NEWS DISSECTOR March 11, 2008
SALACIOUS SEX RAISES TV RATINGS: Are We Being HOOKERed?
Forget all the other salacious gassing for a minute. We're being gassed? We have other things to worry about. Click here:
G O T C H A !
ANOTHER SEX SCANDAL AT LAST
THE MARKET JITTERS DON'T STOP
Whats topping the news? Oil at $108 a gallon? Another five US Soldiers dead in Iraq? A chemical link to Gulf War Syndrome? The Threat of Cllimate Change? A raid by bandits on aid for Darfur? Protests by Tibetans in India?
Nope.
The S word is back. isn't the dish just deLISHous?
What a web we weave. Eliot Spitzer, once the sourge of Wall Street has been undone by the wages of Sin Street. Should we gloat, laugh, sneer? I am sure some of the Repugs are as they watch another big Man and a Dem go down.
The cable nets are buzzing. This is the kind of story they live for. Their pundits tsk tsk. Oh, no, not Alan Dershowitz again, with yet another Solomonic observation. It's a big deal. It's a small deal. Ok, lets watch a rerun of all the sex scandals of the past. Bill is waging that finger again: "I did not have sex with THAT woman" seems to be on a loop.
We condemn as we exploit. What a formula! What a circle jerk.
The NY Times alone is running six stories today, over 6000 words. They include this "affadavit."
Having spent part of the day at my accountants finding out what I owe the war machine, I was not surprised to learn later that this whole call girl bust started with a probe by-not the FBI or CIA, gang, but the IRS:
According to the law enforcement officials, the investigation began as a money laundering probe. The IRS watched as money was taken from Spitzer's accounts, bounced about a bit and eventually was transferred to an escort service without the governor's name attached to it.
A BIGGER UNMENTIONED REALITY
Ironically, this IRS probe was small potatoes compared to this recent propbe one assessed by Duane Morris:
BACK TO SURREALITY
Hypocrisy is the always the worst sin in politics along with the attempts at cover-ups, but then again wiretaps to trap hookers seems like a waste of time for such a lesser crime. Where are the "Abscam-type stings and wirestaps aimed the banker that are bringing America down? Republican prosecutors won't go after them this way, will they?.. Instead the predictable focus is on Eliot's campaign slogan" "Bring Some Passion back to Albany.
The second oldest profession always makes great copy, especially when the Johns are the big cheese. Is this sweeps week?
Reported the NY TIMES with much gravitas:
ALBANY - Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute at a Washington hotel last month, according to a person briefed on the federal investigation.
Gov. Eliot Spitzer with his wife, Silda, made a statement to the news media on Monday.
An affidavit in the federal investigation into a prostitution ring said that a wiretap recording captured a man identified as Client 9 on a telephone call confirming plans to have a woman travel from New York to Washington, where he had reserved a hotel room. The person briefed on the case identified Mr. Spitzer as Client 9.
Mr. Spitzer today made a brief public appearance during which he apologized for his behavior, and described it as a "private matter."
THE TIMES IS ALL OVER THIS STORY UNLIKE SOME OTHERS IT CARRIED LATELY
NY OBSERVER GOES BEHIND THE LEAK:
NYT Reporter asks, "How many Ls, how many Ts in Eliot?"
ALTERNET: Q: WHAT WAS HE THINKING? A: HE WASN'T!
AMERICA MAY BE #1 BUT SPITZER IS CLIENT NUMBER 9
Whats the significance of the number 9 in all this?
The Wikipedia explains: in case you are interested: "Nine is a composite number, its proper divisors being 1 and 3. It is 3 times 3 and hence the third square number. 9 is a Motzkin number. It is the first composite lucky number.
9 is the second non-unitary square prime (32). It has a unique aliquot sum 4 which is itself a square prime. 9 is the only square prime with an aliquot sum of the same form. The aliquot sequence of 9 has 5 members (9,4,3,1,0) this number being the second composite member of the 3-aliquot tree."
Got it?
MAY I DIGRESS?
This is so trippy. Reading about Spitzer's designation, and now his demotion to the 9th circle of hell, led me to another John-John Lennon's Number 9 obsession and his songs:
"One After 909?
"Revolution No. 9?
"#9 Dream
Ironically, this song was a part of Lennon's ninth solo album which was released in the ninth month of 1974. The song even peaked at number 9 in the charts. AND…. A verse in the song has nine syllables, "Ah, bowakawa, pousse pousse."
His album, Mind Games, contains nine letters in its title. Another of Lennon's album names contains nine letters. The album was his dedication to classic rock and was entitled: Rock 'n' Roll
Dates
John Lennon was born on October, 9 1940
Some even say he was born at 6:30pm. 6 + 3 + 0 = well you figure it out.
