Dystopian Paradox

Note: We will hold our second meeting on January 25 at Diane Jay’s home in Ridglea Hills from 6pm to 8pm. You can sign up here. The weekend of our first meeting on December 14, supporters of this grassroots movement organized over 4000 similar meetings in 2,000 cities and in all 50 in states, each group adopting whatever name it chose.

The following by Ridge Dickey
December 16, 2008

Early this year, I began working in the effort to get Barack Obama elected president of the United States. Like millions, I made small contributions in response to the Obama Internet money raising campaign. I followed and worked in the Democratic primaries and the race against McCain. I checked pollster.com and fivethirtyeight.com several times daily the last month or so of the campaign.

I worked the last 10 days through November 4 in Roswell canvassing door to door. Grunt work. But other than the birth of my two children, participating in the New Mexico effort was one of the two most profound experiences of my life. The second was a trip to Kenya on a camera safari in 1994.

By electing Barack Obama as our next president, the nation gave birth to an historic moment. I had the privilege of not only witnessing history, but also participating in it. Every eligible voter who voted, whether for Obama or McCain, participated in making history and should be proud for having done so.

And then it was over. Postpartum depression set in.

But I began getting emails from the Change.Gov website of The Office of the President-Elect. Then the first of December, an email said “attend an event.” There was one to be hosted by Diane Jay at her home in Ridglea Hills last Sunday evening December 14. She is an Obama Fellow and spent four months in Las Cruces New Mexico working for Barack’s campaign. I had no idea what the agenda was to be Sunday evening, but twenty people including me showed up.

There was an agenda and it was from the Obama camp headquarters in Chicago. The agenda was for us to identify the biggest challenges facing our country and thus our community, and what we as a group can do to in our community to help bring about the changes necessary to overcome those challenges.

Diane Jay did a super job of facilitating the meeting. Two hours later through our interaction and not by edict from Chicago, we identified by consensus what we felt are our toughest challenges and how to proceed. We also decided that as a first effort, to contact friends to join with us in donating to the Tarrant Area Food Bank. We will be delivering what we collect to the Food Bank Monday afternoon December 22.

We also came up with a name for our group which is Tarrant County Bridge to Change.

We intentionally left Obama out of the name of our group. I’ve learned that Barack is a pragmatist rather than being an ideologue. As he said to America and the rest of the world on the evening of November 4 from Union Square, he will be the president of all Americans whether or not they supported him in the election, and his presidency will not be about him but rather all of us.

He is not bringing to the presidency his personal agenda or the ideological agenda of any one segment of our society. Just as his agenda as president of the Harvard Law Review was to produce the best publication possible, his pragmatic agenda as president of the United States is to lead the effort to make America the best place for our citizens and future generations to live and to have the opportunity to realize our potentials.

Tarrant County Bridge to Change is about all of us in our community. For us to be successful in overcoming the most daunting challenges since World War II, we must set aside our ideologies express of implied and attendant to being or calling ourselves Democrat, Republican, conservative, liberal, Libertarian, progressive, populist, religious or whatever. Our willingness to deal effectively with each other must now take priority over our desires to advance our respective ideological agendas. We must take advantage of the opportunity presented to us by unprecedented challenges to join together and build the bridge to change.

Democrat and Republican congressmen alike have stated that they will be reaching across the aisle to address these challenges. We the members of Tarrant County Bridge to Change will be reaching out to all members of our community, including private citizens, elected officials and public and private institutions. We want and need others who support our purpose to become a part of our group and work with us irrespective of differing ideologies. A group composed solely of those who think alike and don’t consider differing views becomes inbred. It is a breeding ground for monsters.

The Obama effort is transitioning from a campaign to get him elected to a grassroots movement to organize the community which is the United States of America for the purpose of bringing about necessary change for the betterment of both our local and larger communities. The success of this movement will produce a result that will be the most important asset we will have at hand in our foreign policy. This most valuable asset is success at home. Who are we to tell others how to behave when we can’t take care of ourselves? That question is not rhetorical.

