I Speak of Dreams

A Message From Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of Americ

Seen at Terry Karney's Better Than Salt Money.

Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury Paulson

Other examples of this sort of request: Snopes, Scambusters Federal Trade Commission Quatloos Sample Nigerian Fraud Letters

New House Drivelling #8

In Redwood City, homeowners are responsible for repair of the sidewalks in front of their houses.  The sidewalk in my area was redone within the last 20 years -- maybe even just 8 years ago, but the tree roots are heaving up the sidewalk.

Note the lack of rebar.
I sent an email to the repair people today.  I wonder how long it will take and how much it will cost -- I'm responsible for 50% of the repair.

Attention Californians! Vote NO on Proposition 4

With all the to-do over the Republican vice-presidential nominee, a California initiative has not received the attention it should.  I'm talking about Prop. 4.

Proposition 4 is an initiative that would change California's constitution so that parents must be notified before a girl terminates her pregnancy.  At first blush, that sounds reasonable.  But you cannot mandate good communication by legislation.  In fact, if passed, Prop. 4 would put California's most vulnerable teen girls at greater risk than at present.

  The formal title is "Waiting Period And Parental Notification Before Termination Of Minor’s Pregnancy."

(If you are thinking, "Didn't we vote on that already?", you're right.  This is the third time that a group of wealthy businessmen, lead by San Diego's James Holman, have tried to pass legislation that puts teen girls' health at risk.  You're remembering the 2005 election's Prop. 73 and the 2006 election's Prop. 85.  It's estimated that Holman alone has spent more than $4.5 million on the three campaigns.)

This, the third version, has some particularly nasty twists, including onerous requirements for Child Protective Services reporting.

Learn more about why you should vote NO on Prop. for at the No on Proposition 4 campaign site.  You can pledge to vote NO on Prop. 4.  If you feel like supporting the No on Prop. 4 campaign, here's the secure donation web site.

And here's a list of Prop. 4's backers.  Note that a few large donors are driving this campaign.

Financial Turmoil: Explanations for Beginners

Steve Leavitt of the Freakonomics blog gets his colleagues to explain:

The F.A.Q.’s of Lehman and A.I.G.
By Douglas W. Diamond and Anil K. Kashyap
A Guest Post

For most of the last 20 years we have been studying banks, monetary policy, and financial crises. So for us the events of the last year have been especially fascinating. The last 10 days have been the most remarkable period of government intervention into the financial system since the Great Depression. In talking with reporters and our noneconomist friends, we have been besieged with questions about several aspects of these events. Here are a few of the most frequently asked questions with our best answers.

Diamond and Kashyap go on to answer the following questions:

1) What has happened that is so remarkable?

2) Why did these things happen?

3) Why did the Treasury and Fed let Lehman fail but rescue Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and A.I.G.?

4) I do not work at Lehman or A.I.G. and do not own much stock; why should I care?

5) What does it mean for the Fed and Treasury going ahead?

6) What does this mean for the markets going ahead?

7) When will the turmoil end?

Now I have a better handle on this.

Arrrgh PIRATES! I almost forgot, matey!

It's National Talk Like a Pirate Day.   I like what I said in 2004:

A Great Cure for Dyslexia

See if pirates ruled the world, we'd only need one letter.

See all the images for "If Pirates Ruled the World" at Worth 1000

It wouldn't take long to learn how to type, either.

Cory, who wishes he were a pirate told me about it.

More House Blathering #7

Progress. If you are interested, more below the fold.

Gap Year Advice?

The topic of  "gap year" has come up in my social circle. 

The general idea is that students, typically after graduating from high school and before entering college, take some time off from classroom academics-- a semester or a whole year.  Some get jobs in the community.  Some travel -- with second (or third) language immersion and second-country community service thrown in.

It seems to be rather common in the UK, with lots of organized programs.  It is less common here, but not unknown.

Do you know a kid who has taken a gap year (or some lesser period) and done well?  What worked?  What didn't?  Any advice?

Attention Bay Area Parents and Teens: Study Skills for Teens!

Here's an upcoming workshop, sponsored by the Northern California Branch of the International Dyslexia Association (NCBIDA):

The Magic of Success

Amazing, Almost Magical Study Strategies that Really Work, with Diane Shepard

Using fun and interactive strategies, Diane helps teens develop essential study skills that can be used in learning settings such as classrooms, lectures, labs, study groups and testing situations. This workshop is specially designed to help high school students improve their study skills. Parents are invited, too!

When: Saturday, Oct. 25, 10:30 am-1:00 pm (includes smoothies for a light lunch)

Where: Sacred Heart Preparatory (Room 32S), 150 Valparaiso Avenue, Atherton, CA 94027

Cost : $40 individuals, $75 families

For info or to register: www.dyslexia-ncbida.org or call 650.328.7667

Diane Shepard specializes in teaching and learning strategies for diverse learners, faculty, and staff at Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A certified Learning Disability Specialist and Educational Diagnostician, Diane brings her skills as a special educator and faculty development specialist—and as an honest-to-goodness magician!—to work with students to help them become more effective learners.

Just for Sillies: The Palin Name Generator

Just for sillies:

I put my name and my siblings' names through the Palin Family Name Generator.

We'd be:

Sport Grunt Ditz

Spoon Archer Ditz (that's me)

Tape Boise Ditz

Crust Scramble Ditz Tarr

September 15, 1963

Birmingham Sunday by Richard Fariña

Come round by my side and I'll sing you a song.
I'll sing it so softly, it'll do no one wrong.
On Birmingham Sunday the blood ran like wine,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

That cold autumn morning no eyes saw the sun,
And Addie Mae Collins, her number was one.
At an old Baptist church there was no need to run.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom,

The clouds they were grey and the autumn winds blew,
And Denise McNair brought the number to two.
The falcon of death was a creature they knew,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom,

The church it was crowded, but no one could see
That Cynthia Wesley's dark number was three.
Her prayers and her feelings would shame you and me.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

Young Carol Robertson entered the door
And the number her killers had given was four.
She asked for a blessing but asked for no more,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

On Birmingham Sunday a noise shook the ground.
And people all over the earth turned around.
For no one recalled a more cowardly sound.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

The men in the forest they once asked of me,
How many black berries grew in the Blue Sea.
And I asked them right back with a tear in my eye.
How many dark ships in the forest?

The Sunday has come and the Sunday has gone.
And I can't do much more than to sing you a song.
I'll sing it so softly, it'll do no one wrong.
And the choirs keep singing of Freedom.