His son was also born on the ninth
When John Lennon was shot, on December, 8th 1980, it was already December 9th in his hometown of Liverpool, England.=Miscellaneous
Liverpool has nine letters
When an engineer said "Revolution number nine" to begin the recording of the song by the same name, John loved the sound. He was lucky that it had been recorded. John looped the recording over and over again throughout the beginning of "Revolution No. 9?
Nine letters make up the most important phrase of one of John's most important antiwar songs. All we are saying, is give peace a chance.
John Ono Lennon and Yoko Ono Lennon's combined names contain nine O's
John's elementary school bus number happened to be 72. 7 + 2 = 9 (We know its a stretch)
He even lived in apartment 72 in New York. Yet another 9."
OK, had enuff,?
Back to the big snooze.
Story was not such big news out West as DXM writes from Oregon:
Fortunately, it wasn't such big news out here. Me dear wife tells me they didn't pre-empt her soap, and except for cable, we'll hafta hear all about it on the Six O'Clock news.
BLOGS GO BALLISTIC
The blogs lit up like the ball they drop on Times Square.
Fox reports: Fox: Eliot Spitzer to May Resign as NY Guv, Possibly to Be Indicted
The Fox story is about his apparently imminent resignation. It hasn't happened-yet!(11: PM)
The New York Times, AP, and Bloomberg also have coverage. Saturation will certainly follow.
No so Kevin Drum:
As with David Vitter and Larry Craig, my official position is: who cares. This shouldn't be illegal in the first place and I don't care what these guys do in their private time …
NEXT?
And who will take over if Spitzer goes? Standing in the wings is a Lietenant Governor who happens to be black and blind. The Huffington Post reports:
If New York Governor Eliot Spitzer is forced to step down over his involvement in the prostitution ring Emperor's Club VIP, Lieutenant Governor David Paterson is set to become the state's 59th Governor - and the first African American to hold that position. Who is the man who may become Governor?
* David Paterson was born legally blind in Brooklyn in 1954 (Wikipedia)
* BA from Columbia University, JD from Hofstra Law School (Wikipedia)
* Former State Senator from New York's 30th District
* First elected to represent Harlem in the New York State Senate in 1985 (Paterson for New York)
* Elected Minority Leader of the New York State Senate in 2002, the first non-white legislative leader in New York's history (Paterson for New York)
* Ran New York City Marathon in 1999 (NNDB)
* Defended himself against bias claims last month after replacing white photographer with black photographer (New York Post)
* Previously tussled with Spitzer over turf wars (New York Magazine)
ITS OFFICIAL: BYE BYE TUCKER SHOW
BROACASTING & CABLE: Tucker Out, David Gregory In at MSNBC
MSNBC canceled Tucker, its Monday-Friday 6 p.m. show, NBC confirmed. In its place, the cable network will debut Race for the White House with David Gregory, a daily look at the latest presidential-election news anchored by NBC News chief White House correspondent David Gregory.
Politics: The "Dream Ticket" Looks More And More Unlikely
ERECTION 2008, OOPS ELECTION 2008: TODAY, MISSISSIPPI VOTES
POLL: AP: Most supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton would like to see a "dream ticket" of her and Barack Obama, while the majority of Obama supporters opposed the idea, according to a Gallup poll conducted March 6-9.
OBAMA-NO TO HILL'S VEEP OFFER
COLUMBUS, Miss. - Democrat Barack Obama ridiculed the idea of being Hillary Rodham Clinton's running mate Monday, saying voters must choose between the two for the top spot on the fall ticket.
The Illinois senator used his first public appearance of the week to knock down the notion that he might accept the party's vice presidential nomination. He noted that he has won more states, votes and delegates than Clinton so far.
"I don't know how somebody who is in second place is offering the vice presidency to the person who is first place," Obama said, drawing cheers and a long standing ovation from about 1,700 people in Columbus, Miss.
As one of the volunteers who organized for the Freedom Vote in Mississippi in 1964, a protest vote for the right to vote for all, I'd have to say Obama's race was unimaginable then. Maybe now too.
WHAT HAPPENED IN ILLINOIS?
Don Rose, a long time political consultant ion Illinois explains;
Bill Foster's decisive, six-point win over Jim Oberweis in Saturday's special congressional election in Illinois is both a combination of a perfect storm and a harbinger of bluing to come. The latter point has national and local Republicans really singing the blues: they may be losing another three congressional seats here.
