Cash For Clunkers

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Earlier this year, the Obama administration made the US taxpayers the major shareholders of two of the three "Big Three" automakers by bailing out General Motors and Chrysler. Ford decided it did not want to subject itself to the government conditions and decided to go it alone. In an effort to stimulate the auto industry, the government then implemented the "Cash For Clunkers" program.

The government's "Cash For Clunkers" program ended a week ago to mixed reviews. The program was designed to provide funds to encourage consumers to trade in their gas guzzlers for more efficient automobiles. The initial allocation of $1 billion was gone the first week. After an additional $2 billion was infused into the program it lasted another couple weeks.

So for the goal of getting people into the auto show rooms and buying new cars, it had a level of success. Unfortunately, the government has been slow in reimbursing dealers for the deals that have been made. Some dealers actually stopped participating because of the slow response of the government.

Auto manufacturers have started releasing their sales figures for the month of August, and initial results of the success of the program are rolling in. Ironically, the two recipients of government bailouts continued to show sales declines over the prior year. Ford, Toyota, and Honda each showed increases over the prior year, with Ford leading the way with a 17% increase in sales.

So the big winners in the "Cash For Clunkers" program are the people who were able to take advantage of the program by having additional dollars towards a new car. In addition, Ford, Honda, and Toyota were the industry winners.

The losers are Chrysler, General Motors, the government, and the US taxpayers. The taxpayers are on the hook for bailing out GM and Chrysler and for funding a program that did nothing for the two companies that the taxpayers basically own. The other losers are those people who would have been willing to buy a used car but will see used car prices rising because of all the "clunkers" taken off the market reducing supply.

The cynic in me believes that it is no coincindence that the two auto manufacturers who received bailout money are the two biggest losers in the "Cash For Clunkers" program.

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Damn I Feel Old

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I used to be quite active. I played high school football, however, unlike Al Bundy I never scored four touchdowns in a single game. Even after high school, I stayed pretty active playing softball and doing a lot of weight training.

Up until six years ago, my full time vocation was just a fifteen minute drive from the house. Even with putting in nine to ten hours per day and having a special needs child, there was still enough time in the day to get in some sort of workout. Unfortunately, that job was eliminated and subsequent employment has left me with much longer commute times and much less time for exercise.

So as I have become more and more inactive, I knew that I was getting more and more out of shape. This weekend I got a pretty good reminder as to how out of shape I have become. Yesterday my in-laws had a bowling party for my nephew. Originally I wasn't planning to participate figuring that it would just be the kids bowling. However, my brother in law was bowling so I decided to join in.

It has been a while since I last bowled. When I bowled on a regular basis, I used to bowl with a 16 pound ball. Yesterday, I started with a 14 pound ball and after the first roll, switched to a 13 pounder. Today, I can not believe how freaking sore I am. My legs, back, and even my are hurting. I know anytime you use muscles you haven't used in a while you will be sore, but bowling isn't exactly the most strenuous activity you can participate in.

Music Monday-Ain't No Sunshine

This is the kind of music I listened to when I was a kid. Solid rhythm and blues from Bill Withers and "Ain't No Sunshine." Dude has an unbelievably soulful voice.



I don't usually go for covers, especially when the original was pretty close to perfect, but Sting does a pretty good job on this one. He is accompanied by David Sanborn on the saxophone. Though I gotta say the stache Sting is sporting looks pretty cheesy.

Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. One simple rule, leave ONLY the actual post link here. You can grab this code at LJL Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.




PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

How Do They Sleep At Night?

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Seriously, how do politicians sleep at night or how can they look at themselves in the mirror? I know that it has been a few days since the White House released their updated projection on the federal budget deficit for the next decade will be closer to $9 trillion as opposed to their original projection of $7 trillion.

The only reason I decided to post about it tonight was the headline that I saw when I received my CNSNews.com email news brief this morning. The headline read "Obama’s ‘Path Toward Fiscal Discipline’ is Paved with Average Annual Deficits of $900 Billion, Says White House Report."

This year's budget deficit is expected to be $1.58 trillion. Prior to taking office, the deficit in the last year of the Bush administration was $458 billion. The average deficit for the next 10 years is expected to be double the highest deficit prior to Obama taking office.

This is a "path toward fiscal discipline?" That they can say something like this with a straight face is simply mind boggling to me. What planet are these people living on? Do they really expect us to believe anything they say when they make asinine statements like these? I think I will go out this weekend and max out my credit cards. After all, if our out of control government spending is "fiscal discipline," then the same must hold true for me.

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Beer in a Box

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I enjoy a nice glass of wine every now and then. Over the years, I have gotten to know a decent bit about wine. I am partial to reds. For special occasions, I will splurge for a good bottle of wine. For everyday, however, I am definitely not a "wine snob." As money has gotten tighter and tighter over the past few years, I started to economize and started buying boxed wine. $15 for a 5 liter box of wine (equivalent to over 6 bottles) is a lot easier on the budget than $5-$10 for a bottle.

In addition to the occasional glass of wine, I also enjoy an ice cold beer. Now the MillerCoors company has started testing a 1.5 gallon beer in a box of Coors Light and Miller Lite. They are targeting the occasional home user who would like to have a draft beer in the comfort of their own home. Now that is a product innovation that I can stand behind.

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Senator Edward Kennedy: 1932-2009

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Nearly two weeks ago, when they had the funeral for Eunice Kennedy Shriver, I thought it was notable that Senator Ted Kennedy was not in attendance. I remember thinking that it told us a lot about the condition of Kennedy in his battle against brain cancer. Last night, Kennedy succumbed to his cancer.

Regardless of how you feel about the man or his politics, it is always sad when somebody dies. It is particularly sad when they have to go through the ravages of cancer. At this point, the best we can do is to wish comfort for the family of Ted Kennedy. We should also wish peace upon the soul of Ted Kennedy and thank him for his service.

This morning while watching the news coverage of Kennedy's passing, they played clips of President John F. Kennedy. As I listened to JFK's quote "Ask not what your country can do for you, rather ask what you can do for your country." I had to ask myself, how did the Democratic Party go from being the party of JFK's "Ask not what your country can do for you" to the party of Ted Kennedy and what can the government provide for the people?

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Keith Olbermann/Jackass

The LA Times got it right on their television guide last Thursday when they listed "Jackass" in the "Countdown With Keith Olberman" time slot. There isn't a bigger jackass on the air than Keith Overbite Olberman.

It was an innocent mistake on the part of the Times, but oh how appropriate. A blogger for the Times, Andrew Morton, saw the humor in the error and commented on it in a post statingm "a few thousand people might have tuned into MSNBC, the Obama administration's favorite cable channel, expecting to see a Jackass show, and instead they'd have found Olbermann."

The next night on Olbermann's program, Keith shows that he can dish it out but he can't take it. Jackass is correct, and maybe a little understated.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

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