The weekend of our first meeting, we were one of more than 4000 initial house meetings of supporters of this grass roots movement. Supporters organized these meetings in 2,000 cities and all 50 states. Will be working in our communities to bring about positive changes for us all. A lasting change is that it won’t be politics as usual.

Trickle-down economics and politics, however well intentioned, haven’t worked. A renaissance of a vital society requires a joining together of us at the grassroots level with those in positions power at the political, economic, charitable and public service level. The result will be a true democracy. Together we can make it happen.

My postpartum depression has lifted. Now I must keep my euphoria in check and channel that emotional energy toward becoming a small but effective part of the effort to improve the lives of all members of our community.

Maureen Dowd in her NYT column today bemoaned to the offshoring of domestic journalism including reporting. I posted the following comment to he article:

The USA will soon be a third world country unless the government takes back control of the generation of US money (read “dollars”). Private money generated by private financial institutions is accounted for with a dollar sign. Deregulation of the private financial sector combined with Nixon’s announcement to the world in 1970 that dollars will be redeemed only in Treasury debt has resulted in what we see today: the deterioration of our industry and the financial credit (debt) crisis.

Globalization has resulted in the inflation of non-productive assets, that is, assets that don’t find their way to fund increased industrial productivity. Interest income does not equate to increased productivity but only accumulation of dollars for those who own the assets that produce the interest. That has meant stagnation for those who work to make a living, including journalists.

Displacement of US industry with offshore facitlites and labor is but one result of our unregulated international financial system. Get your brighter investigative journalists to educate themselves about the interworkings and dynamics of the international private financial system.

Use the power of the pen you now hold to advance the well being not only of domestic journalism but rather all aspects of American industry. Get educated and then educate your readership before the owners of the NYT take your pens away from you.

I checked and my comment has been published (number 128 on the sixth page) but it didn’t make the editors’ selection list. Maybe the NYT management has on its editorial board the equivalent of a KGB political officer who serves side by side with military officers to keep them in line.

November 6, 2008

The ten day period culminating in November 4, 2008, is one of the two most profound episodes in my life. The other was a trip of about the same length to Kenya in 1994.

What I got to see in 1994 was an example of the results of nineteenth century European imperial colonization of sub-Saharan Africa: the destruction of much of its environment, overpopulation and squalor, and the elimination of who knows how many indigenous cultures.

From October 26 through election day, I had the privilege of working with a group of like-minded people in Roswell, New Mexico, to help in the effort to elect Barack Obama president of the United States. What I learned from my experiences there will take more than 30 words to relate. But I’ve got to start somewhere or not at all.

Perhaps one of the most meaningful aspects of the experience was working with a group of people from Austin, El Paso, New York, Kansas and California that included entrepreneurs, electrical engineers, nurses and lawyers who were more than willing to work in the trenches. We canvassed door to door day after day and made phone calls seeking support for Obama. Volunteer groups with similar makeups were doing the same thing in all battleground states for weeks before the election.

This type of work is not fun. We gave of our time doing things we did not enjoy doing for a cause we strongly felt was in the best interest not only of our country, but of all living things on our Mama Earth.

But each day, we had good feelings when we talked to people who were going to vote or already had voted for Obama. At that instant, there was a connection and warm feelings between strangers.

I heard no rhetorical questions like “why don’t the locals do all this volunteer work?” I discovered a long time ago that a very small percentage of the population gets involved in political campaigns. 2004 was my first time and because of that unpleasant experience, I thought at the time it would be my last.

But Obama came along and I knew after reading Dreams from My Father that I would help in his campaign for as long as he was in the running. Growing up in Indonesia and visiting his siblings in Kenya provided Barack with a world view essential to deal effectively with the challenges we now face.

And then we won. That’s the way Obama would put it. It’s about us and not Obama. It’s about all of us. He made that clear Tuesday night when he said that he would be the president not only for his supporters but also those who did not vote for him.

Abraham Lincoln was the white man who emancipated our African American slaves. We now have an African American president who hopefully will lead us all to freedom from the bondage of our arrogance, hubris and greed.