SENATE TO INVESTIGATE "VOTER FRAUD"
"Myth" of Voter Fraud Focus of Senate Hearing; Iglesias Set to Testify
By Jason Leopold
Last year, during the height of the Congressional investigation into the firings of US attorneys, David Iglesias and John McKay, two of the nine federal prosecutors who were ousted, revealed that they were pressured by Republicans to bring charges of vote fraud against people who intended to voter for Democrats in separate elections in New Mexico and Washington state several years ago.
Iglesias and McKay said they investigated the allegations but did not find evidence to support charges of voter fraud leveled by Republicans. Both men believe their refusal to convene a federal criminal grand jury to pursue the allegations led to their ouster.
There is no concrete evidence of systemic voter fraud in the United States. Many election integrity experts believe voter fraud is a ploy by Republicans to suppress minorities and poor people from voting. Historically, those groups tend to vote for Democratic candidates. Raising red flags about the integrity of the ballots, experts believe, is an attempt by GOP operatives to swing elections to their candidates as well as an attempt to use the fear of criminal prosecution to discourage individuals from voting in future races.
POLITICS: I am quoted in a piece carried by IPS:
SURPRISE, SURPRISE: NO SADDAM, OSAMA LINK. NONE! SHOCKING!
WASHINGTON - An exhaustive review of more than 600,000 Iraqi documents that were captured after the 2003 U.S. invasion has found no evidence that Saddam Hussein's regime had any operational links with Osama bin Laden's al Qaida terrorist network.
LONDON CALLING: PROTESTERS AIM TO SURROUND BRITISH PARLIAMENT
Next Saturday15 March, the fifth anniversary of the Iraq
invasion, will see a day of global WORLD AGAINST WAR
protests, giving voice to the majority view across the world
which has consistently opposed George Bush's "war on
terror". There will be demonstrations from Norway to Japan,
from Cuba to Poland, and not least in the two countries
which have been the key warmongers - the US and Britain.The London WORLD AGAINST WAR demonstration - called by Stop
the War, CND and the British Muslim Initiative - comes just
as the government is about to announce that the cost of its
war policies in Iraq and Afghanistan will soar in 2008 to
3.3 billion pounds, double the cost in 2007, proof if it was
needed that a change of prime minister has made no
difference to the level of warmongering.The London demonstration will assemble at 12 noon in
Trafalgar Square and march down Whitehall on a route which
will surround Parliament. The rally in Trafalgar Square will
highlight the disasters of five years and more of war.
Speakers will include Tony Benn, ex-SAS trooper Ben Griffin,
representatives from Palestine, Green Party MEP Caroline
Lucas, Lindsey German from Stop the War Coalition and film
director Nick Broomfield. Joining us on the stage will be
Omar Deghayes, recently released from the Guantanamo torture
centre, where he was held for five years.
Studies: Iraq costs US $12B per month
By CHARLES J. HANLEY, AP Special Correspondent
The flow of blood may be ebbing, (IS IT?, DS) but the flood ofmoney into the Iraq war is steadily rising, ne analyses show. In 2008, its sixth year, the war will cost approximately $12 billion a month, triple th "burn" rate of its earliest years, Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz and co-author Linda J. Bilmes report in a new book.
More Financial Jitters, Big Layoffs on THE STREET, Your Letters
As I have written many times, the financial crisis is not over. It is just deepening. Reuters reported yesterday:
NEW YORK, March 10 (Reuters) - A new wave of credit fears swamped Wall Street on Monday, pushing stocks to 17-month lows and bond prices sharply higher, as skittish investors reacted to rumors and news of firms exposed to the mortgage crisis.
A sell-off in financial stocks accelerated around midday amid talk - later strongly denied - that Bear Stearns faced liquidity issues. The cost to insure debt of the brokerage icon surged, and its shares plunged more than 11 percent.
USA TODAY: Mortgage Lenders See More Borrowers Give Up
On the front lines in the mortgage foreclosure crisis, lender and loan servicer Dennis Lauria says his deepest losses are from borrowers who owe more than their homes are worth and simply mail in the keys, rather than try to work out a new payment plan.An additional 1-million-plus borrowers were at risk of imminent foreclosure. In California, Florida and Nevada, particularly, where prices are falling the steepest, rising numbers of borrowers are giving up and abandoning their homes despite the significant damage a foreclosure can have on the credit ratings that determine their ability to get future loans.
Investment News: THE WALL STREET BLUES
Lehman Bros. to cut 1,400 jobs
Lehman confirmed that it will lay off around 1,400 employees, or approximately 5% of its global workforce.
