McCain and Palin
Sen. McCain picks Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate.
Dalai Lama and his Brother
Beginning in the 1950s, the CIA trained Tibetans, many of them monks, and then air dropped them back into their country with weapons and radios. The linchpin of the operation and leader of the Tibetan resistance was, Gyalo Thondup, [...]
Archive for August, 2008
The Wall Street Journal August 30-31, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 30, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
The Wall Street Journal August 29, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Today’s issue contains continuations of existing story lines: Election, Georgia, Biden wanted to split up Iraq, GDP growth for 2nd quarter restated.
Second Quarter GDP revised up to 3.3%
Posted in Summary on August 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
The Commerce Department revised up its initial 1.9% estimate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter (April, May, June) to 3.3% — above the 2.7% economists were expecting. This growth was largely attributed to strong exports.
A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, so no recession, yet.
The Wall Street Journal August 28, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Democrat Convention
Democrats nominate Barack Obama.
GAAP’s Demise
In 2010, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will allow about 100 large, multinational companies to discard U.S. General Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) in favor an international model. All U.S. companies will switch by 2014.
Economy
In July, orders for:
Durable good rose 1.3%,
Non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft rose 2.6%,
Transportation goods rose 1.3%,
Commercial [...]
The Wall Street Journal August 27, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
There is nothing particularly notable or new in today’s WSJ besides: 1) their coverage of the Democrat convention, and 2) the victory of Anwar in Malaysia’s recent elections which will lead to a possible no-confidence vote against the ruling party next month.
The Wall Street Journal August 26, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Progressives Push Obama
The left wing of the Democratic party wants to make sure Obama, who they see as a centrist, remembers who brought him to the party. For many progressives, the agenda is: Quick and unconditional withdrawal from Iraq, no parallel buildup in Afghanistan, a reduction in the military budget, a broad roll-back of the [...]
The Wall Street Journal August 25, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Obama and Biden
Obama’s team vetted, and Biden’s team sold. The two men met for 90 minutes on August 6 before Obama’s Hawaii vacation. Picking Biden runs against the usual swing-state strategy, although foreign policy is one of Biden’s strengths where Obama is seen by voters as weak. The Biden pick heightens tensions with Mrs. Clinton’s [...]
The Economist August 23th-29nd 2008
Posted in Summary on August 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
The Economist analyzes Obama and Putin more deeply. Otherwise, there is nothing new.
The Wall Street Journal August 23-24, 2008
Posted in Summary on August 23, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Nuclear Pact with Russia
Because of Russia’s actions in Georgia, the ratification of a treaty signed by Mr. Bush and Mr. Putin in 2007 is likely to stall in the Senate. The treaty would have allowed for greater U.S.-Russian co-development of proliferation-resistant reactors and nuclear fuel banks with the benefit of drawing Russia in as a [...]
National Review September 1, 2008 Vol. LX, No. 16
Posted in Summary on August 23, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Comparing Economic Plans
NR describe Obama’s economic agenda (which they dub “Wicca Economics”) as incoherent, pan-ideological, and contradiction-embracing — depending on the magical abilities of a charismatic leader. Obama criticizes the spending excesses of the Bush administration while promising further spending increases. It proposes to combat higher energy prices by making it harder to bring energy [...]
