No One Will be Left Behind

Lehman Brothers, eat your heart out!


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US porn industry seeks multi-billion dollar bailout
Porn baron Larry Flynt is seeking a $5 billion bailout from Washington to rejuvenate the industry, which he says is suffering because of the economic downturn.

08 Jan 2009

The Hustler magazine founder has teamed up with fellow adult entertainment mogul Joe Francis, creator of the Girls Gone Wild video series, to approach Congress for the same kind of financial assistance recently approved for car manufacturers.

The pair have asked the 111th Congress, which convened on Tuesday with the economy at the top of its agenda, "to rejuvenate the sexual appetite of America" with a bailout.

"Congress seems willing to help shore up our nation's most important businesses, (and) we feel we deserve the same consideration," Francis said in a statement.

"In difficult economic times, Americans turn to entertainment for relief. More and more, the kind of entertainment they turn to is adult entertainment."

"The take here is that everyone and their mother want to be bailed out from the banks to the big three," Owen Moogan, a spokesman for Flynt, told CNN.

"The porn industry has been hurt by the downturn like everyone else and they are going to ask for the $5 billion. Is it the most serious thing in the world? Is it going to make the lives of Americans better if it happens? It is not for them to determine."

In an interview with entertainment news website TMZ, Francis admitted the move was more of a "precautionary measure" than an emergency rescue, "but as long as the government is handing out money, we want to be there to take it."

The pair acknowledge that although DVD sales and rentals have dropped 22 per cent over the past year, online traffic has continued to grow.

"The 13-billion-dollar industry is in no fear of collapse," they say. "But why take chances?" Francis, who was last year freed from almost a year in jail after pleading no contest to child abuse and prostitution charges in a plea deal, told CNN they planned to deliver the request "to our congressmen and (Secretary of the Treasury Henry) Paulson" by the end of Wednesday.

"With all this economic misery and people losing all that money, sex is the farthest thing from their mind," Flynt said in a statement. People were "too depressed to be sexually active", which was "very unhealthy as a nation. Americans can do without cars and such, but they cannot do without sex." He said the only way Congress could "rejuvenate" America's sexual appetite was "by supporting the adult industry and doing it quickly." There was no response from Congress to the request.

(Telegraph.co.uk)

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Not All Pets Are Created Equal

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In this country, even dogs get discriminated.

Restrictive rules only apply to dogs. Why not cats too? Or chicken, ducks? or goats? or...... WTF!

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Thursday January 15, 2009
Dog owners in Nilai must now get neighbour’s permission


SEREMBAN: Dog owners in Nilai must now get written permission from their neighbours to keep the animals in their homes.

This is the first time such a ruling has been introduced in Negri Sembilan following recent amendments to the Dog Licensing Bylaws 2008. The municipal council issues annual dog licences at RM20 each.

Council president Datuk Abd Halim Abd Latif said the ruling covers dogs which were three months old and above.

“For those who want to rear more than two dogs, their premises must be at least 1,000 sq metres.

“You are allowed to keep more than four dogs if the area is larger than 1,000 sq metres,” he said.

The affected areas are Nilai, Rasah, Ampangan, Mantin, Lenggeng, Pantai, Rantau, Labu and Senawang.

Abd Halim said the owners were duty-bound to ensure that their pets were not a nuisance to their neighbours such as the animals defecating in public places.

“The pets cannot be allowed to roam freely outside their compound,” he said, adding that officers would take away unlicensed pets.

Those caught without a licence could be fined up to RM1,000 or jailed not more than six months, or both.

The Seremban Municipal Council issues dog licences for RM10 each but has not asked owners to get their neighbours’ permission. Applicants are required to attach a vaccination card for their pets.

The state Veterinary Services Department issues licences for RM5 for those living in other areas.

Resident Melissa Wong asked why was there a need to get her neighbour’s permission to keep a dog.

“My neighbour’s cats defecate in my compound almost every day. Why doesn’t the council make it a requirement for cat owners to get their neighbour’s consent?” she asked.

P. Manimaran, who lives in Rasah Kemayan, said he may have to give up his dog because he was not on talking terms with his neighbour.

Those with queries can call the Nilai Municipal Council at 06-798 9099/9077.

(thestar Online)

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Need More Bullets

January 14, 2009
Stimulus Alone Won’t End Crisis, Bernanke Says

LONDON — The chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben S. Bernanke, warned Tuesday that the highly unpopular job of using taxpayer money to bail out financial institutions in the United States and other countries was far from over.