Bear Stearns shares take record dive
Bear Stearns' stock dropped 11.3%, or $7.94, to $62.14 in composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
Citigroup facing $9 billion in write-downs
The bank is planning to slash more than 30,000 workers over the next two years, according to published reports.
Blackstone books precipitous loss
Blackstone Group today announced fourth-quarter losses of $170 million, compared with a profit of $1.18 billion one year earlier.
Hedge Funds Hit As Banks Impose Tougher Margin Requirements
Not only does leverage cut both ways, amplifying returns and losses, but bankers have a nasty habit of imposing tougher borrowing terms at the worst possible time.
The hedge fund industry is learning this lesson the hard way, as cash strapped and newly risk averse prime brokers are raising margin requirements across the board, even on Treasuries, pushing some hedge funds over the edge.
From Bloomberg:
The hedge-fund industry is reeling from its worst crisis in a decade as banks are now demanding more money pledged to support outstanding loans even when the investment is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States.
Since Feb. 15, at least six hedge funds, totaling more than $5.4 billion, have been forced to liquidate or sell holdings because their lenders - staggered by almost $190 billion of asset writedowns and credit losses caused by the collapse of the subprime-mortgage market - raised borrowing rates by as much as 10-fold with new claims for extra collateral.
SUBPRIME LENDING'S "SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM"-THE ENRONIZATION OF THE MORTGAGE MARKET
BILLIONAIRE ROSS SEES BANK FAILURES AHEAD
YOU THOUGHT THE MORTGAGE CRISIS WAS ALL ABOUT BUSH AND HIS FRIENDS? THINK AGAIN: HERE'S A STORY ABOUT CLINTON'S HUGE ROLE IN CREATING THE MELTDOWN
Murdoch Son Eyes U.S. Investors for Deal
Lachlan Murdoch is facing a setback in his plan to re-enter the media business after the major financial backer of his proposed $3.3 billion takeover of Australia's Consolidated Media suddenly walked away. Rupert Murdoch's eldest son is now knocking on the doors of U.S. investors.
MYSTERY LETTER: I RECEIVED THIS TIP
Anyone have more info?
About four weeks ago and if memory serves me correctly, I stumbled over the Texas Development Fund.
In the very small print of the pdf version of the public records, I learned Gov. Rick Perry infused Countrywide with GI-NORMOUS amounts of $$$$$. Follow the money Danny.
The writer did send this link later.
I also found this charge by Professor Nouriel Roubini who spoke of the Federal Home Loan Bank providing Countrywide with a massive loan. This was in his testimony to the Financial Services Committee on February 26, 2008:
Countrywide alone - the poster child of the last decade of reckless and predatory lending practices - received a $51 billion loan from this semi-public system; in the absence of this public bailout Countrywide would have ended up where it should, i.e. into outright bankruptcy.
Roberta Green writes from Gurnee IL:
Dear Danny,
Dan Benbow writes:
Just a couple weeks back I reviewed a book by Peter Dale Scott, a Berkeley professor and historian of U.S. shadow government. The article covers the chain of secretive US government decisions from the 70s on that led to our helping create Al Qaeda, and the repercussions of thoes decisions.
Check it out, and forward the link on to all of your friends and associates - especially Republicans who are deluded enough to think that they have a monopoly on keeping us safe.
If this doesn't interest you, sorry to subject you to another In Box-clogger
WHY MORE SETTLEMENTS APPROVED BY ISRAEL?
Opal Moonstone writes:
In spite of the fact that both the US and the UN have called for a contruction stop…. (Why should Israel listen? It gets what it wants from the US no matter what, and it knows it….)
Olmert agreed to thaw out a number of the frozen construction permits after Shas threatened last week to abstain from the no-confidence vote against the government. The vote was held in the Knesset Monday.
Two weeks ago Shas leaders Eli Yishai and Ariel Atias warned that the party would not support the government in the no-confidence vote unless the construction was authorized.
LATE NEWS: BBC: 24 DEAD IN TWO BOMBINGS IN LAHORE, PAKISTAN
BBC: SUPPORT DROPS FOR ACTION ON IRAN
IHT:(NEW NUMBER) 8 US SOLDIERS DEAD IN IRAQ
IHT: INFLATION HITS NEW HIGH IN CHINA
Thanks for joining me today. Love to get your responses to my piece on CSPAN and obscenity posted on Mediachannel and other outlets.
Comment on Comments: As for political coverage on the blog, I have carried reports and criticisms of every candidate from every angle. Plead not guilty to being a Hillary Hater too. Isn't it sad, that we are feel the need to smear each other this way?
Comment to dissector@mediachannel.org
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