Strive to be the greatest man in your country,
and you may be disappointed.
Strive to be the best
and you may succeed:
he may well win the race that runs by himself.
Benjamin Franklin
Exit Polls Suggest Cabriles Ousts Chavez 51%-48%
Thumbs UP
Could it be that the 13 all-too-long years of South American trouble maker Chavez's centrally mismanaged socialist nightmare mismanagement of the Venezuelan economy is finally over?
LATE-BREAKING NEWS: CHAVEZ "WINS" REELECTION
According to official tallies Chavez has about 54.4% of the vote, 90% of the vote in. I'm not hearing allegations of fraud, although there were reports of tanks and armed soldiers in the streets; I can't explain the above story; perhaps it came from an optimistic opposition news source. It may simply be a case of Chavez as a pandering politician plundering the Treasury, not unlike Barack Obama and the Democrats. If the Venezuelan people were stupid enough to let themselves be bought off penny-wise, pound-short, they deserve the economic hell they are surely going to go through (cry me a river). I was prepared to look at potential Venezuelan investments--not a chance now, except maybe for shorting opportunities (i.e., betting against Chavez). There are rumors of even more populist nationalizations (e.g.,, food) and currency devaluation. It doesn't take a Nobel Prize economist to forecast shortages and ruinous inflation, which especially affects the poor.
Updated University of Colorado Election Model
Still Showing (330-208) Romney Victory
Obama's Unethical, Economically Illiterate
Vote Buying in Swing States
Medicare Advantage (MA) is a subsidized private sector alternative. Obama has falsely implied that the higher costs of MA over traditional Fee for Service (FFS) are the result of a superior government business model. this is utter hubris of course. Suderman has a relevant review of Medicare from earlier this year aptly titled "Medicare Whac-A-Mole: Why health care price controls always fail'" There is strong evidence this is an apples-oranges comparison with increasing popularity of MA, more competitive at the benefit level of analysis, and more attractive prices. And the Drug benefit has many competitors and is sill coming in under projected costs
But here's the point: even if Barack Obama conveniently ignores the correlation between price and quality while making a simplistic case making a zero-sum analysis of FFS and MA funding, a big chunk of Medicare cuts underwriting ObamaCare funding. But, surprise, surprise, Obama , not wishing to alienate senior citizens enrolled in MA in an election year, has found a spare $8B in a "demo project" to fund those "wasteful" MA subsidies past the election.
Then the Obama Administration seems intent on sparking a trade war against Mexico in tomatoes on behalf of swing state Florida's growers
Baseball Fans Behaving Badly
The infield fly rule may be called with less than 2 outs and at minimum with both first and second bases occupied. this is to prevent the fielders being able to manipulate a routine pop up into a rally-crushing double play. Base runners normally have to tag their base at the time of a catch before advancing. if the ball is caught, the base runner can be called out with a throw to his original occupied base if he didn't first tag. Lead runners waiting for the catch could be easily be forced out at at the next base by a strong-throwing fielder letting the fly ball drop safely. There's some judgment here as to whether the short fly can be handled easily by the infielder.
In this case the infielder initially called off the left fielder with runners on first and second with 1 out. In this case; the call was belated and then the infielder conceded the catch to the outfielder and it fell safely between them. So instead of the bases loaded and one out, the base runners advance and there are 2 outs with first base open. One can bicker over the timing of the call or whether the catch was routine (it appeared to be until he conceded the ball, too late). The Atlanta fans littered the field in protest, halting play. Inexcusable unsportsmanlike behavior: are they trying to channel their inner British soccer fan?
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| Courtesy of Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images |
Political Humor
Jim Lehrer had trouble making sure the candidates stuck to the rules last night. Even NFL replacement refs were like, "This guy's a disaster!" - Jimmy Fallon
[Lehrer refused to call roughing the kicker as Romney rushed in block Obama's attempt to punt his administration' debt to the next generation. Obama was still confused: he asked Lehrer if they could start the second quarter already.]
During last night's debate, Mitt Romney said he would cut funds to PBS even though he loves Big Bird. And he said he's definitely against whatever Bert and Ernie are up to. - Conan O'Brien
[It's because Sesame Street's cast after all these years has finally graduated to K Street, and the Cookie Monster got a tip from the Justice Department where they ordered those $16 muffins.]
To make matters worse, last night was President Obama's wedding anniversary. Let me tell you something. The only way his anniversary could've been worse is if he'd forgotten it.- Jay Leno
[Unfortunately, there was only so much he could write on his hand. The debate commission wouldn't let him use his crib teleprompter notes.]
At one point last night, President Obama said the one thing about being president is learning to say no. Especially when someone asks, "Do you feel ready for this debate? - Conan-O'Brien
[Obama said this after complaining about GOP voting against cloture on Democrat partisan initiatives...]
Musical Interlude: My Favorite GroupsAlan Parsons Project, "Damned if I Do"
