Good Morning Thursday!

Good Morning... The Madoff scandal is just getting cranked up for News consumption, and the chairman of the SEC announces that various investigations have been started, only to be allowed to die quietly for lack of interest... The first conclusion that the SEC was asleep at the switch now seems to have moved to the column of 'lack of due diligence'... The length and breadth of the Financial Crisis now looks inevitable, due to the complete lack of skill and determination at the Commission, if not outright colusion with certain principals... At the front lines of the Auto Bailout, the Southern Senators who opposed the congessional plan, also have auto assembly plants in their home states enjoying non-union labor... Gives new meaning to the term, Naked Agression.

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day is, Doctor Up that Dish...
My Father, who worked his way through Collage as a short-order cook, taught me that there was no shame in opening canned food for your meal, as long as you doctored-up the dish with a little bit of help, such as, a little bit of ketchup in chili and beef stew, garlic powder and herbs to taste, and my favorite, a couple pinches of white sugar, which helps to moderate the insitutional-salty taste, into something more like regular food.
Thanks for reading!

BRRR Tuesday

Good Morning Tuesday... Snow on the ground and freezing temperatures here... The Madoff scandal resulting in the loss of $50 Billion Dollars to investors begs the question, where was the SEC?... Loose enforcement at the Commission is one thing, but this suggests a complete breakdown of any type of oversight... Also running, the Blagojevich complaint by the DOJ... The GOV of Illinois seems to be in a storm of his own creation... Here's to hoping the State Legislature will do the right thing and impeach him... It is funny how the Right Wing Attack Machine is trying to 'link' the GOV and Obama together, ala guilt by association... Makes 'grasping at straws' a truely Hurculean task. I think the Financal Crisis is going to get worse before it gets better, allthough it doesn't seem how it could get much worse...

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day... Spice up your Grilled Cheese Sandwich
A light dusting of garlic powder and your herb of choice on the cheese before putting on the top slice of bread makes for a very tasty version of an old standby... I also prefer melting a pat of butter or margarine in the pan, then placing the bread slice on it, as opposed to spreading it on the slice before grilling.
Thanks for reading!

Good Morning Tuesday

Welcome... A person can have an honest debate on the merits or shortfalls of the BIG THREE bailout, but it is hard to deny which Car Company is in a better position to handle bad times... A few weeks ago, I heard somewhere that GM had about 9 Billion in cash, versus Toyota cash reserves at about 400 Billion... And Toyota's sales figures are about 10 per cent better than GM... Watched a special on PBS titled, torturedemocracy.com containing a very complete picture of the steps leading up to Gitmo and Abu Graib. I hope everyone who is interested will have a chance to see it, as it documents clearly the fact that The Government cannot declare that which is Illegal, to be Legal, simply by secret memo, or Presidental Order.

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day is, Smoked Sausage for Spagetti...
I like to have a plate of spagetti about once a week, and instead of browning hamburger to combine with sauce, I enjoy a couple of Smoked Sausages instead... I'm currently trying Hillshire Farms, but I'll try other brands soon. You can brown up the Sausage in a fry pan with a little bit of margarine, or water... A nice break from hamburger.
Thanks for reading!

Good Morning Monday

Hello... Having just read Spitzers' column on SLATE, the gist of which is how the concentration of Financial Service Houses has hindered the basic tenants of Capitalism, I would tend to agree... I think that the next 12 to 18 months are going to go something like this... Stabilize various Financial Sectors of the Economy, put people back to work in various degrees of employment, and set up a Commission of some sort, to investigate how this Giant Mess came about... The only bright spot that I can see is, watching John K. Galbreath on Bill Moyers' Journal on PBS a few weeks ago, He stated that the US Dollar is still a viable currency for investment by Global Interests, as opposed to the EURO or other currencies, which are somewhat shaky, and even though the thought of taking on more debt to try and fix ourselves is distasteful, I believe it is a necessary path... Now if we can just get the MEDIA to report the truth, that would be something.

