Do you feel like the winds of change are blowing today too?
POSTED BY: 6ixStringJack
UPDATED: Saturday, September 12, 2026 16:11
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Soldiers are doing landscaping in DC parks. I’m thrilled for them
They were deployed to fight crime. Instead, some are spreading mulch. It’s almost sweet – if you remove the context
By Dave Schilling | Sept 1, 2025
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/01/soldiers-landsca
ping-washington-dc-crime
If soldiers are going to be deployed to your city, what would you prefer they do: point a rifle in your face or mow your grass? This is not a question I ever expected to have to consider in my days on this planet, but life is full of surprises. As part of Donald Trump’s military deployment to address Washington DC’s so-called “crime emergency”, national guard troops are being tasked with various groundskeeping duties around the United States capital. These duties include spreading mulch around cherry trees, picking up trash and general maintenance of public spaces. The president must have been too embarrassed to get Four Seasons Total Landscaping involved again, so he got the military to do it instead.
It’s a real “swords into ploughshares” moment, or in this case, “M4 rifles into those grabber sticks you use to pick up plastic bottles full of piss.” It’s almost sweet, if you separate the move from literally all outside context and just think about a part-time soldier pruning your bush. The national guard is actually trained for sanitation and groundskeeping, but they are usually deployed for such purposes in a crisis like a natural disaster or even during the height of the Covid pandemic. Except: there’s no natural disaster, no stay-at-home orders due to a deadly virus, no wildfires, no floods. The only crisis here is man-made.
It’s usually the responsibility of the National Parks Service to beautify spaces in DC, but amid recent cuts by the Trump administration, the number of parks employees in the city fell from 200 to a mere 20, according to the Washington Post. Still, the guard wasn’t deployed to toss cigarette butts. This is happening because of alleged rampant crime in a city where the violent crime rate before Trump’s deployment was down by about 20% over the same period in earlier years. Some estimates place the cost of the DC military deployment at around a $1m a day. I will happily rake your leaves for half that.
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Quote:Signym, you never surprise me by correctly diagnosing a problem. You always are wrong. How do you do it?
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
I'll give you one specific example: Obama [WHO I VOTED FOR, ONCE] and the Great Financial Crisis of 2008. The problem was a bunch of variable-rate mortgages that banks (and other lenders) issued that the homebuyers couldn't afford, and that were beyond any reasonable valuation of the property. Those mortgages were bundled with other mortgages, sold in "tranches" to investors like retirement funds, traded in Credit Default Swaps with other banks, insured by AIG, until they contaminated the entire financial system. When things started to go south, Obama could have halted the slide by paying off at-risk mortgages. Not the entire amount, just enough to make the loans affordable. EVERYTHING would have been shored up ... the homeowners, the original lenders, the subsequent investors, the banks that had swapped credit lines, insurers. Instead, Obama paid off all of the banks, in essence paying off on the same mortage several times over, while banks repossessed the homes and families were kicked to the street, in the biggest land grab and transfer of wealth from the poor to the banks ever. He could have appointed Sheila Bair, who would gave whipped errant banks into shape. Instead, he appointed Wall Streeter Timothy Geithner.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2009/12/13/obamas-big-sellout-presid
ent-has-packed-his-economic-team-wall-street-insiders
Needless to say, I didn't vote for Obama the second time.
A primary factor in the 2008 financial crisis was the issuance of inflated bond ratings by credit rating agencies (CRAs) for complex, risky mortgage-backed securities. CRAs gave high ratings to mortgage-backed securities (MBS) despite the underlying mortgages being of poor quality, which helped channel capital into the subprime market and fueled the housing bubble. When the housing market collapsed and homeowners defaulted, these assets were downgraded, leading to massive losses for investors and contributing to the widespread financial panic and the crisis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_rating_agencies_and_the_subprime_
crisis
The closest mechanical engineering analog is that the banks claimed aluminum was titanium and so the whole system of mortgage-based securities sold by banks to investors would melt when heated. (Aluminum is shiny. So is titanium. Who will know the difference? Who will notice the difference between 1% and 10% likelihood of a home owner defaulting on their mortgage? ) Titanium melting point is around 1668°C (3034°F), compared to aluminum, which melts at approximately 660°C (1220°F).
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Shut up, faggot.
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
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Quote:
Originally posted by SECOND:Quote:Signym, you never surprise me by correctly diagnosing a problem. You always are wrong. How do you do it?
