I can't tell from the article exactly what they're cooking up - it sounds like it could be a huge boon to smallholders if done correctly. But given the political climate of the country, and the reportedly rampart corruption in local officialdom, it may behoove the members of the Chinese Communist Party to actually read Marx, especially the section in Das Kapital on enclosure. And beware of unforeseen consequences of changing the rules of the game for farmers in a drastic fashion over a short period of time.

The shift could draw hundreds of millions of farmers more firmly into China’s city-centered market economy.

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:43 /Politics | 1 writeback | permanent link

You're losing it, McCain - whipping up the rage and then trying to quell it at the same time. You can't have it both ways, Johm - either Obama's a "decent man" or he's a shameless opportunist and a secret Muslim who "pals around" with "mad bombers". Which is it? Should I be afraid of you becoming president?

You don't need a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows ...

AP - The anger is getting raw at Republican rallies and John McCain is acting to tamp it down. McCain was booed by his own supporters Friday when, in an abrupt switch from raising questions about Barack Obama's character, he described the Democrat as a "decent person and a person that you do not have to be scared of as president of the United States."

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:29 /Politics | 0 writebacks | permanent link

My guess is that you'll be seeing a lot more of this as the political fallout from the financial crisis continues. No doubt that the good sheriff is flaunting the letter of the law - and no doubt that he'll use this to good effect in his next election campaign.

And while the banks certainly have a claim on the debt, the sheriff has a point, too. How you you feel if the sheriff threw you out of your apartment with no notice or warning - n indication, in fact, that anything was amiss?

There are other "gotchas" that are beginning to show up, too. Since so many businesses use credit ratings for employment, if you're job is sent to Bangalore and you get foreclosed you stand a good chance of not being able to find any other work because of the negative impact on your credit rating. Additionally, since apartments use credit scores to determine eligibility for residency, you might not be able to rent an apartment - which makes you homeless. Literally. Despite having cash to pay rent.

This thing could snowball very quickly into a scenario that makes the Great Depression of the 1930's look like a kindergarten picnic.

Some have estimated that the total value of the debt in our economy exceeds the GDP of the entire planet. It doesn't take an economist to figure out that a lot of this debt will never be repaid, nor does it take a mathematician to figure out what would happen if it actually were repaid (Weimar, anyone?).

We have surely worked ourselves into a fine pickle.

Sheriff Thomas J. Dart said Wednesday he is suspending foreclosure evictions in Cook County, which had been on track to reach a record number of evictions, many because of mortgage foreclosures.

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:27 /Politics | 0 writebacks | permanent link

When somebody like Chavez takes an "ownership position" in a bank or an oil company, we call it "nationalization". Which of course makes the perpetrator a "socialist". When Hank Paulson and George Bush do it we call it a "rescue". Which makes them "free market capitalists".

You can put lipstick on a pig ...

The Treasury secretary, Henry M. Paulson Jr., said the government would move ahead with taking ownership stakes in financial institutions as it tries to restore confidence.

(link) [New York Times]   see also

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:26 /Politics | 0 writebacks | permanent link