There is nothing providential about the United States or its people. All that defines us as citizens are having been born within its geographical borders or becoming such by a naturalization process. We have no god given right to our parasitic way of life, and the rest of the world has no obligation to provide it to us. Nor do we have the right to dictate how the rest of the world should live or govern themselves, or to assume the role of the world’s police force.

My hope is that we Americans regain some humility (if we ever had any) and accept the reality of our limits. We are not exceptional, and the pretense we are has resulted in the economic crisis and a planet in peril.

There is no free lunch. The many we thought were free were on credit which has now come due.

A great thing happened to me today. My good friend and law school buddy Don Cuba practicing in San Antonio called me this afternoon with one thing on his mind which we finally got to after an hour. The first hour we talked about the election and where things were headed.

Don was a Hillary supporter while Don’s wife Nan, who is also a great friend of mine, was for Obama all the way. Like so many Hillary supporters, Don came on board the Obama bandwagon.

I was telling Don about going to Roswell to work. Don, who is very much self deprecating while lavishing praise on others, told me he rented a bus Tuesday and drove over 400 people to vote. Don and Nan got 100 percent bang for the buck. It made me fell great that they had participated in this way and to have them as my friends.

Sunday, November 2

Yesterday was my seventh day canvassing and time is going fast. Only today and tomorrow to canvass and then a bunch of work on election day.

General Wesley Clark is staging a get-out-the-vote rally today at 11 am at the MIA-POA Park. What’s amazing is that after the rally, he will be canvassing for several hours along with the rest of us. My theory has always been that to be a great leader, you have to be willing to do the grunt work along with those whom you lead.

Some would classify General Clark as an overachiever because he’s risen to the top of every venture he’s ever been involved in. To me, an overachiever is someone who finds themselves in a position they are aren’t qualified for. George W. Bush meets my definition of overachiever.

By contrast, General Clark and Barack Obama are people who continue to realize their potential. They are leaders who attract me. I’m willing to follow them and with enthusiasm.

It’s becoming more and more fun out here as time grows short, even though most of the day is spent in the trenches. But everytime I meet an Obama supporter at their front door, I get a great payoff that makes the work seem more than worthwhile.

The campaign is going well here in Roswell, Chavez County, NM. I have no idea what that means in terms of whether Obama will take Chavez county. What I do know is that the people who have come here from out of town and out of state are working hard.

The Obama field coordinators, John and Whitney, are putting in 14 hour days. I’m a slacker, doing only about 7. But in my defense, I’m old and my single task is to canvass door to door which is tiring no matter what age.

But some of the volunteers are canvassing like me and then coming in at night and putting in a couple of hours inputting the day’s canvassing results into the database. Yep, I’m a slacker.

Which brings up the canvassing program that begins tomorrow, November 1. It’s a new round with about 4000 doors to knock on over the next two or three days. That’s a bunch of doors. But that’s the way a grass roots campaign works.

This campaign strategy is a legacy of Barack’s community organizing experience in South Chicago. I can see his administration operating with the same efficiency, and with competent people in place at every level.

Probably the most satisfying aspect of this experience is working with people who know what they are doing, why they are doing it, and whose primary agenda is getting Obama elected. I see no self-seeking here. Not only are the paid people professional, but also the volunteers. All of us know without telling one another that we are working in a professional, efficient campaign for a common cause. That’s a joy.

But all work and no play sucks. The spirit of Halloween is with us. I walked in this morning at 9 am and Robert is at his computer donning a white witch’s wig. He’s young but looked almost as old as me. Maybe I should die my hair. Maybe we’ll have a Halloween party tonight. I won’t have to wear a wig to scare people.

Tuesday, October 28

Yesterday in Roswell, I canvassed one set of walksheets in the morning and one in the afternoon. I had no problem sleeping last night.

A lady who lives across the street from where I am staying has had as many as seven out-of-town volunteers crashing at her place at a time. We got to meet each other and talk last night. Great lady.

She’s now a medical examiner for the county for 18 years. Prior to that, she was with the police and worked her way up against all odds because she’s a she. Old ways die hard and it’s people with true grit who bring about change.

