Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit was finally released in exchange for 1027 Palestinian terrorists and captured cold blooded murderers.  One should be reminded that Schalit was kidnapped on Israeli soil.  Many have weighed in on whether the exchange was worth the price, but shouldn’t it be a  little demeaning to the Palestinians that one Israeli was deemed to be worth 1,027 of them?  As one friend noted,  maybe the Israelis thought one Israeli was worth 2,500 Palestinians and that this was a good deal. It speaks loudly about how Israel values the life of a single soldier and how the Palestinians value the acts of cold blooded killers.  I think the end story of this exchange is yet to be written.

The schmucks on Wall Street seem pointless.  In interviews they seem to be either as ill informed or as dumb as a sack of hammers or they are exploitive of those that are.  In their creative spirits to be the human microphone they should have focused more on having something to say than on figuring out how to say it.

In the absence of a clear message they have been hijacked by several extremist elements. Communists, Nazis, and blatant anti-Semites have used this forum to express their views.  Is it wise for Democratic leaders to be associated with these elements ?  Why are true liberals so hesitant to recognize and reject these elements. Do they think they will go away if ignored?  I heard one talking head accuse these extremists of being Tea Party plants.  What denial.

Cain’s 9.9.9. plan has been attacked by his Republican colleagues as much as by Democrats.  You would think he had proposed the 6.6.6 plan.  Arthur Laffer supports the idea.  While there are many details to struggle with, I like the idea of a consumption tax.  Among the wealthy income can vary more than consumption.  A consumption tax attracts revenue from a broader base and it is subject to less fluctuation in a recession.  The devil is in the details.

I wonder whether these endless debates is the best format to choose a candidate.  A debate performance is not necessarily  indicative of executive performance.   We want to know what their governing philosophy is an is their character sound enough to trust.  What we get is a game of gotchas and a hunt for any transgressions that makes them imperfect.  Anyone in a leadership position will have made mistakes, changed his views on something , or  otherwise stumbled.  The man who has never sinned is less respectable than the man who has only sinned once. (Tips to Nassim Taleb)

I have heard many who want forgiveness of student loans claim that the move would stimulate the economy.  This is common economic ignorance.  The loan you do not repay is a loss of the other party.  The dollar you do not pay is a dollar your creditor does not receive.  Likewise we never stimulate anything by taking a dollar from one citizen and giving to some else.  What these economic fools call stimulus is simply redistribution.

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