Friday Pussy Puzzle

Sometime the apparent is just that but we know in war the truth is always the first casualty. Such may be the case of Israel bombing targets inside Syria. But I suspect Syria actually did tell the truth when it reported a military research facility being bombed on Wednesday. I like puzzles and digging for the truth. But sometimes it's not easy when information gets cast down the black whole of the news cycle. I have a memory for obscure details. Now if I could just remember where I left my coffee cup two minutes ago I'd have it made.

What happened in Syria on Wednesday I believe was well planned. That's how the Israelis work. They do nothing without spending much time gathering the right intel and mapping out a precise operation. It's why they tend to be successful nearly every time and when they aren't there's always a good cover up. There's been two or three stories to what happened on Wednesday but only one is accurate. So we go back a few months and look at the events. The timing of all this was incredible. In November our secretary of state is called to leave a meeting in Cambodia with the president to fly to the middle east to deal with the Israeli Palestinian issue. At that time Israel was bombing Palestine with 100 palestinians dead. Interesting to note that at the same time in Syria they were having 100 dead per day. We know that the Israeli elections were coming up soon and the Israeli people were becoming more concerned with day to day life and not about some war mongering leader. They also weren't too thrilled with having to dodge incoming Palestinian missiles. So I'd bet that some other things were discussed between Clinton and Netanyahu.

Now we know Israel is not about to go after the nuclear facilities in Iran. That would be a fools' game. But with so much blood shed in Syria at the time and the U.S. being unable to help other than paid mercenary assistance which is very limited at best, it was easier to let the Israelis do part of the job. We were after all concerned about chemical weapons that Assad might use. But would he? That's doubtful. Even his own troops wouldn't be that stupid. This is an urban setting they're fighting in over there and it's a safe bet that their use would make for more problems. Remember this fight or should we say slaughter involves not just the Syrian army but several other groups that back Assad. Wouldn't want to wipe out your supporters now would you?

You must admit that the timing of the operation by the Israelis was near perfect. Assad's troops were busy fighting in Allepo, the weather there was bad and there were a few other diversions. One has to wonder about Lebanese air defenses and those of the Syrians as well. A strike at just the right time? Or did someone allow this to happen? We may never know but it sure makes for an interesting puzzle.


Bank fails later as usual.  
UPDATE: No bank fails this week

The Dow

There was a time many years ago when you could define a nations' economic health by what the Dow Jones Industrial average did. It was an indicator of the top 50 stocks that gave a fairly accurate picture where things were and where they were going. That is until many of the regulations were cast to the curb and it turned into a Vegas night out. And don't forget the drinks.

The best talent is now not relegated to producing the next newest and best products but used to squeeze the last nickel from a spreadsheet. Corporations no longer serve their customers but their shareholders and let us not forget those CEO bonuses. New and improved is neither new or better unless you're talking about the pretty new and cheaper packaging. Forget that the product content has shaved it's net ozs. the package now matches the room decor.

But back to the original idea here, the Dow was at over 14000 in October of 2007. It took a 7000 point hit in the months that followed. It is now inching back up to that 14000 number once again and yet the economy isn't humming along like it was before 2007. But the banks now having been bailed out and still sitting on the bulk of housing foreclosures are playing the same game they did back in the early 2000s only this time it's with entire countries. We now have countries who could no more pay back those loans than a subprime borrower could before the crash. So it gives rise to the though. Just how do you foreclose on an entire country? Sorry people you'll have to leave we're turning your country into an amusement park for our rich investors.

It's all crazy when you think about it. Borrowed money chasing borrowed money all the while people getting thrown out of their homes. And the game continues on Wall Street until somebody wants to cash out their chips not realizing that those chips aren't really worth much especially when everybody starts heading for the pay out window. Oh the rush will happen it's just a matter of time. Fear does that you know. That is until greed kicks in and the game starts anew. Let's hope we don't get caught in the stampede again.

Boeing - sounds like it's broken

Hard to believe that Boeing has had so many problems with this aircraft. They spent years designing this craft. It took a few more years with delays to work out the bugs and it still has problems. And that is truly surprising knowing how they test their planes. I worked up there as a subcontractor doing some of their haz mat so I got to see some of how they test things. Hour after hour they put the plane through it's paces looking for defects and what will fail. But as they say "the best laid plans of men and mice". You would think that they could put in another type battery but I guess the electronics wouldn't handle it. Not without a major rewire anyway. And that could be a problem.

An amazing process it is to see. They build part of the main body upside down then flip it over to finish the job. Parts get trucked into the backside of the plant and finished airplanes come out the front to head to the paint shop across the road. Now with 2 million parts coming together you might think there'd be a lot of mistakes but the way they handle that is a big game of "mother may I". A foreman or supervisor  lays out the job. Then the worker must wait for permission to begin. The job is done then the worker must wait for an inspector to check that the job is done right. Makes you wonder how they can complete a plane at all. I'm just glad I was a subcontractor and didn't have to follow those rules.

Too busy to blog

Haven't caught my tail...

