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Gangster Politics

Friday, July 18th, 2008

An American Gangsta

How can politicians connect with teenagers and other people who are “hip-hop?” Send in the big guns of Al Gore. Nothing says “I’m hip” like the sideways peace sign… Or is he pulling a “Three Stooges” maneuver on that guy in the front? Maybe that L on his hat stands for “Larry.”

“Gangster Politics” is doing whatever it takes to get as many votes as you can, ethically or unethically. It’s saying one thing and doing another. For example, you may recall George Bush proclaiming that he was going to bring Osama Bin Laden to justice, actually promising that he was going to do so. Now you can here that same rhetoric from John McCain. It’s unreal that we don’t wise up as a society and call these bull**itters out on this crap. “Hey buddy! You’re saying the same thing your predecessor told us when he was running for office last time, and STILL nothings changed and he didn’t fulfill that promise. Why should we believe you?”

I dream of the day when politicians stop being “gangsters” and just start being real. “If you elect me president, I will work hard to bring Bin Laden to justice.” That’s something I can believe.

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Tags: Grinds My Gears, Politics, Rambling On
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Should Hillary Drop Out?

Wednesday, May 21st, 2008

Turn On, Tune In, and Drop Out

With all of the pundits giving their 2 cents on whether or not Hillary should drop out, I’ve found that I’ve changed my own mind at least twice. This is another example of the media dumbing us down. Sometimes when I’m watching coverage of the Democratic race, I wonder if one of the pundit’s is going to say, “Ok, this is enough guys. We obviously don’t have any news to report so we’re just giving our opinions here. Are we a news channel or “The View?”.

But what can I say, I still catch myself watching them argue and discuss whether or not Hillary should drop out. Until I snap out of it of course, and then go and try to do something productive. Anyway, with all of the talk between party lines and on the news stations about this topic, I felt I had to throw a short post out about it. I am so tempted to give my opinion, but really, who cares? You’ve already heard every possible angle or scenario. Next time you’re watching the news and they start to talk about this, please just turn the channel.

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Tags: Grinds My Gears, Politics
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Credit Card Companies

Monday, May 5th, 2008

Capital One Says- Thank You for Your Business!

No, no, no… thank YOU! I really appreciate you extending me credit at 20% interest and charging me outrageous fees if I pay a day late or go over my limit by a couple dollars. I’m confused, is your goal to push me into bankruptcy?

In all seriousness, credit card companies and predatory loan companies really frighten me. I believe these people are quite possibly the worst people on the face of the earth (hey doctor’s, at least you can say you give better service than these people!). Take a look at what Capital One sent me a few days ago:

Capital One Notice of Agreement Changes

Where do I even begin with this one?

Take a look at the first red arrow at the top. As you can see, the larger your balance gets, the larger your late fee becomes. But why does the increase stop at $250? Why is the max fee $39? I’m not going to try and answer those questions, all I can say is that they have their reasons… Just rest assured that it’s the people who are worse off that are paying the higher fees.

Look at the red arrow below the top one. Over the Credit Limit Fee!!!! Yay! “Is your balance higher than $500? Great!!! We are going to charge you double the fee!” This just isn’t right and I really don’t have to say anything to make that point. I bet the executives at Capital One even blush when asked about that one.

Let’s assume you had a bad month and you have to pay your credit card bill at the last minute. Let’s also assume that you have a $675 balance and a $750 credit limit. A week goes by and then you notice that the check you sent to Capital One arrived one day late, and to make matters worse, the money you deposited didn’t clear before the check was cashed so your check bounced! Holy crap, what just happened? I’ll tell you…

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