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Following the Path
Mar. 16th, 2009 09:03 pmThe AIG bonusses are just the type of thing that, among the more excitable sort of foreigners, might easily lead to revolution. It doesn't help the public mood any when Obama's fat-assed dunce of a Press Secretary goes on TV joking about how people are over-reacting.
*****
It's difficult not to contrast Obama, squeaking and squealing about his feckless "outrage" (he's only President, after all - his hands are tied, and we shouldn't blame him), and Andrew Cuomo, who's grimly issuing subpoenas, and preparing to investigate the matter as criminal fraud.
*****
Christopher Dodd's made the useful suggestion that the bonusses be taxed at 98%. That's good, although I'm unsure why the rate shouldn't be at least 100% or higher. I'm fairly sure that targetted taxation doesn't meet the standard of a Bill of Attainder under the Constitution. (and even if it did, not much of an obstacle. We've spent the last 150 years picking and choosing which parts we want to ignore. I see no reason to stop now).
*****
The other night I accidentally knocked a shelf of 1/64 diecast racing cars down. Now everything's dusted, and put back up, except that Phil Hill's Tipo 156 has disappeared. There doesn't seem to be any plausible place for it to be hiding. I doubt that it disintegrated completely when it impacted the carpet, but I'm at a loss for other theories.
*****
I got an omnibus copy of 'His Dark Materials'. I'd been meaning to read that ever since I saw 'The Golden Compass'. It's one of those books that you can tell from the first chapter is going to leave an impression. I'd also forgotten, if I ever knew, that the redoubtable 'The Darkness in the North' is by the same author.
*****
I finally saw the new "St. Trinian's" movie on You Tube, of all places. There seems to be no intention of releasing it in the States. If the YouTube figures are reliable, then about 35k people have watched it there. I have to imagine that a large number of those, like myself, would have cheerfully bought the DVD had we been offered a chance. It puzzles me why, in this age when it's easily possible to burn single copies to order, a company would pass up any market. It probably would never be a huge hit in the States, but it could have sold at least a few tens of thousands of copies as a special order item, and made a few dollars on each DVD.
One of the local music stores now burns off CDs to order for older and more obscure titles. They pay the royalties, and do the production on the spot, so they can save their display space for more popular titles. Everyone comes out ahead. The potential is there for a physically tiny store to have literally every record ever made in stock, ready to put in a buyer's hand on a few minutes' notice.
*****
I quite enjoyed "St Trinian's". This is what "The Addams Family" could have been, had it not pulled its punches.
*****
It's difficult not to contrast Obama, squeaking and squealing about his feckless "outrage" (he's only President, after all - his hands are tied, and we shouldn't blame him), and Andrew Cuomo, who's grimly issuing subpoenas, and preparing to investigate the matter as criminal fraud.
*****
Christopher Dodd's made the useful suggestion that the bonusses be taxed at 98%. That's good, although I'm unsure why the rate shouldn't be at least 100% or higher. I'm fairly sure that targetted taxation doesn't meet the standard of a Bill of Attainder under the Constitution. (and even if it did, not much of an obstacle. We've spent the last 150 years picking and choosing which parts we want to ignore. I see no reason to stop now).
*****
The other night I accidentally knocked a shelf of 1/64 diecast racing cars down. Now everything's dusted, and put back up, except that Phil Hill's Tipo 156 has disappeared. There doesn't seem to be any plausible place for it to be hiding. I doubt that it disintegrated completely when it impacted the carpet, but I'm at a loss for other theories.
*****
I got an omnibus copy of 'His Dark Materials'. I'd been meaning to read that ever since I saw 'The Golden Compass'. It's one of those books that you can tell from the first chapter is going to leave an impression. I'd also forgotten, if I ever knew, that the redoubtable 'The Darkness in the North' is by the same author.
*****
I finally saw the new "St. Trinian's" movie on You Tube, of all places. There seems to be no intention of releasing it in the States. If the YouTube figures are reliable, then about 35k people have watched it there. I have to imagine that a large number of those, like myself, would have cheerfully bought the DVD had we been offered a chance. It puzzles me why, in this age when it's easily possible to burn single copies to order, a company would pass up any market. It probably would never be a huge hit in the States, but it could have sold at least a few tens of thousands of copies as a special order item, and made a few dollars on each DVD.
One of the local music stores now burns off CDs to order for older and more obscure titles. They pay the royalties, and do the production on the spot, so they can save their display space for more popular titles. Everyone comes out ahead. The potential is there for a physically tiny store to have literally every record ever made in stock, ready to put in a buyer's hand on a few minutes' notice.
*****
I quite enjoyed "St Trinian's". This is what "The Addams Family" could have been, had it not pulled its punches.