One day after President Bush, at the request of President-elect Barack Obama, asked Congress to free up the second half of the money for the Treasury Department’s $700 billion financial rescue program, Mr. Bernanke cautioned that banks and other lending institutions were still not functioning properly and would probably need additional money.

“More capital injections and guarantees may become necessary to ensure stability and the normalization of credit markets,” Mr. Bernanke said during a speech at the London School of Economics.

Though the Fed chairman acknowledged that people in many countries were “understandably concerned” about pumping government money into the financial industry while often turning a cold shoulder to other sectors, he defended the effort as unpleasant but necessary.

“This disparate treatment, unappealing as it is, appears unavoidable,” he said. “Our economic system is critically dependent on the free flow of credit, and the consequences for the broader economy of financial instability are thus powerful and quickly felt.”

Indeed, Mr. Bernanke suggested that Mr. Obama might want to revive the original idea of the rescue plan to buy unsellable mortgage-backed securities and other illiquid assets. That idea was originally the centerpiece of the program as it was first promoted by the current Treasury secretary, Henry M. Paulson Jr. Mr. Paulson abandoned the idea before getting started, arguing that it would be faster and more efficient to inject capital directly into the biggest banks and investment firms.

In a separate appearance on Tuesday in Washington, the Fed’s vice chairman, Donald L. Kohn, said that financial institutions were still “clogged” by hard-to-sell assets and still needed help.

Mr. Bernanke supported the efforts by Congress and President-elect Obama to put together a fiscal stimulus program worth roughly $800 billion over two years that would be weighted heavily toward big new spending on infrastructure projects, like bridges and schools, “green” energy projects, and expanded safety-net programs like unemployment benefits.


(Full story at nytimes.com)

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Last Shoe Dropping?

January 12, 2009

Adding to Recession’s Pain, Thousands to Lose Jobless Benefits

Just as the recession is throwing people out of work at an alarming rate, the unemployment insurance system in New York and many other states will start cutting off benefits this week for thousands of people who have been unable to find jobs since early last year.

About 50,000 New Yorkers who had been collecting unemployment checks for 11 months — the longest stretch that benefits have been available since the last recession eight years ago — will stop receiving weekly payments this week, according to the State Labor Department.

In normal circumstances, people laid off from full-time jobs can collect benefits for up to 26 weeks, after which they fall off the rolls. But some of the people who will lose benefits this week have been on unemployment for 46 weeks because Congress approved extensions of jobless benefits twice last year.

This will be the first time since the early 1990s that workers are exhausting benefits that have been extended twice because of an economic downturn. The inability of those people to find work after so many months provides a stark reminder of the weakness of the job market, officials and experts say.

For many of those facing the loss of that lifeline, the next step may be welfare, experts say.

Julio Ponce, a 55-year-old chef, has been using his weekly $352 unemployment check to pay the rent on his apartment in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn since he lost his job at a center for the elderly more than a year ago. But he said he did not know how he would cover the $800 monthly rent after his unemployment benefits lapsed this week.

“No one is helping me,” said Mr. Ponce, who was faxing his résumé to hotels and restaurants from an employment office in Downtown Brooklyn on Thursday. “I’ve applied for public assistance, but I don’t think I’m going to get it.”

Extended benefits are also about to expire over the next week or two in Massachusetts, Texas, Virginia, Pennsylvania and at least 20 other states, according to the National Employment Law Project, a nonprofit organization that advocates for lower-wage workers. No official estimates exist for how many people would lose their benefits in those states, but experts said it was likely to exceed 200,000.

In Philadelphia, Tony Green, 38, said he was due to collect the last of his checks by Jan. 25. His twice-extended benefits have amounted to $470 a month after taxes, forcing him to give up a rented house in the Fox Chase section of the city and move with his two teenage children to a place in North Philadelphia that he described as “drug-infested and dirty.”

Mr. Green said he had sold his car and borrowed more than $10,000, mostly on “maxed-out” credit cards. He has been taking construction jobs to supplement his benefits, but said he feared the extra income would dry up as the economy contracted.

“People are really tapped out,” he said.

Unemployment insurance, a federal system that is administered by the states, was intended as a stopgap, half-year source of relief, not a long-term source of income. But last year, as the economy slumped and the unemployment rate rose, Congress approved two extensions of jobless benefits, one for 13 weeks and the second for up to 20 additional weeks. The national unemployment rate rose again in December to 7.2 percent, a 16-year high, the government reported Friday.

However,...

(full story at nytimes.com)

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You're The Man

Mohd Abdul Wahid, Wan Ahmad Farid, Azharuddin

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Thank You America

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Thank y'all for lettin us rape you! Y'all were great! We really appreciate it.