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day is Chili Mac n' Cheese...
If you are somewhat of a Hack in the kitchen, like me, you can do it the Hamburger Helper way, or you can prepare your favorite Mac n' Cheese, then open up a can of your favorite Chili, and combine the two together... A great timesaver, this one... I hope to have a Chili reciepe soon, so I don't have to endure a Sodium level that goes to 4 decimal places...
Thanks for reading.

Happy Friday...

YES... Happy Friday... This is the part where I pause and get the water started for my coffee... Then, I hit the CNN page to see the daily rant... I see where former NY Governor Spitzer has a column on SLATE, and criticizes the bailouts thus far. I'll have to read that later... The story also reports that no charges will be filed because the DOJ concluded that 'the public interest would not be further advanced by filing criminal charges in this matter'... No doubt A LOT of other prostitution sting victims will be asking for that same conclusion..!
Time for my second cup... I hope that someday soon, WE as a NATION can have a full debate about the limits of Military Power, and all that entails... Also, a debate about the last 50 or 60 years of Foreign Policy would be nice...
Ever wake up and wonder if you have popped into a parallel Universe... You know, the kind where Spock has a beard, everything on the Enterprise is all sharp and pointy, and Sulu has this HUGE scar on the side of his face, for some reason..! That happened to me when I dozed off during Election Night coverage... John McCain had won one state, and... Obama was declared the next President Elect... I couldn't help but think of how my sixth grade teacher, Mr. Hicks, would have felt about it.

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day is... I like the occasional Chicken Nugget, or Fish Stick, and you can make it even more convenient by placing them in your George Foreman Grill... The time to prepare is about the same, but you don't have to heat up the entire oven for one serving.
Thanks for reading!

What, I have to post again?

Good Morning... I'm waiting for the coffee to kick in... Just pour it in my eyes, it'll work faster...
OK! Has it occurred to anyone in the Media that about 20 years ago, the debate to 'bail out' Chrysler Corp. resulted in a better company, with the invention of the 'mini van', the omnipresent lovechild of the 'Soccer Mom' set. I think that the Unions and the Car Makers will come to some sort of agreement over how to manufacture cars that people want to buy... The BIG THREE seem to be able to make fuel efficient cars for use in Europe, now if they can just decide to do it here... The absolute LIE that UAW line workers are making $78.00 per hour, is proof positive that the Media and Elite interests are trying to bust the Unions, again... The actual figure is somewhat lower, about $58,000 per year... PLUS, If WE as a NATION had worked a little harder at preserving the Middle Class, instead of suckling at the teat of Reagan'omics for the last 20 years, perhaps there would be a vast throng of people who would be able to BUY cars...
As for the Financial Crisis, it is important to note, that the CDO's, the securities that people and institutions were buying, were rated as AAA by the big ratings houses, Standard and Poors and Moodys. These folks were charging huge fees to pass on these securities, as 'great investments'.
Let us hope that there will be a full investigation of how we all got into this mess.

Your Comfort Food Tip of the Day is... The next time you're making Mac n' Cheese, instead of adding milk, put in 1 or 2 tablespoons of Ranch Dressing... Gives a little boost to the 'old side dish... I like to sprinkle a little bit of Dill Weed too, gives it a nice look and aroma.
Thanks for reading...

Good Morning, World!

Hello, this is my first post, and it's damn early out here, on the West Coast. Sometimes folks out here see things a little differently, after all the smoke and fire from the other side of the country dies down... I don't profess to have all the answers, but I do like to ask interesting questions...

This blog will be mostly for fun, mostly to get a word onto the 'sphere, and will be in three sections. The first will feature a political thought or two, regarding daily topics we all have to bear with. The second will be responses to media or other posts I have read, and the last section will have a cooking tip or two, simple suggestions that will improve the taste of popular dishes and comfort foods.

Well, it's getting close to 6am, and I need to redirect over to The Stephanie Miller Show, which I receive via live streaming... A great idea, live streaming. Turns my modest computer investment into a big, complicated radio!

Thanks for visiting!