Chained CPI

The chained CPI is the latest republican proposal for saving our American government, saving an estimated $200 billion dollars over the next 10 years. This can be compared to the democratic tax increase that would raise $800 billion over 10 years, republicans will not support this tax increase because in will only fund the government for 7 days. The republicans support the reduction of social security by $200 billion as a major accomplishment in fiscal responsibility.

Chained CPI calculates the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) using a financial theory to produce a smaller social security check. The common explanation is that if steak cost too much people will buy chicken, chicken is cheaper and the cost of living increase is there forth smaller. With a limited amount of money you have to make cheaper choices, if you are rich and have plenty of money you are not forced into these choices. This is a policy that will only apply to retired people that are struggling to make ends meet.

If you can’t afford steak you buy chicken, now you get less money since you didn’t have enough money before, now you can’t buy chicken and have to buy fish, once again you get less money to buy fish, since you are now buying fish the money is reduced again, now you have to buy dog food for dinner, this cycle continues until you are eating dirt, which is free, and now get no money. This cycle only applies to those struggling, the 47% of Americans that are the “takers”. The rich will be unaware of this battle with malnutrition. Some of the more observant rich might notice that their sixty seven year old maid is looking sickly and moving slowly, but, they probably intended to fire her anyways.

The choice is simple, take $200 billion from old retired people and save America, or take $800 billion from the abundance of the rich, which will not make a difference.

College bowl marathon

The college bowl marathon is now five games long, only maybe another hundred or so to go. On Sunday I will get some relief by watching an NFL game I actually have some emotional attachment with, for the first time in history, Houston has a really good NFL team. The Oilers I followed had a habit of breaking my heart. They set the record for allowing the largest comeback in NFL playoff history, 1993 versus the Bills, I hid in a closet and wept that night, not great open sobs, just a quite manly sniffle.

The college bowl games do have wild trick plays that the NFL pros would stop dead. Young athletes striving to prove themselves on the big stage is a wonder to watch, the unpredictability of college coaches can amaze. The weather is cold, the fireplace blazing, the recliner comfortable, the announcers replaced by Christmas music, snacks laid out, and still my interest wanes, still I feel incomplete, my mind wanders to a good civil war history I am reading, turning on my electronic reading device I feel much better, I now have something to fill the numerous periods of timeouts and commercials. There can be long stretches between notable sports action. If I don’t maintain focus on the bowl marathon I might amble off and do something worthwhile.

I checked the Guinness Book of World Records (I don't have a current issue), and there is no entry for most bowl games watched, an opportunity for notoriety. What are the guidelines? I am certain that dozing is allowed when watching college bowl games, can I sleep through most of a game and it will still count as game watched, do I need an official observer, do recorded games count, or only real time viewing?

Maybe this is one of those things I should not admit to, a personal action I should not talk about before strangers or in mixed company.

Home Repair, Plumbing Edition, Day 2

After a day of rest I decide to finish repair of the plumbing problems. My task today is simple, fix more than I break. I need to replace or match the bath tub handles, stop a leak in the second shower and replace the aerator on the kitchen faucet.

First step is to turn off the house’s master water value. Then into the shower and remove the valve stem from the leaking faucet. This removal goes quickly after the previous day's learning curve and all parts are soon in a baggie.

Off to the hardware store, my new friend is on duty and we match the valve stem, the kitchen spout aerator is available, but in the wrong finish. I need a brushed bronze aerator to maintain the current optics and only fake stainless steel is available in the size required. Replacing the handles is another problem in optics and quality, the selection is cheap and the design will probably fail within a couple of years. My final purchase is one valve stem and some super glue.

Back at the house, I gather all the broken parts from the old handles and super glue them back together, doesn’t look that good, but it is fully functional. Gathering the broken parts from the aerator and super gluing presents a challenge in fine movement manual dexterity, with patience all is properly assembled and glued into place. As expected my fingers are now super glued together, this is anticipated and a little acetone later my fingers are free.

Now for the leaking water faucet in the shower, with the learning curve of two days back and my homemade custom tool the valve stem replacement takes less than 5 minutes. Back outside and turn the master water valve on. Return to the bathroom and all is well, nothing leaks and all faucet handles turn in matching direction.

