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I Do Not Think That Word Means What You Think It MeansFriday, Jan. 30, 2009 3:46 AMIn the wake of a report by the New York State Comptroller showing that Wall Street employees took home $18 Billion in bonuses this past year, President Obama said what many of us are thinking. "It is shameful. And part of what we're going to need is for the folks on Wall Street who are asking for help to show some restraint, and show some discipline, and show some sense of responsibility." Despite the finger-waggling, let's face it. Between Bush, Obama, and our beloved Congress, we've handed billions to banks and their executives, and they frankly don't care what we think. Because we're still going to be paying off their bad decisions. Sure, John Thain is going to reimburse Bank of America for his million-dollar office remodel. Sure, Citibank has cancelled their order for a $50 million-dollar corporate jet. The point is, these companies were in trouble and/or received bailout monies and proceeded to make lavish purchases as if nothing were wrong. Technically, we're all going to be paying the deficit off for years to come. That's a lot of hard work, because I'm not just supporting my family and paying my bills, I'm paying bills for these schmucks on Wall Street. Can I have a million-dollar bonus now? It's being pointed out that, as Hollywood goes gaga over the film Slumdog Millionaire, two of its young stars are living in poverty. Ooops. The Iraqi government has denied Blackwater, USA a license to operate inside the country, which technically means Blackwater personnel need to leave Iraq. It's been pointed out that since the State Department has been using Blackwater as the backbone of their diplomatic protection forces, the other contractors which also supply personnel could simply take on Blackwater employees. Presto, see? They don't work for Blackwater! No problem! I wonder if Obama's mandate for transparency will find a receptive audience at State. Speaking of which, despite President Obama's pledge to draw down forces in Iraq within 16 months, and Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki agreeing that this is both possible and desirable, General Raymond Odierno is saying the troops won't go anywhere until he decides to withdraw them. If Odierno disagrees with Obama's plan, that's all well and good. He's not allowed to make up his own orders or ignore the lawful orders of the National Command Authority. There's a similar storm brewing with Judge Colonel James Pohl, who is proceeding with the trial of a Guantanamo detainee despite President Obama's executive order, which called for a 120 day delay in all proceedings. What part of that order didn't you understand, Colonel? The Illinois State Legislature has voted to impeach Governor Rod Blagojevich. Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn will step up in the meantime. Bye, Rod. Thanks for playing. Someone needs to explain to the folks at BART what 'thorough' means. When they handed Johannes Mehserle's case over to the Alameda County District Attorney, they said they'd done a complete investigation. Well, obviously not that complete, since they missed the fact that Officer Tony Pirone had punched Oscar Grant two minutes before Mehserle shot him. Or that nobody bothered to radio ahead to the next station and stop the train full of witnesses that left just after the shooting. BART said they spoke to all of the officers involved, which would include Pirone. He never mentioned taking a swing at the victim? Really?
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