Y'all keep 'em commin, we'll keep dishin out crap. Tengkiu! Tengkiu! Tengkiu!

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Replies from Chrysler's Victims

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Here are some.

(Source Chrysler Blog)


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Comments

Hey Crysler! You're not welcome. You took my hard earned tax dollars without congressional approval. This is not the time for a "thank you." This would be a good time for a refund...and an apology. http://rightklik.net
Posted Dec 27, 2008, 3:19 PM by RightKlik.net

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Mr. Nardelli,It takes a man with a whole lotta chutzpah to thank a person for investing in a company when they had zero voice in the matter.My elected representatives decided 'no'. The executive branch decided 'yes' through means that might be legal but frankly smell like rotten fish.You may certainly get my money this way, but you will never see a dime of my money voluntarily spent on any of your products.Brian DunbarNeenah, Wisconsin
Posted Dec 27, 2008, 3:20 PM by bdunbar

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Mr Nardelli, Fire your PR and advertising teams and execs immediately. We the People did not want to see any more ads and money wasted on ads, be it from Chrysler, et al, or from your own pocket. You should have put up a website thanking the people and just submitted it to various online news aggregators for free. Once again, I am pained to see you are demonstrating a lack of common sense and fiscal responsibility. We supported the bailout of the car companies, even in the face of the horrendously mismanaged and secretive bailout of banks, and you stlil throw money away in the name of your company. Time to wake up. Sincerely, Matt and the rest of the Internet.
Posted Dec 27, 2008, 3:20 PM by dezmd

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I have to say this ad disappointed me. First of all, do you need to spend your precious dollars on expenisve newspaper space? Second of all, it's hard to say "America" is really responsible for granting the bridge loans. One survey said that 61% of Americans were against it. Congress was working against the will of the voters. Let me go through each of the three points: "Providing cars and trucks you want to buy, enjoy driving, and will want to buy again." Well, I wanted to buy a Stratus in 2004. I bought it and enjoy driving it. However, I would not buy a Chrysler again beacuse the new products are lower quality and less visually appealing than their predecessors. "Delivering products with the best quality and value in our Company's history." Based on what I've seen and heard, Chrysler vehicle quality is lower than it was a few years ago. "Improving fuel economy to support Americas energy security and environmental sustainability." Chrysler's current full-size and compact vehicles are LESS fuel efficient than they were in 2003. Chrysler built the cars of my dreams in the 1990s but the latest models are a real let down. Chrysler does not deserve aid until it can present compelling new-generation vehicles. Putting battery packs in the current models dosen't count.
Posted Dec 27, 2008, 3:20 PM by Mwhite

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Your resignation and the resignations of senior executives who have mismanaged the business would have been much more appropriate.
Posted Dec 29, 2008, 8:03 PM by California Initiative

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Dear Mr. Nardelli and the "over one million people who depend on Chrysler" - You've got some nerve to thank us for our forced "investment" when we didn't want it to happen in the first place. Isn't forced or coerced investment akin to robbery? Taking one's money against one's will? Hmmm . . . . The very thought that MY money is going to go to some union lackey's pockets just makes me queasy. You should've filed for bankruptcy just like any other business in your position would have to. And that would've given you the opportunity to unshackle yourselves from the ridiculous union contracts that you signed on to. You've got two major issues to fix: Unions and quality products. If you'd listen to your customers and NOT the media and marketing types, you'd fix your product issues. And the unions . . . sheesh, get out of that racket! Notice the plants in the South where unions aren't that prominent don't have the same issues as the ones up North? Let's see what happens when MY business tanks. Will YOU throw cash at me? I don't think so. So, in conclusion - to hell with you and your company. Any business that would go begging to the government for a handout has no shame, and deserves to fail. File for Bankruptcy, or crumble!
Posted Dec 29, 2008, 8:03 PM by Richard S.