The last task, replacing the aerator onto the kitchen faucet, some of the super glue has run onto the threads and I need some more acetone and careful cleaning. The aerator easily fits and my task is complete.

Packing my tools for their return to the garage I fondly remember earlier encounters with home plumbing, the frozen pipes that burst, the constantly running toilets, replacement of heating elements in the hot water heater and the clogged kitchen traps, all taking at least twice my first estimate to complete. I look at tools purchased over the years to complete plumbing repairs and my eyes stop at the strap wrench, a strap wrench lets you work an easily damaged object without any damage to the finish or look of the item being worked. A strap wrench is also useful for opening the many food containers that laugh at a strong wrist, with a strap wrench the vacuum sealed catchup bottle pops open with the least amount of effort and no damage. I look at my box of homemade special tools, most used only once, years ago, the original purpose long forgotten, and feel the pride of a craftsman.

I have saved myself a lot of money, if I consider my labor as free, and have an unlimited timeline.

American SKAMMERS Unite

Another political essay, these are the easiest to write, using the web standard for political blogging, being knowledgeable is not required, anything imaginable can be labeled a fact and naming your opposite as stupid are all irrefutable authoritative techniques. Political essays are popular and widely read, with the most extreme becoming money machines for the authors. The right wing has discovered how to use politics to create personal wealth, I find this appealing, wishing fortune and fame I shall disclose of the greatest political threat facing American freedom. BO, (a derogative for President Obama) is planning legislation to construct all new roads with Kenyan cheese.

This is part of the radical socialist plan to undermine our Christian nation, our personal freedom, our financial wealth and personal responsibility, our marriages, our families, our constitutional guarantees and states’ rights, our health care system, our national defense, our rugged individualism, our liberty, our conservative grass root organizations and pro-growth tax policies, all destroyed by the tree hugging, feminazi, elitist, tax and spend, death panel, amnesty granting, big government, pro-choice, latte drinking, Volvo driving, redistributionist food stamp president. It is the plan of the leftist, Maoist, socialist, communist, Marxist to destroy America's rightful superior place as the world's leader of it's values. If I missed any talking point is only because there are so many liberal deceptions to choose from.

 I have uncovered information about BO’s secret meeting at the Kenyan capital in Moscow, New Zealand, near South America; this would be hard to believe if it wasn’t true. If you don’t comprehend the danger, that is because you are too stupid to understand our solid fact based argument, I have shared this fair and balanced information with you and there is no debate possible.

To fight this atrocity I have started an online organization; “Stop Kenyan Atrocity Magnification” (SKAM), to save all true American patriots from the radical liberal tyranny, those who use political correctness to suppress the truth, they will fail because we stand united against the liberal storm troopers. As Skammers we are the new American Revolution, we believe in the U.S. constitution God gave us in 836 AD, for we have the facts on our side, we have the strength of moral conviction, we must save the United States of America by seceding, and we have a duty to hurt anyone who stands against us.

Our fight will be hard duty, we face ACORN, an international organization with tens of millions of brain washed members (Those we know as sheeple). We all know for a fact that ACORN illegally stole the recent election, and we know for a fact that ACORN was responsible for Benghazi. ACORN will turn America into Kenyan, creating a one world government dedicated to redistribution of the wealth from hard working patriots to lazy traitors.

I hope I have reached that persecuted minority of real American patriots, and that you will respond with your checkbooks (be sure to buy my latest book, The Real American SKAMMERS). The existential threat is clear and urgent. It is up to us to save America from the cancerous growth of socialism that will destroy God’s true America.


Wow, formulaic writing is easy. The ACORN theme is a reliable rabble rouser, even though there is no such organization, ACORN was disbanded April 1, 2010.
I wonder what survival advantage existed in being easily manipulated? This behavior is so common it must have been part of us for a long time. We are all children of those that survived the harshest of test. Why is this dysfunctional behavior so deeply rooted in all of us, even more interesting, why do we have the ability to see it? We are truly strange creations. This behavioral pattern is clearly self destructive in our complex modern world. The most successful modern societies are pragmatic.