The volunteers staying with her are from LA, Arizona, Austin and Chicago and other places. People from all over the country are answering the call for change. No telling how many out-of-state volunteers are in Ohio.

All work and no play sucks. Yesterday evening, three of us were kidding around about 5pm at the office and they were bringing up ObamaLantern stencils on their computers. The raw material is a real pumpkin. If you want to make one, you can find patterns on the Internet. One of my new friends, a lady from Austin, says she’s dressing up on Halloween. I have a beard and my bike helmet with me. I’m wearing it and my huge fitover sunglasses and arriving Friday as the Unibomber on a bicycle.

Unofficial word last night was that in Albuquerque, the Demos are out-voting the Repubs 2 to 1 in early voting. That’s a good sign but no one is letting up here is Roswell.

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Sunday October 26

Blogging has had to take a back seat the last few weeks because my time’s been spent getting stuff out of the way in anticipation of the trip to Roswell to help out in the Obama New Mexico campaign. I left with some stuff still hanging like renewing my PO box which expires on November 1.

I started working in Roswell today. Got here yesterday evening and stayed in a Motel Six, which is false advertising. Should be called Motel Zero. I asked for the first floor and all they had was one for the handicapped. The deskclerk said the difference was that it had a walkin shower. I didn’t know there was any other kind.

I said Ok and got the stuff from my car and used the card key to get in the room. It wasn’t a walk in shower. It was a walkin bathroom about 7 feet square all white tile floor and walls with a head, a small sink with no counter space, a shower head on the end of a hose, a white plastic chair and two drains in the floor. It wasn’t for the handicapped. It was for the criminally insane.

The whole room, bedding, bathroom and everything else stunk like bordertown bordello perfume. I stayed the night and never got used to the stink.

People here are great. Several Texans have worked here and they need us. The Obama campaign is getting more local volunteers than the local Democratic party. But we need more so come on over if you can. Robert is the Obama paid field organizer here and his phone number is 575 680 6197. He would love to here from you.

I spent the day walking mainly urging people to vote early. NM’s early voting goes through next Saturday. The main concern is complacency because Obama’s leading in the polls. NM is a battleground state and both Obama and McCain were through here yesterday.

They’ll be working here all day November 4 getting people to the polls, so I’m going to see it through. I’ll miss being in Fort Worth election night.

Let’s hope that in 2008, Barack will be running for a second term and Texas is a battleground state. Or even better, it’s already turned a deep true blue.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued a release yesterday setting out guidlines about how to value securities. Where have they been since 1933? You can read the whole thing here.

The release starts out with an introductory paragraph as follows:

“The current environment has made questions surrounding the determination of fair value particularly challenging for preparers, auditors, and users of financial information. The SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant and the staff of the FASB have been engaged in extensive consultations with participants in the capital markets, including investors, preparers, and auditors, on the application of fair value measurements in the current market environment.”

So what rules and guidelines have the CPAs been using for the last 20 years? Seems to me we need to overhaul everything about our financial system, bar CPAs from doing audits and come up with a regulator scheme overseen by god to assure a legitamate reporting of financial information. Only problem is, the god might the god of Wall Street or the neocons. They most likely share the same god.

Maybe we need a new god. A god in which we can trust. We can’t trust the one referenced on our currency we are suppose to trust because the currency was issued by our government and we can’t trust our government.

Bush is coming on TV tonight most likely to try and cram the Bailout down our throats.  I sent an email to Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas (R) a few minutes ago.  I urge you to email your federal congress people immediately to let them know your views.

My email read as follows:

Dear Senator Hutchinson:

Please vote against Paulson’s plan unless:

Taxpayers get paid back with interest before any bank profits.

Reduce executive compensation

Bipartisan oversight of funding the Bailout.

Paulson was CEO of Goldman Sachs immediately before he became SOT.  He has a direct conflict of interest with what he is proposing.  Congress must force him to resign if he doesn’t do so volutarily. 

Why isn’t the FBI investigating Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch?

Please vote for your constiuents. Not Wall Street and not the Bush administration.