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
I'll give you one specific example: Obama [WHO I VOTED FOR, ONCE] and the Great Financial Crisis of 2008. The problem was a bunch of variable-rate mortgages that banks (and other lenders) issued that the homebuyers couldn't afford, and that were beyond any reasonable valuation of the property. Those mortgages were bundled with other mortgages, sold in "tranches" to investors like retirement funds, traded in Credit Default Swaps with other banks, insured by AIG, until they contaminated the entire financial system. When things started to go south, Obama could have halted the slide by paying off at-risk mortgages. Not the entire amount, just enough to make the loans affordable. EVERYTHING would have been shored up ... the homeowners, the original lenders, the subsequent investors, the banks that had swapped credit lines, insurers. Instead, Obama paid off all of the banks, in essence paying off on the same mortage several times over, while banks repossessed the homes and families were kicked to the street, in the biggest land grab and transfer of wealth from the poor to the banks ever. He could have appointed Sheila Bair, who would gave whipped errant banks into shape. Instead, he appointed Wall Streeter Timothy Geithner.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2009/12/13/obamas-big-sellout-presid
ent-has-packed-his-economic-team-wall-street-insiders
Needless to say, I didn't vote for Obama the second time.
A primary factor in the 2008 financial crisis was the issuance of inflated bond ratings by credit rating agencies (CRAs) for complex, risky mortgage-backed securities. CRAs gave high ratings to mortgage-backed securities (MBS) despite the underlying mortgages being of poor quality, which helped channel capital into the subprime market and fueled the housing bubble. When the housing market collapsed and homeowners defaulted, these assets were downgraded, leading to massive losses for investors and contributing to the widespread financial panic and the crisis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_rating_agencies_and_the_subprime_
crisis
"Those mortgages were bundled with other mortgages, sold in "tranches" to investors like retirement funds" vs "complex, risky mortgage-backed securities. CRAs gave high ratings to mortgage-backed securities (MBS)".
You say tomayto, I say tomahto. We're talking about the same thing, dipshit
That doesn't take away from the fact that OBAMA [A DEMOCRAT] showered our tax money on banks, while robbing poorer, often black, folks of their homes. Don't you remember? The original Occupy movement was a protest against OBAMA. "We robbed some folks" he should have admitted.
Not only that, the whole crisis was set up by BILL CLINTON [ANOTHER DEMOCRAT, WHO I ALSO VOTED FOR, ONCE] who signed the repeal of the Glass Steagall Act as a parting gift, among other generous gifts he gave to financiers and globalists.
*The detail: PhD math whizzes were paid lots of money to calculate the risk of any tranche failing. They rationalized a low risk, since subprime mortgages made up only a portion of each tranche. What they didn't calculate was the ENTIRE real estate market falling, and the bond rating agencies accepted that calculation.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
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Quote:Signym, this was NOT Obama's plan, despite your insistently misunderstanding TARP for many years. Signym, you will never understand it, you blockhead.
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
You say tomayto, I say tomahto. We're talking about the same thing, dipshit
That doesn't take away from the fact that OBAMA [A DEMOCRAT] showered our tax money on banks, while robbing poorer, often black, folks of their homes. Don't you remember? The original Occupy movement was a protest against OBAMA. "We robbed some folks" he should have admitted.
Not only that, the whole crisis was set up by BILL CLINTON [ANOTHER DEMOCRAT, WHO I ALSO VOTED FOR, ONCE] who signed the repeal of the Glass Steagall Act as a parting gift, among other generous gifts he gave to financiers and globalists.
*The detail: PhD math whizzes were paid lots of money to calculate the risk of any tranche failing. They rationalized a low risk, since subprime mortgages made up only a portion of each tranche. What they didn't calculate was the ENTIRE real estate market falling, and the bond rating agencies accepted that calculation.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
The bank bailout program, TARP, was a product of the Bush administration and was signed into law in October 2008, preceding Barack Obama's presidency.
Obama's role:
As President, Obama was responsible for overseeing and implementing the ongoing policies related to the bailout and financial crisis during his term.
Political Opposition:
Some political opponents may place blame on Obama for continuing the program, as it was a controversial and unpopular initiative, even though he did not create it.
