Things I Guess I Don't Understand: Economics

Okay, is this whole bailout thing one last big grasp for the money before the elections? I ask this because otherwise I don't understand it.

I understand why people want to stay in their homes, including people who financed their homes with loans they had no realistic expectation of repaying. I get that.

I understand why the people who packaged and made those loans, and then bundled and sold and resold those loans don't want to get left holding the sack. I get that.

I don't get why (or how) those of us minding our own business trying to live responsible lives are supposed to give the people who created this cluster-fuck at least three quarters of a trillion dollars that we don't have to get them off the hook. I know that I'm not very smart, but I'm pretty sure that's stupid. We didn't have the money we used to buy an 80% interest in AIG, and now we're going to borrow $700 Billion (from our enemies) to try to cover the current crop of mistakes made by the very same institutions we want to prop up?

Listen, I wouldn't give anyone appointed to anything by George W. Bush change for a parking meter, much less co-sign for $700 Billion.

A Word for HM3 Eichmann A. Strickland

Hospital Corpsman Third Class Eichmann A. Strickland, 23, of Arlington, WA, died September 9 of injuries suffered when his vehicle hit an IED in Afghanya Valley, Afghanistan.
Doc Strickland was assigned to Combat Service Support Detachment 36, Iwakuni, Japan. He was deployed with an embedded Marine Training Team to Afghan Regional Security Integration Command Central. Part of his job was training Afghani soldiers how to treat wounds.
After his service, Doc Strickland wanted to become a physician assistant and become a medical missionary to Africa.
Semper Fi

It Can't be September Already

Things have been a little hectic lately. For awhile on Friday I didn't know if I was taking my younger sister to my baby sister's for Labor Day or driving a Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle to Texas. (I wound up going to my baby sister's, but I got so flustered that I left her birthday card and present behind - her birthday was Friday.

This Wednesday I was supposed to drive a van with five other Red Cross people to San Jose for a Disaster Readiness Conference but we're down to four people in a car now. Happily for us and for the people along the Gulf Coast it doesn't look like the conference will be affected by Gustav. Anyway, this will likely be my post for the week.