th in many different ways; some, like the Marines in Task Force Leatherneck, are working overtime this weekend and will have to take a rain check on the independence day festivities. Others may let the day pass without a thought. To each his own.
And that’s one of the great things about the United States of America. Do whatever the hell you want, because you’re free!* Freedom is worth celebrating every day if you have it, but if there’s a day each year when we launch fireworks to light up the night in celebration of it, as we down Miller lite and white zinfandel, why not the 4th of July? And while we’re purchasing Roman candles and M80s for the night’s festivities (hopefully I can get mine from a stand like this!), it is worth contemplating some of the little things that make America’s independence worthy of celebration. And since no doubt many people are doing this sort of thing on their blogs, I will try my damnedest to make my list of American originals as unique and eclectic as America itself, if not less serious. . .
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Posted in Life, Pop Culture
Tagged America, Beer, Brook Trout, Dodge Challenger, Fly Fishing, Home Brewing, Independence Day, July 4th, Kowalsky, Muscle Car, Neil Young, Star Wars, Vanishing Point, White Zinfandel
787 Billion Dollars (the amount of funds allocated in the recent stimulus bill) goes a long way, in case you were wondering. Here is what the number looks like when it is written out:
$787,000,000,000
Yeah, that’s big. According to the Gartman Letter, here are some other things that the government could purchase with that kind of plata, instead of the myriad of dipsarate items contained in the current bill, which Congress passed without reading:
$787 billion would buy 4.6 million homes here in the US at the most recent median price of $170,300 for January 2008.
$787 billion would send a check for $2,623 to every man, woman and child in the US.
$787 billion would fund 7.7 million four year scholarships to the average private university in the US at current tuition rates.
$787 billion would fund 30 million full four year scholarships to the nation’s public universities.
$787 billion would buy 27.7 million cars at the average price of an automobile sold last year in the US.
$787 billion would fund four full months of a tax holiday in the US.
Interesting, no? Thanks to Jennifer Rubin for pointing those numbers out.
By the way, $787 Billion would buy 23 million Dodge Challenger R/T’s too, which is a pretty good, fast way to stimulate the economy, in my opinion. In Alpine White, of course.
Kowalsky Would NOT Dig The Stimulus
What is there NOT to love about the new American Bailout? Lots actually.
Apparently, the Senate is close to some sort of deal on the stimulus, and may vote on the bill as early as Monday (although it’s a weekend, and lots can happen in DC). And as for the bill,
it appears the package, as initially brought to the Senate floor, will be scaled back by about $82 billion in spending reductions and $25 billion in tax cuts. In addition, tax cuts approved on the Senate floor this week for car and home purchases would be modified, and the total bill then would be in the range of $800 billion [emph added].
Actually, with debt added in to it, the bill is well over a trillion dollars, right? So far, no one (except the administration and the Congressional and Senate Democrats) seems really excited about this bill, which includes crafty economic stimulators like research for STDs ($400,000,000), digital TV coupons ($65,000,000), and a facelift for the Department of Commerce building (a rounding error of $34,000,000). There’s a great deal of criticism towards this bill, with negativity pouring in from all comers.
Personally, if the government feels it has to do something to address the economy, I wish it would buy me a brand new, alpine white Dodge Challenger. But before I tell you why, let’s examine the current plan, first.
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Posted in Economics, Politics, Pop Culture
Tagged AMERISOC, Amity Schlaes, Bailout, Congress, Congressional Budget Office, Democrats, Dodge Challenger, Fairfax County, Joe Biden, Keynes, Obama, Ourisman Dodge, Stimulus, Vanishing Point, Wordpress Political Blogs