Signym, this program, as run by Obama, was profitable for the US government:
On December 19, 2014, the U.S. Treasury sold its remaining holdings of Ally Financial, essentially ending the program. Through the Treasury, the U.S. government actually booked $15.3 billion in profit, as it earned $441.7 billion on the $426.4 billion invested.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubled_Asset_Relief_Program
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Trump team’s contentious climate report ‘makes a mockery of science’, experts say
Over 85 top climate specialists lambasted administration’s review, calling it a ‘shoddy mess’ that downplays risks
By Oliver Milman and Dharna Noor | Tue 2 Sep 2025 09.00 EDT
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/02/trump-administration-c
limate-report
Predetermined outcome
The Department of Energy report was released as part of a Trump administration push to repeal the “endangerment finding” – a landmark 2009 determination that greenhouse gases harm human health.
The elimination of this finding by the Environmental Protection Agency would effectively kneecap all US policies designed to cut planet-heating pollution from cars, trucks and power plants. The DOE report is intended to provide cover for this political goal rather than act as a credible work of science, the review found.
Dietderich said the president “values the role of science” and that the administration “have not pre-judged how this report will impact EPA’s proposed Endangerment Finding rulemaking or any policy or program at the Department of Energy”.
Yet by sidelining credible climate scientists and actively promoting the report’s conclusions in draft form, the Trump administration has shown that this work is merely a tool in service of a political goal, the reviewing scientists added.
“Work contrary to the conclusions of the DOE report is dismissed or simply ignored, making it clear that the report is intended to support a specific policy decision and is not an unbiased synthesis of climate science,” said Christopher Callahan, a climate scientist at Indiana University.
Lots more at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/02/trump-administration-c
limate-report
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Quote:Oh goody!
Originally posted by SECOND:Quote:Signym, this was NOT Obama's plan, despite your insistently misunderstanding TARP for many years. Signym, you will never understand it, you blockhead.
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
You say tomayto, I say tomahto. We're talking about the same thing, dipshit
That doesn't take away from the fact that OBAMA [A DEMOCRAT] showered our tax money on banks, while robbing poorer, often black, folks of their homes. Don't you remember? The original Occupy movement was a protest against OBAMA. "We robbed some folks" he should have admitted.
Not only that, the whole crisis was set up by BILL CLINTON [ANOTHER DEMOCRAT, WHO I ALSO VOTED FOR, ONCE] who signed the repeal of the Glass Steagall Act as a parting gift, among other generous gifts he gave to financiers and globalists.
*The detail: PhD math whizzes were paid lots of money to calculate the risk of any tranche failing. They rationalized a low risk, since subprime mortgages made up only a portion of each tranche. What they didn't calculate was the ENTIRE real estate market falling, and the bond rating agencies accepted that calculation.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
The bank bailout program, TARP, was a product of the Bush administration and was signed into law in October 2008, preceding Barack Obama's presidency.
Obama's role:
As President, Obama was responsible for overseeing and implementing the ongoing policies related to the bailout and financial crisis during his term.
Political Opposition:
Some political opponents may place blame on Obama for continuing the program, as it was a controversial and unpopular initiative, even though he did not create it.
Signym, this program, as run by Obama, was profitable for the US government:
On December 19, 2014, the U.S. Treasury sold its remaining holdings of Ally Financial, essentially ending the program. Through the Treasury, the U.S. government actually booked $15.3 billion in profit, as it earned $441.7 billion on the $426.4 billion invested.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubled_Asset_Relief_Program
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
TARP was profitable for the government!
Profitable for banks!
It only sucked poor people dry.
And it was passed by a DEMOCRAT Congress, signed by a REPUBLICAN President! A mixed bag of government and financiers feeding off people!
Hooray!
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
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Quote:In what world do you think Congress would pass a open ended funding law where the Federal government pays your mortgage when you can't or you just don't feel like paying because mortgage payments interfere with more fun things you could buy? Maybe if there were 60 Senator Bernies, but probably not even then because Bernie could see the consequences of what Signym wants even if Signym can't even imagine them. This law which never passes would be called the "Every American Can Own Their Dream Home From Which They Can Never Be Evicted" Act.
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Oh goody!
TARP was profitable for the government!
Profitable for banks!
It only sucked poor people dry.
And it was passed by a DEMOCRAT Congress, signed by a REPUBLICAN President! A mixed bag of government and financiers feeding off people!
Hooray!
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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The last straw for the Supreme Court could spell trouble for Trump | Opinion
By Sabrina Haake | September 2, 2025
https://www.alternet.org/alternet-exclusives/trump-dollar-supreme-cour
t/
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/the-last-straw-for-the-supreme-
court-could-spell-trouble-for-trump-opinion/ar-AA1LHTwx
Donald Trump thinks he can control all aspects of American life, including free market interest rates. The Fed chair, and the global economy, disagree.
