Lies, Damned Lies & Statistics

"Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it."

--Adolf Hitler

Lies

So, McCain's campaign has come out with an ad that alleges Obama got advice from former Fannie Mae CEO Franklin Raines, which both Obama and Raines say isn't true. But in the ever-burgeoning "Isn't it Rich?" category, turns out that McCain's CAMPAIGN MANAGER, Rick Davis "was paid more than $30,000 a month for five years as president of an advocacy group set up by the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to defend them against stricter regulations."

To be fair, Factcheck.org goes after Obama's comment about the McCain Social Security privatization plan. "In Daytona Beach, Obama said that 'if my opponent had his way, the millions of Floridians who rely on it would've had their Social Security tied up in the stock market this week.' The plan proposed by President Bush and supported by McCain in 2005 would not have allowed anyone born before 1950 to invest any part of their Social Security taxes in private accounts.Obama would have been correct to say that many workers under age 58 would have had some portion of their Social Security benefits affected by the current market turmoil – if they had chosen to participate. And market drops would be a worry for those who retire in future decades. But current retirees would not have been affected."

Damned Lies

Steady your gag-reflex. Sydney Schanberg (of the "Killing Fields" fame) finally goes after the story Ross Perot has been after everyone to investigate, namely, that McCain knew there were POWs left behind in Vietnam and cut off their last hope. In case you don't remember this one, it came at the tail end of Jonathan Alter's piece on Ross Perot's rant against John McCain in Newsweek.

To recap, about twenty years ago, families and friends of American MIAs began pressuring the US government to reveal what steps were taken to follow up on intelligence regarding last-known-alive MIAs and POWs. When initial inquiries revealed important information had not been pursued, many families and their supporters asked for the public release of POW/MIA records and called for an investigation. John McCain was on the Senate Committee on POW/MIA Affairs as was Bob Kerrey and John Kerry, and the findings, which Schanberg refers to in his article above.

John McCain flashed his famous temper at Dolores Alfond, a representative of the families of missing soldiers, during the POW/MIA hearings. As writer Bill Mizner once said, "The worst tempered people I've ever met were people who knew they were wrong."

Statistics

And just to worry us for today. Is Michigan the next Florida/Ohio? "People here are suffering. They've lived with a deep economic recession much longer than the rest of the nation. And now they are demanding attention, and looking for the candidate with the best answers and solutions. Traditional party lines have evaporated -- which makes Michigan the ultimate swing state."

I don't even have a cute headline for Financial Disaster anymore

And away they go....Morgan Stanley and Goldman have changed their status to bank holding companies. "The decision means that the Goldman and Morgan Stanley will be able not only to set up commercial bank subsidiaries to take deposits, giving them a major resource base, but they will also have the same access as other commercial banks to the Fed's emergency loan program."

"A trillion here, a trillion there..." What does a trillion look like exactly? If you were to stack up one trillion $1000 bills, the pile would reach past the troposphere, through the stratosphere into the thermosphere.

"Cash for Trash" is how NY Times columnist Paul Krugman is referring to the bailout plan. And in case you were wondering if the rest of America has noticed that we just bailed out giant firms who took on more debt than they could handle (too big to fail), while ignoring the average Joes who took on more debt than they could handle (not big enough to notice) an article in today's Washington Post: "This may be a Main Street bailout backlash in the making. The details of the financial crisis are still hard for most people to follow -- what with talk of exotic "derivatives" known as "credit-default swaps" and so on -- but the central fact of the matter hasn't been lost on anyone in this Northern Virginia community: The taxpayers are on the hook for the bad judgment of others. And they say they don't like it. They didn't break it, but now they've bought it."

Politico looks at McCain's love-hate relationship with the New York Times. Politico sez: "'Whatever the New York Times once was, it is today not by any standard a journalistic organization,' McCain senior adviser Steve Schmidt said on a conference call. 'It is a pro-Obama organization that every day attacks the McCain campaign, attacks Sen. McCain, attacks Gov. Palin and excuses Sen. Obama.' That metamorphosis from what it once was must have happened awfully fast. McCain granted the paper an interview on the economy less than 24 hours before Schmidt sought to discredit it."

A reminder that life is longer than just our lifetimes. Workers clearing the area around New York's Ground Zero have discovered rock formations created by glaciers tens of thousands of years ago.

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So for a change of pace, I thought I'd offer some Debate Watching Recipes today -- you know, for those who are planning to settle in for the long haul on Friday when the debate starts at the University of Mississippi, 8 pm Central Time.

Today, Dow Jones Sliders and Truffled "Pop-Goes-the-Economy" Corn.

Dow Jones Sliders
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound ground chuck
8 (3-inch) buns or rolls, split in half
2 to 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
thin slices of cheddar, tomatoes chopped bacon or avocado (optional)

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Preheat a griddle to 350 degrees F.

Combine the onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

Line a jellyroll or sheet pan with parchment paper, and place the ground chuck in the middle of the pan. Cover the meat with a large sheet of plastic wrap. Roll meat with a rolling pin until it covers the surface of the pan; it should be very thin. Remove the plastic wrap, and sprinkle the meat with the seasoning mixture. Fold the meat in half, from side to side, using the parchment paper. Use a pizza wheel to cut the meat into 8 even squares.

Wrap the buns in foil and place in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, place the burgers on the griddle and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Remove the buns from the oven. Spread a small amount of mayonnaise on each bun and top with the burger and any other condiments, as desired. Serve immediately.

(Adapted from Alton Brown/Good Eats)

Truffled "Pop-Goes-the-Economy" Corn
Regular (i.e. non-microwave) popcorn is yummy, and no worries about being poisoned by diacetyl butter flavoring.

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon white truffle oil
• Salt, preferably truffle salt if you have it
  
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup popcorn kernels (7 ounces)
• Freshly ground pepper

1. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Stir in the truffle alt, truffle oil and a pinch of salt; keep warm.
2. In a large, heavy pot, heat the vegetable oil. Add the popcorn kernels, cover and cook over moderate heat until the popcorn starts popping. Continue cooking, shaking the pan continuously, until the popping has almost stopped. Carefully pour the popcorn into a very large bowl, add the truffled butter and toss well. Season with salt and pepper and serve right away.
   

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For any um... political junkies out there--you know... who like to spend all day on Wonkette or HuffPo--the Washington Post has launched a new website called Political Browser. "The idea behind the Political Browser, expected to start Monday, is to brief political junkies on the top "must reads" of the day, from an article on a scandal to a humorous video making the rounds on Google Inc.'s YouTube." Check out its "Blunder Box" area.

Bill Clinton was on The View this morning--looking a lot less defensive than John McCain. Oddly enough, he praises McCain as much as he does Obama, but I think raises some good points.

43 days to the election. Remember that, for many states, would-be voters must register well in advance of the elections. RockTheVote's list of voter registration deadlines. And if you're voting absentee, Declare Yourself has links to each state' voter information page where you can find out how to get your absentee ballot. Feel free to harangue your friends in the swing states. LOL.