Ridge Dickey

Notational value appears to be a made-up number by those people who create derivatives. It bears no relation to fair market value, that is, what a willing buyer will pay for and a willing seller will sell for when neither is under no duress to complete the transaction.

There are over $1 quadrillion ($1000 trillion) notional value of over the counter derivatives sitting on computers worldwide. One type of OTC derivative is a collateralized debt obligation (CDO). While CDOs may be collateralized, the fail market value of the collateral may be much less than notational value.

A Merrill Lynch transaction at the end of July illustrates the shenanigans which is the OTC derivative and what should be fraudulent accounting practices. ML sold $30.6 billion notational value CDOs to an affiliate for $6.7 billion. As of June 30, ML carried the CDOs at $11.1 Billion, so there was a prior $19.7 billion writedown. The sale would thus produce an additional $4.4 billion loss.

Merrill Lynch financed 75 percent of the $6.7 billion sale and took back a non-recourse loan of a little over $5 billion secured only by the CDOs and got cash of $1.7. So it got $1.7 billion for the $30.6 billion notational value. The writedown on the books was to 22 percent of the 30.6 billion. However, ML only got $1.7 billion for sure so the true writedown is to 5.5 percent of the notational value.

I found the above information at www.elitetrader.com when I googled “notational value.” To get an idea of what we may be dealing with, look at the name of a CDO. Collaterized debt obligation. Collateraized by what? And whose obligation is it that is collaterized? Is there some entity out there that has the legal obligation to pay 100 percent of the notational value of a CDO? Or are these liabilities non-recourse. If so, then we have a giant $1.1 quadrillion Ponzi scheme.

Keep in mind that ML at one time was carrying these CDOs at $30.6 billion. There was more than just a liquidity problem with ML. There was a financial statement problem. And there is still a balance sheet problem because ML has some amount of liability exposure directly related to these alleged assets.

Even if there has been no formal regulation of derivatives, that does not mean that there aren’t plenty of people who may be guilty of criminal fraud. We’ve had the fox watching the henhouse at least since June of 2006 when Bush nominee Henry Paulson was confirmed as Treasury Secretary. Paulson was CEO of Goldman Sachs when he took on the job as SOT.

Obama said today or yesterday that he wants to retain Paulson as Treasury Secretary because he knows what’s going on. The question is, did he know what was going on two years ago?

Newt Gingrich unequivocally stated today in an NPR interview that Paulson was wrong on this $700 bailout of Wall Street. When asked if he felt betrayed by the Bush adminstration, Gingrich said no but that the administration was wrong in calling for it.

If the ML scenario above is representative of the relationship between notational and fair market value of all derivatives, then an implosion is inevitable. This monopoly money is being carried on books all across the planet. If there were a $700 trillion writedown, who takes the hit? Has there been as much notational liability created as notational asset value?

Dennis Kucinich introduced articles of impeachment against GW Bush in June of this year alleging that he created a massive propaganda campaign to sell the nation the Iraq war. Bush should be removed as president before his term is up because of his complete and total incompetence. This guy has been at the helm for almost eight years and has participated (by gross negligence) in taking apart this country’s financial system.

The Iraq war has played a part in the disintegration of the financial system. But to be so stupid as to allow a Ponzi scheme to develop in the name of free enterprise is unbelievable. And all the men and women in the military who have lost their lives or health because of the stupidity of one human being. And all the poor citizens of Iraq who have lost their lives or families and country because of the stupidity of one human being.

McCain is absolutely not the man for the job as president. He wants to continue the Iraq war until we win. The Iraq war is a Ponzi scheme of the Billie Sol Estes variety. BSE got loans on West Texas fertilizer tanks that did not exist. We are continuing to pursue the Iraq war on empty underlying assumptions. One of those assumptions is that if we don’t win the war, we will be fighting terrorists here in the USA. We might be doing that whether or not we continue the war. Another assumption is that we must have Mideast oil to continue our way of life and that the Iraq war is necessary to assure the continued flow of that oil to us. There is no guarantee that our way of life can continue no matter how much oil we import because our financial situation is so desperate.

Obama is right about keeping Paulson on as SOT. It’s wise to keep your enemy close so you know what he or she is doing.