If the Fed were to fall under the influence of an elected official seeking to tie interest rates to his political agenda, economic consequences would be dire: Investors would face heightened market volatility due to uncertainty and artificially manipulated interest rates, causing confidence in US assets to drop.
In his second term, Trump has made repeated threats to remove officials from the Federal Reserve, including Fed chair Jerome Powell and governor Lisa Cook. Trump is unhappy that the Fed has not yet lowered interest rates to mask economic fallout from his ill-conceived tariffs, which have caused unprecedented levels of volatility and uncertainty.
Trump’s threats have already jeopardized the Fed’s goals, destabilized global markets and eroded trust in US fiscal autonomy. AInvest reports early market responses to his threats and stresses in sum that “the Fed’s independence remains critical to global stability, as political interference risks undermining dollar dominance and triggering cascading effects on bond yields and equity valuations.”
Usurping the Fed’s role
In his latest attempt to pressure the Fed to lower interest rates, Trump seeks to fire Cook, whose appointment can only be terminated for cause under Section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act, in effect since 1913.
“For cause” in this legal context does not mean whatever Trump wants it to mean. It is statutorily defined as “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.”
Trump, no surprise, is trying to remove Cook for allegations falling outside that statutory definition. In response to unsubstantiated allegations from a Trump ally that Cook made false statements on a mortgage application in 2021, before she joined the Federal Reserve, Trump purported to fire her on Aug. 25.
In a letter addressed to Cook, Trump wrote, “In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter … I do not have confidence in your integrity.”
Trump, convicted of 34 felonies for falsifying business records, whose organization was found guilty on 17 counts of criminal tax fraud, whose “Trump University” defrauded students to the tune of 25 million dollars, and who is illegally enriching himself from the presidency in unprecedented ways, appears blind to irony.
If he succeeds in removing and replacing Cook, Trump will have appointed the majority of the seven-member Board of Governors, giving him direct, improvident, and economically catastrophic influence over their decisions.
Cook says not so fast
Cook is fighting back. In a civil suit filed on Aug. 28, Cook avers that the attempted firing violates her due process rights as well as the Federal Reserve Act. Seeking an emergency injunction to block her firing and confirm her status as a member of the Fed’s governing board, Cook’s attorneys pled that, “The President’s effort to terminate a Senate-confirmed Federal Reserve Board member is a broadside attack on the century-old independence of the Federal Reserve System.”
The Supreme Court, despite having granted nearly all of the Trump administration’s 19 emergency appeals on its shadow docket, may finally be poised to tell Trump ‘No’ on this one.
In May, SCOTUS reiterated the Fed’s independence in Wilcox v. Trump, ruling that, “the Federal Reserve is a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity that follows in the distinct historical tradition of the First and Second Banks of the United States,” distinguishing the operational independence of the Fed from that of the National Labor Relations Board, the Merit Systems Protection Board, and other q
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Quote:
Originally posted by SECOND:Quote:In what world do you think Congress would pass a open ended funding law where the Federal government pays your mortgage when you can't or you just don't feel like paying because mortgage payments interfere with more fun things you could buy? Maybe if there were 60 Senator Bernies, but probably not even then because Bernie could see the consequences of what Signym wants even if Signym can't even imagine them. This law which never passes will be called the "Every American Can Own Their Dream Home From Which They Can Never Be Evicted" Act.
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Oh goody!
TARP was profitable for the government!
Profitable for banks!
It only sucked poor people dry.
And it was passed by a DEMOCRAT Congress, signed by a REPUBLICAN President! A mixed bag of government and financiers feeding off people!
Hooray!
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
False dilemma.
There were a lot of things the Federal government culd require as part of its restructuring package
Restore Glass Steagall
Make mortgage backed securities illegal. Part of the problem with mortgage backed assets is that it complicated, beyond hope of disentangling, who exactly held which mortgage. It also allowed banks to sell their bad mortgages and pass on the risk.
Make the Federal governmen holder of a mortgage, at low interest rates, and require the bailed out banks to renegotiate their mortgages to fixed rate. The initial trigger of the crisis was when balloon payments and variable interest rates ... often hidden in fine print and never disclosed to the borrower, were invoked.
Make this a one-time event, and since banks would no longer be able to sell their risky mortgages they would be 100% responsible for any more bad loans that they made.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
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