John Adams

It's a curious thing. He campaigned with more charisma than he gave that night. Romney was doing what McCain did when Bush was being nominated in 2000--showing he could be a good boy to the Republicans who he'll need in 2012...but he wasn't going to give it his all. Romney would be a more palatable choice than the folksier (but scarier) Palin and Huckabee.

This, I agree with. I just don't want it to be her. She's a scary kook who I wouldn't trust with the keys to the country.

I like folksy smart people but Palin? Can we please find a better standard-bearer for this political revolution than a religious zealot who doesn't read the newspaper?!

Your new name doesn't lend itself to FFL team names--you should change it back.

I had mentioned it before but I sat in with the VP of [predicting long term trends or some sh--] at Vanguard in March/April. He stated just about what TPS said. His point was not that inflation wouldn't come eventually but that as long as most of the printed money was merely making it to the banks to offset their likely insolvency as property values fall/fell [he called this the M# supply corresponding to bank vaults], there would be little risk of inflation. He added the caveat that as property values rose and banks became more solvent and started lending more, inflation would be a real concern. At this point, I don't see property values doing a lot of increasing, though the worst is probably over from the sharp descent. Oil is probably undervalued. Not as confident in gold or silver. I don't follow many other commodities.

Of course I have only anecdotal evidence. I have not compiled studies and published a paper comparing the two. I have a lifetime of working in Windows (including every day). I have 5 or so years the MAc world. In my Mac experience, I get no crashes. I have had Safari (web browser for those unfamiliar) freeze 3-4 times but that's the only app I've ever crashed. And the OS has never crashed. Windows and Windows apps crash more than I can even count and I don't use anything out of the ordinary (Outlook, Office apps).

It's funny how similar what you wrote, and what Cassano did, is similar to what Lewis wrote about in Liar's Poker. The lesson there was similar. If some group within an investment house starts making money hand over fist, that group gets to run wild. Of course, that group always fails eventually, usually in a blaze of shame.

No, I think for myself and don't need a mommy/motherment to protect me. I know you can't relate. Yeah, I brought your mom up.

I am not sure what you mean by "peak." There's more to come, although I'd say the precipitous fall seems to be over. Unemployment at 10% will probably be around for a long time. Weak dollar will remain. (Really, what is happening out there to strengthen it...the only reason it hasn't dropped off terribly is that it's better than most alternatives.) Inflation might hold off for a while but it's bound to become a problem at some point. Interest rates have started to edge up and will likely continue to do so. And credit, while looser, will (hopefully) never be as loose as it was in the last decade. Things are going to be painful for a while. I just hope the Dranish panickers have had their day. That was a frightening year.

Be careful. If you push him just right, pBills might warn you that other posters might attack your family.

The dollar issue is enormous. The willingness of the last two admins to let the dollar weaken makes my stomach churn. The pundit pounding this drum the hardest is Steve Forbes but he's hardly alone.

Guess that one hurt you. Sorry man--thought you could take it.

Do you see any hypocrisy in making those two statements? Back to the shallow end of the gene pool where your union and government masters make you feel safe.

Still need us around to reach high places though. Solve that.

If by features, you mean hardware, you and Fingon are right. The products are nearly identical. But when you include the O/S, OSX is far superior to Windows. I am 5 years and counting, and still waiting for my first crash/lockup that requires a reboot. I never turn it off (except when a hardware upgrade requires it). I use Windows at work all day. There is no comparison between the OSes. Mac is far better in performance, appearance, and features. There's a reason that if people have the scratch, they rarely give up Mac for Windows willingly. Windows advantages: gaming (not an issue for me) and some specific software that is Windows only. Mac: It works. All the time. And it's better.

The government doesn't grant rights--it only takes them away. Every once in a while--extremely rarely--the government returns a right that people already had or should have had. That's how government works. In the US, the government's ability to take rights is somewhat hampered by the system it operates under. Right now, however, the Dems are on a power-grab with their majority. Good luck undoing it.

Look, I think Obama is setting himself up to be one of the worst presidents in history (because his actions are leading the US down an awful path) but you can't possibly think that Palin is smart enough to be president. You just can't.

Stuckincincy wants to buy you a beer.

No, "most people" would not do that. Who said you didn't have a sense of humor? I needed that. The government is always in the habit of returning rights and money that it takes--that's good sh-- man. I'm still smiling. Thanks.

'the !@#$ are you talking about? Here's the point. You're a top-10 dumbest poster on PPP. Based on your lack of education and intelligence, I would not want my children to follow in your footsteps. If you would be so hurt by that to turn it into an attack on my children, in addition to being stupid, you'd be classless. Which you may be. The government is at least 90% of the time, part of the problem. As to the good intentions of some of the people in government, I'd say they are paving a road to a cliched destination. It's not a conspiracy--just a fact. There's a massive power-grab going on and it's very costly in terms of dollars and liberty. The good news is that to paraphrase my pal Dwight Drane (gulp), some people are wising up to Obama's shenanigans. Several recent polls show that Independents, who generally decide the presidency, have decidedly swung in opposition to Obama since the election--something like 66% approval to 40% approval in just 6 months. That will be a problem at the mid-terms and an even bigger one in 2012.

People like you, who are not concerned about the government power-grab. I knew there were people who find it a necessary evil. Them I believe to be foolish but at least the gov't's actions concern them. You are not concerned about the power-grab going on right now. I find that truly stunning. I assume there are people eating Dominos and watching Oprah all day that aren't concerned but, well, maybe that's you. That's why I asked what your education and job history are. In fairness, I also ask to insure that my children do not ever follow in your footsteps in any way besides being a Bills fan, which is bad enough.

Wow. I mean, just, wow. I knew people like you existed but I didn't think they were capable of discourse. Please disclose your educational background and age.

Ah, so the rubber-and-glue rule guides your reasoning? That explains a lot. My questions stands if you want to take an honest shot at it. Are you at all wary of the government spending and power grab when it "does something?"

Do you feel any sympathy at all for the many people who feel differently? I am just wondering how deeply you want the government to "do things"? Are you completely lost or is there some part of you that rebels at the governmental power-grab? Unemployment was going to go up to and past 10% by all estimates even AFTER the stimulus passed BTW. Saying that we need to steal more money to slow down unemployment that we all knew was coming is BS.

If I could get over your grumpy-old-man act or his uncanny ability to get almost every prediction completely wrong, I'd probably be able to give one of you your due.