Yet.

Stay thirsty when you grab for the gusto just don't look in the mirror

Look in the mirror almost ever day yet somehow never quite see what's there.  I thought I used to be young and handsome but now just satisfied with being handsome. That is until somebody took one of those digital photos of my (what I thought was) adoring face. Sheesh somebody call the mortician! That guy should have been buried weeks ago. Okay okay I realize I'm no spring chicken. The vision is all but gone. The neighbors think I throw loud parties when I watch the news. And the other bodily parts are sagging like the springs of a 56 Olds. But geez I didn't think it would happen this fast. Getting a little jowly under the chin and where did those wrinkles spring up? Never paid that much attention to looks and I'm not vain enough for plastic surgery. Wouldn't want to look like Joan Rivers now would we?

But such is life guess you have to live with it until they slam the coffin llid shut. Had I know I was going to make it this far I would have taken better care of myself. Nah probably not. What fun would that have been? Don't you just love people who live with all the latest herbs and potions and health food trends only to land up worm food just like the rest of us? Sorry guys there are no loopholes when the grim reaper comes for you. He gets his man/woman every time. And who'd want to live to 110 when you wake up every morning and wonder "am I still here?"

So live life to the fullest. Eat drink and make Merry. And when Merry leaves jump for Joy. (rim shot). You only go around once in life and the opportunities get slimmer the older you get. Go for the gusto because Gusto's train is leaving soon if it hasn't already. Stay thirsty my friends because I'm not the most interesting man. I don't even like beer. At least not the stuff they pass off here. Beer is after all so (what's the word?) ... pleybeian. 

Pig meet lipstick

Amazing that some people just don't get it. They just can't accept the obvious. As we all know some people can change and some can't. You can put a suit on a hobo but that's not going to change the inside. Republicans lost this last election and why not? Who didn't they insult with their 47% comments, self deportation as an immigration policy and their no abortions even in the case of rape or incest? Like spoiled brats they pouted and stamped their feet all the while thinking that it was an image problem or a brand problem. Never once looking under the hood of their party and noticing that the engine of this baby should have been replaced long ago. Putting a couple of coats of wax on this junker isn't going to cut it.

As we move forward they have a choice. They railed against Muslim extremism and its' stranglehold on freedoms all the while promoting much the same here in the U.S. Like it or not this nation is moving away from an old white boys network and they just can't bear the thought of it. They can continue to cheat and lie but with today's technology they'll get caught nearly every time. They may control main stream media but that too has lost its' trust as people realize they've been duped  once again. You can't spin it to win it anymore as we saw from the hundreds of millions pumped into this last election cycle. And people aren't quite as stupid as you may think. You can lie to them once or twice but soon they'll catch on then everything you say will be perceived as a lie. They will have effectively poisoned the brand and all the face paint and designer gowns won't make a bit of difference.

Let's see them etch-a-sketch their way out of this one.

Friday pussy is busy call back later

Ever get that feeling you're chasing your tail? I'll get back to you on that right after I answer the voice    mail. Like I ever do that.

We create more bells an whistles to "make life easier"or so they say. Take a phone for example. There was a time in the olden days when it was a very simple device. The phone rang, you picked up the receiver and said "hello". Easy enough but ohhhhh noooo can't have that! Now we must have caller id, call waiting, multiple callers bee bop zip zap and ring a ding ding. A ring tone for each individual caller so that when mother in law calls the music from Dracula fills the air. Think you'll answer that one? And forget cell phones. Only a twelve year old is tech savvy enough to handle one of the new smarty ones. What ever happened to k.i.s.s. = "keep it simple stupid"?  And let us not forget those brainy individuals who keep every scrap of contact information neatly tucked into the digital memory of their smart phone which they either conveniently left at home or forgot to charge the night before. How smart are ya now Sparky!? I found it most amusing running circles around upper management armed with little more than a small note pad and pen. Proving once again that the pen is mightier than a smarty phone any day.

Haven't played tag in 50+ years but now there's a new twist. It can be done with a phone now. I leave a message with your machine you leave a message with mine and together we'll both forget to check. Basically I don't check anyway because if it was that important you'll call back later. And I really don't care what brand of beans you buy at the supermarket they probably don't have it anyway just grab one and run. And the only reason for text messages should be when your mouth is duct taped and you're informing the authorities imho.

The links the links. Hope you know where this is going. Especially found on government web pages you click and wait with the message "you are now leaving planet earth and we aren't responsible for what happens to you", only to be directed to yet another page of links. You press on pertinent link or at least you thought you did only to land up back where you started. Kafka must be chuckling in his grave.

But we're stuck. Knobs and dials are out. You just can't flip a switch or turn a dial. And don't forget your password or you're not gettin in there. Gad what was it? I used to know it last month. So you stay logged in which is a sure sign you hate the routine as much as I do. And a sure bet that password will be forgotten like a root canal.

Now if you'll excuse me I have emails to delete.

Bank fails later
UPDATE: No bank fails this week and they seem to be slowing down.