Happy Purim Joah

Today is Purim. A Jewish holiday when we celebrate defeating Haman's plot, an evil guy, who was trying to kill the Jews in ancient times. A summary of this holiday is: we read the story from the Book of Esther, we rejoice with a Purim party, and now we eat Hamantaschen - a three cornered cookie filled with apricot or prune. My favorite part of any holiday is the eating. Naturally, if anyone wants to learn more about Purim, they can read about the holiday at Wikipedia for starters.

Stay tuned.

P.S. Joah is my grandson.

The Way Things Don't Work

Ron Paul has be on MSNBC recently because he is up in the polls as the next Republican presidential hopeful. Unfortunately, while the people like what he says, when it comes to monetary policy and our central bank (which he believes we do not need) Ron Paul does not know what he is talking about. What's new?

In the 21st century, for the United States to close its central bank is unthinkable to me. If you think I am the only one thinking this, ask any economist that understands the role our central bank plays as part of the world financial system. Ron Paul, when it comes to central banking does not understand what his ideas would do to our economy or the world's economy.

I would like to see our central bank concern itself more with the integrity of our dollar and perhaps a little less concerned with economic growth. Economic growth, in my opinion, will happen faster and last longer on a level playing field. What am I talking about when I say "level playing field"? Let me explain.

What is the opposite of socialism? Capitalism? Well, we don't have free market capitalism in America. What is a monopoly? A monopoly is when a group of businesses, or, a single business dominates and controls the price structure of a whole industry. What is anti-trust? Take a look at the health care industry and tell me we have free market capitalism in health care. No, we don't have competition in health care because Congress has made them exempt from anti-trust. A health care provider can legally control more than 50% of the health care business in a state and there is nothing wrong with that - legally.

So, we don't have a level playing field in health care for the consumer, and because of special favors for other industries, we don't have a level playing field for the consumer in a number of other fields as well. What we have is a Government that gives special protection so certain people can make a living, a very good living, on the backs of those with little or no influence. That is the kind of economic system we have in America.

Now the Republican Party has convinced a number of Americans that they need to fear socialism because the Democrats want to make health care available and affordable for more Americans. If more Americans understood how they are being screwed over by the Republican Party, things would change pretty quickly. But, we are a country that looks at polls and we give the microphone to the guy with the ratings, and so we get to hear from a know nothing like Ron Paul.

Some day people will figure this out, but it may be a while.

Stay tuned.

UNITED STATES HOSTAGE: 1973-1991 ENERGY POLICY

Unfortunately, as things too often are, we kicked the gas can down the road rather than take steps to reduce our dependence, first on foreign oil, and now on oil from any location. Global warming is real, and all the idiots in public office that deny it will not change the scientific data.

Stay tuned.

UNITED STATES HOSTAGE 1973-1991 ENERGY POLICY, oil on paper, 1991 by F.D. Zigler. First exhibited May 1992, Carnegie Art Center, Covington, KY.

Obama's Health Care Summit

Originally, I was planning to write about Ron Paul, the idea of a central bank (our Federal Reserve Bank) and monetary policy, and my thoughts about the trade off between monetary policy under a central bank system and the need for comprehensive financial regulation. But, because today is President Obama's Health Care Summit with members of Congress, I would like to say a word about that.

I watched Keith Olbermann's show last night, COUNTDOWN, and I listened to his plea that everyone going into the Health Care Summit should leave their egos at the door. Well Keith, I too hope they will, but I am not very hopeful that that will be the case. I think Congressman Anthony Weiner said it best, the Republican Party is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Insurance Industry!!!

Yes, I know, I am a socialist bordering on being a communist bed-wetter from the 1942 variety. I understand that governments around the world carve out niches for their friends to be able to make a living and the USA is no different in that respect. And yet, when health insurance companies want to call a cleft palate of a new born child a pre-existing condition, I say enough!! Health insurance company CEOs, you are dangerously close to your demise in my hierarchy of crimes against humanity. Yes, we need a public option and I hope this Congress can make it happen. There are too many people in this country without, and that needs to change.

Stay tuned.

My Brain, A Tree And One Old Humankind

I am now back in my little city just across the Ohio River from the Creationist Museum. While I was gone, my copy of the Smithsonian magazine came in the mail. This morning, after sleeping like a rock last night, I opened my new March 2010 copy and read about the new exhibition hall dedicated to the origins of humankind that opens this month at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. I will have to make a trip to Washington, D.C. sometime this year and check out this new exhibition hall that explains our human origins and our ancestral tree.

You see, living just across the Ohio River from the Creationist Museum, and powerful Republican intellectuals like Senators Bunning and McConnell, has left my brain hanging somewhere in a tree. We don't think much of the scientific method around these parts. The Bible is all we need to explain where we came from to where we are going. Amen. The idea that humankind lived before the Bible said it did is a corruption of the good book, and we can't have that kind of intellectual stimulation. Therefore, we can't have economic stimulation either. In fact, stimuli of any kind is suspect.

I did come home with an idea for another of my political paintings, praise the Lord, and I will be putting it down on board very soon. I think I just needed to get out of town for a short while to clear my head and retrieve my brain from that tree that I left it in.

Stay tuned.

Chicago Is A Great City

Chicago is a great city if you love to walk and look at architecture. That is exactly what I and my friend Stert have been doing since we arrived. We walked down to the Chicago Art Institute on Sunday and walked around the museum a for a few hours checking out their collection of paintings. They have some of the best paintings in the world, and the price of admission in February is free. While I have been there several times, It is always nice to take it all in again. If you love seeing some of the great paintings of world, then you don't want to miss visiting the Chicago Art Institute.

Stay tuned.

If Its Sunday, it Must Be Chicago

MONEYTHOUGHTS is on vacation for a few more days. Doing economic research in Chicago. Will be back for more comments and my opinions in the near future. I hope, unless I get snowed-in in Chicago this week.

Stay tuned.