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Mr. Home Depot has now shown that he can take extravagance to another extreme high. Why in the world are you thanking people that didn't want this. You need to spend the money you spent on this ad to bailout one of your line workers whose house is about to go into default. Pay it forward Nardelli we don't need to your hypocrisy!
Posted Dec 29, 2008, 8:03 PM by loco4obx

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I'm speechless. And I'm saddened that a corporate management team is so inept at understanding public opinion. Some advice: issue a press release stating that you regret that you made a mistake using taxpayers' money in this manner.
Posted Dec 29, 2008, 8:03 PM by beachwriter

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Bob Nardelli - thanking Americans for stealing their money is NOT something to boast about on your website. The American public DID speak when we choose to NOT buy your cars. Why not spend the money by showing us something compelling that people would "want" to buy. I have NEVER hear anyone excited about "buying a chrysler." You have no brand strength and this current "Thank You" ad will further your branding problems.
Posted Dec 30, 2008, 11:44 AM by Alvin P. Sams

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My response to being forced to bail Chrysler out was to immediately purchase a FORD Focus and I will NEVER buy any car that Chrysler has anything to do with. This ad you ran "thanking" us was an example of you wasting OUR money.
Posted Dec 30, 2008, 11:44 AM by redwood tree

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Dear Chrysler, I'd like to thank you. You have now completely converted me to a 100% foreign car owner from this point forward. I was, emphasis on was, a proud owner of a 2006 Dodge Ram Quad-Cab 4X4 with a Hemi. As you are well aware it is among the more expensive models of vehicles you sell. After seeing the parent comapny of Dodge falter and beg for money from the US Tax payers, I am no longer proud to own this vehicle. In fact, I will finish paying off my loan and proceed to my nearest Mini Dealership or Nissan Dealership and buy my next car there when it comes time. Why? Not because I don't like the truck. I do not approve of the money that was given to you by our President. I do not approve of the slap in the face I felt when I read your ad. Why did you need to take a bail out? Poor management. This ad just goes to show that you and your company has not learned anything, and like the rest of the US I am upset. This opportunity was squandered, by you and your incompetance. For the sake of my tax dollars I hope you succeed with a restructure like the late 70s early 80s when you received your first bail-out. However, with the poor decisions of this ad I forsee a bad investment on the horizon by the US Government.
Posted Dec 30, 2008, 11:44 AM by Jasen Hicks

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Obviously nothing has changed. Chrysler is still making stupid decisions by wasting its stolen taxpayer money on useless ads. I will never, ever even consider buying a Chrysler. Chrysler makes nothing but JUNK, and has rightfully earned its poor reputation. Mr. Nardelli, do yourself and Chrysler a favor and resign.
Posted Dec 30, 2008, 11:44 AM by BuyJapanese

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Thank You? Kiss mine you looters. I had ZERO choice in the matter. The money was taken from me by FORCE of GOVERNMENT and given to you. Ads like this reaffirm my decesion to buy a Honda last year. Bottom line Chrysler- I WILL NEVER BUY FROM A COMPANY THAT POINTS A GUN TO MY HEAD AND THEN SAYS THANKS. This ad infuraties me. Rot in hell scumbags.
Posted Dec 30, 2008, 8:03 PM by Lede Agenda


(Read more comments from Chrysler Blog)

God Fearing People?

January 2, 2009
For Afghans, a Price for Everything, and Anything for a Price
By DEXTER FILKINS

KABUL — When it comes to governing this violent, fractious land, everything, it seems, has its price.

Want to be a provincial police chief? It will cost you $100,000.

Want to drive a convoy of trucks loaded with fuel across the country? Be prepared to pay $6,000 per truck, so the police will not tip off the Taliban.

Need to settle a lawsuit over the ownership of your house? About $25,000, depending on the judge.

“It is very shameful, but probably I will pay the bribe,” Mohammed Naim, a young English teacher, said as he stood in front of the Secondary Courthouse in Kabul. His brother had been arrested a week before, and the police were demanding $4,000 for his release. “Everything is possible in this country now. Everything.”

Kept afloat by billions of dollars in American and other foreign aid, the government of Afghanistan is shot through with corruption and graft. From the lowliest traffic cop to the family of President Hamid Karzai himself, the state built on the ruins of the Taliban regime seven years ago now often seems to exist for little more than the enrichment of those who run it.

A raft of investigations has concluded that people at the highest levels of the Karzai administration, including President Karzai’s own brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, are cooperating in the country’s opium trade, now the world’s largest. In the streets and government offices, hardly a public transaction seems to unfold here that does not carry with it the requirement of a bribe, a gift, or, in case you are a beggar, “harchee” — whatever you have in your pocket.

The corruption, publicly acknowledged by President Karzai, is contributing to the collapse of public confidence in his government and to the dramatic resurgence of the Taliban, whose fighters have moved to the outskirts of the capital.

“All the politicians in this country have acquired everything — money, lots of money,” President Karzai said in a speech at a rural development conference here last month. “God knows, it is beyond the limit. The banks of the world are full of the money of our statesmen.”

The decay of the Afghan government presents President-elect...

(Full story at nytimes.com)

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Twenty O' Nine !

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Happy New Year!!!

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