OCTOBER. FUCKING. SUPRISE.

Go read this and tell me that they haven't been sitting on the $700 billion bailout for months... waiting like jackals to gut and rip out the heart and soul of our country?

To quote interactiveleaf's reaction: "This has been in the works for months. Pay attention to the emphasized bits, and as for the rest: Is there any way, any possible way at all, that this does not come across like a Mafia mug threatening us with further harm if we don't give him the money he wants, now?

As one other person put it: "That sure is a nice economy you had there. Sure would be a shame if anything happened to it. Whoops! Well, you don't want it to get hurt any worse than that, do you?"

I don't have words to express how very enraged I am right now.

And am I the only one who sees the BLATANT FUCKING CONTRADICTIONS in the last two paragraphs?"

Original article found here on Roll Call - The Newspaper of Capitol Hill Since 1955.

(no subject)

As an update to my disparaging of hemlines being linked to economic health:

Sociopolitical climate affects dating preferences
by Erina Lee | August 29th, 2008

Did you know that the politics and the economy can influence who you are attracted to? Grace Lau and colleagues at the University of Waterloo conducted an experiment showing just that. In their study, 36 single male Canadian students read an excerpt either describing a poor or positive view of the social, economic, and political climate in Canada.

After this, participants looked at several women’s online dating profiles and then rated their interest in getting to know these women romantically. As part of the experiment, women in the profiles were described in stereotypically feminine ways (i.e., “vulnerable, pure, and ideal for making men feel complete”) or more non-stereotypical ways (i.e., “career oriented, party seeking, active in social causes or athletic”).

Results revealed that men who read the “poor” description of the sociopolitical climate were more interested in meeting the stereotypical rather than the non-stereotypical women. Interestingly, however, overall interest for non-stereotypic women remained the same across conditions. In other words, reading an unsettling review of the current sociopolitical climate enhanced men’s preference for stereotypically feminine women, but it did not enhance nor diminish their interest in non-stereotypic women.
( Read more... )

And for those who need more bad news: Tent Cities Are Reviving - all across the country, indicating a precipitous rise in poverty and homelessness.

Thanks again interactiveleaf for brightening my day.