Credit where credit is due...

Love him or hate him, credit must be given where credit is due. After the September 11th attacks Bush said that he was devoting the rest of his presidency to ensure there were no more attacks on American soil. There weren't. Had there been its safe to say he would have been burned at the stake by the media and the public. While I disagree with a lot he has done, I feel that this is the shining star in a lackluster presidency. Good job. I hope in time historians will look back and see his "mission was accomplished."

Get busy living, or get busy dying...

On that morning, when this life is over, I know, I'll see your face.... Rest in Peace my lifelong and great friend, Greg Martucci. I miss you already brother! God Speed.

"Even though I walk through the valley in the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for thou are with me." - Psalm 23

http://www.silive.com/obituaries/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/1225717222157610.xml&coll=1

Jesus!

Last I checked I do not live in Israel. So why then is so much attention given to a candidates stance on policies relating to Israel? I know the an$wer to that que$tion. I wa$ ju$t being hypothetical. Anyway, if you care so much about Israel, move there and stay there. This is America. This election is about America. The focus should be on the issues concerning security and economic stability on our soil, not some land thousands of miles away with little or no economic and diplomatic benefit to us. Let's worry about them and everyone else for that matter, later.

Market

I am expecting a 350 point or more drop in the Dow tomorrow, September 15th. I can even see the drop go as high as 500 points during the session. Let's see how good I am.....

My Summer so far...

Well, it has been quite some time since I have written so instead of discussing world issues I'm going to discuss me and what I have done this summer. I graduated with honors from NYU at the hallowed, soon to be demolished Yankee Stadium. I walked the Seine and shopped at Louis Vuitton on the Champs Elysee. I looked into the eyes of the Mona Lisa in all her glory. I hung out with Picasso, Monet, Manet, Rodin and DaVinci at the Louvre and Musee D'orsay with the Eiffel Tower as our backdrop. I visited Normandy Beach, walked down bloody Omaha, viewed the cliffs at Point Du Hoc, spent some time in a German Bunker and paid homage to the fallen soldiers at the American Cemetery in Caen, particularly one great American hero and medal of honor recipient for his actions on D-Day, Teddy Roosevelt Jr. I prayed to the almighty at the the grandeoise cathedral that is Notre Dame de Paris and rested my head in the evening at L'Opera on the right bank in the 9th arrondissement. I went to Kate Moss lingerie launch party for Agent Provacateur at Milk studios high above the Manhattan skyline as a guest of the most beautiful women at the party and continued the relationship with that gorgeous woman for two months until its recent demise All god things must come to an end. I traveled up to Boston, shopped and dined in upscale establishments on Newbury Street and caught two Sox games at Fenway. I sung "Sweet Caroline" at the end of the eighth inning with the "Nation", much to my dismay as a Yankee fan. I partied in a multi-million dollar mansion on Dune Road in the Hamptons and laughed with my friends at the lunacy we cause and participate in. I saw the Brazilian Girls play a free concert in Prospect Park and "danced" the night away at a secret, warehouse after party in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I took a few trips to the Jersey Shore to enjoy the beach and mock the ridiculous, Ed Hardy wearing goof balls that inhabit that pathetic scene. I cringe at the thought of it. I turned Thirty and celebrated with friends at Dos Caminos , Park Avenue South, NYC. I've argued and discussed politics and finance amongst my friends and spent time with my family at our pool. I did extensive research for my final assignment at NYU on carbon taxation or a carbon cap & trade scheme and found, in my eyes, that the cap and trade is the way to go. I got a tattoo on my right rib cage that reads: PERGE•FIDENTER•QVO•CONSILIA•TE•DVCVNT VIVE•VITAM•QVAM•IMAGINATVS•ES or for all of you non-Latin speakers "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams, live the life you've imagined." An uplifting quote by the famous American author Henry David Thoreau. So far this Summer, bear in mind theres still two months left, all in all I am living the life I've imagined. Now if only I can start making some money!

The Party's Over

Hillary, seriously, the party's over (pun intended). Concede.

Who is he?

A sign posted in N.Y.C.'s East Village circa 2005 begs the question:



From Atlas Shrugged:

"John Galt is Prometheus who changed his mind. After centuries of being torn by vultures in payment for having brought to men the fire of the gods, he broke his chains--and he withdrew his fire--until the day men withdraw their vultures." -Francisco d'Aconia

"The world will change when you are ready to pronounce this oath:
I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man,
nor ask another man to live for the sake of mine."- John Galt

NYU

Goodbye NYU.... Thanks for a phenomenol education and a fantastic commencement at Yankee Stadium.

Bring back communism?...

... the trend, according to WorldPublicOpinion.org, is that more and more people are becoming disenchanted with the free market system. I can understand why your average Brazilian would feel that way, as the income disparity in that country is highly visible and amongst the worst in the world. Only 70% of Americans believe that a free market economy is the most efficient. I'd argue in the next few years that that number will decrease as we head into a recession and the inequality of income distribution continues to rise in favor of the wealthy (See: Gini coefficient).

Here is a snippet from the survey:

"majorities in most countries continue to support the free market system, but over the last two years support has eroded in 10 of 18 countries regularly polled by GlobeScan. In several countries this drop in support has been quite sharp."

Here is a link to the full article.

Atlas Shrugged

I have recently been reading Atlas Shrugged by the great Ayn Rand and came across this wonderful portion of text amongst the 1075 or so pages of the book:

" Don't believe the dreams they pump you full of, and you won't get hurt."

"What dreams?"

"The stories they tell you when you're young- about the human spirit. There isn't any human spirit. Man is just a low-grade animal without intellect, without soul, without virtues or moral values. An animal with only two capacities: to eat and to reproduce."