Misc topics and random thoughts

Camping trip was great. I took about three short hikes. The first one was on a trail I hadn't seen before, part of the Palmetto Trails to Jocassee Gorges. It's a 12.5 mile hike, I did a small part of it, but was expecting visitors, so headed back. From what I can see, it's a good hike but not real scenic. The second hike was along the Carrick Creek. On this hike I was accompanied by my three year old grandson. We hiked for about 20 minutes, took a 10 minute break, then hiked another 10 minutes before heading back. The hike is supposed to last about an hour, but with his short stride, I'm sure we didn't go half way in 30 minutes of walking. The last hike was back along the Palmetto Trail, but he was tired so we didn't go far.

All in all the trip was great. Two nights in a tent, far from everything. I'll post more about it later.

While I was gone, GM announced bankruptcy. I haven't blogged about it, but last August I bought some shares of GM on a lark. This was back in early August, before the bottom fell out. My theory was that the government would bail them out and the stock would go up. They did get a bail-out that month and the stock ticked upward for a day or two, then the credit market fell and, well, it was a lark.

I don't mean to imply that I backed the bail-out. I think it was a bad idea. But I really didn't think the government would let them go bankrupt. Who knows what will happen now. Maybe I'll blog more about that later too.

This past weekend, an abortion doctor was shot and killed. Make no mistake, this was murder. The conservative blogs that I read agree. The doctor has been called a killer (and I agree with that), but it doesn't make his murder any less of a murder. His (alleged) killer has been arrested. He deserves a fair trial, but assuming he is found guilty (and I see no reason why not), he should probably face the death penalty. It was simple pre-meditated murder.

Did you get a $1m bonus?

Everyone is talking about the bailouts at AIG. Everyone thinks it's ridiculous. I didn't get a $1m bonus, how about you?

But with all the talk, there comes down some very specific facts. So far, the best article I've seen is by The Motley Fool (seen here). Now for those who don't know, The Motley Fool " is a multimedia financial-services company dedicated to building the world's greatest investment community." For financial matters, it's a good magazine. It's not political, it's financial.

The Fool says that the outrage over the bailout is bogus. It says that it's all a "distasteful combination of a populist pandering and lack of diligence." According to the article, the bonus plan was developed last September and filed with the SEC. That means anyone in the government could have read it. Also, "back in December AIG's CEO sent a letter to Congressman Elijah Cummings, a senior member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, walking him through the bonuses and the reasoning behind them." Where was the outrage then?

But more importantly, if the government is going to continue to hand out big checks ($170Billion for AIG), shouldn't it at least KNOW about this stuff?

Now congress is looking at ways to tax the bonuses. I saw an article today that said they were looking at a 90% tax. Well another Fool article (here - free registration required) explains the ramifications of this action. See, AIG was legally bound to give out the bonus. They had contracts to fulfill. But it's a scary thing if congress can effectively voids these contracts with the stroke of a pen. And to retroactively tax an activity, well, what taxes will come about next?

One more note on the AIG debacle. Many people are suggesting that the people should return the bonuses. I haven't looked at the details to know if I agree with that or not. One thing I will say, is I agree with Chuck Thinks Right, the politicians need to lead by example. Any politician that received any contribution from AIG should return the money to AIG, who can then return it to the government (not the politician).

The Rescue Plan - Why didn't we pass it sooner?

A few weeks ago, I posted my feelings on the rescue plan (see here). I said it reminded me of a pyramid scheme as we were going to keep borrowing to get out of the borrowing mess.

However, Representative Alan Grayson of Florida has explained it and now I'm wondering why we didn't pass it sooner. Rep Grayson said the bill would "shelters the homeless, and heals the sick. It helps us to look forward to a day where we beat our swords into plowshares."

MAN!! If it does all that, it's got to be good. I would have liked to have seen a little raising of the dead, but I guess I can settle for this.

(see the story here)

More to come later....